Medical University of South Carolina Program

Program Identity & Fit

MUSC's Storm Eye Institute is the sole academic ophthalmology center in Charleston and the major tertiary referral site for South Carolina, giving residents exposure to complex, uncommon pathology alongside high clinical and surgical volume across four positions per year. Training is structured around progressive surgical autonomy from early in residency, a 24-hour wet lab curriculum, substantial VA experience (about 10 months over three years at Ralph H. Johnson VA), and required international medical mission trips spanning cataract, strabismus, cornea, and glaucoma surgery. Research is built into the curriculum with an expected one publication and an annual presentation at the Kiawah Eye meeting, backed by funded travel to present at national subspecialty meetings (ASCRS, ASRS, ARVO, AAPOS, AAO), though the program frames its graduates as prepared for either comprehensive practice or fellowship rather than pushing a single track. The department emphasizes faculty representing every ophthalmic subspecialty as hands-on mentors, a tight-knit resident culture with monthly leadership feedback forums, and quality-of-life features (covered parking, no personal lens purchases, protected post-call time).