UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine-UCLA Medical Center Program

Program Identity & Fit

UCLA's Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Fellowship is an academically-oriented, physician-scientist-generating program built around two distinct clinical environments: the tertiary/quaternary Mattel Children's Hospital NICU (22 beds, ~450 admissions/year, ECMO, whole-body cooling, cardiac surgery, ~2,000 high-risk births) and the community-academic hybrid UCLA Santa Monica NICU. Research infrastructure is deep and structured, including an NICHD institutional training grant, a K-30 physician-scientist pathway, the UCLA STAR Program, CTSI-based Masters in Clinical Research, and dedicated loan-repayment support, all pointing to a mentor-matched, individualized scholarly track rather than a purely clinical service model. The program explicitly states its goal is producing academic neonatologists and physician-scientists, evidenced by 60+ graduates now on faculty at institutions like UCSF, Johns Hopkins, Vanderbilt, and Penn/CHOP. Continuity is emphasized through the state-recognized Center of Excellence High-Risk Infant Follow-Up Clinic, and structured board-focused and multidisciplinary conferences (fetal care, neonatal-surgical, neonatal-pathology) reinforce a highly organized academic curriculum.