SOAP 2020

What You Need to Know About Post-Match SOAP 2020

Beginning Monday, March 16th, 2020, residency applicants find out their Match status – matched, partially matched, or unmatched. Those who are partially matched and unmatched may have the opportunity to participate in the NRMP’s Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program (SOAP 2020). 

This is a highly competitive period to help Match candidates into Unfilled Positions. SOAP begins on Monday at 11a EST (when the List of Unfilled Programs is released by the NRMP) and concludes at 11a EST on Thursday, March 19th. 

SEE FULL BREAKDOWN OF SOAP SCHEDULE

 

Preparing for SOAP 2020

Make sure you are SOAP eligible

All applicants must have registered with the NRMP before the Rank Order List Deadline of February 26th, 2020. Additionally:

US Medical Seniors 

  • Will be sponsored by their medical schools
  • Must be able to start an ACGME® residency program on July 1st the year of The Match
  • Will be verified for graduation by their medical school

International Medical Graduates 

  • Must be able to start an ACGME® residency program on July 1st the year of The Match®
  • Must have their USMLE® Step 1, USMLE Step 2 CK, and USMLE Step 2 CS verified by ECFMG
  • Must have their credentials fully verified by ECFMG® by the week before The Match® (ECFMG communicates with NRMP® weekly to update candidate verification.)

Independent Candidates 

  • Includes previous US Medical Graduates, Canadian, DO, and Fifth Pathway
  • Must be able to start an ACGME® residency program on July 1st the year of The Match
  • Will have their credentials verified by their medical school

All applicants will receive their SOAP eligibility status on Friday, March 13th, 2020 (this is NOT your Match status – simply if you qualify for participation in SOAP or not). 

 

Additional Preparation Before Match Week 

  • Review, certify and submit your MyERAS application
  • Make sure your Personal Information (Contact Info especially) is accurate and up to date
  • Upload or add new personal statement(s) or letters of recommendation (LoR) for specialties you may apply to during SOAP 

Be sure to read: What You Should Know Before the Post-Match SOAP

 

ERAS Fees During SOAP

According to the AAMC:

“Applicants who have applied to at least one residency program (for ERAS 2020 season) by Monday, March 16 at 11 a.m. ET will not pay any application fees during SOAP.

Applicants who have not applied to at least one residency program through ERAS by Monday, March 16 at 11 a.m. ET and are SOAP-eligible, will be charged a fee of $99. If you have not sent your USMLE or COMLEX-USA transcripts, a fee of $80 per transcript will apply.”

Once SOAP 2020 Begins

At 11a EST, Monday, March 16th, Unmatched and Partially Matched applicants gain access to the NRMP’s List of Unfilled Programs. Applicants have only 1 hour to begin researching programs  – then, at 12p, ERAS opens and allows applicants to begin assigning documents for their 45 total SOAP applications (no one gets any more than these 45 applications). Then, at 3p, ERAS begins sending these applications to the programs.

Programs begin reviewing applications immediately and start contacting applicants. DO NOT reach out to programs during Match Week if you are SOAP eligible (unless they have already contacted you first). 

There are 3 Offer Rounds – two on Wednesday, and the final on Thursday. See the full schedule breakdown here.

SOAP concludes at 11a EST, Thursday, March 19th.

What If I’m Still Not Matched After SOAP Concludes?

According to the NRMP, “Once SOAP concludes at 11:00 AM ET on Thursday of Match Week, you can contact unfilled programs directly using the information listed in the R3 system.” 


REMEMBER:

-Apply to 45 compatible programs before 3p EST on Monday
-Do NOT contact programs first during Match Week (only if they’ve contacted YOU first)
-Do NOT share the List of Unfilled Programs with any other candidates

 

Check Out These Other Helpful SOAP Resources 

NRMP and ERAS SOAP Guide for Applicants

ERAS Applicant Checklist for SOAP

ERAS Applicant SOAP FAQs

 

Want to maximize your chances during the Post-Match SOAP 2020? Be sure to reserve your access to Electronic Residency’s Program Compatability Search system where you’ll be able to get instant compatibility results for positions found on the NRMP List of Unfilled Programs.