Ottawa - Orthopedic Surgery
University of OttawaOttawa, Ontario
At a glance
- Approx. quota
- 41
- Length
- 5
- Applications per year
- 51–200201–400
- Offered interviews
- 51–75%0–25%
CMG stream · open to Canadian medical graduates
IMG stream · open to international medical graduates
Interviews
1 date, 26 Jan 2027
Ottawa, 6 teaching sites
What stands out about this program
Option to complete a Master's in Clinical Science and Translational Medicine in parallel with residency.
From “Additional information” on the CaRMS page
Two research projects with manuscripts are required during the core stage.
From “Program curriculum” on the CaRMS page
- The University of Ottawa Orthopedic Surgery program is a 5-year residency whose first two years meet Surgical Foundations requirements.
- Residents rotate through The Ottawa Hospital, CHEO and Hopital Montfort, with a Community Orthopedics rotation at Hopital de Hull, Sudbury or another approved site.
- Residents must complete two research projects with manuscripts during the core stage, supported by dedicated research rotations.
What training looks like
- Setting
- Academic / tertiary hospital
- Urban community
- Rural exposure
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- Research
- Required · research project · protected time
By year
Not stated on CaRMS page
Other rotations
- Orthopedic Surgery (Transition to Discipline · 3 blocks)
- Adult Orthopedics (Foundations · 11 blocks)
- Community Orthopedics (Foundations · 2 blocks)
- Pediatric Orthopedics (Foundations · 3 blocks)
- ICU (Foundations · 2 blocks)
- Emergency Medicine (Foundations · 1 block)
- General Surgery (Foundations · 1 block)
- Vascular Surgery (Foundations · 1 block)
- