Congrats! My partner has been considering a research year to increase his chances at matching a categorical and top program. I am not in medicine but wanted an idea if this would be beneficial. This impacts my life as well since I have moved to support him and will be moving again once residency starts. Step 1 score was slightly above average and he's set to take step 2 in the coming weeks. I know he has research because it's a mandatory requirement to graduate and he's done electives in pm&r at his parent hospital. Extracurricular wise I know he was vp for a medial design club for abt 2 yrs. That's all I know about his current application. Will doing this extra year significantly impact his chances of matching? If yes are there areas of focus he should do during the year besides research?