University of Washington Program

Program Identity & Fit

The University of Washington Dermatology Residency is an academic, university-based program anchored by a top NIH-funded department, serving a quaternary referral population drawn from the entire WWAMI region (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, Idaho), which produces high volumes of rare and medically complex referral cases alongside routine dermatology. Training spans five distinct sites—UW Medical Center, Harborview, Seattle Children's, the VA Puget Sound, and the Roosevelt outpatient clinic—giving residents inpatient consultative, pediatric, HIV/sexual health, dermatopathology, and Mohs surgical exposure with graduated autonomy. Research is deeply embedded via a formal 3+1 Research Track culminating in an Acting Instructor year with protected research time and expected extramural funding (T32/F32, foundation awards), reflecting the department's identity as a physician-scientist pipeline built around named research infrastructure like the MC3 (Merkel Cell Carcinoma) Institute. The program explicitly values intellectually curious, collaborative trainees and structures its curriculum toward both independent clinical practice and academic career preparation, including named committee involvement (JEDI, Wellness) and QI project requirements.