The ballroom of the Joe Crowley Student Union was transformed into the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Friday, March 17, as medical students from University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine, under floating candlelight, opened their golden snitches to learn their residency matches.

University Med students continued their tradition of placing in some of the nation's most competitive residency programs today upon learning the results of the National Resident Matching Program.

Sixty-one students matched with residency institutions in Nevada and across the nation and will enter specialties ranging from anesthesiology to otolaryngology. The Class of 2017's top specialty choices were internal medicine, psychiatry and general surgery.

The education and training students receive here prepare them well to compete for residency positions across the U.S. I am particularly pleased to see so many of our students pursuing primary care and choosing to stay in Nevada," said Cherie Singer, Ph.D., associate dean of admissions and student affairs.

On left, Danielle Hayes matched into general surgery at Swedish Medical Center in Washington, while her classmate, Sarah Robertson, will enter the internal medicine residency at UNR Med in Reno. Photo by Anne McMillin.

Of note, 22 School of Medicine graduates, or 36 percent, will enter primary care specialties including internal medicine, pediatrics and family medicine. A shortage of primary care physicians exists nationwide, and especially in Nevada.

Twenty-one students, or 34 percent of the Class of 2017 will remain in Nevada to complete their residency training at programs currently offered by UNR Med. Those residency training programs transfer to the new UNLV School of Medicine this July.

Residency training location is a strong indication of where physicians will likely set up their medical practices following completion of residency and has strong implications for the future availability of health care professionals in a given area.

The National Resident Matching Program is a private, not-for-profit corporation that provides an impartial venue for matching applicants' and programs' preferences for each other by reviewing their individualized rank order lists.