Application
What are we looking for?
Graduates of medical schools in the United States and other countries are eligible to apply. We seek applicants who are intelligent, curious, creative, energetic, personable, and accomplished. We are very interested in having a diverse residency class and wish to attract exceptional applicants with wide ranging interests and talents from all parts of the country and beyond. We are especially interested in those who will become leaders in one or more of the many areas of academic pediatrics: medical care, laboratory or clinical research, teaching, patient advocacy, public policy or global health.
PL-1 Applications – Three Year Pediatric Residency Positions
We accept a total of 62 interns: 46 PL-1 interns in the Categorical Track, including the various combined programs described below, 12 interns in the Leadership in Equity and Advocacy Track, including one Child Neurology position based at Boston Medical Center, and four interns in the Medicine-Pediatrics Track. For PL-1 positions, the Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics (BCRP) participates in the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). Applications will only be accepted through ERAS.
Candidates may apply to either one or both tracks. We recommend applying to both. Each track has its own NRMP match number. The tracks are listed in the NRMP Directory as follows:
Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics
- Peds-Categorical Track/Boston Children’s Hospital : NRMP#1259320C0
- Peds-Leadership in Equity and Advocacy Track/Boston Medical Center: NRMP#1259320C1
A single pediatrics application will suffice for those applying to both the categorical and LEAD tracks.
PL-1 Applications – Two Year Pediatric Residency Positions
Special Alternative Research Pathways (“Fast-tracking”):
We allow residents to enter both of the special alternative research pathways offered by the American Board of Pediatrics: the Accelerated Research Pathway (ARP) and the Integrated Research Pathway (IRP). There is no cap on the number of positions available each year. Typically about 2-4 residents apply to each pathway (4-8 overall).
Applicants interested in these pathways should apply to the categorical or LEAD pediatrics programs. Technically, intern applicants cannot be guaranteed acceptance into these special research pathways before the beginning of their internship since clinical performance and PL-1 in-service exam scores are used to judge a candidate’s suitability for accelerated training. However, nearly all residents who wished to pursue one of these pathways over the past three decades have been allowed to do so.
PL-1 Applications – Combined Pediatric Residency Programs
Number of Applications. If you are applying to both pediatrics and one of the combined tracks listed below (e.g., pediatric anesthesiology with categorical pediatrics as a backup) you will need to submit applications to both programs. However, contrary to past years, those who are only applying to a combined program do not need to send a separate application to pediatrics.
Combined Pediatrics – Medical Genetics:
- Pediatrics/Medical Genetics: NRMP #7652444017
The BCRP is one of about two dozen residency programs in the country that offers combined training in pediatrics and medical genetics. We can accommodate up to two such positions a year. Applicants interested in this option should contact Dr. Amy Roberts who heads intern selection for the combined program. The application is submitted through ERAS as described above for PL-1 applicants. Those invited for a BCRP interview will have additional interviews on a separate day with the clinical genetics faculty.
Child Neurology – Boston Children’s Hospital:
- BCRP Categorical Pediatrics – BCH Child Neurology program: NRMP #1259185C0
We offer six 2-year positions in the Categorical Track for residents who match in the child neurology residency at Boston Children’s Hospital and first need to complete two years of pediatric residency training.
Boston Children’s Hospital offers a combined BCRP Pediatrics-Child Neurology program (termed the “Categorical Child Neurology” program) in which the match is for 2 years of general pediatrics in the Categorical Track of the Boston Combined Residency Program in pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital and Boston Medical Center followed by three years of child neurology at Boston Children’s Hospital. Those invited for a BCRP interview will have additional interviews on a separate day with the clinical neurology faculty at BCH. Applicants who match in this track are guaranteed a position in the categorical track of the BCRP.
Applicants to the child neurology track at Boston Children’s Hospital should include at least one letter from an inpatient pediatrics rotation, ideally from someone who knows you well and writes many letters for students.
Child Neurology – Boston Medical Center:
- BCRP LEAD Pediatrics – BMC Child Neurology program: NRMP #1257185C0.
We offer up to one 2-year position in the Leadership in Equity and Advocacy (LEAD) Track for a resident who matches in the child neurology residency at Boston Medical Center but who first needs to complete two years of pediatric residency training. Applicants who match in this position will first complete two years of general pediatrics in the LEAD Track of the Boston Combined Residency Program in pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital and Boston Medical Center, followed by three years of child neurology at Boston Medical Center. Those invited for a BCRP interview will have additional interviews on a separate day with the clinical neurology faculty at BMC. Applicants who match in this track are guaranteed a position in the LEAD track of the BCRP.
Applicants to the child neurology track at Boston Medical Center should include at least one letter from an inpatient pediatrics rotation, ideally from someone who knows you well and writes many letters for students.
Note: Each of these neurology tracks can be ranked independently in the match. Please note that the two child neurology programs are entirely independent. Applicants who apply to both may receive an invitation to interview at either one or both. Interview invitations to the two programs are not coordinated, so an applicant may be invited to interview at one program before the other. An invitation to interview for the Boston Children’s Program will be paired with an invitation to interview with the BCRP Categorical track and an invitation to interview with the Boston Medical Center Child Neurology Program will be paired with an invitation to interview with the BCRP LEAD track. Applicants who are invited to interview with both neurology programs will only need to attend one pediatrics interview day.
Combined Pediatrics – Anesthesiology:
- Pediatrics-Anesthesiology: NRMP #1259726C0
The BCRP is one of five residency programs in the US to offer combined training in Pediatrics and Anesthesiology. Residents begin their first year in the BCRP pediatrics residency at Boston Children’s Hospital and Boston Medical Center. The following year is the first year of anesthesiology training at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, followed by three years of integrated residency training in both pediatrics and anesthesiology. Throughout the three years of integrated training, while residents are doing core training in pediatrics or anesthesiology, they will be expected to attend conferences and participate in core clinical activities once a month in the other discipline to make the combined program fully integrated.
Individuals ideally suited for this combined training will likely pursue careers at the interface between critical care, pediatrics, and anesthesiology. Examples of such careers include hospitalist medicine, pain and palliative care, out-of operating room procedural and sedations services, and members of integrated subspecialty teams in pediatrics, critical care and anesthesiology. One of the first combined residents, Ethan Sanford, has published an article in Anesthesia and Analgesia describing the program and the advantages of combined training.
Dr. Carolyn Marcus directs residency selection in pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital and Dr. Morana Lasic, directs resident selection in anesthesiology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Because there are so few combined pediatrics-anesthesiology positions available nationally, applicants will typically also apply to either categorical pediatrics or categorical anesthesiology or both.
Combined Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (Triple Board Program)
- BCH-Tufts Medical Center Triple Board Program: NRMP #1259730C0; ACGME program code: #7302444002
Boston Children’s Hospital and Tufts Medical Center have joined to form the joint BCH-Tufts Medical Center Triple Board Program. This is a five year training program with up to two residents selected each year via the Match. Dr. Karen Saroca leads the triple board program and intern selection for the program. Dr Carolyn Marcus heads intern selection at Boston Children’s Hospital.
The triple board program combines Pediatrics, General Psychiatry, and Child & Adolescent Psychiatry and enables graduates to be board eligible in each of these specialties. The training is integrated between these specialties over five years. The triple board Program is intended to foster the development of physicians who wish to provide clinical care, to teach, or to carry out research in areas such as child/adolescent consultation/liaison psychiatry, medical/psychiatric disorders, and mental health aspects of pediatric illnesses and developmental disorders. Triple board trained physicians are prepared to be leaders who can bridge the gap between pediatrics and psychiatry, are prepared to work at the interface of psychiatry and pediatrics in an integrated health care system, and who demonstrate a commitment to advocacy for children and families in the care of psychosocial, emotional, and medical needs. The triple board graduate often creates their own niche within the interface of these specialties, most commonly involving child & adolescent psychiatry and pediatrics.
Applicants interested in applying to the triple board program should submit their applications through ERAS. Given the limited number of residency spots and with only 10 triple board programs nationally, we encourage applicants to also apply to a back-up categorical program in pediatrics, general psychiatry, or both. Those invited for a triple board interview will have a BCRP interview on a separate day. The triple board interview selection process is conducted separately from the BCRP pediatrics interview selection, so applicants may be accepted to interview for either the triple board program (triple board and pediatrics interview invitations emailed in early October), or for the BCRP pediatrics program (interviews offered at any time but mostly in late October or in early November). Applicants who match in the triple board program will obtain their pediatrics training in the BCRP irrespective of whether they are or are not interviewed for the BCRP pediatrics match.
More information is available here.
Deadline:
All PL-1 applications should be received by October 31, 2025. While we will consider applications received after that date, interviews are rarely granted to late applicants. Because of the volume (more than 1800 applications), we appreciate receiving applications early.
Applicants should update their applications anytime they have significant new information (e.g., election to AOA or other honors, Step 2CK scores, acceptance of a major first-authored paper, etc.). To ensure the information is noted, they should also email Dr. Carolyn Marcus.
Please Note:
We issue interview invitations when our review is complete, but because we review each application in depth and write a detailed summary of each applicant, our reviews take longer than most other programs. We apologize for this but believe that reviewing the complete application and not using filters to exclude applicants is the fairest approach and allows us to identify the best applicants. Also, because we do not review applications in a systematic order some applications do not get reviewed until the end of the reading period and some applicants will receive interview invitations before others. Please note that we plan to complete our reviews and issue all interview invitations by November 10th. We expect that you will hear from us by then. We want to help you in any way we can but we would be grateful if you did not write us asking about the status of your application before November 10th unless you have new information to share or have to know the status of your application for some time critical reason.
Applicants who accept an appointment elsewhere, or who for any reason wish to withdraw, are requested to notify Elayne Fournier, Dr. Marcus and the NRMP immediately.
