Are you wondering how to match into psychiatry? Or how many psychiatry residency programs are there? Do you want to know everything there is about psychiatry residency interviews? Need to know how many interviews to match in psychiatry?
In this article, you’ll learn everything you need to match into psychiatry.
Summary:
- Psychiatry is moderately competitive, in part due to having so many programs and positions available
- In part due to the volume of applications, psychiatry residency programs use standardized screens to “weed out” applicants
- The most successful applicants will have a diversity of characteristics, a stellar MSPE, and demonstrate lots of interest in programs
- Historically, most psychiatry interview invites occur before October 31, and the vast majority before November 30
Table of Contents
How Competitive is it to Match into Psychiatry?
How competitive is it to match into psychiatry in the US? Here we have the unmatched % for US seniors by specialty. The “unmatched %” means the % of US seniors who applied into psychiatry 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 psychiatry. In the graph below, you can see that only 7.8% of US seniors were unmatched in 2022.
For more on the competitiveness of psychiatry relative to other medical specialties, see this article.
How Many Psychiatry Residency Programs Are There?
Before we discuss how many psychiatry 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 Psychiatry Programs
Psychiatry 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. A psychiatry 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” psychiatry 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 Psychiatry Residency Programs and Positions Are There?
In the 2022 NRMP Match, there were:
- 352 psychiatry programs offering 2047 PGY-1 (categorical) positions,
- No programs offering positions PGY-2 (advanced) positions, and
- No programs offering positions (R) positions
Thus, the total number of psychiatry residency positions in 2022 was 2047. There were at least 352 psychiatry programs in 2022.
See the 2022 Main Residency Match Results and Data for more information on psychiatry match statistics.
How to Match into Psychiatry: Impressing Program Directors
To match into psychiatry, 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 psychiatry, the top five most important characteristics for receiving an interview, according to program directors, were:
- MSPE
- Personal statement (overall)
- Perceived commitment to specialty
- Diversity characteristics
- 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%).
| Psychiatry: Characteristics Considered in Deciding Whom to INTERVIEW (% of Respondents Endorsing) | Psychiatry: Characteristics Considered in Deciding Whom to INTERVIEW (Mean Importance / 5) | Psychiatry: Characteristics Considered for Interview Composite Score (Average of % Respondents Endorsing and Mean Importance / 5) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSPE | 90.2% | 4 | 85.1% |
| Personal Statement (Overall) | 90.2% | 4 | 85.1% |
| Perceived Commitment to Specialty | 90.2% | 4 | 85.1% |
| Diversity Characteristics | 86.9% | 4.1 | 84.5% |
| Professionalism and Ethics | 70.5% | 4.8 | 83.3% |
