Pediatric Scholarly Tracks

Our residency offers different academic pathways to help you best achieve your career goals. While joining a pathway is not mandatory, many of our residents choose to join one to enhance the clinical education that they receive. Training pathways are run through the Office for Graduate Medical Education and allow for residents and fellows across the School of Medicine to participate together and learn from each other.

Our current pathways include clinician-educator, global health, healthy outcomes, leadership and research. We also have an advocacy pathway that will be launching soon.

Pediatric residents have many opportunities to participate in research as an elective or in the Pediatric Research Track through the ABP special research pathways. Pediatric faculty are enthusiastic about mentoring the next generation of physician scientists. Electives, rotations and special lectures offer options to pursue interests in multiple research methods — from basic science and clinical studies to health services and policy research.

A formal research requirement is not in place, but all residents are expected to develop an area of emphasis for their senior project, presenting an original clinical or scientific presentation on a clinical, research, advocacy or continuous quality improvement topic. An annual resident-fellow research day recognizes the excellent work of Department of Pediatrics trainees.

Research Track

Those who are interested may apply to the pediatric residency research track position (NRMP Match Program Code: 1187320C1). The position is open to a categorical pediatric resident who will participate in either the integrated research pathway or accelerated research pathway.

Integrated Research Pathway (IRP)

Three-year residency with 11 months of research. To participate in this program, the American Board of Pediatrics must approve the track within the initial nine months of the PGY-1 year.

Eligibility: This pathway is open to individuals with MD/PhD degrees, DO/PhD degrees or candidates who demonstrate the equivalent research experience and future research career commitment. Eligibility requirements for the categorical Indiana Pediatric Residency Program must be fulfilled.

Accelerated Research Pathway (ARP)

Two-year residency with four years of training in a pediatric subspecialty fellowship.

Eligibility: This pathway is open to individuals with MD/PhD degrees, DO/PhD degrees or candidates who demonstrate the equivalent research experience and future research career commitment. Eligibility requirements for the categorical Indiana Pediatric Residency Program must be fulfilled.

Research Education

Unique to IU School of Medicine is the Morris Green Physician Scientist Development Program, which was created to identify and support pediatric residents and fellows who want to develop careers as pediatric researchers, physician-scientists and future academic leaders. The program provides protected research time, a structured research curriculum, mentorship and research project funding.

Research Facilities

The internationally recognized Herman B Wells Center for Pediatric Research investigates the causes and mechanisms of pediatric disease and develops innovative approaches for diagnosis and treatment. Education of the next generation of basic and translational scientists is one of the core missions of the Wells Center, with faculty mentoring medical students and young physicians in grant writing, research planning, manuscript writing and presentation delivery.

The NIH-funded Indiana Stimulating Access to Research in Residency (I-StARR) program is designed to prepare outstanding primary care residents for careers in academic medicine and clinical investigation by providing them with mentored research experiences and research skill development during their residency training. I-StARR emphasizes research to improve health outcomes of high-risk populations with highly prevalent cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, which are frequently diagnosed and managed in primary care. Our goal is to place residents on a structured pathway toward research careers as physician-scientists.