Residency FAQs

Where can I complete my intern year?

Our program is registered with the NRMP as an advanced program, meaning we are a four year diagnostic radiology program that begins after a matched applicant completes a PGY­1 training program in either a Preliminary Medicine, Preliminary Surgery, or Internal Medicine-Radiology Preliminary Track. This year may be completed at any program of the applicant’s choosing. UT offers both a preliminary medicine and preliminary surgery intern year programs run through their respective departments.

What rotations will I be on each year?

The ABR Core Exam is now administered at the end of your PGY­4 residency year. In order to provide the educational experiences needed to perform well on the ABR Core Exam, residents are now exposed to all service rotations, modalities and electives beginning from day one. The program is always adapting to resident input. Some rotations deemed less educationally rich have been eliminated with that time now available for first year residents to work on advanced modalities including nuclear medicine, MRI, and Interventional radiology.

What’s your daily work day like?

Each day begins with a morning didactic or case­based lecture given by faculty at 7:00am at one of the program facilities. After morning conference, each resident reports to their respective rotation site with the day ending around 5:00pm, varying depending on the volume of work. During the winter months, the inclement weather policy follows the Shelby County Schools. Should schools be closed, conference will be postponed and each resident reports to their rotation by 8:00am. The program is neither faculty nor resident driven, but rather education driven. Each faculty member is eager to teach and for the residents to gain confidence and independence throughout their residency training.

Do your residents attend AIRP?

All residents are required to attend a session at AIRP during their residency. This can be scheduled during the resident’s PGY­3, PGY­4, or PGY­5 residency year.

Is there time to participate in research?

Yes, there are multiple opportunities to participate in research during your residency. Multiple staff throughout the program and in each facility strongly encourage research. ACGME requires at least 2 projects to be completed during residency to satisfy a Scholarly Activity training component. This may be fulfilled with a conference presentation, ACR Case in Point submission, journal article submission, or other project. Dedicated research rotations may be scheduled after certain project particulars have been solidified (e.g., staff preceptor, agreement IRB approval).

How many days of vacation and sick days are available?

Each academic year, the resident is allowed 15 days of paid vacation, 10 days of excused sick leave, and 10 days of excused academic leave (e.g., conference attendance, in­service exams, and fellowship interviews). An additional 5 days of vacation is scheduled during the end­of­year holiday season. Vacation may be distributed throughout the year at the resident’s discretion with certain few limitations. Only 5 days off are allowed during any given rotation. (vacation and/or academic). There are certain rotations where rotation coverage must be obtained prior to approval. Likewise, there are certain black­out periods during the month of June when PGY­4 residents complete the ABR Core Exam and PGY­5 residents relocate for their fellowships.

Do you have a book fund?

Not only does our program have a book fund, our program has currently enjoys one of the historically best education funds in the country and anticipate it will continue to be in the future. During your residency, you will have funding that can be applied toward a wide range of educational expenses including books, online resources, board review courses, and conference attendance and travel. Details of the funds may vary from year­to­year based on general health care economics.

What about StatdxTM or RAD Primer subscriptions?

A 10­seat user Statdx.com™ license is available to all residents during their residency. The ® utility of RAD Primer has had variable reviews by our residents, thus a base license is not provided. Instead, as mentioned above, each resident may obtain an individual license and submit the expense for reimbursement,

What is your call schedule like?

Our program provides on­site resident call coverage for each program hospital, with the exception of the VA and St. Jude. Call consists of 12 hour shifts (weekend daytime 7:00am­7:00pm; weekday and weekend night time 7:00pm­7:00am). First year residents are only assigned day time shifts, with overnight call shifts beginning the second year. During the first year, all call shifts will be completed with a faculty member. A food stipend is provided by the hospital being covered over night.

Are moonlighting opportunities available?

Both internal and external program moonlighting opportunities are available beginning during the resident’s PGY­2 year for internal and PGY­3 year for external. Permission to moonlight is contingent on the resident’s performance on the ACR in­service examination, good academic standing, procurement of a state medical license, and malpractice insurance.

Are there any teaching responsibilities?

ACGME requires fulfillment of a teaching component during their residency. Day ­to ­day teaching of rotating medical student satisfies part of this obligation. To ensure each resident adequately completes their ACGME teaching provision, PGY­2 residents are responsible for teaching the anatomy, physiology, and cross­sectional anatomy courses to the Methodist Healthcare Radiation Technology students at Methodist University Hospital. The time investment does not interfere with the first­ year resident’s education or rotation priorities. This opportunity also serves as a vehicle to develop strong working relationships with future radiology technologists and sonographers.

Are there any fellowships offered?

There are three fellowship programs offered by the University of Tennessee, including Mammography (hosted by Methodist and MRPC), Trauma MR (hosted by Regional One Health), and Pediatrics (hosted by Methodist Le Bonheur). Even with the fellows on these respective rotations with residents, there is no shortage of learning opportunities or competition to read cases. Like faculty, fellows are equally eager to teach and include residents in their own training and interesting cases.

Is there designated time off to study for the ABR Core Exam?  

No. Designated study time is not permitted by the ABR or ACGME by any program. In an effort to ensure residents have adequate opportunity to study, the PGY­4 schedule is created based on individual resident scheduling requests and structured with rotations that are most conducive to each resident’s studying needs.