Future physicians celebrate milestone on Match Day
Next week, more than 100 medical students from the College of Medicine – Tucson will learn where they will pursue the next phase of their medical training.
Several fourth-year medical students at the U of A College of Medicine – Tucson celebrate during the college’s Match Day celebration in March 2025, where the students found out where they will be conducting their residency training.
Kris Hanning, U of A Health Sciences Office of Communications
- What: Class of 2026 Match Day Ceremony
- When: Friday, March 20, 7:30-10 a.m.
- Where: Old Main Fountain, 1200 E. University Blvd., Tucson
- Livestream: https://satyrlivestream.com/stream/matchday2026/
At this year’s Match Day ceremony, to be held Friday, March 20, on the west side of the Old Main Building on the University of Arizona campus, more than 100 medical students from the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson will learn where they will begin the next phase of their medical training.
On Match Day, fourth-year medical students from across the nation gather with their loved ones and open envelopes simultaneously at 9 a.m. (Arizona time) to discover where they will begin their residencies. Residency programs, which range from three to seven years, represent a critical phase in graduate medical education. During this time, new doctors practice in their chosen specialties under the supervision of experienced physicians.
For students at the U of A College of Medicine – Tucson, Match Day marks the beginning of their professional medical careers after four years of rigorous study, volunteering, research, clerkships, subinternships and clinical rotations.
In their final year of medical school, students participate in residency interviews at institutions where they hope to receive further training. They then rank their preferred residency locations, while institutions rank the students they wish to train. The National Resident Matching Program facilitates the matching process, with students committing to the residency location they are matched with.
“Match Day marks a meaningful turning point, blending the anticipation of our medical students with the pride of our faculty and leadership. The event celebrates the years of commitment, perseverance and development of a professional calling,” said Rich Amini, MD, associate dean for student affairs at the College of Medicine – Tucson. “As students learn where they will continue their graduate medical education, we take great pride sending them on as capable, compassionate physicians to programs across the nation. We are equally proud to welcome many into our own residency programs, where they will train in our community as the next outstanding generation of physicians.”
Registration and breakfast for Match Day begin at 7:30 a.m. Match Day programming starts at 8:30 a.m., and at 9 a.m., students will individually gather with their supporters to open their Match Day envelopes. At 9:15 a.m., they will announce their matches publicly. Closing remarks begin at 10 a.m.
Parking is available at a rate of $8 per car at the Tyndall Garage, located on Tyndall Avenue south of University Boulevard. There is a drop-off area for people with disabilities on University Boulevard at the flagpole west of Old Main. For more information, visit the College of Medicine – Tucson Match Day webpage.
The following College of Medicine – Tucson students are among those who will be participating in Match Day.
Marcy Belmont: ‘I’m ready to help the next person in line’
Reflecting on being a first-generation college graduate and soon-to-be physician, Marcy Belmont says, “There are no limits. There’s not a specific type of person who becomes a doctor. Whatever it is you want to be — you can do it.”
Anna C. Christensen
Tucson native Marcy Belmont is on the brink of realizing her dream of becoming a physician — a goal that began in childhood while helping care for her mother, who was blind for much of Belmont’s early life. She witnessed how life-changing care could be after her mother regained some vision following multiple transplants.
“It was amazing. I want to be that kind of change for someone,” Belmont said.
Belmont’s path to medical school was not traditional. At 16, she found support and mentorship through the Youth On Their Own program while navigating independence. She later earned a bachelor’s degree in graphic information technology from Arizona State University while working at Starbucks to help pay tuition.
Now, she is preparing to begin residency as a wife and new mother and hopes to guide students who are next in line.
“This is a dream that has come true,” she said. “So many times, you feel like it’s probably not going to happen, but I finally made it.”
She is pursuing training in emergency medicine so she can care for anyone who walks through the door. After residency, she hopes to launch her career in Arizona.
“If it were up to me, I would stay in Arizona for everything,” she said. “I owe this place so much.”
Samantha Olsson: ‘Serving the communities that built me’
Explaining why she aspires to be a family medicine physician, Samantha Olsson says, “Family medicine is the only specialty where you truly get to be an old-fashioned doctor. That’s the kind of medicine I want to practice — that continuity you can’t get anywhere outside of primary care.”
Anna C. Christensen
After receiving a bachelor’s degree in biomedical sciences from Northern Arizona University, Samantha Olsson came to the College of Medicine – Tucson to be closer to family in Benson, 45 miles southeast of here. She hopes to build a career in a rural area like the one she came from.
“I see myself staying in southern Arizona. I envision a practice that’s small town, close-knit,” she said. “I’m looking forward to serving the communities that built me.”
Thanks to the Primary Care Physician Scholarship, which covers tuition for medical students who commit to practicing primary care in underserved Arizona communities, Olsson knows she’ll be back, no matter where her planned residency in family medicine takes her.
“I don’t know if I would have been able to take on the student loans it would have taken to get me through medical school,” she said. “The PCP Scholarship made becoming a doctor possible.”
Olsson says it feels “unreal” to reach this point and reflects on her four years here as a transformative time.
“My experience has prepared me more than I even expected, for residency and beyond,” she said. “I got married during medical school, made some great friends and grew into myself, both as a person and a future physician.”
Claire Rosenberger: ‘Opportunity to build lasting relationships’
With plans to pursue a career in family medicine, Claire Rosenberger said, “Preventive care empowers patients to take charge of their health, and family medicine allows physicians to be strong assets in their communities.”
Lorie Anderson
Illinois native Claire Rosenberger came to Arizona for college and stayed for medical school.
Her interest in medicine began in high school when family members were diagnosed with autoimmune and chronic conditions.
“Seeing how timely diagnosis and positive patient-physician relationships shaped their experiences inspired me,” Rosenberger said.
The first of her family to pursue a career in medicine, she balanced academics and a job at Campus Recreation while completing her undergraduate degree in physiology and gaining advance admission to medical school through the Honors Early Assurance Program. As a first-year medical student, she found a support system she did not expect.
“I knew medical school would be challenging, and it has been, but it’s also been one of the happiest times of my life,” she said. “There’s a strong culture of support rather than competition. Classmates encourage and uplift each other.”
After graduating, she aims to complete residency training in family medicine and eventually care for underserved communities in the Southwest.
“Family medicine offers a broad scope of care — from pregnancy to newborns to end-of-life — and the opportunity to build lasting relationships with patients and families,” Rosenberger said. “In some communities you might be treating multiple generations of the same family.”