Shows
The IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, EP 12: How Love Led This IMG to Becoming A Family Medicine Chief ResidentDr. Sushania Pryce is in love with Family Medicine. In fact, she has been smitten by her specialty of choice since she was a child. But the Match process can test even the most driven IMGs, even Dr. Pryce. Sushania’s story captures the highs and lows of her journey, including the years she watched others matching, wondering when it would be her turn. Growing up in Jamaica, Sushania dreamed of becoming a doctor, but the reality of matching in the U.S. brought pauses, detours, doubts, and cultural shock. Instead of giving up at any stage, Dr...
2025-09-1939 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, EP 11: How This Assistant Program Director Went From Underestimated IMG to Pediatric AnesthesiologistFor many IMGs, the match feels like a gamble stacked against them, especially when the specialty is as competitive as anesthesiology. In this episode, you’ll hear about an IMG who knew she would only go after her true love specialty. From facing others’ doubts and discouragement to navigating a new medical system and excelling in residency, Dr. Lori-Ann Edwards carved out a path to pediatric anesthesiology and academic medicine. Along the way, she reveals what really separates successful IMG applicants: authentic letters that speak to who you are, applications that tell a bigger story than s...
2025-09-1330 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, EP 10: One IMG Researcher Shares His Formula For Match, Entrepreneurship, And Life SuccessEver felt like being an IMG means your options are limited? You’re not stuck. In this conversation, you’ll hear how an international medical graduate who once struggled with grades, finances, and uncertainty transformed his life through self-discovery, research opportunities, relentless goal setting, and consistent action. From working at a pretzel store to becoming a board-certified mental health counselor, public speaker, and founder of the California Institute of Behavioral Neurosciences and Psychology (CIBNP), Dr. Hassaan Tohid’s story shows how obstacles can become fuel for growth. Hundreds of IMGs turn to Dr. Tohid’s institute to get much nee...
2025-09-0652 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, EP 9: How An Almost-Engineer Found A New Vision In OphthalmologyWhat if one last-minute decision completely changed the course of your life and your career? That’s exactly what happened to Dr. Rodney Guiseppi. Accepted into engineering, he pivoted overnight to medicine in Jamaica, faced culture shock, and later discovered a passion for ophthalmology after his grandmother regained her sight. From building mentor relationships to calling programs directly, his story reveals how genuine connections and persistence turned just two interviews into a successful match in one of the most competitive specialties. If you’re an IMG navigating the match, this episode is packed with insights you can’t afford to mis...
2025-08-2728 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, EP 8: Three Qualities That Will Make Your Match Application MemorableThousands of residency applications get read every year, but only a few truly stand out. What makes the difference? In this episode, you’ll learn how to write a personal statement that selection committees can sum up in a single sentence, why authenticity is impossible to fake, and how to choose experiences that prove you belong in your chosen specialty. If you’re serious about making your application unforgettable, this is the episode you can’t afford to miss.00:00 Introduction to Crafting a Memorable Application01:20 Welcome to the IMG Residency Match Pod...
2025-08-2222 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, EP 7: 4 Mindset Shifts You Must Make To MatchDear IMG: What if the biggest obstacle to your dream residency match isn’t your USMLE scores, your research, or even other match applicants? In this episode, admissions consultant and founder of Memorable Essay, Shawna-Kaye Lester, gets into why your mindset may cost you a match. She shares four mental shifts every ambitious IMG must make to get through the match and into their dream life.. From rejecting the belief that being an IMG is a weakness, to stepping into your identity as a young doctor, to radical focus on yourself, and embracing the power of ma...
2025-08-1524 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, EP 6: This Harvard-Trained Geriatrician Shares A Match Blueprint And MotivationWhat does it take to leave Jamaica, navigate culture shock, survive residency during a pandemic, and still find joy in medicine? Dr. Samantha Patterson’s story is a blueprint for every IMG daring to dream beyond borders. In this heartening conversation, she shares her early passion for medicine, her pivot from pediatrics to internal medicine, and the moment she knew geriatrics was her calling. From the hustle mentality she rejected to the unexpected advice that led her to Harvard, this episode reveals how clarity, community, and the courage to ask can shape your match journey. If you’ve e...
