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Offices of Medical Student Education

Ophthalmology

Department Website

med.unc.edu/ophth

Important Contacts

Daniel Rubinstein
Associate Residency Program Director
Director of Medical Student Education
Assistant Professor
daniel_rubinstein@med.unc.edu
Note: All students with significant interest in applying to ophthalmology should meet with Dr. Rubinstein

Don Budenz
Kittner Family Distinguished Professor and Chairman
donald_budenz@med.unc.edu

David Fleischman
Assistant Professor
david_fleischman@med.unc.edu

Advisory College Videos

Application Phase Career Day Career Opportunity Services Session

FAQs/Course Recommendations/Additional Info

Dr. Daniel Rubinstein is the career goal advisor.  Students may also receive their career goal advisor from their clinical research mentors.

Recommended Courses:

AI/Acting Internship
Internal Medicine, Surgery, or Emergency Medicine

CC/Critical Care
Neurocritical Care, Burns, PICU, NICU

ACS/Advanced Clinical Selective
Advanced Clinical Ophthalmology, Endocrinology, Rheumatology, ENT, OMFS, Geriatrics, Neurology

Electives
Ophthalmology, ENT, Endocrinology, Head and Neck Surgery/Oncology, Neurology, International Electives

No
Yes. A rotation in ophthalmology with a program at which you’re interested in matching can serve as an audition. Rotating in different regions can also indicate your interest in matching into programs in different parts of the country.
This is not necessary, but it is suggested – the more time you spend with our ophthalmology
department, the more strongly and specifically we can support your application.
As soon as you’re committed to Ophthalmology. Know your own CV, some up with a general plan for your application, and have specific/strategic questions in mind for your advisor.
Three letters, at least one from an ophthalmologist. All should know you VERY WELL.
Ask for letters with ample notice to your letter writers – at least 8 weeks prior to the application deadline. They will need a copy of your CV and may ask to speak with you further about the specifics of your interests and career goals.
Be realistic about your application, and match programs to your CV. If your strong point is research, apply to research institutions. If your strong point is service, apply to community- based programs or those with significant underserved patient populations. If your scores and grades are borderline compared to the published ophthalmology match statistics, apply broadly to improve your chances.
Not unless the news is really earth-shattering – national-level grants or awards, new patents, etc. Updates are unlikely to be read once interview invites are sent out.
Email with a “letter of interest” detailing your specific and compelling reasons for interest. New pieces of info or relevant updates could be helpful in these letters.
A letter of interest would be better received. See above.
Yes, this is important. Send one to at least the PD, but preferably to each faculty member who took the time to interview you. Try to be specific about aspects of your conversation and mention specific pieces of information from the interview day that bolstered your interest. Be
sure to send these out in timely fashion – rank lists are completed fairly quickly.
Yes, and you can feel free to state this in the letter. Again, be specific about your reasons for interest and why you intend to rank that program #1. DO NOT send this kind of letter to more than one program – ophthalmology is a very small community, and manipulative maneuvers (i.e., telling multiple programs that they are your #1) can have long-lasting negative effects on your career. Do not expect a specific reciprocal statement of interest in response – most programs keep their interests private.
This is usually a sign of interest from the program. Be gracious and professional, even if that particular program is not at the top of your rank list. Avoid engaging in any match violations. Use this information to your advantage when constructing your rank list.

Competitive applicants to ophthalmology will demonstrate all of the following:

  • A strong academic record throughout medical school: Step 1 passed in one attempt, Step 2 SK score of 255+, and a majority of honors grades on required clinical rotations
  • Relationships to support at least two letters of recommendation from academic ophthalmologists (letter writers from home program preferred)
  • Clinical exposure to ophthalmology: participation in the ophthalmology interest group, previous work experience in ophthalmology/optometry, and/or clinical shadowing
  • Ongoing research experience in ophthalmology: involvement in at least 1-2 ophthalmology research projects during medical school with continued specialty-related research activities as the application season approaches
  • Applicants who have not developed the proper faculty relationships, or who do not have a record of clinical and/or research exposure may choose to pursue a pre-residency research fellowship to facilitate additional specialty-related experience.

Match Process Overview

Residency in ophthalmology is a 3-year course of training and is considered an “advanced” because it begins in PGY-2. The ophthalmology match is facilitated by SF Match and is separate from the main NRMP match used by most other specialties. The ophthalmology application and matching process is highly competitive and occurs earlier than the main match – the target date for application completion and submission is usually in early September of the applicants’ 4th year, with interviews throughout the Fall and early Winter. Match results are usually available in January. Please see the SF Match ophthalmology match website (https://www.sfmatch.org/specialty/ophthalmology-residency/Overview) for specific application requirements as well as timetables for upcoming match cycles and match statistics from previous cycles.

All trainees are required to complete a 1-year internship program prior to beginning their ophthalmology residency. Historically, this meant applying and interviewing for a transitional year or a preliminary PGY-1 year in medicine, surgery, family medicine, or pediatrics separately from the ophthalmology match. As of 2023, many ophthalmology residencies have either joint or integrated relationships with a specific internship program. Joint residencies are separate training programs with separate application processes that have an agreement to match the same applicants. Ophthalmology residencies that have joint internships require separate applications through SF match for the ophthalmology portion and through ERAS for the internship portion. Integrated programs do not require a separate application, and the entire application and match process is handled by SF Match. Some integrated or joint programs may require their prospective residents to interview with faculty from the internship year as part of their selection process. Given the current heterogeneity in the structure of the relationships between internship programs and advanced ophthalmology residencies, all ophthalmology applicants are encouraged to register for and prepare applications through both SF match and ERAS/NRMP so that they have the option to apply to both joint and integrated programs.