Medical Specialty Competitiveness Index

In total, we examined 22 different specialties using data gathered from the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP).

To overcome the shortcomings of looking at a single factor, we examine five categories of data: average match rate, Step 2 CK score, number of research items, percentage of matriculants who were AOA, and percentage of applicants from a top 40 NIH-funded medical school.

Each specialty is ranked by those five categories on a point-based ranking system, and certain categories are weighted higher than others. Step 2 CK at 30%, research items at 25%, publications at 20%, AOA at 5%, and NIH at 10%.