Linda Li and Porter Maerz are moving to Pennsylvania to study medicine together.
All six couples in the UF College of Medicine’s master’s program, including Li and Maerz, learned they’ll complete their residency with their significant other. On Friday, the 125 students in the program opened white envelopes announcing where they will specialize in their area of medicine, said Rita Singletary, the office manager at the Office of Student Affairs and Registration at the college.
“It’s kind of like the Oscars,” said Singletary. “Nobody knew until today.”
Maerz, 26, said he and Li, 25, read their envelopes together to the audience of about 400 at the Wyndham Garden hotel on 13th Street. They didn’t open it before to see where they were matched.
“Four years came down to this one sheet of paper,” said Li, a UF master’s medical student.
Li and her boyfriend, Maerz, will go to Pennsylvania State University together, she said. Li will specialize in obstetrics and gynecology while Maerz trains in general surgery.
Maerz said the two applied to institutions as a couple in September 2015, but they didn’t know if they’d be accepted to the same place. About 95 percent of couples get matched together, but there was a chance he would not end up close to Li.
“When you’re couples matching, there’s no guarantee,” Maerz said.
Li said she met Maerz during their first year of medical school. The two quickly became best friends and started dating in September 2014, during their third year. They had dated about a year before applying to residency programs together.
“We joked about it even before we started dating,” Maerz said.
After Maerz completes his five years of general surgery training at Penn State, he will go into the Air Force as a surgeon. Li said her residency program will last four years.
Maerz said he was relieved when he found out he would be with Li. He said they applied to institutions up to two hours away from each other. Both Li and Maerz said they were worried there was a chance they would be placed far apart.
“It’s always in the back of your mind,” said Li. “We were optimistic.”
Li said she was excited to go to Penn State because of their obstetrics and gynecology program.
“It was a good fit for the both of us,” Li said.
“Despite a cold fit,” Maerz said, of the weather.
Porter Maerz, left, and Linda Li will be moving to Pennsylvania together to complete their residencies as part of the UF College of Medicine's master’s program. On Friday, the 125 students in the program opened white envelopes announcing where they will specialize in their area of medicine.
