Edmonton - Plastic Surgery
University of AlbertaEdmonton, AlbertaCMG stream
At a glance
- Approx. quota
- 3
- Length
- 5
- Applications per year
- 51–200
- Offered interviews
- 0–25%
CMG stream · open to Canadian medical graduates
Info session
details info sessions of this programSat 14 Nov 2026,12:00–1:00 pm MSTvia CANPREPP source (opens in a new tab)
Interviews
1 date, 25 Jan 2027
Edmonton, 5 teaching sites
What stands out about this program
Dedicated burn unit that residents from other Canadian plastic surgery programs visit to learn burn surgery.
From “Program curriculum” on the CaRMS page
Microsurgery rat lab from PGY-3: 8 half-days per year for three years.
From “Program curriculum” on the CaRMS page
High faculty-to-resident ratio of approximately 2:1.
From “Program highlights” on the CaRMS page
- The University of Alberta Plastic Surgery program is five years: one year of Surgical Foundations followed by four years of Plastic Surgery residency.
- PGY-3 and PGY-4 rotations are preceptor-based at the University of Alberta Hospital and Royal Alexandra Hospital, and PGY-5 is a Lead Resident year.
- Residents are expected to submit one paper to a peer-reviewed journal and present at three meetings.
What training looks like
- Setting
- Academic / tertiary hospital
- Rural exposure
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- Research
- Required · research project
By year
- PGY-1
- plastic surgeryseven blocks
- general surgeryone block
- pediatric general surgeryone block
- emergency medicineone block
- internal medicineone block
- orthopedic surgeryone block
- vacationone block
- PGY-2
- ICUtwo blocks
- Otolaryngologyone block
- Plastic Surgerysix to seven blocks
- Dermatology (mainly Mohs micrographic surgery)one block
- Oral Surgeryone block
- selective rotation of the residents' choiceone
- PGY-5
- Lead Resident
Other rotations
- burn surgery (PGY-3 and PGY-4 · University of Alberta Hospital (UAH))
- pediatric plastic surgery (PGY-3 and PGY-4 · University of Alberta Hospital (UAH))
- craniofacial surgery (PGY-3 and PGY-4 · University of Alberta Hospital (UAH))
- microsurgery (PGY-3 and PGY-4 · University of Alberta Hospital (UAH))
- breast reconstruction (PGY-3 and PGY-4 · University of Alberta Hospital (UAH))
- hand and wrist surgery (PGY-3 and PGY-4 · Royal Alexandra Hospital (RAH))
- breast surgery (PGY-3 and PGY-4 · Royal Alexandra Hospital (RAH))
- craniofacial surgery (PGY-3 and PGY-4 · Royal Alexandra Hospital (RAH))
- cosmetic surgery (PGY-3 and PGY-4 · two blocks)
- electives (PGY-3 and PGY-4 · two 28-day blocks)
Where you train
Edmonton, Alberta: 5 teaching sites.
- University of Alberta Hospital (UAH)
- Royal Alexandra Hospital (RAH)
- Misericordia Hospital (MIS)
- Grey Nuns Community Hospital (GNH)
- Meadowlark Cosmetic Suite
Record systems at the listed sites: Epic at 4 of 5; no published record for 1.
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 (Connect Care), fully electronic record since Nov 2024
Hospital size and activity: Alberta doesn't publish this as open data.
About Edmonton
People
1,010,899residents, 2021 Census
Housing
3.8%rental vacancy rate
Winter and summer
−10.3 °CJanuary mean18.1 °CJuly mean
Job outlook
Very 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
- Return of service
- Not required · all residents
Interviews and info sessions
- Interview dates (2027 match)
- 25 Jan 2027
- Format
- Virtual
- Panel
- MMI or rotating station
Info sessions
Sat 14 Nov 2026
12:00–1:00 pm MST
Info session · VirtualCANPREPP source (opens in a new tab)
Pay and call
| Level | Annual salary |
|---|---|
| PGY-1 | $67,440 / year |
| PGY-2 | $74,153 / year |
| PGY-3 | $80,058 / year |
| PGY-4 | $86,281 / year |
| PGY-5 | $92,698 / year |
Call
- Call (provincial max)
- 1 in 4 in-house
- Post-call rule (provincial)
- No new responsibilities after the 24th hour of duty, apart from handover
- Max continuous duty (provincial)
- 24 consecutive hours, plus 2 hours for handover
Benefits
- Annual vacation
- 4 weeks/yr
- Call Stipends
- weekday in-house – $118.02weekend in-house / holiday – $178.72weekday home call – $59.01weekend home call / holiday – $89.35
- CMPA dues paid
- $1,500
- Dental plan
- 75% premium paid
- Educational leave
- 14 days paid leave
- Extended health insurance
- 75% premium paid$1000 per year Flexible Spending Account*
- Life insurance
- 100% towards $150,000 coverage
- Life Support Course Costs (Program Approved
- 100% paid
- Long-term disability insurance
- 100% paid for 75% gross income
- Maternity Leave
- 18 weeks total (17 weeks paid to match 90% of salary when combined with EI)
- Parental Leave
- 2 weeks leave with full pay and benefits;52 weeks (inclusive of Maternity/Paternity/Adoption Leaves) – unpaid leave
- Practice Stipend
- $1,500
- Provincial dues (% of salary)
- .95%
- Sick leave
- Up to 3 months or to end contract paid leave, whichever occurs first
- Statutory holidays
- Paid days. Additional days off are given if resident works the day before and part of a named holiday.
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 | 1 date, 25 Jan 2027 | Nothing noted |
2026 match
| Stream | Positions | Length | Interviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| CMG stream | 3 | 6 years | 1 date, 26 Jan 2026 |
The 2026 page of the CMG stream: our summary of its CaRMS description
- The University of Alberta Plastic Surgery Residency Program is a comprehensive 5-year training program designed to produce highly skilled plastic surgeons.
- The program provides exceptional surgical exposure, a high faculty-to-resident ratio, and comprehensive training across multiple plastic surgery subspecialties.
- Research
- Residents are expected to present at three meetings and submit one peer-reviewed journal paper during their residency.
- Training setting
- Urban medical center with multiple hospital sites in Edmonton, including University of Alberta Hospital, Royal Alexandra Hospital, Misericordia Hospital, and Grey Nuns Community Hospital.
- Teaching approach
- Competency-based medical education with progressive independence, emphasizing hands-on surgical exposure and comprehensive learning across multiple subspecialties.
- Enhanced skills
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- What the program looked at
- Academic and clinical performance
- Letters of recommendation
- Interview performance
- Curriculum vitae
- Research experience
Contacts and links
- Program directors
Dr. Curtis Budden
Dr. Jay ZhuAssistant Program Director
CaRMS lists no email for the directors.
- Program office
Program Administrator
Per CaRMS. Staff change during the cycle, so check the CaRMS program page(opens in a new tab) before emailing.
Plastic Surgery elsewhere
Nearest to Edmonton
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