This year, 37 Cardinals matched with UofL, and will continue their medical training at one of the School of Medicine’s 25 first-year residency programs. Others secured placements at prestigious institutions nationwide, including Harvard, Vanderbilt, Emory, Johns Hopkins and Wake Forest.

In addition to an impressive 97% match rate, the class also boasts a 100% pass rate on a licensure examination that assesses student clinical knowledge.

This year, UofL’s Match Day took place at Angel’s Envy Bourbon Club at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium. After ripping their envelopes open, students celebrated alongside family, friends and faculty.

“There’s no word to describe the excitement I feel right now! The UofL School of Medicine prepared us for this moment and truly made sure we were supported. I’m looking forward to my residency and cannot wait to be among the most innovative physicians in my field and change the lives of those affected by skin conditions that are currently incurable,” said Joseph Holland, Class of 2025 president and future resident of the Harvard Combined Dermatology Residency Training Program.

View more photos on from UofL’s Match Day 2025.��

UofL News talked with him about his work to help and inspire other students through Greater Influence and about those who helped him on his journey into medicine.

UofL News:��What led you to become a physician?

Tino Mkorombindo:�� I always somewhat had a scientific mind. I always had an interest in medicine, the human body. Ultimately however, what made me realize I wanted to be a physician was my upbringing centered around service. My parents were always doing what they could for others, to a point where sometimes they exhausted themselves. But it was always worth it because they were doing something to make someone else’s situation better. That’s something that I always valued and that’s an integral part of who I am.

My parents raised me that if you can do something for someone else, do it. If you have food and you know someone else doesn’t, give it to them. Don’t even expect a thank you. Just give it to them.

As a physician, I get to do what my mind is already geared around – I get to be curious, I get to learn, I get to grow – but at the same time, I get the opportunity to help and to heal in a special way.

UofL News:��You came to the United States from Zimbabwe. Tell us more about that journey.��

Mkorombindo: We came to America from Zimbabwe just before my 6th birthday. My parents left everything we had because they wanted us to have access to incredible opportunities and a great education. In addition to their jobs, my parents were both very active community leaders and doing well for themselves. Many people told them they were making a mistake by coming to America. When they came here, they were in school full time while working full time at multiple jobs. People told them they were working too hard. This wasn’t going to be worth it. But my parents had a vision.

I remember asking my dad (Stanley) what fueled him and he said, ‘What I did was never about me. I never dreamt that you would be going to Harvard. I never dreamt that you would be a doctor and be a businessman and accomplish what you would accomplish. I just knew that I wanted you to have the possibility. And that’s what brought us here.’

UofL News: What were the greatest challenges you faced to get into and through medical school?

Mkorombindo: The greatest challenge was getting the information and the resources. I believe there’s a hidden language and a hidden curriculum that students – especially minority students – aren’t aware of. I spent a lot of time trying to figure that out. That is why I created Greater Influence. I realized that a lot of students are not succeeding, not because they’re not capable, not because they’re not intelligent enough, but just because they don’t have access to the right information and resources.

UofL News: How does Greater Influence help minority students get into medical school?

Mkorombindo: The first part of what we do is the non-technical skills where we teach students things like how to communicate, how to network, how to tell your story. And we talk about other things that matter, like mental health, nutrition and exercise. That way they can have all the resources – not just educational, but the things that will put them in the position not only to succeed, but to excel.

Our second component is focused on developing partnerships with organizations that have available resources and are passionate about increasing representation. I was able to work with a test prep company and sponsors to get their premium MCAT prep bundle free of charge to send to 90 underrepresented students. I’ve also secured partnerships to provide ACT/SAT and other test prep materials to students.

We’re celebrating our two-year anniversary and I’m still in awe. In our first mentorship cohort, 11 of 18 students successfully matriculated into medical school, with five of them receiving full-ride scholarships. We’ve amassed almost 3,000 subscribers across our social media platforms and email subscription lists.

We were able to hire our first employee who manages the day-to-day operations, so Greater Influence is going to be sustainable as I go into residency.

UofL News: What made you choose the University of Louisville?

Mkorombindo: It was the culmination of really small interactions. For example, on my interview day I was walking into the medical school building and this lady next to me starts talking to me. We engaged in a stimulating conversation. At the end, I let her know I’m there to interview. She says, ‘Oh, best of luck,’ as she’s entering the building and she says, ‘I should let you know I’m Dr. Amy Holthouser. I’m the associate dean of medical education.’

