Preliminary Internal Medicine

Thank you for your interest in the Preliminary Internal Medicine training program at the University of Maryland.

Our preliminary program director is Dr. Christina Koch, who also serves as an Associate Program Director for our internal medicine residency program. Interns in our preliminary program receive comprehensive training in internal medicine to prepare them for their advanced residency training.

Please read below for some of the highlights of our preliminary medicine program, visit our main website for more details about our training program, and read testimonials from a few of our current preliminary interns.

Application Process

Applications are only accepted through ERAS with positions offered through the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP). Please visit the Application Process for more details. For other correspondence, you can reach us at umdmed@som.umaryland.edu.

We have two preliminary tracks.

• Preliminary internal medicine track (NRMP 1252140P0)
• International scholars (NRMP 1252140P2):  Only for international graduates supported by SACM (Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission).

Please note – our community affiliates have separate preliminary programs. See Mercy Medical Center and University of Maryland at Midtown for more information.

Interview Process

All interviews for preliminary intern candidates are conducted virtually in December and January. Your time commitment is a 20-minute virtual interview with the program director or an associate program director. The week prior to your interview, you will receive an email with additional information about our program. You will have plenty of time to discuss your interests and for us to talk to you about our program and answer your questions.

We suggest that you review the following pages on our website prior to your virtual interview:

• Curriculum in Internal Medicine for provides details on rotations and schedule of your clinical day
• Didactic Education for our conferences and core curriculum series
• Training Sites – UMMC and Baltimore VA Medical Center. Preliminary interns do not rotate at Mercy Medical Center.
• Our Current Residents and Our Preliminary Residents along with Spotlights about their experiences.
• Salary and Benefits

Curriculum Overview

Interns in the preliminary program complete 9 inpatient rotations and 3 months of electives. We ensure that all interns have balanced experiences at both UMMC and the VA during inpatient and elective blocks.

• 9 blocks Inpatient: Includes medicine floors, ICU's, night float, day float and AIR (Admitting Intern Resident) rotations
• 3 blocks Electives: Divided into 6 two-week elective blocks throughout the academic year
• 0.5 blocks Urgent Care at the VA 
• Vacation: 4 weeks
  • One two-week block and one week during elective
  • Preliminary interns remaining at UMMC for their training have a 4th week of vacation at the end of the year (June 24-30).
  • Preliminary interns who are transitioning to residency at another institution are not paid for the week of June 24-30.

Electives

Preliminary interns can choose from a wide variety of electives in the medical subspecialties, research electives, or electives outside of our department in your field of interest. Interns are also able to create their own electives that meet their educational needs – whether at Maryland or other sites around the country and globe. See selections available at Elective and Research Opportunities.

Anesthesiology Preliminary Interns

Preliminary interns who plan advanced training in anesthesiology complete 2 months of MICU and 1 month of emergency medicine as part of their CBY (clinical base year) requirement for anesthesiology and may request extra ICU months.