Physician Scientist Pathway

Goal

To train the next generation of physician-scientists and future leaders in biomedical research.

The Physician Scientist Pathway (PSP) at Penn

• Two or three years of Internal Medicine residency
• Clinical fellowship
• Three years of mentored research
• Continuity Clinic

The Penn PSP offers

• A peer group of physician-scientists at all levels of training
• Diverse and interactive research community
• Mentoring on career decisions and selection of research programs
• Integrated university campus with campus-wide research opportunities
• An outstanding track record of launching careers in academic medicine.

Penn PSP residents and fellows

• 6 match positions each year
• 16 residents (6 PSP interns + 1 categorical intern, 6+2 junior residents, 3 senior residents)
• 21 fellows (Cardiology, Pulmonary, Heme-Onc, Endocrine, GI, ID, Rheumatology)

Research community

• Basic Research at Penn
• Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics
• Medical Ethics and Health Policy
• Bioengineering
• Epigenetics Institute
• Cardiovascular Institute
• Institute for Diabetes, Obesity, and Metabolism
• Institute for Regenerative Medicine
• Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutics

Mentorship

• One-on-one mentoring begins at orientation
• Mentoring committee beginning in fellowship
• Career development workshops tailored to physician-scientists
• Grant Proposal Success (GPS) – small group, intensive, grant writing workshop tailored for fellows writing K applications
• Physician Scientist Retreat
• Near peer to peer mentoring on career development and fellowship application

Graduates of the PSP

2003-2026

• 46/50 (92%) are in research
• 44 Assistant or Associate Professors: at Penn, Duke, Brown, MGH/Harvard, UCSF/Berkeley, Weill-Cornell, Hopkins, Michigan, Vanderbilt, NYU, Wash U, UCLA, U. Florida, Pitt, Maryland, Cincinnati Childrens, U. Cincinnati, Indiana, Roswell Park/SUNY@Buffalo, U. Colorado, and Emory.
• 2 Directors, Clinical Trials Development at pharmaceutical company

Prior to 2003

• 16/20 are faculty: Assistant, Associate, or Full Professors: Penn, UCSF, UCSD, Harvard/BWH, U. Washington, Tufts, Vanderbilt, Sloan Kettering, U. Colorado, UNC, UCLA, U. Maryland
• 1 NCI Director (2023-2024)
• 1 Investigator in a research foundation performing basic research
• 1 Medical Officer (Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, FDA)
• 1 CEO (Loxo Oncology)
• 1 Director (Pharmion Corp)

PSP application information

• NRMP # for PSP is: 1628140C1 (Internal Medicine/ABIM Research Pathway)
• There is no supplemental application for the Physician-Scientist Pathway
• PSP applicants may select both PSP (#1628140C1) and categorial programs (#1628140C0)

Questions regarding the Physician Scientist Program at the University of Pennsylvania should be directed to: