In 2009, for every 100 graduates from Canadian medical schools, there were at least 110 residency spots.

When I applied to residency 11 years ago, I was fortunate to secure a position at Dalhousie University in Halifax.īut getting a spot has become harder over the last four years.įor a start, while more applicants are signing up for matches, the number of spots available has not grown at all. They travel across the country for interviews in January and are normally assigned to training programs in March.Įach residency program ranks its preferred applicants, while students choose and rank their preferred programs. Graduating medical students apply for residencies through the Canadian resident matching service known as CaRMs. “It’s just scary, because if you don’t match, you can’t practise.” Growing numbers of medical graduatesīefore doctors can practise in Canada, they must complete a residency, or a period of hands-on training, at a teaching hospital. I think we all are,” adds Kaylynn Purdy, a fourth-year student at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine in Thunder Bay, Ont. Geneviève Moineau, president of the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada. “It’s a situation of grave concern,” says Dr. The number is likely to be even higher this year.

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