2025-08-0845 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, Ep 5: How This Perseverant IMG Pivoted His British Career To A Successful MatchIf you knocked on the Match door and it didn't open, would you stop? Or would you pivot, adapt, and grow stronger? In this honest and insightful conversation, Dr. Brian Brereton shares how a childhood dream of saving hearts led him on a global medical journey from Jamaica to the United Kingdom, and finally to a United States residency in internal medicine. But his story isn’t just about geography, it’s about mindset. Dr. Brereton opens up about coming out of a small town as a child and being shocked by the big city, trying another door w...
2025-07-3141 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, Ep 4: This Sleep Doctor Made One Key Switch That Helped Her Match To Her Top ChoiceWhat if the thing you’ve been told is a weakness in your application is the very thing that sets you apart? It depends on the value you place on it. Dr. Vernicia Hernandez, born and raised in Mayaro, a small community in Trinidad and Tobago, brings more than just credentials to the residency match. In this powerful conversation, she reflects on the long road from an internship in the Caribbean to matching at her first choice, the University of Miami. From working as a clinical tutor at SGU, to weighing England vs. the U.S., to the bold de...
2025-07-2328 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, Ep 3: How A Mother Inspired Her Daughter To Persevere And Serve ChildrenWhat if your lowest moment in the Match process paled in comparison to finding out that you matched? Dr. Peter-Gay Thompson went from a tiny town in rural Jamaica, a place most people have never even heard of, to matching into a pediatric residency in Miami, Florida, driven by the belief of her family members, perseverance, faith, and her mother’s example of relentless service. Dr. Thompson shares valuable insights into the challenges and triumphs of her journey, including the influence of her mother’s legacy of service, the emotional rollercoaster of the residency application process, and the...
2025-07-1632 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, Ep 2: How a "Retarded" Child Became a Rhodes Scholar Finalist and ENT ResidentWhat if your first words didn’t come until age 3, and now you’re a surgeon who gives others their voice? Born with a speech disorder, mislabeled, and nearly written off, Dr. Joshua Wright, a Jamaican IMG, rose to become valedictorian of his medical school class, a Rhodes Scholar finalist, and an Otolaryngology head and neck surgery resident at Duke University. He shares how missing the Rhodes Scholarship turned out to be life-changing, why he chose ENT despite the 0–1% IMG match rates on average, and how childhood shame became fuel for both his clinical career and advocacy effort...
2025-07-0940 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS2, EP 1: One Cuba-trained IMG Shares Her Winning Match StrategyImagine facing a new world where everything is foreign, from the language to the medical practices. Join host Shawna-Kaye Lester and Dr. Nadia Fernand on the IMG Residency Match Podcast as they unravel Nadia’s journey from the Bahamas to Cuba, and then to residency in the U.S. Nadia reveals the grit it took to match while working grueling hours, the differences in healthcare systems she has encountered, and her lessons on resilience for all IMGs. Are you ready to be inspired and learn how to match even if your path is non-traditional? Tune in now and...
2025-07-0240 min
#12minconvosShawna-Kaye Lester: Life, Growth & Wellness : A Five-Year Reflection /Ep 3974Shawna-Kaye Lester is the founder of Memorable Essay, a consulting firm that has been empowering aspiring medical professionals and graduate students for nearly a decade. Specializing in helping clients secure competitive residency placements and graduate school admissions in fields like pharmacology, public health, veterinary medicine, and cybersecurity, Shawna-Kaye combines expert strategy with deep personal insight. Now based between St. Catherine and St. Thomas, Jamaica, Shawna-Kaye is also a proud and busy mom of two energetic boys. She brings both passion and practicality to her dual roles as a parent and entrepreneur. Even as life shifted with motherhood...
2025-05-3012 min
Zaka Presents: My Journey#152 Zaka Presents My Journey Shawna Kaye LesterWe sit down with Shawna Kaye Lester, an entrepreneur and founder of Memorable Essay, who has dedicated her career to helping ambitious students and international medical graduates secure spots in their dream schools and residencies. Shawna’s journey from Jamaica to the U.S. is one of grit, determination, and relentless pursuit of growth.She opens up about her personal story of navigating cultural differences, her diverse career path across multiple industries, and the challenges of building her business as an immigrant entrepreneur. Shawna shares her best tips for standing out in competitive application processes, and offers ke...
2024-10-1255 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastThe IMG Residency Match Podcast - Season 1 RecapIt's a wrap on season 1 of The IMG Residency Match Podcast!
