Are you wondering how to match into physical medicine and rehabilitation? Or how many physical medicine and rehabilitation residency programs are there? Do you want to know everything there is about physical medicine and rehabilitation residency interviews? Need to know how many interviews to match in physical medicine rehabilitation?
In this article, you’ll learn everything you need to match into physical medicine and rehabilitation.
Summary:
- Physical medicine and rehabilitation is moderately competitive, in part due to having so many programs and positions available.
- In part due to the volume of applications, physical medicine and rehabilitation residency programs use standardized screens to “weed out” applicants
- The most successful applicants won’t fail any USMLE or COMLEX-USA, have a letter of recommendation and demonstrate professionalism and ethics.
- Historically, most physical medicine and rehabilitation interview invites occur before October 31, and the vast majority before November 30.
Table of Contents
How Competitive is it to Match into Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation?
How competitive is it to match into physical medicine and rehabilitation in the US? Here we have the unmatched % for US seniors by specialty. The “Unmatched %” means the % of US seniors who applied into physical medicine and rehabilitation who did not match during the given year.
This is one measure of specialty competitiveness – perhaps the most relevant if you want to match into physical medicine and rehabilitation.
For more on the competitiveness of physical medicine and rehabilitation relative to other medical specialties, see this article.
How Many Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Residency Programs Are There?
Before we discuss how many physical medicine and rehabilitation residency programs there are in the US, let’s review some terminology. For many specialized residency programs (e.g., anesthesiology, dermatology, radiology, radiation oncology, etc.), the specialty training begins during their second year of residency. This second year is also known as the PGY-2 (post-graduate year 2, for the second year after graduating from medical school).
Categorical vs. Advanced vs. Physician Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Programs
Physical medicine and rehabilitation has three different kinds of residency programs applicants can potentially enter: categorical, advanced, and physician (R).
Categorical refers to programs that include all years of residency training. Physical medicine and rehabilitation residency lasts four years. The first year of training, however, is a “preliminary” year that can be either internal medicine, surgery, or transitional (a sort of grab-bag that will depend on the hospital). Some programs include the PGY-1 “intern” year – these programs are known as “categorical” programs.
Others, however, require applicants to match separately into an intern year. These programs, which begin in the PGY-2 years, are referred to as “advanced” positions.
Finally, for others who have already completed at least a year of residency training, they may be eligible for a “physician” physical medicine and rehabilitation position. These positions allow applicants to move directly into the PGY-2 specialty training and skip the PGY-1 year. This arrangement may be ideal for those who want to complete residency sooner and not have to repeat their intern year.
How Many Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Residency Programs and Positions Are There?
In the 2022 NRMP Match, there were:
- 43 physical medicine and rehabilitation offering 180 PGY-1 (categorical) positions,
- 69 physical medicine and rehabilitation offering 338 PGY-2 (advanced) positions, and
- 10 physical medicine and rehabilitation offering 14 Physician (R) positions
Thus, the total number of physical medicine and rehabilitation residency positions in 2022 was 1,509 + 346 + 114 = 1,969. There were at least 122 physical medicine and rehabilitation programs in 2022. However, it is unclear how many more than that there were since many of the residency programs that offer advanced and/or physician positions also offer categorical ones.
See the 2022 Main Residency Match Results and Data for more information on physical medicine and rehabilitation match statistics.
How to Match into Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: Impressing Program Directors
To match into physical medicine and rehabilitation, you must first be invited to interview. According to the most recent program director (PD) survey from 2021, PDs shared what they look for in candidates they hope to interview.
For physical medicine and rehabilitation, the top five most important characteristics for receiving an interview, according to program directors, were:
- Letters of recommendation in specialty
- Any failed USMLE attempt
- Any failed COMLEX-USA attempt
- Perceived commitment to specialty
- Professionalism and ethics
The same data are presented more fully in a table. Here you will see the % of program director respondents who cited a factor as important for granting an interview, as well as the mean importance score (out of 5).