| Letters of Recommendation in Specialty | 78.7% | 4.2 | 81.4% |
| Any Failed USMLE Attempt | 75.4% | 4.3 | 80.7% |
| Grades in Clerkship in Preferred Specialty | 73.8% | 4.3 | 79.9% |
| Other Life Experience | 68.9% | 4.3 | 77.5% |
| Volunteer/Extracurricular Experience | 65.6% | 4.4 | 76.8% |
| Having Overcome Significant Obstacles | 80.3% | 3.6 | 76.2% |
| Grades in Required Clerkships | 72.1% | 4 | 76.1% |
| Any Failed COMLEX-USA Attempt | 63.9% | 4.3 | 75.0% |
| Personal Prior Knowledge of Applicant | 59.0% | 4.5 | 74.5% |
| Leadership Qualities | 59.0% | 4.3 | 72.5% |
| USMLE Step 2 CK Score | 73.8% | 3.5 | 71.9% |
| Perceived Interest in Program | 77.0% | 3.3 | 71.5% |
| Continuous Medical Education w/o Gaps | 60.7% | 4 | 70.4% |
| Class Ranking/Quartile | 65.6% | 3.7 | 69.8% |
| Medical School Accreditation Status | 47.5% | 4.5 | 68.8% |
| Audition Elective/Rotation in PD's Dept | 42.6% | 4.7 | 68.3% |
| GHHS Membership | 54.1% | 4 | 67.1% |
| USMLE Step 1 Score | 65.6% | 3.4 | 66.8% |
| Consistency of Grades | 57.4% | 3.8 | 66.7% |
| Ability to Work Legally w/o Visa | 41.0% | 4.2 | 62.5% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 2 CE Score | 55.7% | 3.4 | 61.9% |
| Fluency in Language of Pt Population | 47.5% | 3.8 | 61.8% |
| Awards/Honors, Clerkship in Preferred Specialty | 42.6% | 4 | 61.3% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 1 score | 52.5% | 3.4 | 60.3% |
| Awards/Honors in Clinical Clerkships | 50.8% | 3.4 | 59.4% |
| Interest in Academic Career | 32.8% | 4.2 | 58.4% |
| Involvement and Interest in Research | 29.5% | 4.3 | 57.8% |
| Medical School Reputation | 41.0% | 3.7 | 57.5% |
| AOA Membership | 42.6% | 3.5 | 56.3% |
| Passing USMLE Step 2 CS | 44.3% | 3.2 | 54.2% |
| NRMP Flag for Match Violation | 39.3% | 3.2 | 51.7% |
| Passing COMLEX-USA Level 2 PE | 34.4% | 3.4 | 51.2% |
| Visa Status | 23.0% | 3.9 | 50.5% |
| Away Rotation in Specialty Elsewhere | 9.8% | 3.6 | 40.9% |
| Sigma Sigma Phi Membership | 14.8% | 3.3 | 40.4% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 3 Score | 9.8% | 3.2 | 36.9% |
| USMLE Step 3 Score | 13.1% | 3 | 36.6% |
| Awards/Honors in Basic Sciences | 11.5% | 3 | 35.8% |
| How Medical School Handled Virtual Rotations | 6.6% | 2.7 | 30.3% |
Here are the composite scores for the criteria psychiatry program directors use for grading interviews.
What Do Psychiatry Program Directors Look for When Ranking Applicants?
Getting an interview is only part of the process of matching into psychiatry. Program directors also rank the most important factors for creating their rank order list.
In the 2021 Program Director Survey, psychiatry PDs rated these criteria as most important for deciding whom to rank:
- Interactions with faculty during interview/visit
- Interpersonal skills
- Perceived commitment to specialty
- Interactions with house staff during interview/visit
- Feedback from current residents
We can see the full list here:
| Psychiatry: Characteristics Considered in Deciding Whom to RANK (% of Respondents Endorsing) | Psychiatry: Characteristics Considered in Deciding Whom to RANK (Mean Importance / 5) | Psychiatry: Characteristics Considered for Rank Composite Score (Average of % Respondents Endorsing and Mean Importance / 5) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interactions with Faculty During Interview/Visit | 90.2% | 4.9 | 94.1% |
