More from the AAMC: I read a troubling piece recently regarding a bizarre problem Puerto Rican medical students are having. Apparently, some folks don’t understand that Puerto Rico is part of the United States. Some Puerto Rican students report they are being misidentified as international medical graduates (IMGs).

The crux of the matter is that Puerto Rican medical schools are – like other U.S. allopathic medical schools – accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME), recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. On the other hand, many medical schools in other parts of the Caribbean are not LCME-accredited and graduate IMGs. 

IMGs have a tougher time matching. In the last cycle, U.S.- citizen IMGs matched at a rate of 67% and non-U.S.-citizen IMGs matched at a rate of 58.5%. On the other hand, U.S. MD graduates matched at a rate of 93.5%. Thus, being misidentified as an IMG is to the detriment of Puerto Rican medical students in the Match.

See Bridget Balch’s interesting article with more details here.