That interaction let me know that Louisville was the one for me because they cared about me as a person. Because of people like Drs. Holthouser, Erica Sutton, Dwayne Compton and Faye Jones, I’m very happy with my decision to come here and if I could do it all over, I would choose Louisville again.

UofL News: You took a break from medical school and completed your MBA. What motivated you to do that?

Mkorombindo: As one of the UofL , I was taught how to become a leader and an advocate for social justice and change within health care. When I look at health care, a lot of the people who are making the decisions are centered around business or use business terminology that physicians don’t really get a lot of training in. I wanted to develop myself as a leader who would be comfortable in the room where the decisions are made and who can advocate for those that don’t have the voice to be able to do so.

UofL News: Why did you chose orthopedics?

Mkorombindo: ��When I came into medical school, I remembered a physician who cared for me when I was in high school. I remembered having such positive interactions with him so I called him and I asked, ‘What do you do?’ He says, ‘I’m an orthopedic surgeon. It’s the best specialty there is. I think you’re going to want to be an orthopedic surgeon.’

He was right – orthopedics has the complexity in clinical cases, diversity in patient population, passion for innovation and surgical outcomes that were a great fit for me.

Our program director, Dr. Brandi Hartley, invited me to shadow her. From my very first experience, I knew this was what I wanted to do.��

UofL News: What did it feel like when you opened that envelope on Match Day and learned you would be doing your residency at Harvard?

Mkorombindo: UNREAL! It was truly unbelievable because I never would have thought this was a possibility. The feeling was even more special because it was bigger than myself. My parents put everything on the line for me to be in the position to be there. So, when I made it to one of the best programs in the world, those years of people telling them it wasn’t going to work out or this wasn’t a good decision, it was worth it.��

I never aspired to go to Harvard specifically just because I never thought it was a possibility. Instead, I focused on being the best version of myself that I could possibly be, and I had faith that I would find the program that would set me up to accomplish that.��

I have to credit Dr. Craig Roberts, the orthopedics chair at UofL. He gave me the confidence to shoot for the moon. I also must thank Drs. Steven Glassman, Mladen Djurasovic, Leah Carreon, Charles Crawford and the rest of the faculty and staff at the Norton Leatherman Spine Center for their guidance and support.

UofL News: What is your vision for yourself beyond residency?

Mkorombindo: I’m planning to go on to fellowship to specialize after residency. I have a strong interest in spine surgery, but I’m open to other subspecialties within orthopedics. And I’m passionate about research and innovation and I’m going to continue to give back to students who are following me as well.

I also plan to be involved in global health with intentions to give back to my home country of Zimbabwe. My oldest brother, a UofL and UAB-trained pulmonologist, and I have already begun to discuss how we could make this happen.

[See a Mkorombindo learned he would be training at Harvard]

“I thought, ‘He must be so sad! Both of his parents have died. What could I do to make him feel better? ��If I cured spinal cord injuries, that would make him feel better, I bet,’” she recalled.

Thus was born her interest in spinal cord injury rehabilitation. After graduating from the University of Louisville School of Medicine this spring, Wilkins will follow that passion as a physical medicine and rehabilitation resident with Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.

Before embarking on a path to becoming a physician, however, Wilkins earned an undergraduate degree in her other passion, theater and music, and she spent three years working as an actor and a singer in New York City.

“I’m a really people-oriented person, a love-oriented person. In theater you are trying to get people to feel things. You are bringing people into space that they might not feel comfortable or that they had forgotten about or just helping them understand their own experiences about life,” she said. “But when the curtain closes, I don’t actually get to see how they experienced it and ask them, ‘Do you feel better? Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?’ A way to do that would be in medicine.”

So, as she was navigating the bustling world of auditions and theater productions, she also was completing science requirements and applying to medical school.

“I had always loved science. I said, I’ll give it one shot and if I get in, that’s the path I’ll take. If I don’t, I’ll just continue to be an actress and it’ll be fine,” she said.

“I ended up getting in and I chose Louisville because of the work with spinal cord injury.”

