Halifax - Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology

Dalhousie UniversityHalifax, Nova ScotiaCMG stream

Approx. quota: 1 position
Length: 5 years
Applications per year: 0–50
Offered interviews: 76–100%

CMG stream · open to Canadian medical graduates

Interviews

Not stated on CaRMS page

Halifax, 4 teaching sites

Program website CANPREPP profile CaRMS program page

What stands out about this program

Senior Saint John rotation where residents work as junior pathologists under faculty supervision.
From “Program highlights” on the CaRMS page
PGY3 Biomarker rotation with direct sign-out of cancer biomarkers and solid-tumour molecular testing.
From “Program curriculum” on the CaRMS page
An 18-head teaching microscope, plus dual teaching heads in every pathologist's office.
From “Program highlights” on the CaRMS page

This 5-year Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology program is largely based at QEII HSC in Halifax.
Off-site subspecialty training includes a Forensic rotation at the Nova Scotia Medical Examiners' office and Pediatric pathology at the IWK.
A required 3-block senior community rotation takes place in the Maritimes, mostly in Saint John, NB, with accommodation provided.
Each resident must complete at least one research project.

The summary is written by CdnMD from the program’s CaRMS description.

What training looks like

Setting: Academic / tertiary hospital
Regional community
Rural exposure: Not stated on CaRMS page
Focus areas: Small program
Research: Required · research project
Getting around: Housing away from the home site is provided or paid for

By year

PGY-2: core experience in surgical and autopsy pathologyQEII Health Sciences Centre15 months
community rotationa site in the Maritime provinces1 month
Lymph node pathology
Molecular pathology
PGY-3: Neuropathology12 week
Cytopathology12 week
Pediatric Pathology12 week
Biomarker
PGY-4: senior Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology6 blocks
Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology rotation at a community siteat least 2 blocks in Saint John, NB3 block
senior Cytopathology1 block
senior Cardiac/Liver/Kidney biopsy rotation1 block
Medical Education or Leadership elective1 block
Forensic Pathologyeight weeks

Other rotations

Listed by the program without a single PGY year.

Introductory Transition to Discipline curriculum (Transition to Discipline · July of PGY1)
Clinical Hematology (Foundations of Discipline)
General Surgery (Foundations of Discipline)
Surgical Selective (Foundations of Discipline · 1 block)
Radiation Oncology (Foundations of Discipline)
Gynecological Oncology (Foundations of Discipline)
Medical Oncology (Foundations of Discipline)
Subspecialty Pediatrics (Foundations of Discipline)
Selective (Foundations of Discipline · 1 block)
Autopsy Pathology (Foundations of Discipline · Forensic Institute)
Foundations of Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology (Foundations of Discipline · 3 blocks · one of which is in Saint John, NB)

✓ = the CaRMS page states it; – = not stated. From the program description and its rotation list.

Where you train

Halifax, Nova Scotia: 4 teaching sites.

QEII Health Sciences Centre
IWK Health Centre
NS Medical Examiners Office (Dartmouth)
Saint John Regional Hospital (Saint John · rural or distributed site)

Record systems at the listed sites: Oracle Health (Cerner) at 2 of 4; no published record for 2.

Hospital facts

3 sites · public figures and clinical record systems where they are published

Public figures for hospitals named above, each with its source and reference period. They describe the hospital, not the program. We match names to the sources by name, so check each source before you rely on it.

How to read the figures

Hospital type. As the province lists it. The list has no volumes or beds.

QEII Health Sciences Centre

Clinical record: One Person One Record, fully electronic record since May 2026 As of 31 Oct 2026

This name covers 2 hospitals in the province’s lists. Each is shown on its own, A to Z, and the numbers are never added together.

QEII - Halifax Infirmary Site (Halifax)

Hospital type: Tertiary

QEII - Victoria General (VG) Site (Halifax)

Hospital type: Tertiary

IWK Health Centre

Clinical record: Oracle Health (One Person One Record), fully electronic record since Dec 2025 As of 31 Oct 2026

Matched to IWK Health Centre (Halifax) in the province’s hospital list.

