Hamilton - Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
McMaster UniversityHamilton, OntarioCMG stream
At a glance
- Approx. quota
- 3
- Length
- 5
- Applications per year
- 51–200
- Offered interviews
- 51–75%
CMG stream · open to Canadian medical graduates
Interviews
Not stated on CaRMS page
Hamilton, 6 teaching sites
What stands out about this program
Resident-driven COCLIA curriculum sessions covering over 100 major otolaryngology topics for PGY3-5 residents.
From “Program curriculum” on the CaRMS page
Junior residents are matched to a short-term and a long-term research project when they start.
From “Program highlights” on the CaRMS page
- McMaster's Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery program is a five-year program with two funded residents per year, beginning with two years of Surgical Foundations training.
- Training takes place at Hamilton Health Sciences and St. Joseph's Healthcare, with community affiliated sites in Cambridge and Guelph.
- All residents must participate in clinical or basic science research, and one month of PGY3 elective time must be spent in the community.
What training looks like
- Setting
- Academic / tertiary hospital
- Regional community
- Rural exposure
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- Research
- Required · research project
By year
- PGY-2
- on-servicethe entire year
- PGY-3
- elective/community rotations2 months
- PGY-4
- optional elective rotationone-month
Other rotations
- boot camp with SF (Surgical Foundations · two weeks)
- on-service (Transition to Discipline · six weeks)
- on-service (Foundations of Discipline · three blocks)
- off-service (Foundations of Discipline · eight blocks)
Where you train
Hamilton, Ontario: 6 teaching sites.
- St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton
- Juravinsinki Cancer Center
- Hamilton General Hospital
- McMaster Hospital
- Cambridge Hospital (Cambridge)
- Guelph Hospital (Guelph)
Record systems at the listed sites: Epic at 3 of 6, MEDITECH at 1, Oracle Health (Cerner) at 1; no published record for 1.
Moving to a new system: Cambridge Hospital.
Hospital facts
What official sources say for hospitals named above, each with its source and the date we read it. They describe the hospital, not the program. We match names to the sources by name, so check each source before you rely on it.
- Clinical record
- Epic, fully electronic record since Jun 2022
St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton
- Clinical record
- Epic (Dovetale), fully electronic record since Dec 2017
Cambridge Hospital
- Clinical record
- Oracle Health Foundation, moving to a new system
Guelph Hospital
- Clinical record
- Meditech, system named (how far it goes is not stated)
Hospital size and activity: Ontario doesn't publish this as open data.
About Hamilton
People
569,353residents, 2021 Census
Housing
3.5%rental vacancy rate
Winter and summer
−3.1 °CJanuary mean21.9 °CJuly mean
Job outlook
Goodfor the specialty here, 2025–2027
How they choose
- Application file components
- CV
- Electives
- Examinations
- Extra-curricular
- Leadership skills
- MSPRs
- Personal letters
- Reference documents
- Research/Publications
- Transcripts
- Other file component(s)
- Return of service
- Not stated on CaRMS page. Check the provincial return-of-service rules.
Interviews and info sessions
- Interview dates (2027 match)
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- Format
- Virtual
- Traditional (one on one/two on one)
- Panel
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.
5 Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery info sessions at other programsAll info sessions
Pay and call
| Level | Annual salary |
|---|---|
| PGY-1 | $73,367 / year |
| PGY-2 | $79,670 / year |
| PGY-3 | $85,564 / year |
| PGY-4 | $92,701 / year |
| PGY-5 | $98,567 / year |
Call
- Call (provincial max)
- 7 nights in 28 in-house
- Post-call rule (provincial)
- No new patient responsibilities after 24 hours in-hospital, except what clinical handover needs
- Max continuous duty (provincial)
- 24 hours in-hospital, then relieved after handover (up to 2 hours)
Past matches
No repeated vacancies in CaRMS’s lists of open positions, 2019–2026.
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.
Year by year
2027 match
| Stream | Positions | Length | Interviews | What changed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CMG stream | 3 | 5 years | Nothing noted |
2026 match
| Stream | Positions | Length | Interviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| CMG stream | 3 | 5 years | 1 date, 28 Jan 2026 |
The 2026 page of the CMG stream: our summary of its CaRMS description
- McMaster University's Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery residency is a comprehensive 5-year program that provides thorough surgical training across the full spectrum of adult and pediatric otolaryngology.
- The program distinguishes itself through enthusiastic faculty teaching, a family-like atmosphere, and early hands-on surgical experience with a strong emphasis on research and competency-based medical education.
- Research
- Residents are required to participate in clinical or basic science research, with opportunities to present at national and international conferences.
- Training setting
- Urban medical centers in Hamilton, Ontario, including multiple teaching hospitals with diverse clinical environments and patient populations.
- Teaching approach
- Competence by Design (CBD) approach focusing on entrustable professional activities (EPAs), milestone-based learning, frequent formative assessments, and targeted learning outcomes.
- Enhanced skills
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- What the program looked at
- Academic record
- References
- Publications
- Research interest
- Interpersonal skills
- Manual dexterity
- Interview performance
Contacts and links
- Program director
Dr. Han Zhang
- Program office
Program Administrator
Per CaRMS. Staff change during the cycle, so check the CaRMS program page(opens in a new tab) before emailing.
Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery elsewhere
Nearest to Hamilton
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