Just a week after the wrap of her third New York production, in which she played one of the stepsisters in a production of “Into the Woods,” she moved to Louisville to start classes. But the dramatic life transition caused her to wonder if she was making the right choice.

“I had a big identity crisis,” she said. “Am I abandoning theater because I’m giving up? Am I truly excited and feel like I’m called to go do this other thing?”

The crisis resolved a few months into her first year of medical school when, with encouragement from her instructor, Jennifer Brueckner Collins, she joined a community theater group. The weekly classes with the Commonwealth Theater Company allowed her to stay connected with music and acting.

“I loved doing it! It was a great addition to my life here in Louisville.,” Wilkins said. “It just helped me kind of merge my two personalities. I was able to say, ‘OK, I can be both things. I can still consider myself an actress, too.’”

It also helped that she was able to connect with UofL’s spinal cord injury researchers, starting with Susan Harkema, who leads UofL’s groundbreaking research in epidural stimulation with the Kentucky Spinal Cord Injury Research Center.

“She met with me, she got me plugged in to a research position with Dr. Max Boakye’s lab and I met a bunch of people that way,” Wilkins said.

“I could not have gone to a more supportive place, a better place for what I’m interested in. I cannot say enough great things about the UofL School of Medicine and Frazier Rehab. They’re very inclusive and excited to get students involved.”

In her third year at UofL, however, Wilkins faced another personal challenge. She already was frustrated as the pandemic limited students’ clinical activities when her father was diagnosed with cancer. COVID restrictions meant she was unable to visit him in the hospital and he died just a few months later.

“It was very, very difficult. I was wondering if I should take a leave of absence, if I should go home to Atlanta,” she said.

But she persevered.

“My dad and my mom and all of the faculty and professors here were really integral to me deciding that I could stay, I could finish on time and match on time.”

On Match Day this year, with a photo of her dad in hand, she learned she would be spending her four-year residency at Case Western Reserve University and MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland, pursuing specialty training in physical medicine and rehabilitation.

“I’m so excited! I’m in PM&R for life now. I’m over the moon,” she said.

Wilkins plans to continue participating in music and theater, but as she pursues her goal to cure spinal cord injury, she appreciates the ability to have the more personal connections with the people she will treat as a physician.

“I’m still there with people in dark moments, but I actually get to hold their hand and be with them throughout the whole process.”

Each year, medical students throughout the United States receive their written match notices precisely at noon on the third Friday of March – Match Day. UofL medical students experienced a 97-percent match rate, with 42 percent going into primary care.

The provides a uniform process for matching medical school applicants with residency programs based on the preferences of both. A matching algorithm uses those preferences to match individuals into positions.

already knew what was in his envelope because of a separate military match program, but he was excited to join his classmates in the Match Day celebration on Friday.

“The true beauty of my medical school experience is the friendships; those relationships and memories are what made the tough times better and the journey worthwhile,” he said.

Tomlinson, who also earned two undergraduate degrees at UofL, will continue his medical training in Internal Medicine as a captain in the U.S. Air Force at Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio.

A native of Louisville, Tomlinson has a family history of military service, including his grandfather who served in the Marines and an uncle who was a fighter pilot in the Air Force.

Although Tomlinson had no military experience prior to medical school, he was accepted into the , where students agree to serve as a military physician in exchange for a full tuition scholarship and monthly stipend. He then joined the Air Force, and went on to complete Commissioned Officer Training and a course in Aerospace Medicine.

Ian Bastian of Madisonville, Kentucky, also completed medical school through the Health Professions Scholarship Program.

“I have enjoyed my medical school rotations at military treatment facilities,” said Bastian, a second lieutenant��in the Army. “Treating soldiers and their families is a rewarding experience, and I look forward to continuing it during residency.”

Bastian will go to Madigan Army Medical Center located on Joint Base Lewis-McChord just south of Tacoma, Washington, for neurology residency training.

“My first encounter with a patient in the neurology clinic at the end of my first year was perhaps the most memorable aspect of medical school,” Bastian said. “Prior to that patient evaluation, I had not considered neurology as a career choice – it was that experience that led me into the neurology specialty.”

Both Tomlinson and Bastian say they are excited about the next step in their educational journeys.

“I don’t know where my future might take me, but I hope to return to Louisville one day because I love my city. It will always be my first home,” Tomlinson said.

Check out some scenes from Match Day:��