Preparing to Thrive: Supporting Learners With Disabilities Through the Undergraduate-to-Graduate Medical Education Transition

The transition from undergraduate to graduate medical education is a complex time that may be impacted by bias, limited resources, and inadequate standardization and information sharing. For learners with disabilities, there may be additional barriers including disability-specific bias, limited guidance on obtaining needed accommodations, and misunderstanding regarding the requirements and benefits of matching and retaining a disabled learner. The authors, through our personal and professional experience, identify four key areas to further support disabled learners in the residency transition process. These include: (1) disability disclosure, (2) selecting a specialty, (3) selecting a program, and (4) requesting and utilizing accommodations in graduate medical education. Strategies recommended can help both undergraduate and graduate medical programs intentionally support these learners and increase the prevalence and success of disabled learners across the medical education continuum.