To balance the breadth of program directors citing each factor with the importance given to each factor, a “composite score” was created. This composite score takes the average of the % respondents citing a factor with the importance score scaled to 100%. For example, if 80% of PDs cited a given factor, with a mean importance score of 5.0 (out of 5), the composite score would be 90%. (The average of 80% of PDs citing with 5/5 – or 100% – for the mean importance, for a composite score of 90%).
| Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: Characteristics Considered in Deciding Whom to INTERVIEW (% of Respondents Endorsing) | Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: Characteristics Considered in Deciding Whom to INTERVIEW (Mean Importance / 5) | Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: Characteristics Considered for Interview Composite Score (Average of % Respondents Endorsing and Mean Importance / 5) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Letters of Recommendation in Specialty | 100.0% | 4.3 | 93.0% |
| Any Failed USMLE Attempt | 93.1% | 4.5 | 91.6% |
| Any Failed COMLEX-USA Attempt | 93.1% | 4.5 | 91.6% |
| Perceived Commitment to Specialty | 96.6% | 4.2 | 90.3% |
| Professionalism and Ethics | 86.2% | 4.5 | 88.1% |
| MSPE | 96.6% | 3.9 | 87.3% |
| Perceived Interest in Program | 75.9% | 4.5 | 83.0% |
| Diversity Characteristics | 89.7% | 3.7 | 81.9% |
| USMLE Step 1 Score | 89.7% | 3.6 | 80.9% |
| Having Overcome Significant Obstacles | 79.3% | 4.1 | 80.7% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 1 score | 86.2% | 3.6 | 79.1% |
| Consistency of Grades | 75.9% | 4.1 | 79.0% |
| Volunteer/Extracurricular Experience | 75.9% | 4.1 | 79.0% |
| Personal Statement (Overall) | 79.3% | 3.9 | 78.7% |
| Class Ranking/Quartile | 75.9% | 4 | 78.0% |
| Grades in Required Clerkships | 79.3% | 3.8 | 77.7% |
| Leadership Qualities | 72.4% | 4.1 | 77.2% |
| USMLE Step 2 CK Score | 72.4% | 3.9 | 75.2% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 2 CE Score | 75.9% | 3.7 | 75.0% |
| Grades in Clerkship in Preferred Specialty | 69.0% | 4 | 74.5% |
| Personal Prior Knowledge of Applicant | 69.0% | 3.9 | 73.5% |
| Passing USMLE Step 2 CS | 69.0% | 3.8 | 72.5% |
| Awards/Honors in Clinical Clerkships | 72.4% | 3.5 | 71.2% |
| GHHS Membership | 75.9% | 3.3 | 71.0% |
| Passing COMLEX-USA Level 2 PE | 62.1% | 3.7 | 68.1% |
| Other Life Experience | 62.1% | 3.7 | 68.1% |
| Involvement and Interest in Research | 62.1% | 3.7 | 68.1% |
| Audition Elective/Rotation in PD's Dept | 55.2% | 4 | 67.6% |
| Continuous Medical Education w/o Gaps | 48.3% | 4.2 | 66.2% |
| Away Rotation in Specialty Elsewhere | 51.7% | 3.9 | 64.9% |
| Medical School Accreditation Status | 44.8% | 4.2 | 64.4% |
| AOA Membership | 62.1% | 3.3 | 64.1% |
| NRMP Flag for Match Violation | 20.7% | 5 | 60.4% |
| Awards/Honors, Clerkship in Preferred Specialty | 51.7% | 3.4 | 59.9% |
| Ability to Work Legally w/o Visa | 37.9% | 3.7 | 56.0% |
| Sigma Sigma Phi Membership | 48.3% | 3.1 | 55.2% |
| Medical School Reputation | 41.4% | 3.4 | 54.7% |
| Visa Status | 27.6% | 4 | 53.8% |
| Interest in Academic Career | 41.4% | 3.3 | 53.7% |
| Awards/Honors in Basic Sciences | 37.9% | 3.4 | 53.0% |
| How Medical School Handled Virtual Rotations | 10.3% | 3.7 | 42.2% |
| USMLE Step 3 Score | 17.2% | 3 | 38.6% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 3 Score | 13.8% | 2.7 | 33.9% |
| Fluency in Language of Pt Population | 10.3% | 2 | 25.2% |
Here are the composite scores for the criteria physical medicine and rehabilitation program directors use for grading interviews.
What Do Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Program Directors Look for When Ranking Applicants?
