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General Surgery Residency Columbia - How to Apply

Application Requirements

Our program offers four categorical and two designated preliminary positions each year. In an effort to be transparent we believe that all applicants deserve to know our application standards, and we respect our applicants enough to share them with you. Applications are only accepted through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). To apply for a position in our program, please ensure you have the following:

  • Completion of USMLE Step 2 exam.
    • A minimum USMLE Step 2 score of 230 is recommended to be considered for an interview.
  • Three letters of recommendation.
  • Dean’s letter.
  • Personal statement.

Each applicant is reviewed in a holistic manner by our selection committee made up of residents and faculty. Factors that influence the decision to extend an interview offer include academic achievements, letters of recommendation, personal statement, research accomplishments, awards, extracurricular activities including leadership positions, work history, interest in surgery, and other important life experiences. No single factor is used to offer an interview, but we attempt to weigh the individual strengths and weaknesses of each applicant to select those who may fit best in our program.

Application Process (2024-2025 ERAS Recruitment Season)

Programs may begin reviewing MyERAS applications beginning September 25th. We encourage all applicants to have their application completed by this date, as incomplete applications will not be reviewed, and the majority of interview offers will be extended to this initial pool of applications. The first round of interview offers will be extended between Wednesday, October 23rd and Friday November 1st. In order to contribute to a healthy match process, we pledge that we will not send out more interview offers than we have interview spots available. We will allow applicants up to 48 hours to respond to an interview offer. We ask applicants to notify our program at least one week before any cancellation of an interview. In the event of a conflict, we will attempt to work with you to find another available date whenever possible.

All residency interviews for the General Surgery Residency Program at Prisma Health in Columbia during the 2024-25 ERAS Recruitment Season will be conducted virtually. Based on the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) and Association of Program Directors in Surgery (APDS) Recruitment Task Force recommendations, we feel that the virtual interview format is the best option both for our program and potential applicants. Not only does recent data suggest that most applicants prefer virtual interviews but having performed exclusively virtual interviews since the 2020-21 interview season, we have personally found higher program and applicant satisfaction using this approach. Virtual interviews have helped our program achieve its mission in promoting inclusivity and diversity within the application process. By removing geographical barriers, virtual interviews allow programs to reach a wider pool of candidates from diverse backgrounds and locations while ensuring that all candidates have an equal opportunity to participate in the interview process. We hope that our applicants enjoy the benefits of increased convenience and flexibility, better efficiency and time management without undue time spent away, and reduced travel expenses all while having the luxury of conducting their interviews in a familiar space.  Taken together, this process should reduce the stress of the interview day and allow you to perform at your best. Interview dates for the 2024-25 match cycle will be November 1st, November 22nd, December 6th, December 13th, December 20th, and January 10th.

While our program and applicants have had great satisfaction with the virtual interview format, we also realize that the in-person “feel” of a program and its residents and faculty is very important to many applicants.  For this reason, we will also be hosting two optional in-house “second look” visits for any interested applicants after the conclusion of interviews. These in-person visit days will take place on February 21st and 28th, which will be after our program’s rank list meeting and submission. Participation in these visits is completely voluntary and should be considered only to help applicants make final decisions about their own rank list, as attendance or absence at these events will have no bearing on the rank list of the residency program. Interview performance and individual characteristics are strongly considered when creating our rank list.

Additional considerations and questions:

Do you accept DO applicants? Foreign medical graduates? Preliminary residents?

  • Ultimately, we are looking for the most qualified applicants to join our program, regardless of their medical school or degree. Strong applicants will be considered from DO and international medical schools, and we do have a history of matching exceptional students from non-allopathic and/or non-US medical schools who have excelled in our program and beyond. All applicants are required to take USMLE Step 2 prior to applying however, so that we can fairly employ the same evaluation standards.
  • International/foreign medical graduates must be a US citizen or hold a green card as a permanent resident as we do not have the ability to sponsor visas at this time.
  • Residents who have already completed a preliminary year in general surgery are welcome to apply. Emphasis will be placed on the performance during intern year, including updated letters of recommendation and accomplishments since the last match cycle.
  • Only applicants who have completed medical school within the last two years will be considered.

Should I apply for a preliminary position in your program?

  • We accept both designated and non-designated preliminary applicants. Depending on your career interests and goals, we do have the ability to tailor the preliminary year to meet individual needs, and we want our preliminary residents to have the opportunity to make the most out of their year with us. We do have a track record of working with non-designated preliminary residents and helping them successfully navigate the application process to match into their desired specialty. We have occasionally retained some of the most qualified preliminary residents interested in general surgery in our own program with great success. 

How can I show my interest in your program?

  • If you choose to participate in the ERAS signaling process, this serves as a fair and balanced method to express interest in our program. All other communication in this regard is unnecessary. Please do not send our program administrator or program director unsolicited emails expressing your interest in our program. However, please feel free to contact us if you have questions or need to communicate changes to your application status to our program.

For more information, contact:

Natalie Hawkins
GME Program Administrator
Prisma Health General Surgery Residency - Columbia
2 Medical Park Rd., Suite 306
Columbia, SC 29203
GeneralSurgeryResidencyColumbia@PrismaHealth.org  
Phone: 803-434-8198