2017-18 Post-Match SOAP Season

Welcome to the 2018-19 Post-Match SOAP Season

With Rank Order Lists looming and Match Week a few short months away, it may be time for some residency candidates to begin thinking about the next step in the residency application process: Match Week and the Post-Match SOAP. While even considering the possibility of not matching into a residency program might seem painful, and maybe even a little scary, the most prepared residency candidates know that they should be ready to face whatever may happen on the Monday morning of Match Week. And, part of being the most prepared is to learn about the Post-Match SOAP.

The Post-Match Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program (SOAP) hosted by NRMP® gives residency candidates who are either:

  1. Unmatched – Did not receive any residency program positions.
  2. Partially Matched – Matched into a preliminary (one year) program or an advanced program (starting at the PGY-2).

The chance to compete for the residency positions that went unfilled during the Main Residency Match®. Typically, +13,000 residency candidates apply for +1,000 positions across a variety of medical specialties. It is one of the final steps in the residency application cycle and can be overwhelming to face alone, especially if you are already in shock after learning your match results.  

It is important to understand that the Post-Match SOAP moves at lightning speed and condenses an entire application season into only a few short days. In fact, most of the action happens on the Monday of Match Week. The Post-Match SOAP takes place throughout Match Week and generally follows this timeline:

  • Monday: Learn Match status, (if SOAP eligible) receive List of Unfilled Programs from NRMP, research and choose 45 residency programs to apply to, log in to your ERAS account, and between 12 and 3 pm (EST) apply to the programs you have chosen.
  • Tuesday: Wait to hear from residency programs. Programs you applied to may contact you to hold short phone or Skype interviews to get to know you.
  • Wednesday: Offer Rounds 1 and 2 are held. The Offer Rounds are 2-hour windows where programs may submit residency position offers through NRMP. Once an offer round has concluded, any existing offers will expire.
  • Thursday: Offer Round 3 and SOAP concludes. After the final Offer Round ends, NRMP will release an updated List of Unfilled Programs that will also include unfilled residency programs that did not participate in SOAP. At that time, any residency candidate is allowed to contact the leftover programs to ask if they are still accepting applications.

As you can see, the Post-Match moves quickly, so understanding the process and preparing in advance can be crucial to successful participation.

As the Post-Match SOAP approaches, Electronic Residency will be updating existing articles or posting more informational articles to help residency candidates learn what they need to know about the Post-Match. There are additional Resources pages for more tips on how to prepare, more details about the SOAP process, and SOAP statistics available on the Electronic Residency website.

You are also welcome to reach out by sending an email to support@electronicresidency.com or calling (858) 299-2003.