The 275 are US seniors. However, it is not as competitive as it seems.
I think it is important to remember that a good percentage of applicants
double match for general surgery and integrated plastics.
After all, both gensurg and integplastic are routes to the same specialty, although the gensurg + fellowship path is somewhat longer. Through ERAS, applicants can apply to
both, while remaining true to their future goal of becoming a plastic surgeon.
So I think the numbers are not as competitive as they appear. How many of the 275 are just trying their luck with the Integrated match, with 5-yr General Surg programs as 'backups'*? Maybe 100, 200?
* (GS became pretty competitive last year, so 'backup' may not be the best word.)
I will qualify the information above with an additional statement: plastics does produce a HUGE number of applicants who end up unmatched. I think that many US Seniors go through the process without much guidance, or without help from sites like SDN!
If you do choose to apply Plastics only (without doing a double match for GS), I have heard that it is important to have research lined up as a backup plan. It is undesirable to be stuck doing a surgery internship while you are reapplying...especially since your chances of cutting in for a PGY2 may be slim now.