The UPMC Department of Pathology offers world-class educational opportunities through its residency and fellowship programs.
Our mission is to cultivate and nurture future pathologists who excel in scholarship, leadership, and clinical practice. In-depth primary training combined with the opportunity to train in any of our 15 subspecialty fellowships has resulted in our graduates obtaining prominent positions in academic institutions, industry, and community hospitals in the United States and internationally.
Our residency program ranks among the top 10 programs by Doximity.
Learn more by viewing the UPMC Pathology Residency video.
Learn more about a Day in the Life of a UPMC Pathology Resident by viewing this video.
Led by Marie C. DeFrances, MD, PhD, the pathology residency program trains residents in one of three comprehensive clinical tracks AP/CP, AP Only or CP Only:
The residency program provides residents with the chance to participate in the Pathologist Investigator Residency/Research Training (PIRRT) program, which trains academic pathologists to become independently funded principal investigators in disease research.
Starting from the first days in the program, pathology residents at UPMC experience hands-on, active learning. An individualized, flexible training schedule helps residents achieve their career goals while promoting resident well-being.
The combined AP/CP program requires four years of training and includes a 23-month core program in anatomic pathology and an 18-month core program in clinical pathology. Core AP rotations in gastrointestinal, bone and soft tissue, genitourinary, head and neck, breast, gynecological, pediatric pathology, and autopsy pathology occupy approximately the first nine months of the PGY1 year. The next 12 months focus mostly on core CP rotations in microbiology, immunology, blood banking and transfusion medicine, clinical chemistry, molecular pathology, and hematopathology. In addition, a resident may schedule a PGY3+ AP subspecialty rotation such as neuropathology, dermatopathology, forensics, or cytopathology during the PGY2 year if they plan to apply for fellowship in that area. The remaining months in the PGY2 – PGY4 years are allocated to completing core requirements and electives. Residents are encouraged to use elective time to perform mini-fellowships in one of our many AP Centers of Excellence or CP divisions.
The three year AP-only track requires 28 months of core training in our AP Centers of Excellence as well as in hematopathology, informatics, molecular pathology, and lab management. The remaining training months of the track are dedicated to electives.
The three year CP-only track requires 24 months of core training in our CP divisions as well as in informatics and lab management. Electives occupy the rest of the training months in this track.
All applications are accepted through ERAS.
We begin reviewing applications on September 28. The deadline to apply is October 31.
Pathology Resident Orientation: Skills, Practice, Education, and Resources at UPMC (“PROSPER @ UPMC”) PGY1 AP Curriculum
The pathology residency and fellowship program holds weekly and bi-weekly didactics throughout the year featuring presentations by subspecialty pathologists and laboratory directors from UPMC and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Several Centers of Excellence and clinical pathology divisions also hold separate conferences
AP Didactics (Tuesdays, 7-9:00 a.m.)
A two-year didactic curriculum organized to cover core topics in anatomic pathology. The sessions consist of one hour of didactic presentations and one hour of unknown cases by subspecialty pathologists.
CP Didactics (Wednesdays, 7-8:00 a.m.)
A two-year didactic curriculum organized to cover core topics in clinical pathology. The sessions consist of one hour of didactic presentations by subspecialty laboratory directors.
Lab Management Didactics (One Friday every other month, 7-8:00 a.m.)
A two-year didactic curriculum organized to focus on topics such as quality assurance, quality control, test validation, laboratory inspections, and business management. Didactics are supplemented with mock CAP laboratory inspections every two years.
Seminars in Laboratory Medicine (SLM) (Mondays, 12-1:00 p.m.)
A weekly lecture series by clinical pathology faculty, fellows, and residents on emerging clinical pathology topics.
AP Grand Rounds (Thursdays, 12-1:00 p.m.)
Weekly conferences by senior faculty and invited guest lectures in clinical and anatomic pathology, respectively, presenting on evolving topics in the pathology field.
Wellness Wednesdays (Third Wednesday of each month, 8-8:30 a.m., after CP Didactics)
Short lectures/activities on wellness topics pertaining to residents and fellows, such as: sleep, stress, depression, and workplace ergonomics.
CP Review (Fridays 12-1:00 p.m.)
Weekly conference, led by a select resident discussing interesting board-relevant topics in CP.
Critical Reasoning/Clinical Review (CR2) First Friday AP Conference (First Friday of each month, 7 to 8 a.m.)
Monthly conference to review AP subspecialty content in a low-stakes environment.
PGY1 Salary (2023 – 2024) – $65,258
2021 Surgical Pathology Case Volume
UPMC Presbyterian: 27,478
UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital: 24,941
UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh: 8,352
UPMC Shadyside: 8,670
Total: 69,441
2021 Non-Gynecological Cytology Consult Volume
UPMC Shadyside: 5,710
UPMC Presbyterian: 4,538
UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital: 1,692
Total: 11,940
2021 Gynecological Cytology Consult Volume
UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital: 43,285
2021 Autopsy Volume
UPMC Presbyterian: 406
UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital: 69
UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh: 23
Total: 498
2021 Bone Marrow Case Volume
UPMC Presbyterian: 3,403
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