| Interpersonal Skills | 85.2% | 4.9 | 91.6% |
| Perceived Commitment to Specialty | 85.2% | 4.5 | 87.6% |
| Interactions with House Staff During Interview/Visit | 78.7% | 4.8 | 87.4% |
| Feedback from Current Residents | 78.7% | 4.6 | 85.4% |
| Diversity Characteristics | 82.0% | 4.4 | 85.0% |
| Perceived Interest in Program | 75.4% | 4.4 | 81.7% |
| Personal Statement | 75.4% | 4 | 77.7% |
| Professionalism and Ethics | 60.7% | 4.7 | 77.4% |
| Having Overcome Significant Obstacles | 60.7% | 4.3 | 73.4% |
| Leadership Qualities | 62.3% | 4.2 | 73.2% |
| MSPE | 62.3% | 4.1 | 72.2% |
| Any Failed USMLE Attempt | 54.1% | 4.3 | 70.1% |
| USMLE Step 2 CK Score | 59.0% | 3.8 | 67.5% |
| Personal Prior Knowledge of Applicant | 47.5% | 4.3 | 66.8% |
| Other Life Experience | 52.5% | 4 | 66.3% |
| Letters of Recommendation in Specialty | 54.1% | 3.9 | 66.1% |
| Continuous Medical Education w/o Gaps | 50.8% | 4 | 65.4% |
| Any Failed COMLEX-USA Attempt | 42.6% | 4.4 | 65.3% |
| Class Ranking/Quartile | 55.7% | 3.6 | 63.9% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 2 CE Score | 50.8% | 3.7 | 62.4% |
| USMLE Step 1 Score | 50.8% | 3.6 | 61.4% |
| Grades in Required Clerkships | 44.3% | 3.8 | 60.2% |
| Grades in Clerkship in Preferred Specialty | 37.7% | 4.1 | 59.9% |
| Fluency in Language of Patient Population | 37.7% | 4.1 | 59.9% |
| GHHS Membership | 39.3% | 4 | 59.7% |
| Ability to Work Legally w/o Visa | 27.9% | 4.5 | 59.0% |
| Consistency of Grades | 39.3% | 3.9 | 58.7% |
| Volunteer/Extracurricular Experience | 36.1% | 4 | 58.1% |
| NRMP Flag for Match Violation | 21.3% | 4.7 | 57.7% |
| Audition Elective/Rotation in PD's Dept | 29.5% | 4.2 | 56.8% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 1 score | 41.0% | 3.6 | 56.5% |
| Medical School Accreditation Status | 24.6% | 4.3 | 55.3% |
| Awards/Honors, Clerkship in Preferred Specialty | 29.5% | 3.8 | 52.8% |
| AOA Membership | 27.9% | 3.8 | 52.0% |
| Awards/Honors in Clinical Clerkships | 24.6% | 3.9 | 51.3% |
| Interest in Academic Career | 26.2% | 3.8 | 51.1% |
| Medical School Reputation | 26.2% | 3.7 | 50.1% |
| Passing USMLE Step 2 CS | 31.1% | 3.4 | 49.6% |
| Involvement and Interest in Research | 26.2% | 3.6 | 49.1% |
| Sigma Sigma Phi Membership | 13.1% | 4 | 46.6% |
| Passing COMLEX-USA Level 2 PE | 24.6% | 3.3 | 45.3% |
| Applicant Facility with Meeting Platform Tech | 19.7% | 3.3 | 42.9% |
| Other Post-Interview Contact | 11.5% | 3.7 | 42.8% |
| Visa Status | 13.1% | 3.4 | 40.6% |
| Away Rotation in Specialty Elsewhere | 3.3% | 3.5 | 36.7% |
| Second Interview/Visit | 4.9% | 3.3 | 35.5% |
| Awards/Honors in Basic Sciences | 8.2% | 3 | 34.1% |
| COMLEX-USA Level 3 Score | 6.6% | 3 | 33.3% |
| USMLE Step 3 Score | 6.6% | 2.8 | 31.3% |
| How Medical School Handled Virtual Rotations | 3.3% | 2.5 | 26.7% |
Finally, we can see the composite scores for criteria used to rank psychiatry applicants.
What Characteristics Do Successful Psychiatry Applicants Share?
Here are the characteristics of matched vs. unmatched US seniors applying to psychiatry.
| Matched | Unmatched | |
|---|---|---|
| Mean number of contiguous ranks, US Senior | 11.9 | 5.3 |
| Mean number of distinct specialties ranked, US Senior | 1.1 | 1.3 |
| Step 1, US Senior | 228 | 219 |
| Step 2, US Senior | 242 | 233 |
| Mean number of research experiences, US Senior | 3.4 | 2.8 |
| Mean number of abstracts, presentations, and publications, US Senior | 6.2 | 4.2 |
| Mean number of work experiences, US Senior | 3.6 | 3 |
| Mean number of volunteer experiences, US Senior | 8.1 | 7.1 |
| Percentage who are AOA members, US Senior | 7.4 | 1.4 |
| Percentage who graduated from one of the 40 U.S. medical schools with the highest NIH funding, US Senior | 29.7 | 23.6 |
| Percentage who have Ph.D. degree, US Senior | 4.6 | 2.9 |
| Percentage who have another graduate degree, US Senior | 19 | 22.9 |
Match Into Psychiatry: Pass the Screens with High USMLEs
Psychiatry relies on standardized screens to weed out applicants. In the 2021 Program Director Survey, psychiatry PDs respondents reported that 47% of applications were rejected via standardized screen. This ranked near the middle of residencies.
What Are the Step 1 and Step 2 CK Cut-Offs for Interviews in Psychiatry?
As mentioned above, psychiatry ranks near the middle of programs using standardized screens to eliminate applications. Many psychiatry 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, psychiatry program directors reported Step 1 score cut-offs between 189 and 219 as 25% and 75%ile marks to screen out applicants.
Similarly, psychiatry program directors reported Step 2 CK scores between 219 and 221 as 25% and 75%ile cut-offs.
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 Psychiatry?
If you failed Step 1, you might wonder if you can still match into psychiatry. In the most recent program director survey addressing this question, we can see that psychiatry programs are relatively unforgiving if you’ve failed Step 1.
In 2020, approximately 11% of PDs reported they “never” consider applicants who fail Step 1, while 45% would “seldom” consider it. That being said, 45% of psychiatry 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 Psychiatry?
Similarly, you may wonder what your chances of matching into psychiatry are if you fail Step 2 CK.
In 2020, psychiatry 13% of PDs reported they “never” consider applicants who fail Step 2 CK, while 55% would “seldom” consider it. That being said, 32% of psychiatry 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 Psychiatry 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 psychiatry residency?
In 2022, the mean number of abstracts, presentations, and publications for US seniors who matched into psychiatry was 6.2. The mean number of research experiences was 3.4.
Do I Need an MD-PhD to Become a Psychiatrist?
You may wonder how much an MD-PhD helps with matching into psychiatry. It appears that having a PhD correlates with a modest advantage of 3% when applying into psychiatry. Specifically, the match rate for those with a PhD is 3% higher than for those without one when applying into psychiatry.
Note that those with PhDs are relatively rare among psychiatry residents. Only 3% of matched applicants into psychiatry had a PhD in 2022.
Psychiatry Residency Interviews
When you apply to psychiatry, 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 psychiatry uses standardized screens to reduce the number of applicants. Roughly 47% 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 Psychiatry 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 psychiatry programs regarding 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 Psychiatry?
How many interviews to match in psychiatry with confidence? For US Seniors, the magic number of interviews needed to match into psychiatry is 5-10. In 2022, having 5 interviews (and ranking them all on their match list) led to an 80-85% chance of matching. For even greater safety, though, having 10+ interviews led to a ≥95% chance of matching into psychiatry for US seniors.
How Many Interviews to Match in Psychiatry as a DO?
For DO seniors, considerably more interviews were necessary to match into psychiatry comfortably. To get to the 75% threshold, ≥ 6-7 interviews were needed. To reach the ≥ 93% threshold, 9+ interviews were needed in 2022.
How Many Interviews to Match in Psychiatry as an IMG?
Similar to DOs, more interviews were necessary for IMGs to comfortably match into psychiatry. To reach the 75% threshold, 6-7 interviews were necessary. Note that because of so few candidates with ≥ 7 interviews, the numbers become considerably “noisier,” and can’t be interpreted with much confidence.
Concluding Thoughts
Matching into psychiatry is a 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 psychiatry depends largely on things you can control – your USMLEs, your clinical performance/MSPEs, whether you fail Step 1 or Step 2 CK, and how much interest you show to programs.
Looking for a Psychiatry Residency Advisor?
Looking for a psychiatry 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.