Here is a recap of those who joined us to share their expertise on preparing for the match, successfully navigating the match process, and creating your dream medical career with you, Ambitious IMG.
Episode 1: How Badly Do You Want to Match featuring Dr. Khadija Tayabali
Episode 2: Love & Matching: How to Relocate With Your Spouse featuring Alicia Archer and Dr. Darren Bodkin
Episode 3: How to Blow Your USMLEs Out of The Water featuring Dr. Shion Betty
Episode 4: How to Ma...
2020-09-1013 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP12: HOW TO GO FROM REAPPLICANT TO CHIEF RESIDENTHOW TO GO FROM REAPPLICANT TO CHIEF RESIDENT
When Dr. Andre Morgan graduated from Howard University’s internal medicine residency program earlier this year, he was also inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) Medical Honor Society.
AOA inductees are chosen for the honor because they have displayed a lasting commitment to professionalism, leadership, scholarship, research, and community service. It’s a great honor in and of itself,, but it was the icing on the cake, considering that Dr. Morgan was also a Chief Resident of his program.
However, Dr. Morgan’s life over th...
2020-08-2745 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP11: HOW TO USE STRATEGY AND MINDSET TO UNLOCK STEP 1 SUCCESSHOW TO USE STRATEGY AND MINDSET TO UNLOCK STEP 1 SUCCESS
This Learning Strategist Who Went From College Failure to Nursing School Superstar Shares Her Methodology
Did you know that you can learn how to learn, Ambitious IMG? This week on the IMG Residency Match Podcast, Learning Strategist and Brilliance Coach, Clarissa Guillen, is going to tell you how—especially as it concerns your USMLE Step 1.
We’re talking about how you can mindset work and strategic studying to improve your Step 1 performance.
Clarissa has a powerful personal story: She went from being c...
2020-08-2154 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP10: HOW TO BALANCE APPLYING TO THE MATCH & BEING A NEW MOMIt doesn’t take long to recognize that when Dr. Anna-Belle Robertson-Chung sets a goal, she is serious about achieving it.
A Postgraduate Year 1 (PGY-1) Internal Medicine resident, in today’s episode Dr. Robertson-Chung takes us with her on her journey of preparing for the match, creating her application, matching, and relocating to the U.S.
Her journey had a unique twist. Excelling at the residency match application process is hard enough. However, Dr. Robertson-Chung became a mommy at the beginning of her journey.
In this week’s episode, we get into:
-Why Dr...
2020-08-1338 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP9: HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OUT OF RESIDENCYHow This IMG Went From A Having a Tough Time in College To Getting Into Two Highly Competitive Medical Fellowships
If anyone understands the ins and outs of becoming and being an International Medical Graduate, it is Dr. Francis Christian. This is due to his broad, firsthand experience with medical education.
Dr. Christian completed high school in the island of Jamaica before moving to the United States and completing college, then completing a master’s degree in biomedical sciences. Next, he began his medical studies at St. Matthew’s University in Grand Cayman.
Once he...
2020-08-0635 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP8: HOW TO CHOOSE THE SUBSPECIALTY THAT IS PERFECT FOR YOUWhen Dr. Jovan Gayle was in medical school, he thought he would become a surgeon. He ended up becoming an internist. When he started residency training, he thought he would become a cardiologist, but when it was time to apply to fellowship, he threw his hat in the ring for Pulmonology-Critical Care.
Dr. Gayle encourages young physicians to enter residency with an open mind about what they will subspecialize in. He has simple, actionable advice for how to evaluate your choices and identify the subspecialty that is perfect for you. It includes keeping in touch with older c...
2020-07-3034 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP7: HOW TO CREATE AND CRUSH A CAREER IN ACADEMIC MEDICINEThis week on The IMG Residency Match Podcast, we’re hearing from academic physician Dr. Kemi Doll. Academic physicians not only provide clinical care but also conduct research that advances the specialties in which they work.
Dr. Doll’s mother was a labor and delivery nurse, and her father was an International Medical Graduate physician. As a result, as a child, Dr. Doll thought that ‘growing up and getting a job’ meant becoming a doctor or a nurse.
Dr. Doll is now a gynecologic oncologist, which she explains as doing surgery and administering chemotherapy to people w...
2020-07-2335 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP6: THE TOP 4 RESOURCES YOU NEED TO MATCHDr. Joselle Cook feels as if she was always interested in medicine, because she grew up in the back of her mother’s retail pharmacy. As she got older, she would help in the pharmacy, and through that experience gained an understanding of the role that various professionals play in medicine.
