For one very special day, the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine class of 2026 traded in their scrubs and stethoscopes for spurs and cowboy hats, celebrating a 911爆料网stern-inspired Match Day themed 鈥淩odeo to Residency.鈥
At noon on Friday, 168 fourth-year medical students joined peers across the country in simultaneously discovering where they will spend the next three to seven years of their residency training. Surrounded by friends and loved ones, students opened their envelopes in quick-fire fashion, revealing the next chapter of their medical journeys and tipping their hats to years of hard work that brought them to that moment.
Described as USF鈥檚 鈥渕ost successful match day yet鈥 by Charles J. Lockwood, MD, MHCM, executive vice president of USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine, this high-achieving class matched at some of the most prestigious institutions in the country.
Overall, 81 students (48%) will remain in Florida to complete their residency training with 38 students matching to programs at USF Health. The most popular specialties were internal medicine, psychiatry, family medicine, diagnostic radiology and neurology. Additionally, 62 students (36%) matched into primary care fields.
鈥淓ach of you should be proud of reaching this accomplishment,鈥 Dr. Lockwood said. 鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 be more excited for you as you saddle up for this pivotal next step in your careers.鈥
Amruta Potdar, who matched to internal medicine at the University of Florida, said that her four years of rigorous work have paid off for her and her classmates.
鈥淚 matched to my first choice and can鈥檛 wait to get started,鈥 Potdar said. 鈥淎fter four years, it鈥檚 great to celebrate with all my classmates and see where they will be going next. It鈥檚 been an honor going on this journey with them.鈥
The 鈥淩odeo to Residency鈥 theme offered a lighthearted nod to what many students described as their 鈥渙ne last ride鈥 together before setting off on their next journeys.
Dr. Charles Lockwood, Rep. Kathy Castor and USF President Moez Limayem at USF Health Match Day 2026 March 20, 2026.
The event also marked one of USF President Moez Limayem鈥檚 first opportunities to join this one-of-a-kind celebration with USF Health students, staff and faculty.
鈥淭his is a transformational day, and your success means the world to all of us,鈥 President Limayem said. 鈥淭his is what success looks like and shows why we have one the best medical schools in the state and in the country.鈥
The class of 2026 will reunite once more and ride into the sunset of their medical school journey during their commencement ceremony May 7 at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa.
USF Health Match Day by the numbers:
- 168 students matched
- 81 students will remain in Florida
- 62 students matched to primary care
- 38 students will return to USF Health
- 2 students matched into military medicine
Meet a few fourth-year medical students
Elizabeth Chiu (SELECT) 鈥 Pediatrics, Children鈥檚 Hospital 鈥 Los Angeles
The first patients Elizabeth Chiu cared for were in the back of an ambulance.
Before deciding to pursue a career in medicine, the Edison, New Jersey, native volunteered as a certified emergency medical technician during her undergraduate years at Rutgers University. Her time as an EMT coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, and she felt motivated to serve her community during a time of crisis, even when doing so meant putting herself at risk.
That experience helped clarify the kind of physician she hoped to become. While caring for patients in emergency situations, Chiu found herself especially drawn to working with children, sparking her interest in a career in pediatrics.
鈥淚 value being there for patients during the scariest times of their lives,鈥 Chiu said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 different when the patient is a child. I love that I can be an advocate for children and children鈥檚 causes.鈥
At the Morsani College of Medicine, she built upon that passion through both service and leadership. She regularly coordinates events for Training for Child Injury Prevention, a year-long national training program for medical students, residents and fellows interested in pediatric injury prevention. Chiu also played an instrumental role in establishing the Tampa chapter of Health Career Collaborative, a health professions mentorship and educational partnership between the Morsani College of Medicine and Tampa Bay Technical High School.
Chiu will continue her training in pediatrics at Children鈥檚 Hospital 鈥 Los Angeles.
Kaylee Stankiewicz 鈥 Internal Medicine, University of Miami 鈥 Jackson Health System
Kaylee Stankiewicz鈥檚 path to medicine began during one of the most difficult times of her life.
Stankiewicz, a Miami native, was in middle school when her grandfather was diagnosed with liver cancer. She remembers when he 鈥渨ent from being the grandfather I always knew to being very sick and vulnerable.鈥 But amid the heartbreak, she was inspired by how the doctors helped preserve his dignity as he faced the end of his life.
鈥淢y grandfather was a career police officer and it was very hard,鈥 she said. 鈥淏ut the doctors never told him what to do. They always gave him all the information so he understood his options and he could make decisions with his physician. That was when I decided I wanted to be a doctor.鈥
That experience helped ultimately find her path in medicine and guided her throughout her time at USF. She will return home for her internal medicine residency at the University of Miami 鈥 Jackson Health System, a specialty that she said allows her to help support her patients during their most challenging moments.
Enrique Trevino 鈥 Family Medicine, University of Florida 鈥 Shands Hospital
For Enrique Trevino, the foundation of his decision to become a doctor was laid watching his family take care of patients. And it was solidified by his own experience as a patient.
A 911爆料网sley Chapel native and son of a surgeon, Trevino spent his early teenage years watching his grandfather treat patients in a small clinic in rural Illinois. What stayed with him most was the closeness of the relationships that were built with patients. 鈥淭hey were almost like family.鈥
Years later, as an undergraduate student, Trevino saw the other side of that relationship when he was hospitalized twice for gastrointestinal bleeding. In one of the most uncertain periods of his life, he said the care and reassurance he received from his physician and medical team helped alleviate his fears. Now he hopes to do the same for his patients.
鈥淚鈥檝e always wanted to help people,鈥 Trevino said. 鈥淲hen I think back to when I was in the hospital, I realized the best way to help people was to be a physician. 911爆料网鈥檙e all just one bad day from being in their position and when I see things from the patient perspective, it helps me make more informed decisions when it comes to treating the patient, not just their illness.鈥
That perspective made family medicine feel like a natural fit: a specialty grounded in long-term relationships, trust and caring for the whole person. Trevino will begin building those relationships when he starts his family medicine residency at the University of Florida 鈥 Shands Hospital.
Additional images from the event
