Applying to the Pediatrics Residency Program

Resident applicants are selected through the National Resident Matching Program. The first-year residency program at Children's Hospital begins during the third week of June. The second- and third-year programs begin on July 1. If you need special information or further assistance please call 215-590-1220.

Applicant requirements

• You must be a graduate of a United States or Canadian medical school or you must have completed one year of formal, post-graduate training in a U.S. hospital.
• You must have passed USMLE or COMLEX Part I. We require that you have taken and passed Step II before the start of training.

To carry out its mission, it is of critical importance for the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) to keep our patients, families and workforce safe and healthy and to support the health of our global community. In keeping with this, CHOP has mandated all workforce members (including trainees) on site at any CHOP location for any portion of their time be vaccinated for COVID-19 as a condition of employment.

This mandate also applies to workforce members or trainees performing work for CHOP at non-CHOP locations. Additionally, all workforce members based in or regularly scheduled to work at any New Jersey location are mandated to be both vaccinated and boosted for COVID-19, with booster timing consistent with applicable guidelines. The CHOP COVID-19 vaccine mandate is in alignment with applicable local, state and federal mandates. CHOP also requires all workforce members and trainees who work in patient care buildings or who provide patient care to receive an annual influenza vaccine. Employees may request exemption consideration for CHOP vaccine requirements for valid religious and medical reasons. Please note start dates may be delayed until candidates are fully immunized or valid exemption requests are reviewed. In addition, candidates other than those in positions with regularly scheduled hours in New Jersey, must attest to not using tobacco products.

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, religion, national or ethnic origin, disability, protected veteran status or any other protected category. CHOP is a VEVRAA Federal Contractor seeking priority referrals for protected veterans.

How to apply

In addition to the above application requirements, for the upcoming application cycle, our program will be collecting and reviewing data from applicants' supplemental ERAS applications. Completion of the standard MyERAS application is a requirement; completion of the supplemental ERAS application is optional. In its second year of use, the supplemental ERAS application is designed to help applicants share more information about themselves and assist our program in finding applicants that fit our program's setting and mission. There is no cost to applicants and participation is optional. The supplemental ERAS application includes:

• Geographic preferences (by division and by urban or rural setting); 
• Information about an applicant's most meaningful experiences and other impactful life events, if applicable; and
• Program signals.

The supplemental ERAS application will be delivered via email to applicants with a unique URL that is separate from the MyERAS application and must be completed between August 1 and September 16, 2022. Learn more about the AAMC supplemental ERAS application. 

• Apply using the ERAS System
  • Deadline is November 15
  • We will review an application once we receive the ERAS application form, personal statement, medical school transcript and USMLE or COMLEX scores. We engage in holistic review of applications on a rolling basis.
  • We do not accept Universal Application for Residency
• Letters of recommendation:
  • We require a minimum of three letters of recommendation.
  • We will review and consider any letter of recommendation that comes to us through ERAS.
  • We prefer letters from physicians who know you well and are in a position to comment on your skills, abilities, accomplishments and suitability for a residency position. We do not require a letter from the Chair of Pediatrics at your school.
• Considerations in the setting of COVID-19: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, CHOP will be conducting all interviews virtually during the 2022-2023 application cycle. Interview invitations will be sent out via ERAS. Please contact pedsresidency@chop.edu with any questions.