General Surgery

General Surgery Residency

Residency positions for the general surgery program at the University of New Mexico are matched via the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP). The UNM Department of Surgery participates in ERAS (Electronic Residency Application Service), hosted by the

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Association of American Medical Colleges. Paper applications are not accepted. Please be sure to keep the "My Profile" section of the Common Application Form in ERAS current throughout the application and interview process. Our application deadline was November 1st 2006. We contact applicants via e-mail only.

Selection of Applicants to be Interviewed

The department interviews approximately 60-80 candidates each year. We receive hundreds of applications from well-qualified candidates and are not able to interview all who apply. Our program seeks candidates with diverse backgrounds who have demonstrated academic achievement, a strong work ethic, and the ability to work well in a team environment.

Additional Information Required

In addition to the information requested in ERAS, we ask that you submit a personal statement. Three letters of recommendation are also required. If possible, one of these should be from the surgery department chair of your home institution.

USMLE Step I and Step II

We require that you provide proof of passing USMLE Step I prior to interviewing with our program. We also require proof of passing USMLE Step II before the program submits its Rank List to the NRMP. We must receive your Step II score via ERAS prior to February 1, 2007.

Preliminary Residency Spots

The General Surgery Residency Program will be using ERAS to fill its preliminary general surgery spots.

Sub-Specialty Applicants

Applicants to the surgical sub-specialty programs (neurosurgery, urology, and otolaryngology) need not apply to our general surgery residency program in addition to the sub-specialty to which they are applying. We have agreements with the other surgical programs at the University of New Mexico to accept their matched residents into our program for the specified general surgery component of their residency. Contact the specific sub-specialty program for their application requirements.

Orthopedic Surgery is a separate residency program here at UNM. Contact their department directly for application information.

Special Note to Foreign Medical Graduates

We accept Foreign Medical Graduates into our program. However, we review only the applications of Foreign Medical Graduates that have graduated from medical school no more than 2 years prior. You must be able to obtain a J-1 visa, or permanent resident status, and your ECFMG certificate must be valid. H-1 visas are not accepted at the University of New Mexico for residency purposes.

Foreign Medical Graduates and Dean's Letters

We recognize that most foreign medical schools do not issue dean's letters. Therefore, we do not require that Foreign Medical Graduates submit this document. However, if your medical school did issue a dean's letter, we ask that you submit it with your application. If you do not have a dean's letter, please indicate this on the ERAS Common Application form. Other criteria for FMG applicants are the same as that for U.S. medical school graduates.