The Hal B. Jenson, MD Dean, President and CEO
Last Friday was one of those days that reminds you why we do what we do. While the note I shared on Friday provided an overview of the results, it could not begin to capture the true moment of the celebration. Our Match Day event at the Delta Hotels Kalamazoo Conference Center was nothing short of extraordinary. The room was alive with emotion as our Class of 2026 medical students opened their envelopes and learned where the next chapter of their careers would take them. The celebrations that followed among family, friends, and loved ones captured the very spirit of this milestone, and I was deeply honored to share in those moments with all of you.
The results speak volumes about the caliber of our students and the quality of the education they received here. Ninety-eight percent of the Class of 2026 matched into a residency position. This is an outstanding achievement in an increasingly competitive national process. Our students will train across 23 states and the District of Columbia in specialties ranging from Anesthesiology and General Surgery to Pediatrics, Neurology, Dermatology, and many more. Thirty-nine students matched into specialties that could lead to careers in primary care, and 25 will remain right here in Michigan to continue their training.
I want to give special recognition to seven members of the Class of 2026 who chose to stay with us—right here in southwest Michigan—to complete their residency training at WMed: Mahmoud Ajine (Internal Medicine), Hannah Beehler (Orthopaedic Surgery), Korbin Colthorp (Family Medicine-Kalamazoo), Lauren Griffin (Internal Medicine), Kayla Grooters (Medicine-Pediatrics), Serena Karlov (Psychiatry), and Essa Loinab (Psychiatry). To each of you—we could not be more proud. Welcoming you back to this community as physicians is one of the greatest honors of this institution, and we cannot wait to see the impact you will make.
On the residency side, WMed will welcome 75 new residents and 6 fellows to southwest Michigan this July, with a 99 percent match rate across our programs. These incoming physicians-in-training come from medical schools across the country and around the world, and they will join our growing community of more than 240 physicians-in-training across 15 residency and fellowship programs. Their arrival is a testament to the reputation WMed continues to build.
A day like Friday does not happen without the care, attention, dedication and effort of many. I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to the people in Student Affairs, the Office of Graduate Medical Education, the residency programs, and the Communications and Marketing team who were most directly involved in making the process and celebration so seamless and memorable.
While we celebrate Match Day as a single event, it is very much a culmination of four years of dedication of a great community acting in concert. We owe a debt of gratitude to all of our WMed faculty and staff as well as so many other professionals at our partner institutions at Beacon Health, Bronson Healthcare, and Western Michigan University. You all are the ones who taught, mentored, challenged, and supported these students every step of the way. While Friday’s celebration belonged to them, their success belongs to all of you.
What a way to start a Monday!
I am filled with pride for this community and for what lies ahead.
With gratitude,
J. Adrian Tyndall, MD, MPH, FACEP
The Hal B. Jenson, MD Dean, President and CEO