Aaron Craft is listed with his fellow “matches” for Ohio State’s Head and Neck Surgery unit. Courtesy of the Ohio State ENT Instagram
Ohio State’s medical centers are decorated with photos of many former athletes. But come July first, patients will see one of their favorite former Buckeyes not on the wall, but in a white coat.
On Thursday, Aaron Craft found five more years of eligibility at Ohio State. The fourth-year was selected to join Ohio State’s Otolaryngology Residency Program following his graduation from medical school in May. The program, which accepts only five students each year, is the first step ear, nose and throat — or ENT — physicians take in their formal medical training.
ENT physicians specialize in otolaryngology, or surgical and medical management of head and neck conditions.
Ohio State’s program trains its participants in head and neck oncology, pediatric otolaryngology, neurotology, facial and plastic reconstruction, among other subjects, and its doctors have scored in the top 5% nationally on their in-service examinations over the past five years, according to Ohio State’s College of Medicine.
Craft began his second chapter at Ohio State in 2020 as a first-year medical student.
It was a long-awaited return. Prior to his graduation in 2014, Craft led the Buckeyes to four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, earning Academic All-American honors and Ohio State scholar-athlete recognition three and four times, respectively. Inducted into the Buckeye Hall of Fame in 2020, Craft leads the NCAA in all-time steals (337) and the Ohio State program in assists (694), earning four consecutive nominations to the Big Ten’s All-Defensive team for his efforts.
Craft’s placement in the Ohio State ENT Residency is the result of the National Resident Matching Program, known colloquially as the “match.”
The process begins during the fourth year of medical school, when students pick their preferred specialty such as orthopedics, pediatrics, or emergency medicine, and apply to programs that offer residency training in that area. The programs then select certain applicants to interview during the winter months. In March, both students and programs submit a “rank list,” with students articulating their preferred program placement and programs indicating their preferred admitted students.
After the rank lists are finalized by both schools and students, the “match” happens: a computer algorithm places students with programs based on the highest mutual ranking.
On match day, which took place on Friday, each student receives a sealed envelope, with a piece of paper bearing the name of their placement inside. The placement students find inside their envelopes on match day will become their new home after graduation in May, for anywhere from three to seven years, depending on the specialty.
