Training Options

The Department of Pathology Residency Program offers several training options:

  • Combined anatomic and clinical pathology (AP/CP4)
  • Straight anatomic pathology (AP3) or clinical pathology (CP3)
  • Research track

Most of the residents who enter our program undertake four years of combined training in both anatomic pathology and clinical pathology (AP/CP4). Those individuals who wish to pursue a career in academic pathology without a primary emphasis on basic research may choose a three-year AP (AP3) or CP (CP3) curriculum. Individuals with a strong commitment to a laboratory science may choose the research track.

Combined Anatomic and Clinical Pathology (AP/CP4) Program

The first two years of the AP/CP4 program consist of a core curriculum which serves as the foundation for more advanced or specialized rotations of the third and fourth years of training. Progression through the curriculum is accompanied by a graduated increase in resident responsibility.

First-Year Rotations

Autopsy Pathology (adult, pediatric, and perinatal) - 3 months
Surgical Pathology - 2 months
Transfusion Medicine - 2 months
Hematopathology - 2 months
Chemical Pathology - 2 months
Immunology - 1 month

Second-Year Rotations

Surgical Pathology - 4 months
Liver, Kidney, Eye Pathology - 1 month
Cytology/Fine Needle Aspiration - 2 months
Molecular Pathology - 1 month
Flow Cytometry - 1 month
Microbiology - 2 months
Cytogenetics - 1 month

Third- and Fourth-Year Rotations

Electives - 6 months
Dallas VA Medical Center (Surgical pathology/Cytopathology/Autopsy) - 4 months
Coagulation/Transfusion Medicine - 2 months
Laboratory Management and Informatics - 2 months
Dermatopathology - 2 months
Surgical Pathology, Zale-Lipshy University Hospital - 2 months
Pediatric Surgical Pathology, Children’s Medical Center - 2 months
Hematopathology - 2 months
Forensic Pathology - 1 month
Autopsy - 1 month
Neuropathology - 1 month
Cytology - 1 month

Anatomic Pathology (AP3) Program

During the first 2 years of AP3 training the residents take the same required AP rotations as the AP/CP4 residents. This is followed by a flexible year of research and/or subspecialty elective training. Modifications of this program may be arranged to meet the specific needs of individuals planning specialized academic and/or research careers.

Clinical Pathology (CP3) Program

During the first 18 months of CP3 training the residents take the same core as the AP/CP4 residents. The remaining 18 months are comprised of additional rotations through one or more of the core laboratories, followed by concentrated training in one of the subspecialty areas of clinical pathology and/or research.

Research Track

Residents who choose to follow the research track can do so as candidates for either AP or CP board certification (AP3 or CP3). Such individuals are usually physicians with a proven research record who also hold a PhD. After 24 months of rotations through either anatomic or clinical pathology, the research track resident spends 2 years working in the research laboratory of a faculty member in the Laboratory for Molecular Pathology. The Pathology Department will fund these two years of research. Opportunities also exist for spending this time in the laboratory of an investigator who is not a member of the Pathology Department. In such case, the laboratory in which the resident has chosen to work must assume some portion of the funding. The research track also applies to a resident who has received a grant from the Physician Scientist Training Program, in which case there is guaranteed funding for three years of research in any laboratory on campus.