More doctors fail to land residency positions after school

Doctors wanting to practice medicine in the U.S. cannot start treating patients on their own immediately after medical school. They typically must go through a residency program that provides additional training under the supervision of experienced physicians.

Most doctors who apply to participate in residency programs are matched with particular hospitals or health care providers, but the percentage remaining unmatched has risen faster over the past decade than the percentage placed in residency programs.

Here's a look at the number of annual active applicants, those who matched and those who remained unmatched through the National Resident Matching Program.

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Year Applicants Matched Unmatched

2005: 25,348 19,760 5,588

2006: 26,715 20,072 6,643

2007: 27,944 20,514 7,430

2008: 28,737 20,940 7,797

2009: 29,888 21,340 8,548

2010: 30,543 21,749 8,794

2011: 30,589 22,385 8,204

2012: 31,355 22,924 8,431

2013: 34,355 25,264 9,091

2014: 34,270 25,687 8,583

2015: 34,905 26,252 8,653

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