Participants in the program may avail themselves of the Clinician-Investigator Pathway (i.e. short-tracking) as defined by the American Board of Internal Medicine. Most program participants are trainees with both a MD and a PhD degree. MD’s with a master’s degree and/or other substantial research experience can also be considered. 

The Physician-Scientist Training Program (PSTP) in the Department of Medicine is committed to training physician-scientists and preparing them for successful careers in academic medicine. The program focuses on the period from completion of the combined MD, PhD degree through the clinical and post-doctoral research training years, culminating in a full-time academic appointment. The PSTP combines the intensive clinical training environment of Barnes-Jewish Hospital at the Washington University Medical Center with the rigorous scientific training that is possible in the world-renowned laboratories at Washington University. Trainees will obtain their internal medicine training in the Categorical Internal Medicine Training Program and will then have the opportunity to continue their subspecialty clinical training in any of the ten clinical divisions within the Department of Medicine.  Trainees are guaranteed clinical fellowship opportunities in the subspecialty of their choice upon acceptance into the PSTP. Post-doctoral research training can be conducted in any laboratory within Washington University.

For academic dermatology applicants, completion of a PGY1 year in the Washington University Preliminary Internal Medicine program (or alternative) is followed by three years of  dermatology residency. The third year of dermatology is comprised of 75% research and 25% clinical training in preparation for additional full-time post-doctoral research training in any laboratory within Washington University.