Training & Education

Home to the first teaching hospital in the U.S., the University of Michigan is a place where medical education has always been integral to our mission of improving human health in service of a life well-lived.

Excellence in Surgical Education

At the U-M Department of Surgery, you’ll learn from a team of more than 100 faculty who are leaders not just in their clinical or research specialty, but also in surgery education.

This commitment to education shows in the breadth and quality of our graduate medical education programs, as well as our outreach starting at the high school level, where we engage the imaginations and skills of young Detroiters in the Doctors of Tomorrow program.

We are committed to training surgeons who will be future leaders in the field of surgery. We offer numerous highly-ranked surgical residency and fellowship programs across a wide range of specialties, including General Surgery, Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Pediatric Surgery, Plastic Surgery, Thoracic Surgery, Transplant Surgery, and Vascular Surgery. Additionally, we have developed the Michigan Promise, a collection of initiatives to support our surgeons in achieving professional excellence within a diverse and inclusive culture where all individuals can thrive.

We offer our residents protected academic development time (ADT) without clinical responsibilities to pursue research and academic interests. ADT is usually after PGY3 and lasts for one to two years, depending on the residency program. The department offers majors and minors within research centers and cores to structure the academic development time, although residents are not limited to these options. The aim of ADT is to launch surgical trainees on an impact-focused career trajectory through personalized pathways.

We offer a variety of opportunities for medical students at the University of Michigan and across the world to learn about life as a surgeon as they consider the trajectory of their careers in medicine. Our programs include the M2 clerkship, the SCRUBS medical student surgery interest group, the Leadership Exposure for the Advancement of Gender and Underrepresented Minority Equity in Surgery (LEAGUES) Fellowship, and the Student Surgery Leadership Weekend.