Calgary - General Surgery
University of CalgaryCalgary, AlbertaIMG stream
From the 2026 match (R-1 2026). See the 2027 version
- 1 position
- 5 years
- IMG
- General Surgery
- 51–200
- 26–50%
- Accredited
- 29516
Summary
The University of Calgary's General Surgery training program offers a well-established, medium-sized residency that combines the benefits of both large and small programs. Residents develop close relationships with faculty, gain early operative experience, and are prepared for both clinical subspecialty/academic training and general surgery practice.
Training
- Research
- Robust research support through Research Committee, Office of Surgical Research (OSR), and Clinical Investigator Program (CIP) with opportunities for advanced degrees and scholarly pursuits.
- Training setting
- Training occurs across five sites in Calgary, with core rotations at Foothills Medical Centre and Peter Lougheed Centre, and additional rotations at Rockyview General Hospital, South Health Campus, Alberta Children's Hospital, and community hospitals in Lethbridge and Red Deer.
- Teaching approach
- The program follows Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME) and Competence by Design (CBD), focusing on entrustable professional activities (EPAs) and milestones to ensure comprehensive skill development and frequent formative assessments.
- Setting types
- Academic Medical Center
- Community Hospitals
- Tertiary Care Centers
- Focus areas
- General Surgery
- Surgical Skills Development
- Competency-Based Medical Education
- Surgical Subspecialties
- Patient populations
- General Surgery Patients
- Pediatric Patients
- Community Hospital Patients
- Urban and Rural Patient Populations
- Highlights
- Surgical Foundations Program
- PGY-1 Surgical Skills Bootcamp
- Residents as Teachers Retreat
- Simulation Lab Sessions
- Endoscopy Course
- Annual Wellness Weekend
- Exam Preparation Course
- Formative Oral Exam Days
- Research Committee Support
- Clinical Investigator Program (CIP)
- Strengths
- Accredited Royal College Program
- Close Faculty-Resident Relationships
- Comprehensive Surgical Training
- Flexible Rotation Scheduling
- Strong Research Support
- Wellness-Focused Curriculum
- Enhanced skills
- Surgical Skills Development
- Research Training
- Leadership Development
- Wellness Programs
By year
Not stated on CaRMS page
Selection
- What the program looks at
- Academic Record
- References
- Research Background
- Personal Letter
- Electives
- Interview Performance
- Applications per year
- 51–200
- Applicants offered interviews
- 26–50%
Interviews
- Dates (2026 match)
- 29 Jan 2026
Pay
| Level | Annual salary |
|---|---|
| PGY-1 | $67,440 / year |
| PGY-2 | $74,153 / year |
| PGY-3 | $80,058 / year |
| PGY-4 | $86,281 / year |
| PGY-5 | $92,698 / year |
Benefits
- Annual vacation
- 4 weeks/yr
- Call Stipends
- weekday in-house – $118.02weekend in-house / holiday – $178.72weekday home call – $59.01weekend home call / holiday – $89.35
- CMPA dues paid
- $1,500
- Dental plan
- 75% premium paid
- Educational leave
- 14 days paid leave
- Extended health insurance
- 75% premium paid$1000 per year Flexible Spending Account*
- Frequency of calls
- In-house call: 7/28. 2/4 weekend call.Home call: 9/28. 2/4 weekend call**A Resident scheduled on Home call but who is required to work more than four hours in hospital during the call period, of which more than one full hour is past 12:00 a.m. and before 6:00 a.m., or more than six (6) hours in hospital during the call period, shall be remunerated at the rate for In-House call.$100 per day for each scheduled weekend day of patient rounds when not on-call
- Life insurance
- 100% towards $150,000 coverage
- Life Support Course Costs (Program Approved
- 100% paid
- Long-term disability insurance
- 100% paid for 75% gross income
- Maternity Leave
- 18 weeks total (17 weeks paid to match 90% of salary when combined with EI)
- Parental Leave
- 2 weeks leave with full pay and benefits;52 weeks (inclusive of Maternity/Paternity/Adoption Leaves) – unpaid leave
- Practice Stipend
- $1,500
- Provincial dues (% of salary)
- .95%
- Sick leave
- Up to 3 months or to end contract paid leave, whichever occurs first
- Statutory holidays
- Paid days. Additional days off are given if resident works the day before and part of a named holiday.
Call
- Call (provincial max)
- 1 in 4 in-house
Teaching sites
- Foothills Medical Centre
- Peter Lougheed Centre
- Rockyview General Hospital
- South Health Campus
- Alberta Children's Hospital
- Chinook Regional Hospital
- Red Deer Regional Hospital
Hospital facts
Hospital size and activity: Alberta doesn't publish this as open data.
Contacts
Contacts weren't collected for the 2026 match.
The current program director and contacts are on the 2027 version of this program and on the CaRMS program page(opens in a new tab).
Location
Calgary, Alberta
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About the city
Public statistics for the place named by this program’s location label, each with its source and reference period. They describe the place, not the program, and are not a ranking. Check each source before you rely on it.
Climate
- January average
- −7.6 °C
- July average
- 16.9 °C
- Snowfall
- 138.7 cm a year
- Days below −20 °C
- 21.6 days a year
People
- Population
- 1,306,784 people
- Official languages
- English only 90.8% · French only 0.1% · English and French 6.6% · neither 2.5%
- Immigrants
- 33.3% of residents
- Indigenous identity
- 3.2% of residents
- How people commute
- car, truck or van 83.2% · public transit 8.8% · walking or cycling 5.1% · other 2.9%
- Median household income
- $98,000 before tax
Rural and remote
- Population centre
- Calgary, a large urban population centre (100,000 or more people)
- Remoteness index
- 0.106
Housing, cost and work
- Rental vacancy rate
- 4.9%
- Basic cost of living
- $59,153 a year
- Unemployment rate
- 6.3%
Job outlook
- Outlook, 2025–2027
- Very good
- Canada-wide, to 2033
- Strong risk of Shortage