Getting an interview is only part of the process of matching into physical medicine and rehabilitation. Program directors also rank the most important factors for creating their rank order list.
In the 2021 Program Director Survey, physical medicine and rehabilitation PDs rated these criteria as most important for deciding whom to rank:
- Interpersonal skills
- Interactions with faculty during interview/visit
- Interactions with house staff during interview/visit
- Feedback from current residents
- Letters of recommendation in specialty
We can see the full list here:
| Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: Characteristics Considered in Deciding Whom to RANK (% of Respondents Endorsing) | Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: Characteristics Considered in Deciding Whom to RANK (Mean Importance / 5) | Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: Characteristics Considered for Rank Composite Score (Average of % Respondents Endorsing and Mean Importance / 5) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interpersonal Skills | 93.1% | 4.7 | 93.6% |
| Interactions with Faculty During Interview/Visit | 89.7% | 4.7 | 91.9% |
| Interactions with House Staff During Interview/Visit | 86.2% | 4.6 | 89.1% |
| Feedback from Current Residents | 86.2% | 4.5 | 88.1% |
| Letters of Recommendation in Specialty | 86.2% | 4.2 | 85.1% |
| Professionalism and Ethics | 75.9% | 4.4 | 82.0% |
| Diversity Characteristics | 82.8% | 3.9 | 80.4% |
| Perceived Commitment to Specialty | 72.4% | 4.4 | 80.2% |
| Perceived Interest in Program | 72.4% | 4.2 | 78.2% |
| Leadership Qualities | 72.4% | 4.2 | 78.2% |
| Volunteer/Extracurricular Experience | 75.9% | 4 | 78.0% |
| Any Failed USMLE Attempt | 65.5% | 4.4 | 76.8% |
| Any Failed COMLEX-USA Attempt | 65.5% | 4.4 | 76.8% |
| Personal Prior Knowledge of Applicant | 69.0% | 4.2 | 76.5% |
| Personal Statement | 82.8% | 3.5 | 76.4% |
| MSPE | 69.0% | 3.8 | 72.5% |
| Having Overcome Significant Obstacles | 69.0% | 3.6 | 70.5% |
| USMLE Step 1 Score | 58.6% | 3.8 | 67.3% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 1 score | 58.6% | 3.8 | 67.3% |
| Other Life Experience | 58.6% | 3.8 | 67.3% |
| Class Ranking/Quartile | 55.2% | 3.9 | 66.6% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 2 CE Score | 55.2% | 3.7 | 64.6% |
| USMLE Step 2 CK Score | 51.7% | 3.8 | 63.9% |
| Audition Elective/Rotation in PD's Dept | 44.8% | 4.1 | 63.4% |
| Consistency of Grades | 48.3% | 3.9 | 63.2% |
| Grades in Required Clerkships | 51.7% | 3.7 | 62.9% |
| Continuous Medical Education w/o Gaps | 41.4% | 4.2 | 62.7% |
| Grades in Clerkship in Preferred Specialty | 44.8% | 3.9 | 61.4% |
| Involvement and Interest in Research | 48.3% | 3.6 | 60.2% |
| GHHS Membership | 44.8% | 3.58 | 58.2% |
| AOA Membership | 41.4% | 3.7 | 57.7% |
| Awards/Honors in Clinical Clerkships | 41.4% | 3.6 | 56.7% |
| Passing COMLEX-USA Level 2 PE | 37.9% | 3.7 | 56.0% |
| Medical School Accreditation Status | 31.0% | 4 | 55.5% |
| Ability to Work Legally w/o Visa | 27.6% | 4.1 | 54.8% |
| Awards/Honors, Clerkship in Preferred Specialty | 41.4% | 3.4 | 54.7% |
| Passing USMLE Step 2 CS | 34.5% | 3.7 | 54.3% |
| NRMP Flag for Match Violation | 20.7% | 4.3 | 53.4% |
| Visa Status | 20.7% | 4.2 | 52.4% |
| Away Rotation in Specialty Elsewhere | 24.1% | 4 | 52.1% |
| How Medical School Handled Virtual Rotations | 3.4% | 5 | 51.7% |
| Sigma Sigma Phi Membership | 31.0% | 3.6 | 51.5% |
| Awards/Honors in Basic Sciences | 31.0% | 3.4 | 49.5% |
| Interest in Academic Career | 24.1% | 3.6 | 48.1% |
| Medical School Reputation | 24.1% | 3.4 | 46.1% |
| Other Post-Interview Contact | 20.7% | 3.5 | 45.4% |
| Applicant Facility with Meeting Platform Tech | 13.8% | 3.8 | 44.9% |
| Second Interview/Visit | 10.3% | 3.7 | 42.2% |
| USMLE Step 3 Score | 13.8% | 3.3 | 39.9% |
| Fluency in Language of Patient Population | 13.8% | 3.3 | 39.9% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 3 Score | 6.9% | 3 | 33.5% |
Finally, we can see the composite scores for criteria used to rank physical medicine and rehabilitation applicants.
