How to Apply - Orthopaedic Trauma Fellowship

Objective of the Fellowship in Orthopaedic Trauma

The Orthopaedic Traumatology Fellowship Program is the first orthopaedic fellowship program to be accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). We provide training in the management of complex injury patterns, a rigorous didactic teaching program, and experience in cutting-edge research in a fully mentored, structured, and integrated multidisciplinary environment. Our goal is for fellows to graduate from this program with the ability to excel as clinicians, educators, and researchers in the field of orthopaedic trauma.

Five post-residency orthopaedic fellowship slots are offered each year at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center. All of these positions are ACGME approved and offered through the OTA match process managed by SF match. Details about the match process including application materials are available on the OTA website. Applications are generally accepted beginning in June of each year. Interviews are held from October through February. Match lists are submitted to SF Match in late February, and results are published in early March.

All full fellowship positions are ACGME accredited without exception. No positions are offered outside the match process. Ranking of candidates who interview for the fellowship positions is based on a cumulative scoring system and influenced by the candidate's demonstrated clinical and academic accomplishments including work done before and after residency as relevant. Candidates with the strongest residency and clinical evaluations and strongest history of research productivity including publication are most competitive.

Short-Term Visiting Fellowships

Occasional short-term "visiting fellowships" are offered to surgeons wishing to spend short periods of time with us as observers to become acquainted with our overall philosophy to patient care. Physicians participating in these programs are typically internationally based and sponsored by their home institution or a specific foundation. Such short-term visiting fellowships are typically less than 4 weeks in duration. They necessarily involve no direct patient care responsibilities or any physical patient contact. Short-term visiting fellows may not scrub or otherwise participate in surgical procedures or patient care.

The short-term visiting fellowship application requires submission of a letter of interest as well as a CV. Letters of recommendation from three surgeons familiar with the candidate's work should be included. Fellows are responsible for all costs associated with the proposed fellowship including travel, housing and meals. All necessary materials should be sent via e-mail to Earlene Thomas.