Advising Medical Students About Internships

The most important event for most students in the fourth year of medical school is obtaining an internship. In 1969, a total of 8,393 fourth-year medical students participated in the National Intern and Resident Matching Program (NIRMP).1Of these, 8,114 (96.7%) were matched. Very little has been written on the subject of advising medical students about internships.2,3At some medical schools, an assistant or associate dean advises all students about internships and writes school letters for them. Other schools utilize departmental representatives or committees for the following reasons: (1) the need to give accurate advice to students interested in internships (and often straight internships) in multiple fields of specialty training, and (2) the amount of time required to both advise and write letters of recommendation. Choice of Internship The National Intern and Resident Matching Program has supplied information about internship placement. In 1969, a total of 62% of