Shortly before 9 a.m. Friday, March 19, Steven Losorelli, who’s in his final year of medical school at Stanford, blared Daft Punk, sat down at his computer and waited for the email that would reveal where he would pursue his childhood dream of becoming an ear surgeon.

“Typically, there is a big ceremony,” said Losorelli, referring to Match Day, when medical students nationwide open envelopes at the same moment — 9 a.m. Pacific time — at their schools to learn where they’ve “matched,” or been accepted, for residencies.

This year, most of the 99 Stanford medical students who matched opened emails, rather than envelopes, at home because of the pandemic. Many joined faculty and staff on Zoom at 8:30 a.m. for a virtual celebration organized by the School of Medicine’s Office of Student Affairs.

“This is probably the happiest day of my academic year, getting to celebrate your accomplishments,” Lloyd Minor, MD, dean of the School of Medicine, told the students.

The students grinned and looked excited. Some parents hovered in the background. A few held babies. A kitten sat in one student’s lap. A dog yapped. 

‘The first true COVID class’

Completing medical school during the pandemic has resulted in many firsts for the class of 2021, said Neil Gesundheit, MD, senior associate dean for medical education. “This is the first true COVID class. You were forced to sit out last spring and reshuffle your schedules. You were the first class to be vaccinated against COVID. For many of you, your residencies will be the first time in a hospital. … We applaud your resilience, class of 2021. Wherever you match, you will be agents of change.”