University of California San Diego Medical Center Program

Internal Medicine Analyst Verified · Sep 30, 2026

University of California San Diego Medical Center Program

University of California San Diego Medical Center Program is a residency program specializing in Internal Medicine, located in San Diego, California, directed by Simerjot Jassal, MD, MAS and coordinated by Anne Bamrick. The program accepts applications through October 1, 2027 and holds an accreditation status of Continued. International Medical Graduates interested in this program may contact the program coordinator directly at [email protected] or (619) 543-6287. 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

UC San Diego is a large, top-tier academic university program built around three distinct clinical environments—the Hillcrest safety-net hospital serving homeless, immigrant, and HIV/AIDS populations, an academic VA, and the quaternary Jacobs/Sulpizio La Jolla complex handling transplant, advanced oncology, and heart failure referrals—giving residents a deliberate split between underserved primary care exposure and subspecialty-dense tertiary medicine. Research is structurally supported (two protected research months, an annual research symposium, PSTP fast-track and research-in-residency tracks, high NIH-funded institutional infrastructure) but not mandatory for categorical residents, positioning it as a strong offering rather than a universal expectation. The program's six elective pathways (Primary Care, RACE clinician-educator, Hospital Medicine, Global Health with sites in Mozambique and Tijuana, Integrative Medicine, and Social Justice/Advocacy) signal an identity built on individualized career tracking and social-justice-oriented care for border, refugee, and correctional populations. With roughly two-thirds of graduates pursuing fellowship and strong placement at prestigious programs, UCSD values residents who are resilient, team-oriented educators committed to serving marginalized populations while maintaining rigorous academic and subspecialty ambitions.

Who it fits

An applicant with demonstrated longitudinal work in underserved, immigrant, or border/global-health populations who is pursuing competitive fellowship training while wanting to keep health equity and advocacy central to their professional identity.

Research intensity

Strong - two protected research months are available to all categorical residents, dedicated physician-scientist tracks (PSTP) exist, and scholarly output/national presentation is actively supported and expected of a majority of residents.

Career orientation

Mixed - Fellowship, Academic Medicine, Community Practice

Important

The program operates a Physician-Scientist Training Pathway with a separate, competitive interview-based fellowship guarantee process, and its Primary Care and Social Justice/Advocacy pathways require a distinct post-match or PGY-1/PGY-2 pathway application in addition to the standard residency application.

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