The room at Rochester Regional Health's Riedman Training Center in Irondequoit filled with cheers and emotions as 72 fourth-year medical students from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine opened envelopes that sealed their future.
The group is completing clinical rotations in the Rochester Regional Health system and is participating in Match Day. On the third Friday in March, students all over the country anxiously anticipate whether they were assigned to a residency at the hospital program of their dreams.
Gabrielle Bell couldn’t fight back the tears after her sheet revealed that she was matched with her first choice—Temple University in Philadelphia.
“A lot of people didn't think that I'd even make it to med school, and now I'm matching my number one in radiology,” Bell, a Rochester native, said. “I just feel so blessed, and I'm just so happy today. It's a dream come true.”
Bell said the journey was “unbelievable," but she was set on a career in medicine despite dealing with some naysayers.
“I am just a very determined and stubborn person,” Bell said. “When someone tells me that I can't do something, then I make sure there's only one plan. There's no plan B for me.”
Sophia Valerino’s plan A was staying in the area. She said she was thrilled to learn that her residency would be at Rochester Regional, where she spent her last two years of medical school.
“It's been such a great experience... So I'm happy to stay, see a lot of familiar faces, and just continue to participate in the area,” Valerino said.
The women are part of the college's largest Match Day cohort since Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine partnered with Rochester Regional in 2021.
Dr. Mathew Devine, regional dean for the college, said Match Day is probably his most favorite day of the year.
“It's a culmination of all the hard work that they've put in,” Devine said. “They will also be going on to greater pastures and doing and exploring things that they've always wanted to do.”
Devine said the students will be faced with a lot of obstacles, but “this is the future, and they'll be able to take that over.”