This led to her pursuing science subjects at the Naparima Girls’ High School in Trinidad, where she was born and grew up, before starting medical school at the University of the West Indies, Mona, in Jamaica.
Ironically, Dr. Cooke never planned on applying to medic...
2020-07-1629 minThe IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP 5: HOW TO CULTIVATE A MINDSET THAT HELPS YOU MATCHA therapist and mindset coach for high achievers speaks on mental health for IMGs applying to the match
For the Internal Medical Graduate (IMG), matching requires discipline, mental strength, and resilience. Sixty-one percent (61%) of International Medical Graduates were successful in the 2020 National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) main residency match, compared to 94% of American Medical Graduates (1).
These statistics mean that every IMG must give the match process their all, even when they doubt themselves or worry about the outcome. These stats also mean that some IMGs will match on the first attempt, some will have to...
2020-07-0957 min
The IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP 4: IMGs: HOW TO MAKE MATCHING AND MEDICINE WORK FOR YOUAn OB-GYN’s Journey from Burnout to Balance
Dr. Hodon Mohamed describes herself as a part-time OB-GYN and a career coach. She gave up her job as a full-time OB-GYN almost three years ago when she started experiencing burnout.
After years of working in an academic center, covering three hospitals, Dr. Hodon Mohamed realized that there was more to life than medicine. Trying to be a mother, wife, daughter, and attentive physician to her patients left her with little time for herself. She made a career change to keep her health and happiness intact.
...
2020-07-0248 min
The IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP 3: HOW TO BLOW YOUR USMLEs OUT OF THE WATERFind out how this IMG excelled in all 3 Step exams within 18 months.
Dr. Shion Betty had to get serious about completing his USMLE exams. That meant moving from Jamaica, his home country, to take up a Clinical Tutor role in Grenada. The move worked well for him. Within 18 months, he successfully completed all his exams with outstanding scores.
Now Dr. Betty is in an Internal Medical residency, standing out for the quality of care he offers his patients. He also remains committed to his faith and his growing family.
There is a lot t...
2020-06-2530 min
The IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP 2: LOVE AND MATCHING: HOW TO RELOCATE WITH YOUR NON-PHYSICIAN SPOUSEThis IMG was excited to match... but his wife had an established career she would have to leave behind.
Dr. Darren Bodkin is married to accountant Alicia Archer Bodkin, thanks to a sneaky intervention partially coordinated by his twin brother. Their union took place in Trinidad and Tobago, the couple’s home country.
When Dr. Bodkin matched into residency in the United States, the couple was excited. For Dr. Bodkin, this meant the start of pediatrics training. For ACCA-qualified Alicia, it meant starting over.
Although she stepped out of the workforce after the co...
2020-06-1841 min
The IMG Residency Match PodcastS1, EP 1: HOW BADLY DO YOU WANT TO MATCH?One Kenyan IMG’s story of overcoming obstacle after obstacle to match into Internal Medicine
When Dr. Khadija Tayabali started preparing for the United States Medical Licensing Examination, she hadn’t planned on becoming a mother anytime soon. But, within months of commencing her studies, she discovered she was carrying her now 6-year-old daughter. Surprise!
A graduate of the University of Nairobi, Dr. Tayabali had already immigrated from Kenya to the United States with her husband, also a physician, having won a U.S. Diversity Visa. With no social support like the kind they would have...
2020-06-1158 min
Jereshia SaidHow This Caribbean Medical Residency Admissions Coach Leveraged Beyond 1:1 Application Services with Shawna-Kaye Lester This episode features the magnificent Shawna-Kaye Lester, an amazing entrepreneur who’s been a client of mine for years. Shawna has an emphasis on quality, growing her business in a long-term, sustainable way. She points out that entrepreneurship isn’t about posting pretty pictures on Instagram. It requires a commitment (and re-commitment) every single day. Shawna also has interesting insights into how your personality changes as your business evolves. If you’re an aspiring entrepreneur then tuning into this episode is a must...
2020-06-1041 min
The IMG Residency Match PodcastWelcome to The International Medical Graduate Residency Match PodcastThe International Medical Graduate Residency Match podcast premieres this Thursday, June 11, 2020.
Listen for insider strategies and inspiration to help you match into residency.
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2020-06-0801 min