On March 24th, the CUNY School of Medicine celebrated a major accomplishment of achieving a 100 percent Match Day rate this spring, with all of its graduating students of 2025 being matched with residency programs. This achievement sets CUNY Med apart from the national average match rate of 93.5 percent for U.S. medical schools, further affirming the school’s growing reputation and mission-driven education model.
“It is a bold statement of confidence in the caliber of our students, the dedication of our faculty and staff, and our visionary approach to medical education,” Dr. Carmen Renée Green, dean of CUNY Med, said in a CUNY press release on March 24th.
This year’s CUNY Med School Match Day celebrated all the graduates from different health fields being matched to competitive programs across the country, where they will receive medical training and help New York City’s underserved communities. Additionally, the CUNY Med School encourages students to join their competitive seven-year Master’s and Doctoral Program, aiming to combat the lack of physicians in New York. From the past graduates of this seven-year program, about 75 percent have practiced locally, while 40 percent of them have helped address the healthcare shortages in areas where New York City lacks physicians.
As the March press release stated, “With its proven, holistic admissions process that does not require the MCAT, the school’s ongoing transformation has become a national leader and model of accessibility for other medical schools across the country.”
CUNY’s health system partnerships and training were created to improve health care and address access to health inequalities in underrepresented communities. For example, there is a CUNY Med location in Harlem, which was founded in 2016.
Green also added that, “With a 100 percent match rate for residency programs, we’ve achieved a high-water mark at CUNY School of Medicine. It is a bold statement of confidence in the caliber of our students, the dedication of our faculty and staff, and our visionary approach to medical education.” It is this amount of success and dedication from CUNY that shows its commitment to higher education.
“Many students join CUNY schools due to reasons such as affordability, accessibility and the quality of education that is provided,” Anandita Shaji, a freshman majoring in neuroscience at Queens College, told The Knight News. “A 100 percent match rate is very impressive since it would allow a diverse range of students to get into their desired medical school and help them move towards their goal at the right pace alongside other students.”
The CUNY School of Medicine is on the path toward having a diverse student body, with 53 percent of students identifying as Black or Latino, compared to the 16 percent of medical students nationwide. One way that the seven-year program has become more independent within its medical institution under CUNY is by not requiring the MCAT since it was first founded in 2016.
“I am perfectly in sync with the school’s commitment to access, diversity, and community-orientated care—most of all, their decision to go optional with the MCAT, which removes so much of the barrier for many potential doctors,” said Sakshi Smart, a QC freshman majoring in biology. “It’s heartening to see a healthcare program that not only serves disadvantaged students but also trains them to serve in the very communities that they will do the most good. It makes me all the prouder to be a part of the CUNY system and inspires me to continue striving for a healthcare career that makes a difference.”
Dr. Green concludes, “As a newly independent and freestanding academic medical school within CUNY, we are known for creating innovative pathway programs for exceptionally talented high school students from the greater NYC metropolitan area that demonstrate ambition and a commitment to serve.”
Students can learn more about CUNY Med’s commitment to medical education on the official CUNY School of Medicine website.
