WVU’s MATTER Track graduates get a jump-start on residency training
Four West Virginia University medical students will graduate as part of the WVU’s December commencement exercises and immediately be able to get an early start in residency training as the most recent cohort to complete the Mountaineer Accelerated Track to Enter Residency program.
The program, better known as MATTER, was created by the WVU School of Medicine to attract talented students who are looking for an efficient and expedited entry into residency without sacrificing academic quality.
Students in the program commit to a core residency program at WVU and can graduate in just three years and seamlessly enter their residency program. Those programs include family medicine, internal medicine, neurology, obstetrics and gynecology, emergency medicine, internal medicine pediatrics combined, pathology or pediatrics.
A shorter path to residency also translates to less accumulated debt for participants.
“By graduating one semester early, I not only avoid paying for that semester, but I also starting earning a salary sooner. This definitely helps alleviate some of the financial burden of medical school,” said Madelynne King. “It’s a benefit that I didn’t understand of appreciate as fully when I was applying as I do now that I’m graduating.”
King and classmate, Elizabeth Dice, say the program also takes the stress out of the National Resident Matching Program process. Students who enter the Match, participate in interviews nationwide. Applicants and program directors then rank each other in order of preference and submit those lists to the NRMP, which processes them using a computerized mathematical algorithm to “match” them and results are released nationally on a set time on a set day in March.
“The MATTER program complimented my career goals perfectly – I feel at home here and wanted to continue my training with WVU’s Pediatric Residency Program in hopes of serving my Morgantown community as a pediatrician,” said Dice. “It has allowed me to stay close to my family support system nearby that surrounds my husband, baby and me, which I know will be critical to my thriving in residency.”
The four graduates and residency placements within the School of Medicine are as follows:
- Elizabeth Dice – Pediatrics
- Madelynne King – Rural Family Medicine at Harpers Ferry
- Shayla Koerner – Family Medicine
- Savannah Lusk – Family Medicine
“Students benefit from the program in so many ways, but one of the biggest is they can jump right into residency training with educators, faculty and residents they’ve already established a professional relationship with during their time as a medical student,” Scott Cottrell, Ed.D., associate dean for Student Services and Curriculum. “That makes that transition much easier to navigate.”
Medical students still meet the same graduation requirements and obtain the same knowledge, skills and attributes as traditional pathway students. They must also acquire and demonstrate proficiency of all of the WVU School of Medicine Outcomes for the Competent and Reflective Physician.
For more information about the MATTER program, visit the program’s website.
For more information on the WVU School of Medicine, visit medicine.wvu.edu.