The University of Pennsylvania Orthopaedic Residency Program develops resilient, accountable surgeons who lead with clinical and academic excellence. Through rigorous, hands-on training, our residents grow together - supported, challenged, and prepared to lead.
Program Leadership
Andrew D. Sobel, MD
Program Director
Stephen Y. Liu, MD
Associate Program Director
B. Kyle Potter, MD
Chair, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery
Program Administration
Jillian Lioy
Program Coordinator
jillian.lioy@pennmedicine.upenn.edu
Roslyn Levit
Program Coordinator
roslyn.levit@pennmedicine.upenn.edu
Residency Program
The residency program at the University of Pennsylvania provides both a broad exposure to the entire field of Orthopaedic Surgery and an intense training environment that leaves graduates with the knowledge and skill to pursue either further fellowship training or immediately beginning clinical practice. The training program years contain rotations designed for progressive responsibility, autonomy, and expectation. Throughout your five clinical years, you are exposed to the pre, peri, and post-operative care of the Orthopaedic patient in a structured and hands on manner that facilitates your growth as a clinician and surgeon.
As a resident you will rotate through all sub-specialties, trauma, adult reconstruction, pediatrics, spine, hand and upper extremity, oncology, sports medicine, shoulder and elbow, foot and ankle. You will be exposed to world class care at several facilities, including Pennsylvania Hospital, the first hospital in the United States and the Tuttleman Ambulatory Surgery Center (ACS), Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, our Level 1 trauma center and residency home base, a top ranked children's hospital in the US (Children's Hospital of Philadelphia), Penn Medicine University City (our new outpatient clinical and ACS building) the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (including the flagship Pavilion), and the Philadelphia Veteran's Affairs (VA) Hospital. These diverse training environments will allow you to experience the true breadth and depth of the field of orthopaedics. All rotations are located in Philadelphia proper.
Six–Year Residency Track
As a result of its commitment to research and academics, the residency training program offers two residents a position in the six – year residency track. This includes a full year of non-ACGME research after completion of the clinical PGY – 2 year. The selection for this six – year track is done through a separate match number in NRMP. The purpose of the six-year research track program is to train the next generation of academic leaders in Orthopaedics.
Upon graduation from the six-year track program, graduates have published as many as 30+ manuscripts in high-impact journals throughout their residency training. Residents in the six-year program match at premiere fellowship programs. After fellowship, the majority of six-year track graduates in the past ten+ years have obtained Orthopaedic Surgery faculty positions at top academic institutions across the nation, though by no means is this a requirement for the program.
Residents in the six-year year track are set up for success with protected research time, world-class mentors, and access to a myriad of resources. Residents during their research year do not have clinical or on-call responsibilities, but do participate in resident conferences, grand rounds, and journal clubs, in order to focus on academic endeavors. By the end of the research year, residents will have experience in grant writing, project design and implementation, and presenting and publishing their original research. Residents are able to choose among experienced mentors to guide them with their research. Many of these faculty mentors have been nationally recognized for their excellence in research and teaching. Residents have ample support from the McKay Orthopaedic Research Laboratory to provide resources for their projects. The department of orthopaedic surgery at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania is also ranked in the top five among Orthopaedic Departments nationally in terms of NIH funding for the past ten consecutive years.
In addition to laboratory and clinical research, residents in the six-year track have the opportunity to pursue other scholarly activities in the department, such as serving as chief editor of the University of Pennsylvania Orthopaedic Journal.
Additional questions about the research year can be directed to Lou Soslowsky, PhD, Vice Chair for Research, or to the current research residents.
Medical Education Track
The Medical Educator Track is designed for PGY3-5 residents with a particular interest in education, potentially as an element of their future careers. The goal is for them to explore, gain experience, and build a portfolio related to medical education. Two rising PGY3 residents will be selected to enter the track each year based on interest. During their three years in the program, the Med Ed residents have protected time to attend meetings and related courses. Residents will gain experience in a broad range of educator skills such as; course design, gathering and utilizing feedback, learner engagement, and assessment measures. They will have the opportunity to present educational concepts/techniques to the other residents, as well as design and execute research quality improvement projects related to medical education. Mentorship and resources for such projects will be provided.