ASHP 2021 Pharmacy Residency Match Phase I Sees Growth in Applicants, Positions

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) announced today 5,121 individuals matched with 2,398 pharmacy residency programs across the country in Phase I of ASHP’s 2021 Pharmacy Residency Match. With 5,508 residency positions in the Match, 387 positions are available to be filled in Phase II.

The Phase I results include nearly 600 early commits, postgraduate year 1 (PGY1) residents who accept a PGY2 position at their current program. Over the last five years, PGY1 residency positions have grown by 27% and PGY2 positions by 55%. Specifically, PGY2 programs in ambulatory care residencies grew by 67%, infectious disease residencies by 67%, and critical care residencies by 35%. Expansive growth occurred in emergency medicine residencies, which grew by 108%, and in pain management and palliative care residencies, which increased by 138%.

“The 2021 Match results for Phase I demonstrate the sustained growth of residency programs and available positions,” said Janet A. Silvester, Pharm.D., M.B.A., FASHP, vice president, ASHP Accreditation Services Office. “The expansion in PGY2 programs is particularly encouraging as these positions are critical to support the increasing demand for pharmacists with advanced training to fill medication expert roles on the patient care team.”

The COVID-19 pandemic had a limited impact on residency program growth, but did require programs to adapt their recruitment, application, and interview processes to accommodate travel and social distancing restrictions. “We were pleased to see the resilience shown both by residency programs and applicants in response to the challenges presented by the pandemic as they nimbly adapted their procedures, all while treating COVID patients and leading the distribution and administration of vaccines, ” said Silvester.

ASHP conducts The Match in two phases to meet the needs of the rapidly growing number of pharmacists and student pharmacists seeking residencies as well as residency programs seeking applicants. The deadline to register to participate in Phase II of the Match is March 23, 2021. The informal post-match scramble will be held following Phase II of the Match to ensure that individuals have as many chances as possible to connect with a residency program.

Visit ASHP’s Match Day Resources for guidance on navigating the Match process, advice for Phase II of the Match, interview tips, and more. In addition, National Matching Services Inc. provides an overview of the 2021 ASHP Residency Match process.