Ottawa - General Surgery
University of OttawaOttawa, Ontario
At a glance
- Approx. quota
- 51
- 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
Info session
all 2 info sessions of this programFri 6 Nov 2026,7:00–8:00 pm ESTvia CANPREPP source (opens in a new tab)
Interviews
1 date, 5 Feb 2027
Ottawa, 7 teaching sites
Summary
- The University of Ottawa General Surgery program is a five-year Royal College residency based mainly at The Ottawa Hospital's three sites.
- Residents can also train at partner hospitals, including Pembroke Regional Hospital and Hawkesbury and District General Hospital, for community general surgery experience.
- A Surgical Scientist Program is available for residents interested in academic surgery.
What training looks like
- Setting
- Academic / tertiary hospital
- Rural exposure
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- Research
- Offered · research project · protected time
By year
Not stated on CaRMS page
Where you train
Ottawa, Ontario: 7 teaching sites.
- Ottawa Hospital - Civic Campus
- Ottawa Hospital - General Campus
- Ottawa Hospital - Riverside Campus
- Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario
- The Montfort Hospital
- Pembroke Regional Hospital (Community) (Pembroke · rural or distributed site)
- Hawkesbury and District General Hospital (Hawkesbury · rural or distributed site)
Record systems at the listed sites: Epic at 6 of 7; 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 (Atlas Alliance shared system), system named (how far it goes is not stated)
Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario
- Clinical record
- Epic, system named (how far it goes is not stated)
The Montfort Hospital
- Clinical record
- Epic (Atlas Alliance shared system), system named (how far it goes is not stated)
Pembroke Regional Hospital (Community)
- Clinical record
- Epic (Atlas Alliance shared system), fully electronic record since Oct 2026
Hospital size and activity: Ontario doesn't publish this as open data.
About Ottawa
People
1,017,449residents, 2021 Census
Housing
2.9%rental vacancy rate
Winter and summer
−9.6 °CJanuary mean21.3 °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 · IMGs only
- IMG requirements, IMG stream
- Assessment by a provincial clinical assessment program
- “A clinical elective, observership or research elective in any Surgical Specialty in Canada in the past 3 years.”
Interviews and info sessions
- Interview dates (2027 match)
- 5 Feb 2027
- Format
- MMI or rotating station
Info sessions
Fri 6 Nov 2026
7:00–8:00 pm EST
Info session · VirtualCANPREPP source (opens in a new tab)
Fri 13 Nov 2026
7:00–8:00 pm EST
Info session · VirtualCANPREPP source (opens in a new tab)
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
Open after round 1 in 2 of 8 years (2019–2026); still open after round 2 in 0 of 9 years.
Show the table, with round 2Hide the table
| Year | Open after round 1 | Open after round 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | not available | 0 |
| 2019 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | 1 position open after round 1 in 2023, CaRMS list (opens in a new tab) | 0 |
| 2024 | 1 position open after round 1 in 2024, CaRMS list (opens in a new tab) | 0 |
| 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| 2026 | 0 | 0 |
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 | 5 | 5 years | 1 date, 5 Feb 2027 |
|
| IMG stream | 1 | 5 years | 1 date, 5 Feb 2027 | Nothing noted |
2026 match
| Stream | Positions | Length | Interviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| CMG stream | 4 | 5 years | 1 date, 6 Feb 2026 |
| IMG stream | 1 | 5 years | 1 date, 6 Feb 2026 |
The 2026 page of the CMG stream: our summary of its CaRMS description
- The University of Ottawa General Surgery Program offers comprehensive training for those interested in academic or community surgery careers.
- Located in the capital city, the program provides state-of-the-art simulation training, a Surgical Scientist Program, and diverse clinical experiences across multiple hospital sites.
- Research
- Extensive research support through Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, with graduate programs in Basic Science Research, Clinical Epidemiology, Health Administration, Education, and Public Health.
- Training setting
- Urban academic medical center in Ottawa, serving a population of 1.3 million in Eastern Ontario, with multiple hospital campuses and diverse clinical settings.
- Teaching approach
- Competency-based medical education following Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada specialty training requirements, emphasizing progressive independence and comprehensive surgical skill development.
- Enhanced skills
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- What the program looked at
- CV
- Electives
- Personal letter
- Reference letters
- MMI interview
- Leadership skills
- Research involvement
Contacts and links
- Program director
Dr. Kimberly Bertens
Faculty profile of Dr. Kimberly Bertens(opens in a new tab)
In addition Dr. Bertens has completed a Masters of Public Health with a focus in quantitative methods at the Harvard School of Public Health. Her research interests include the interface between sociodemographic factors and access to surgical care.
CaRMS lists no email for the director.
- Program office
Program Administrator
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 Ottawa
- Bilingual
- Bilingual
Did this page answer your question?