What Characteristics Do Successful Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Applicants Share?
Here are the characteristics of matched vs. unmatched US seniors applying to physical medicine and rehabilitation.
| Matched | Unmatched | |
|---|---|---|
| Mean number of contiguous ranks, US Senior | 14.5 | 6.3 |
| Mean number of distinct specialties ranked, US Senior | 1.5 | 1.8 |
| Step 1, US Senior | 230 | 220 |
| Step 2, US Senior | 242 | 233 |
| Mean number of research experiences, US Senior | 3.6 | 3 |
| Mean number of abstracts, presentations, and publications, US Senior | 6.2 | 3.9 |
| Mean number of work experiences, US Senior | 3.6 | 3.5 |
| Mean number of volunteer experiences, US Senior | 8.9 | 8 |
| Percentage who are AOA members, US Senior | 7.5 | 0 |
| Percentage who graduated from one of the 40 U.S. medical schools with the highest NIH funding, US Senior | 25.8 | 2.9 |
| Percentage who have Ph.D. degree, US Senior | 1.5 | 0 |
| Percentage who have another graduate degree, US Senior | 17.3 | 28.1 |
Match Into Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: Pass the Screens with High USMLEs
Physical medicine and rehabilitation relies on standardized screens to weed out applicants. In the 2021 Program Director Survey, physical medicine and rehabilitation PDs respondents reported that 30% of applications were rejected via standardized screen. This ranked near the bottom of residencies.
What Are the Step 1 and Step 2 CK Cut-Offs for Interviews in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation?
As mentioned above, physical medicine and rehabilitation ranks near the bottom of programs using standardized screens to eliminate applications. Many physical medicine and rehabilitation programs screen out applicants with failed USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 CK (see below). In addition, PDs use Step 1 and Step 2 CK score cut-offs to weed out applicants.
For Step 1, physical medicine and rehabilitation program directors reported Step 1 score cut-offs between 202 and 219 as 25% and 75%ile marks to screen out applicants.
For Step 2, physical medicine and rehabilitation program directors reported no Step 2 score cut-offs due to low data.
For more on the USMLE cut-off scores for granting interviews – or weeding out applicants – see this article.
If I Fail Step 1, Can I Still Match Into Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation?
If you failed Step 1, you might wonder if you can still match into physical medicine and rehabilitation. In the most recent program director survey addressing this question, we can see that physical medicine and rehabilitation programs are relatively unforgiving if you’ve failed Step 1.
In 2020, physical medicine and rehabilitation 13% of PDs reported they “never” consider applicants who fail Step 1, while 75% would “seldom” consider it. That said 13% of physical medicine and rehabilitation programs “often” consider someone with a Step 1 fail.
Did you fail Step 1 and are wondering what you can do to recover? Read this article and consider scheduling a consultation.
If I Fail Step 2 CK, Can I Still Match Into Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation?
Similarly, you may wonder what your chances of matching into physical medicine and rehabilitation are if you fail Step 2 CK. Just like with Step 1, physical medicine and rehabilitation PDs are unforgiving for not passing Step 2 CK.
In 2020, physical medicine and rehabilitation 25% of PDs reported they “never” consider applicants who fail Step 2 CK, while 75% would “seldom” consider it. That said 0% of physical medicine and rehabilitation programs “often” consider someone with a Step 2 CK fail.
Did you fail Step 2 CK and wonder what you can do to recover? Read this article and consider scheduling a consultation.
