Application and Interview Process
Program Details
Internship
The American Board of Dermatology requires all residents to have a postgraduate year of medical training in a specialty approved by the Board (i.e., internal medicine, general surgery, family practice, obstetrics & gynecology, pediatrics, or emergency medicine) before starting their dermatology training. It is the responsibility of the applicant to apply for a PGY-1 position. An applicant who is interested in pursuing an internship in internal medicine at the University of Texas Medical Branch should contact the Internal Medicine Residency Office at (409) 772-2654. Interviews with both the Department of Internal Medicine and the Department of Dermatology often can be scheduled on the same day.
First Year
The residency begins on July 1. House staff orientation is usually held during the last two days of June. First-year residents will staff the Residents' Dermatology Clinic, assist in the Faculty Clinics as assigned, attend the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) Clinic (Tuesday), 39th Street Clinic in Galveston (Wednesday), Texas City Clinic (Thursday), and Clear Lake Clinic (Thursday). Procedures are also scheduled for the afternoons.
Second Year
Second-year residents will spend six months of the year staffing the General Residents' Clinic in the mornings and will see consults in the afternoons, except for Fridays, when they will assist Dr. Raimer in staffing the Pediatric Dermatology Clinic. Four to six months (Tues, Wed, Thurs) are spent with Dr. Wagner on the Dermatological Surgery Service. This is in addition to the surgical experience gained during all three years of residency.
Third Year
Third-year residents will alternate assuming Chief Resident duties and will spend mornings and afternoons as assigned staffing the Residents' Clinics. One afternoon a week, they will staff the TDCJ Clinic; and twice a month, they will hold a Telemedicine Clinic for the TDCJ. For six months of the year, a third-year resident will sign out slides with our dermatopathologists. Senior residents typically rotate through the Geriatric Dermatology Clinic in Santa Fe, Texas once or twice a month. Second year residents will also rotate in the off-campus satellite clinics.
Electives
Third-year residents can enroll in a two-week off-campus elective that will enable them to acquire skills not offered by the UTMB Dermatology Residency Program. After completing the off-campus elective, senior residents must make a departmental presentation about their experience.
Research by Dermatology Residents
Original research projects can be undertaken with faculty mentoring in any of the following categories:
Basic research
Cutaneous infections
Cutaneous oncology
Dermatologic surgery
Dermatopathology
Dermatopharmacology
Laser dermatology
Pediatric dermatology
Dermatology Scholarly Project:
First-year dermatology residents select a dermatology scholarly project and a dermatology faculty advisor by December of their first year. Following regulatory approval, data collection and statistical analyses are conducted by the resident, culminating in the submission of an original manuscript for peer review by January of the senior year. In addition to participation in the Dermatology Scholarly Project, residents are encouraged to submit papers for publication and for presentation at national, regional and local meetings.
Call
Call is taken from home by residents for one week at a time to equal about 7-8 weeks per resident per year. Holidays are covered by first-year residents.
Weekly Schedule of Clinics and Conferences
We have an active conference schedule that is supplemented by participation in the monthly Houston Dermatological Society meeting. In addition, trainees are encouraged to participate in a variety of regional and national dermatology society meetings.