Toronto - General Surgery
University of TorontoToronto, Ontario
At a glance
- Approx. quota
- 133
- Length
- 5
- Applications per year
- 51–200
- Offered interviews
- 26–50%0–25%
CMG stream · open to Canadian medical graduates
IMG stream · open to international medical graduates
Interviews
1 date, 6 Feb 2027
Toronto, CMG stream: 21 teaching sites · IMG stream: 18 teaching sites · optional rural rotation
What stands out about this program
Access to North America's largest transplant program.
From “Program highlights” on the CaRMS page
Surgeon Scientist Training Program with a thesis-based graduate degree of at least two years.
From “Program curriculum” on the CaRMS page
- The University of Toronto General Surgery program is a five-year residency divided into 4-week blocks, 13 per year.
- Training takes place at academic and community hospitals, with community and academic surgery exposure built into the program structure.
- Residents must complete and present at least one scholarly project, and may apply to the Surgeon Scientist Training Program after PGY-2 or PGY-3.
What training looks like
- Setting
- Academic / tertiary hospital
- Urban community
- Rural exposure
- Optional rural rotation
- Research
- Required · scholarly or quality-improvement project · protected time
- Training language
- English
By year
Not stated on CaRMS page
Other rotations
- Acute Care Surgery (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Colorectal Surgery (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Pediatric General Surgery (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Trauma Surgery (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Thoracic Surgery (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Transplant Surgery (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Vascular Surgery (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Critical Care Medicine (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Endoscopy (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Trauma Team Leader (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Selectives & Electives (PGY-1 and PGY-2)
- Acute Care Surgery (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Ambulatory Surgery (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Breast Surgery (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Colorectal Surgery (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Complex Surgical Oncology (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Community Surgery (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Endocrine Surgery (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Minimally Invasive & Bariatric Surgery (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Trauma Surgery (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Electives (PGY-3, PGY-4, and PGY-5)
- Transition to Practice (Transition to Practice · last four blocks of PGY-5)
Where you train
Toronto, Ontario: CMG stream: 21 teaching sites · IMG stream: 18 teaching sites; optional rural rotation.
- Mount Sinai Hospital
- Toronto General Hospital
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
- Toronto Western Hospital
- St Michael's Hospital
- Women's College Hospital
- Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
- The Hospital for Sick Children
- St Joseph's Health Care Centre
- Michael Garron Hospital
- North York General Hospital
- Humber River Hospital
Show all 21 sitesShow fewer
- Trillium Health Partners (Mississauga)
- Credit Valley Hospital (Mississauga)
- Mackenzie Health (Vaughan/Richmond Hill)
- The Scarborough Hospital
- Oak Valley Health (Markham Stouffville)
- Peterborough Regional Health Centre (Peterborough · rural or distributed site)
- Barrie (Barrie · rural or distributed site)
- Owen Sound (Owen Sound · rural or distributed site)
- Collingwood (Collingwood · rural or distributed site)
- Mount Sinai Hospital
- Toronto General Hospital
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
- Toronto Western Hospital
- St Michael's Hospital
- Women's College Hospital
- Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
- The Hospital for Sick Children
- St Joseph's Health Care Centre
- Michael Garron Hospital
- North York General Hospital
- Humber River Hospital
Show all 18 sitesShow fewer
- Trillium Health Partners (Mississauga) (Mississauga)
- Barrie, Owen Sound, Collingwood (rural or distributed site)
- Mackenzie Health (Richmond Hill) (Richmond Hill)
- The Scarborough Hospital
- William Osler Health Centre (Brampton) (Brampton)
- Peterborough Regional Health Centre (Peterborough · rural or distributed site)
Record systems at the listed sites, all streams: Epic at 12 of 25, MEDITECH at 4, Oracle Health (Cerner) at 3; no published record for 6.
Moving to a new system: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre (scheduled 2027). Mount Sinai 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, system named (how far it goes is not stated)
- Clinical record
- Epic, fully electronic record since Nov 2024
- Clinical record
- Epic, system named (how far it goes is not stated)
- Clinical record
- MEDITECH Expanse (CARE4 shared record), system named (how far it goes is not stated)
Mount Sinai Hospital
- Clinical record
- Epic (shared instance with Unity Health), moving to a new system
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
- Clinical record
- Oracle Health, moving to a new system, scheduled 2027
The Hospital for Sick Children
- Clinical record
- Epic, system named (how far it goes is not stated)
Show facts for 5 more sitesShow fewer
North York General Hospital
- Clinical record
- Oracle Health Foundation, system named (how far it goes is not stated)
Humber River Hospital
- Clinical record
- MEDITECH Expanse, system named (how far it goes is not stated)
Oak Valley Health
- Clinical record
- MEDITECH Expanse, fully electronic record
Peterborough Regional Health Centre
- Clinical record
- Epic, fully electronic record since Dec 2021
Owen Sound
- Clinical record
- Cerner, system named (how far it goes is not stated)
Hospital size and activity: Ontario doesn't publish this as open data.
About Toronto
People
2,794,356residents, 2021 Census
Housing
3.0%rental vacancy rate
Winter and summer
−3.5 °CJanuary mean22.5 °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, CMG stream
- Not stated on CaRMS page. Check the provincial return-of-service rules.
- Return of service, IMG stream
- Required
- IMG requirements, IMG stream
- Assessment by a provincial clinical assessment program
Interviews and info sessions
- Interview dates (2027 match)
- 6 Feb 2027
- Format
- Virtual
- MMI or rotating station
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.
18 General 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 | 13 | 5 years | 1 date, 6 Feb 2027 | Nothing noted |
| IMG stream | 3 | 5 years | 1 date, 6 Feb 2027 |
|
2026 match
| Stream | Positions | Length | Interviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| CMG stream | 13 | 5 years | 1 date, 17 Jan 2026 |
| IMG stream | 4 | 5 years | 1 date, 17 Jan 2026 |
The 2026 page of the CMG stream: our summary of its CaRMS description
- The University of Toronto General Surgery Residency Program offers a comprehensive 5-year training experience at multiple academic and community sites.
- The program is designed to develop highly skilled, confident surgeons through a competency-based curriculum that emphasizes clinical excellence, ethical practice, and team-based learning.
- Research
- Mandatory research experience with expectation of completing and presenting at least one scholarly project. Elective blocks can be used for research.
- Training setting
- Training occurs across multiple academic and community hospitals in Toronto, providing diverse clinical exposure in urban and community settings.
- Teaching approach
- Competency-based medical education focused on progressive skill development, with residents advancing through Transition to Discipline, Foundations of Discipline, Core of Discipline, and Transition to Practice stages.
- Enhanced skills
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- What the program looked at
- Medical Student Performance Record (MSPR)
- Personal letter
- Reference letters
- Multiple Mini Interview (MMI)
- Leadership skills
- Extra-curricular activities
- Research/publications
Contacts and links
- Program director
Dr. Savtaj Brar
CaRMS lists no email for the director.
- Program office
Program Coordinator
Per CaRMS. Staff change during the cycle, so check the CaRMS program page(opens in a new tab) before emailing.
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.
General Surgery elsewhere
Nearest to Toronto
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