Hospital type: Tertiary

Saint John Regional Hospital

Matched to Saint John Regional Hospital / Hôpital Régional de Saint John (Saint John) in the province’s hospital list.

Inpatient beds: 445 As listed in the province’s dataset, whose rows were last updated 24 Apr 2019; the count may be older.

Nova Scotia's One Person One Record is live at IWK Health and at Nova Scotia Health's Central Zone. The other zones follow, provincewide by the end of 2026 (the province's date). As of 31 Oct 2026

Verify with the official source: each source button opens the publisher’s own page.

Sources and licences

Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – New Brunswick.
Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Nova Scotia.

About Halifax

People
439,819residents, 2021 Census
Municipality of Halifax
Housing
2.6%rental vacancy rate
October 2025 survey, Halifax, Nova Scotia (census metropolitan area)
Winter and summer
−4.1 °CJanuary mean18.5 °CJuly mean
1991–2020 normals, Shearwater, 11.0 km away
Job outlook
Very goodfor the specialty here, 2025–2027

More about Halifax (its page: housing, getting around, weather, things to do, and every program that names it)

Sites as the program’s CaRMS page lists them. City figures are public statistics for the place named by the location; they describe the place, not the program.

How they choose

Application file components: CV
Electives
Examinations
Extra-curricular
Leadership skills
MSPRs
Personal letters
Reference documents
Research/Publications
Transcripts
Return of service: Not stated on CaRMS page. Check the provincial return-of-service rules.

Application file components as the program describes them.

Interviews and info sessions

Interview dates (2027 match): Not stated on CaRMS page
Format: Virtual
Traditional (one on one/two on one)

Info sessions

None listed on the program’s CaRMS page (opens in a new tab) (read 20 Oct 2026) or on CANPREPP’s events calendar (read 24 Oct 2026). Programs add sessions through the fall.

3 Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology info sessions at other programs All info sessions

Pay and call

Provincial scale, last updated 24 Jul 2026 · check the current agreement(opens in a new tab). One provincial scale for Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, set by the resident agreement, so every program there pays the same. Showing the 5 levels this program covers.

Annual salary by PGY level, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island
Level	Annual salary
PGY-1	$78,578 / year
PGY-2	$83,904 / year
PGY-3	$89,462 / year
PGY-4	$95,485 / year
PGY-5	$101,926 / year

How provincial pay and rent compare

Call

Call (provincial max): 1 night in 4 in-house
Post-call rule (provincial): No work required once handover is completed
Max continuous duty (provincial): Handover begins by the 24th consecutive hour on duty

The union agreement’s limits and rules for all residents in the province; your program’s actual call schedule may be lighter. MarDocs agreement, 1 Jul 2024 to 30 Jun 2027. Read as of 1 Oct 2026.

Benefits

13 lines as listed by CaRMS in 2022–2024: Annual vacation, Call stipend, CMPA dues paid, and more

Annual vacation: 4 weeks
Call stipend: Yes
CMPA dues paid: Yes
Dental coverage: Yes
Educational leave: Yes
Extended health insurance: Yes
Life insurance: $100,000 of insurance
Long-term disabilityinsurance: 66.7% of salary
Maternity leave top up after one year’s service: eligible for up to a maximum of 17 weeks top-up allowance for maternity/pregnancy leave
Provincial dues (% of salary): 1.30%
Provincial health insurance: Yes
Sick leave: Yes
Statutory and floating holidays: paid

Past matches

Open after round 1 in 2 of 8 years (2019–2026); still open after round 2 in 0 of 9 years.

Positions at this site, all streams. Site as CaRMS lists it: Halifax.

Show the table, with round 2

Positions at this site, all streams, still open after round 1 and after round 2, by year. Each count above zero links to the CaRMS list page it comes from.
Year	Open after round 1	Open after round 2
2018	not available	0
2019	1 position open after round 1 in 2019, CaRMS list (opens in a new tab)	0
2020	0	0
2021	0	0
2022	0	0
2023	0	0
2024	0	0
2025	0	0
2026	1 position open after round 1 in 2026, CaRMS list (opens in a new tab)	0

CaRMS’s first-round list for 2018 was not found, so round 1 is counted over 8 years and round 2 over 9.