How Many Publications for Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Residency in 2022
Research is an important characteristic for matching into many specialties, particularly the most competitive. So, how many publications do you need to match into a physical medicine and rehabilitation residency?
In 2022, the mean number of abstracts, presentations, and publications for US seniors who matched into physical medicine and rehabilitation was 6.2. The mean number of research experiences was 3.6.
Do I Need an MD-PhD to Become a Physiatrist?
You may wonder how much an MD-PhD helps with matching into physical medicine and rehabilitation. It appears that having a PhD correlates with an advantage of 14% when applying into physical medicine and rehabilitation. Specifically, the match rate for those with a PhD is 14% higher than for those without one when applying into physical medicine and rehabilitation.
Note that those with PhDs are relatively rare among physical medicine and rehabilitation residents. In fact, only 1.5% of matched applicants into physical medicine and rehabilitation had a PhD in 2022.
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Residency Interviews
When you apply to physical medicine and rehabilitation, you may be wondering what the chances of getting an interview are. Here we present the outcomes of applicants per the 2021 NRMP Program Director Survey.
Note that physical medicine and rehabilitation uses standardized screens to reduce the number of applicants. Roughly 42% of applicants that year were eliminated via a screen (e.g., Step 2 CK scores, visa status, failed a USMLE in the past, etc.).
When Are Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Residency Interview Invites Sent vs. Conducted?
When you apply to residency, you’ll be doing a lot of waiting. Specifically, you’ll be waiting to hear whether – and when – you will be able to interview.
Want to know when you might expect to hear from physical medicine and rehabilitation programs re: your residency application? Here are when programs typically extend and conduct interviews. Note that the most recent data are from 2020.
Here are the same data presented differently. Note that due to rounding, sometimes the percentages can add up to more than 100%.
How Many Interviews to Match in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation?
How many interviews to match in physical medicine and rehabilitation with confidence? For US Seniors, the magic number of interviews needed to match into physical medicine and rehabilitation is 5. In 2022, having 5 interviews (and ranking them all on their match list) led to a 75% chance of matching. For even greater safety, though, having 14+ interviews led to a ≥91% chance of matching into general surgery for US seniors
How Many Interviews to Match in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation as a DO?
For DO seniors, considerably more interviews were necessary to match into physical medicine and rehabilitation comfortably. To get to the 75-80% threshold, ≥ 9-10 interviews were needed. To reach the 100% threshold, 14+ interviews were needed in 2022.
How Many Interviews to Match in Anesthesia as an IMG?
To reach the 75% threshold for IMGs, ≥4 interviews were necessary. Note that because of so few candidates with ≥ 4 interviews, the numbers become considerably “noisier,” and can’t be interpreted with much confidence.
| # Contiguous Ranks of IMGs | Matched % US IMGs | Matched % Non-US IMGs | Matched US IMGs | Unmatched US IMGs | Matched Non-US IMGs | Unmatched Non-US IMGs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 50% | 25% | 5 | 5 | 3 | 9 | |
| 2 | 25% | 67% | 2 | 6 | 2 | 1 | |
| 3 | 0% | 50% | 0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | |
| 4 | 75% | 100% | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |
| 5 | 100% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 6 | 50% | 50% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 7 | 33% | #DIV/0! | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| 8 | 50% | #DIV/0! | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| 9 | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 10 | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 11 | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 12 | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 13 | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 14 | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 15 | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 16+ | 100% | #DIV/0! | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Concluding Thoughts
Matching into physical medicine and rehabilitation is a moderately challenging proposition. The challenge may feel more daunting if we have perceived weaknesses in our application, or if we want to match in a top program, a desirable location, and/or couples match.
The good news? How to match into physical medicine and rehabilitation depends largely on things you can control – your USMLEs, your letters of recommendation, whether you fail Step 1, Step 2 CK, or COMLEX-USA, and how much perceived commitment to specialty you show to programs.
Looking for a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Residency Advisor?
Looking for a physical medicine and rehabilitation residency advisor? Want help writing your personal statement? Need effective strategies for interviewing? Do you have things on your application – e.g., low USMLE scores, failed USMLEs, no research, IMG status, or others – you need help overcoming?
Be sure to check out our Residency Advisor service.
