University of California San Diego Medical Center Program

Emergency Medicine Analyst Verified · Sep 2, 2026

University of California San Diego Medical Center Program

University of California San Diego Medical Center Program is a residency program specializing in Emergency Medicine, located in San Diego, California, directed by Leslie C. Oyama, MD and coordinated by Frances Rudolf. The program accepts applications through September 27, 2027. International Medical Graduates interested in this program may contact the program coordinator directly at [email protected] or (619) 543-6463. IMGPrep analysts have verified and compiled this program’s IMG acceptance rate, USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 score requirements, Visa Sponsorship Policy, graduation year cutoff, and ECFMG certificate requirements — available to IMGPrep subscribers.

Program Identity & Fit

UCSD's Emergency Medicine residency is a 4-year, 12-per-year academic program built explicitly to produce future leaders in EM, with mandatory independent research for every resident and opt-in longitudinal concentrations across nearly every EM subspecialty (ultrasound, EMS/aeromedical, hyperbaric/dive medicine, toxicology, global health, wilderness medicine, pediatric EM). Training spans a genuinely varied clinical map—Hillcrest (the de facto county/safety-net site and Level 1 trauma/burn/stroke/STEMI center), La Jolla, Rady Children's, VA San Diego, rural El Centro Regional Medical Center in Imperial County, community Tri-City Medical Center, and an optional Mercy Air flight program—giving residents deliberate exposure to academic, community, rural, pediatric, and aeromedical environments within one curriculum. Faculty run a substantial NIH/DoD/foundation-funded research enterprise (sepsis AI/ML, stroke neuroprotection, hyperbaric/dive physiology, oncologic emergencies, cybersecurity in healthcare) and the department houses the Journal of Emergency Medicine, offering residents junior-editor involvement. Graduate outcomes split roughly evenly into academic medicine, group practices with academic ties, and community private practice, reflecting a program that values broad subspecialty exploration, scholarly output, and leadership/administrative engagement rather than a single narrow track.

Who it fits

An applicant with demonstrated academic productivity and a defined scholarly or subspecialty interest (e.g., ultrasound, EMS/aeromedical, global health, critical care, or health tech/informatics) who wants a four-year training arc combining tertiary academic medicine, rural/underserved rotations, and structured research mentorship toward eventual leadership in the field.

Research intensity

Strong - independent research project is a graduation requirement, embedded within an actively NIH/DoD/foundation-funded department and a resident journal-editor pathway.

Career orientation

Mixed - Academic Medicine, Fellowship, Community Practice

Important

One of three required letters of recommendation must be a SLOE (Standardized Letter of Evaluation).

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