*Opinion from an MS4 who recently matched into a competitive surgical subspecialty at my mid-tier home program*
There is no clear cut answer, but in general I would say yes, it is slightly easier to match in competitive specialties at your home institution, but there are some caveats.
You should still have scores/research/grades that are around the average for your home program (and obviously this can vary greatly depending on whether your home program is a Top 10 vs mid-tier vs lower end, etc.).
But with those minimum requirements met, I would say the most influential factor in matching at your home institution is based on your how you do on your home clerkship rotation and your relationships with the attendings. This can be a big advantage to you as a student if you can show that you are a hard-worker, team player, etc and are pleasant to be around. Other students applying from elsewhere won't have this opportunity unless they did an away rotation at your institution.
Another factor than can complicate things is how many of your classmates are also applying (and possibly hoping to stay) in your specialty. This is especially relevant in many competitive fields with a small number of spots in a given program (i.e. neurosurg, ENT, ophtho, uro, etc).
TLDR: In general it is easier because you can establish relationships with the very people who will be choosing the next resident class. However you still need to have a competitive application comparable to the typical resident class and to demonstrate that you will be a good fit for the program during your clerkship.
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