University of Utah Health Program

Ophthalmology Analyst Verified · May 1, 2025

University of Utah Health Program

University of Utah Health Program is a residency program specializing in Ophthalmology, located in Salt Lake City, Utah, directed by Rachel Simpson, MD and coordinated by Elaine Peterson.. International Medical Graduates interested in this program may contact the program coordinator directly at [email protected] or 801-585-6701. 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

The Moran Eye Center's ophthalmology residency is a high-output academic program serving as the tertiary/quaternary referral hub for the Mountain West (Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, eastern Nevada, western Colorado), with faculty performing over 9,000 surgeries and 182,000 patient visits annually and residents averaging 700 surgical cases by graduation—well above national minimums. Research infrastructure is substantial and NIH-ranked (top-ten historically), with more than 20 dedicated labs/centers (Crandall Center for Glaucoma Innovation, Steele Center for AMD, Intermountain Ocular Research Center), protected weekly research time, ARCS-funded scholarships, and a pre-residency research fellowship pipeline feeding directly into the program. The program pairs this research depth with global health infrastructure (Global Outreach Division, Navajo Nation care, international electives) and a distinctive innovation-oriented, resident-driven educational culture (reverse-classroom curriculum, "Training a Complete Ophthalmologist" leadership series, Mocha with a Mentor). It appears to value residents who combine strong clinical/surgical drive with genuine scholarly initiative and self-directed academic or humanitarian projects rather than passive trainees.

Who it fits

An applicant with demonstrated bench-to-clinical research productivity (ideally in glaucoma, retina, or cornea), a track record of global/underserved outreach work, and explicit academic-medicine or clinician-scientist ambitions will find their existing ERAS narrative most at home here.

Research intensity

Strong - research is structurally embedded (protected time, dedicated funding, pre-residency fellowship pathway, extensive lab infrastructure) and clearly expected of residents, though not universally mandated as a physician-scientist track.

Career orientation

Mixed - Academic Medicine, Fellowship

Important

The program operates a formal one-year Pre-Residency Glaucoma Research Fellowship that functions as a demonstrated-interest and mentorship pipeline directly feeding into residency applications, and it explicitly highlights outreach experience with underserved populations, including the Navajo Nation, as a valued resident activity.

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