The USC College of Pharmacy is celebrating its most successful Match Day in the college’s history.
For 2024, the College achieved a 96% match rate for students who sought a postgraduate year one residency, the highest match rate among pharmacy programs in both South Carolina and the Southeastern Conference. The College’s match rate is also among the top ten match rates in the nation. The college has the highest number of students in South Carolina who earned a PGY1 residency at 48 and another five students who were selected into fellowships.
Fifteen alumni will seek further training through postgraduate second year residencies in specialized areas such as ambulatory care, critical care, emergency medicine, infectious diseases, internal medicine, oncology, and pediatrics.
Students matched to programs across 19 states, including 11 students who will begin their pharmacy careers providing care to patients in South Carolina.
Chloe McGee will continue her training at Wellstar Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, Georgia and hopes to pursue a career in ambulatory care. She describes the process of preparing for Match Day as long and demanding but fulfilling.
“I would not have had the same success without my support system of friends, family, faculty, and preceptors who provided encouragement and advice over the last year,” she says. “Additionally, the preresidency track at the USC COP provided beneficial resources and guided me through every step of the application process. It is bittersweet to be graduating, but I feel prepared for success in my residency and career after four years of learning at the USC College of Pharmacy.”
As a pharmacy student, Anna Cooke worked as a pharmacy intern at the Prisma Health Richland Outpatient Pharmacy and knew she wanted to continue her training in ambulatory care. She credits the school’s preresidency program for preparing her to attain her goals.
“I am proud to say that I was invited to interview at all programs I applied to, and I absolutely believe that the preresidency track is what helped me achieve this. I entered the process with a thoroughly reviewed CV, with specific insight on writing letters of intent, and had the knowledge I needed to choose which programs were the best fit for me,” she says. “I am honored to be serving as an ambulatory care PGY1 resident at Prisma Health Richland for the 2024-2025 year, and I look forward to serving the community that I grew up in and the community that fostered my growth as a student pharmacist.”
The preresidency track also made Johny Nguyen feel well-prepared for the match process.
“It allowed me to gain exposure into various fields of clinical pharmacy as well as facilitated the development of my CV and interview skills. Dr. Bookstaver’s residency series throughout was extremely beneficial as he provided guidance on navigating the residency application process,” Nguyen says. “Ultimately, these resources played a significant role in securing a pharmacy residency position at Self-Regional. One day, I hope to be an infectious disease academician, giving back to the pharmacy community that has supported and empowered my journey."
Brandon Bookstaver, ’04, is director of the college’s Residency and Fellowship Training program.
"Students have been extremely engaged in the offerings of our preresidency and fellowship track. I feel early exposure to the variety of training opportunities has allowed for an expansive and educated search for the optimal next step in their training,” he says. "I am thrilled with our results this year, but more importantly excited for our graduating students!”
The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists administers the pharmacy match program to provide opportunities for graduating pharmacy students to further their training by ‘matching’ to residency programs.
Topics: Pharm.D. Program, Postgraduate Training, Match Day