University of Colorado Program

Program Identity & Fit

The University of Colorado Orthopaedic Surgery Residency is a university-based, tertiary academic program built on a multi-site model spanning UCHealth's Level 1 trauma/tertiary referral center, Denver Health (the region's safety-net hospital), Children's Hospital Colorado, and the VA Eastern Colorado system, giving residents exposure across trauma, complex reconstruction, pediatric orthopaedics, and underserved adult populations. Research is structurally embedded through a dedicated Musculoskeletal Science Curriculum, a T32-supported pipeline, and a parallel-matched six-year Research Track in which one resident per class adds a dedicated research year (with formal mentorship teams, grant-writing training, and encouragement to pursue extramural funding such as NIH F31/32) between PGY3 and PGY4. Distinctive features include a funded PGY5 international outreach rotation (Peru, Honduras, Mexico, Belgium, Tanzania, Brazil), an ROCK/AAOS-based two-year didactic cycle, simulation training at the Center for Surgical Innovation, and explicit preparation of graduates for varied endpoints—rural practice, private practice, or subspecialty fellowship. The program's structure and separate research-track match signal that it values residents who can function across a broad socioeconomic and clinical spectrum while also supporting a subset pursuing formal clinician-scientist training.