How 2 DOs couples matched in emergency medicine and OB-GYN

The fourth year of medical school is often considered the easiest year, as it’s the year you take the fewest exams after you have taken COMLEX Level 2. However, this is also the time when a new stressor appears—going through the match process. Matching into residency can be complicated enough as it is, so students trying to couples match often feel extra stressed.

Two Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) graduates, Ryan Grant, DO, and Meredith Rasey, DO, couples matched in 2025 at the University of Toledo in Ohio in emergency medicine and obstetrics and gynecology, respectively. I interviewed this couple to gain insight into what factors are worth considering when couples matching.

During his gap year prior to starting medical school, Dr. Grant worked as a scribe in an emergency department. As such, he knew in advance where his interests lay and decided he would be applying to emergency medicine. On the other hand, Dr. Rasey, like many other medical students, changed her mind about her specialty preference during her rotations. While initially planning to apply for psychiatry, she pivoted and applied for obstetrics and gynecology instead.

Dr. Grant and Dr. Rasey were engaged prior to applying for the 2025 Match, and so they knew from the start that they would be couples matching. Dr. Rasey used outside resources, such as Texas STAR Data, to help her better understand the couple’s competitiveness for various programs. Texas STAR Data is an information clearinghouse for medical students that includes self-reported data on various residency programs.

With Dr. Grant and Dr. Rasey applying to different specialties, they each had different criteria they were looking for in residency programs, but they both wanted to be close to family.

Getting to their end goals

While Dr. Grant and Dr. Rasey are very happy with where they matched, they did share some valuable advice. They suggest that ranking all programs that offer you interviews, not just programs from institutions that offered interviews to both you and your significant other. Couples have the option to choose various combinations in their rank lists, including scenarios where they are in different cities.

However, in practice, not all couples choose to rank options that would put them at different institutions or in different cities. Dr. Grant and Dr. Rasey are a primary example of that. They chose to only rank institutions where they were both interviewed.

While this fortunately worked out for them, they acknowledged how risky it was. While typically institutions want couples to match together to ensure fewer distractions, matching into a competitive specialty is already difficult on its own, so it’s important to consider all of your options. Ranking all programs increases your chance of matching into residency during the match cycle and avoiding having to apply through SOAP.

Couples matching is stressful, and as Dr. Grant and Dr. Rasey stressed, the hardest part was agreeing on a rank list. However, know that if both you and your significant other didn’t get offered interviews in the same programs, all hope is not lost. Because programs are typically in favor of couples matching, if you mention your significant other toward the end of your interview, there’s a chance they may get called in for an interview with that same hospital in the future. In fact, that happened on a few occasions for Dr. Grant and Dr. Rasey. Additionally, couples matching is not significantly more expensive than the individual match process, so cost is not a hindrance.

Taking the leap

This couple is a wonderful example of a successful couple’s match. They are both very happy at the University of Toledo and are grateful for how things worked out. Matching into the same program allowed them to move in together, which will make it much easier for the couple to enjoy quality time and support each other during residency.

Not only are they now able to work at a hospital they love, but also, neither they nor their hospital need to worry about the difficulties of a long-distance relationship and how that can contribute to burnout.

Related reading:

A couples match journey: How a DO graduate and a Caribbean medical school graduate matched together

Finding fit and flow: How to choose a residency path