Amanda and Tamara Raymond have endured significant experiences together. From their early arrival to their college years as pre-med students at the University of Florida, the twins from Loxahatchee have consistently been in harmony.

Their connection remained robust as they were accepted into the Bridge to Clinical Medicine master’s program at the Florida State University College of Medicine in 2020, and subsequently into the M.D. Class of 2025 the following year. With the Fort Pierce Regional Campus being the nearest to their hometown, they aspired for – and achieved – placement there for their concluding two years of clinical education.

When questioned if they do everything side by side, they responded simultaneously, “Pretty much!” However, would they remain together during residency, the next phase of their medical training following their May 17 graduation? On Friday, they received the response they were hoping for, securing their positions in the FSU Internal Medicine Residency Program at Cape Coral Hospital in southwest Florida.

“We both rated it our top choice,” Amanda stated.

“We were optimistic,” Tamara remarked.

Observed annually on the third Friday of March, Match Day is the occasion when medical scholars nationwide hear “open your envelopes” at noon (ET) and simultaneously discover where they will spend the forthcoming years. At FSU, College of Medicine Dean Alma Littles, M.D., proclaimed the enchanting words from the stage of FSU’s Ruby Diamond Auditorium, unleashing several moments of jubilation and excitement.

The procedure commences the preceding autumn when fourth-year medical scholars begin applying to residency programs via the computerized National Resident Matching Program. Students rank the programs based on their preferences, while the directors of each residency program rank the students according to their own preference. The degree of alignment between student and director rankings determines the match.

The Raymonds were among 57 students (51%) who matched in a primary care specialty, which encompasses family medicine (10%), internal medicine (22%), pediatrics (4%), and obstetrics & gynecology (12%), addressing areas of greatest demand in Florida and beyond.

In total, 52 of 113 graduates will remain in Florida (46%), a slight decline from last year’s 48%, signifying that even as Florida increases residency positions, additional placements are essential. Research indicates that physicians typically establish their practices within 50 miles of where they completed their residencies.

Match Day is a heartfelt event, with many tears shed as students express gratitude to family, friends, partners, instructors, faculty, and staff from both the central campus in Tallahassee and their regional campuses. Numerous students also offered thanks to a higher power for aiding them in reaching this significant milestone in their medical journey.

“I’d like to express my gratitude to the admissions committee for believing in me four years ago,” remarked Sammy Shihadeh, who matched in general surgery at Atrium Health Navicent Medical Center in Macon, Georgia.

During the ceremony, students, accompanied by loved ones, went on stage to reveal their matches to their classmates. Some chose to wait until they were on stage to open their envelopes.

Riann White, on stage with her parents while her brother participated via Facetime on a smartphone, commented that it was only right for her father to be the one to open her envelope.

“He has opened every piece of mail that arrives at our home, with or without my consent,” she shared, causing the audience to erupt in laughter. White matched in obstetrics & gynecology at the University of Florida College of Medicine-Jacksonville.

Logan Schulz acknowledged his grandfather, Dr. Richard Conard, who inspired him to take up medicine. Conard joined him on stage along with other family members. Schulz is training at the same place Conard did, UF’s College of Medicine and Shands Hospital, where he matched in surgery-preliminary. Katarina Forsthoefel, who matched in obstetrics & gynecology at the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson, mentioned that she is following in the footsteps of her sister and mother. Her father is also a physician, and all three were part of her presence on stage.

Sean Gabany was accompanied by his grandparents, his best friend, and his girlfriend, Katie Allen. He expressed gratitude to FSU for its support, a relationship that began during his eighth-grade year in Crestview, a town in the Florida Panhandle. That was when he began engaging with SSTRIDE, a pathway initiative aimed at assisting promising students from underserved backgrounds as they advance through high school and into college.

“I matched not only in pediatrics, nor just in psychiatry, and not solely in child psychiatry,” he proclaimed, “but in a triple board combined program covering all three.”

Gabany will be training at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. His girlfriend Katie, with whom he has sustained a long-distance relationship since they met during his research stint at the Immokalee Health Education Site, plans to join him.

“That is the goal,” he stated, beaming widely.

This year, 14 students matched in psychiatry, making up 12% of the graduating class. Aanchal Shah was joined onstage by her parents, two sisters, and her boyfriend as she announced her psychiatry match at Yale University-New Haven Hospital in Connecticut, where she completed an external rotation last year.

Nikki Sangha described the day as “unreal” and observed that she now knows “many future psychiatrists,” adding wittily, “I’m thankful for that after this journey.” Sangha matched in internal medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas.

Two students were unable to attend the ceremony but had friends announce their matches. Shwetha Shetty, who was visiting family in India, matched in internal medicine-primary at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. Cristina Sanchez-Benitez, who welcomed her second child the weekend prior, matched in emergency medicine at Orlando Health.

Class President Sean Wimberley, who has a decade of experience as a registered pharmacist, traces his relationship with the FSU College of Medicine back to his time as the PA program’s Clinical Pharmacology IV course director. His address was filled with gratitude, particularly acknowledging Assistant Director of Academic & Student Services Carla Dunn.

“Carla, your commitment played a crucial role in making today everything we dreamed it would be, and we are incredibly appreciative,” Wimberley remarked, who matched in psychiatry and family medicine at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City.

“Thousands of students wish to be in our position today. Let’s honor them — and ourselves — by becoming the best physicians we can possibly be,” Wimberley said, “and by serving as dedicated ambassadors for the FSU College of Medicine and the mission that has guided us here.”

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