What this means

A position can go unfilled because of where the site is, because it is open to IMGs only or to another restricted stream, or because the quota changed late.
It says nothing about the quality of the training or how heavy the workload is.
A site’s numbers are shown when it had positions open after round 1 in at least 2 of 8 years or at least 3 in one year.

Source: CaRMS’s lists of positions open after round 1 and after round 2, as read in October 2026 (latest: 2026 round 1 (CaRMS PDF, opens in a new tab), 2026 round 2 (CaRMS PDF, opens in a new tab)).

Year by year

2027 match

The 2027 match, one row per stream (scrolls sideways on narrow screens)
Stream	Positions	Length	Interviews	What changed
CMG stream	1	5 years	Virtual	Nothing noted

2026 match

The 2026 match, one row per stream (scrolls sideways on narrow screens)
Stream	Positions	Length	Interviews
CMG stream	1	5 years	2 dates, 27–28 Jan 2026

The 2026 page of the CMG stream: our summary of its CaRMS description

Dalhousie University offers a dynamic 5-year Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology residency program based at the QEII Health Sciences Centre in Halifax.
The program provides comprehensive training across multiple pathology subspecialties, emphasizing a collegial learning environment with abundant case volumes and diverse clinical experiences.

Research: Residents are required to complete at least one research project, with financial support for conference presentations and dedicated research methods training.
Training setting: Urban academic medical center in Halifax, Nova Scotia, with training sites across multiple hospitals in the Maritime provinces including Halifax, Dartmouth, and Saint John, NB.
Teaching approach: Structured, competency-based medical education with progressive independence, emphasizing one-on-one supervision, comprehensive curriculum, and tailored learning experiences.
Enhanced skills: Not stated on CaRMS page
What the program looked at: Academic record
Communication skills
Reference letters
Personal letter
Interview performance
Research/leadership experience

Positions, length and interviews as each match’s CaRMS pages stated them; what changed from our comparison of the two matches and our readings of the 2027 pages.

Contacts and links

Program director: Dr. Erica Schollenberg
CaRMS lists no email for the director.
Program office: Program Administrator
Write to the officepathres@dal.ca

Per CaRMS. Staff change during the cycle, so check the CaRMS program page(opens in a new tab) before emailing.

Program websiteWebsite CANPREPPCANPREPP This program on CaRMS

Videos and podcasts

From the program

Public podcast episodes and videos where the program presents itself. The short descriptions are ours; each link goes to the original.

Welcome to the program and a trainee's perspective (opens YouTube in a new tab)
YouTube · 2024
Dalhousie University (opens in a new tab)
YouTube channel

These are public recordings, reviewed by hand and linked here, not endorsed. They may be out of date. Confirm with the program.

All videos, podcasts and discussions →

Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology elsewhere

Nearest to Halifax

Montreal - Diagnostic and Molecular PathologyMcGill University
Montreal, QC · 790 km
2 positions · Regular
Bilingual
St. John's - Diagnostic and Molecular PathologyMemorial University of Newfoundland
St. John's, NL · 897 km
2 positions · CMG
Ottawa - Diagnostic and Molecular PathologyUniversity of Ottawa
Ottawa, ON · 955 km
3 positions · CMG, IMG

All 22 Diagnostic and Molecular Pathology programs across Canada2027 match

In these collections:

Programs that provide or pay for housing on distant rotations

Source

The program’s CaRMS page (opens in a new tab) · 2027 match · last approved 11 Sep 2026 · not final until file review opens 26 November; as of 19 Oct 2026, re-checked every two weeks.

Accredited · CaRMS program ID 35842 · How these pages are made › · See the 2026 match under Year by year

The Applications per year and Offered interviews figures are 5-year averages the program reports to CaRMS: past cycles, not your odds.

Independent. Not affiliated with CaRMS or the program. Programs edit their descriptions during the match; confirm on carms.ca (opens in a new tab) before you apply. Data last updated on CdnMD 24 Oct 2026.

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