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Question 9. Does the Matching Program favor applicants or programs?
Neither. Both applicants' and programs' Rank Order Lists are
used to provide the best match possible. Applicants' and programs'
preferences are given equal weight in the process.
There does exist one fairly rare situation in which an applicant's
preferences are favored. This occurs when two programs and two
applicants have conflicting preferences, as in the following example:
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PROGRAM A
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| 1. Applicant Y |
| 2. Applicant Z |
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PROGRAM B
|
| 1. Applicant Z |
| 2. Applicant Y |
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APPLICANT Y
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| 1. Program B |
| 2. Program A |
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APPLICANT Z
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| 1. Program A |
| 2. Program B |
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Program "A" makes an offer to applicant "Y", and program "B"
makes an offer to applicant "Z"; however, applicant "Y" prefers
program "B", while applicant "Z" prefers program "A." Under the
previous selection system used by our profession, this situation
created a "lock" which could bring the nationwide process to a
virtual standstill, thus affecting literally hundreds of applicants
and internship sites until it was resolved. Under the Matching
Program, this conflict (which research shows occurs for only 1
in every 1,000 applicants) is resolved by using the applicants'
preferences.
Back to FAQ
1 February 2004
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