University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria Program

Program Identity & Fit

UICOMP's diagnostic radiology residency is a categorical program housed entirely within OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, a 642-bed Level I trauma center and 26-county tertiary referral hub with an attached children's hospital, giving residents dense exposure to high-acuity adult and pediatric imaging in a single-site model. The program distinguishes itself through early matriculation (38 months of clinical radiology training before the Core Exam versus the typical 36), a robust ESIR pathway feeding into a distinct Independent IR/DR residency, and PGY-V "mini-fellowship" blocks that let each senior resident individually curate three 12-week subspecialty deep-dives. Faculty simultaneously staff CIRA, a large private practice group, so residents see both academic and private-practice models side by side; research is required but modestly resourced (one project expected, $10,000 institutional pool, funded conference travel) rather than positioned as a defining output. Alumni outcomes split fairly evenly between subspecialty fellowships (body, breast, neuro, MSK, abdominal imaging at academic centers) and direct entry into private practice or the program's own ESIR/IR track, reflecting a program oriented toward producing well-rounded, procedurally capable general and subspecialty radiologists rather than physician-scientists.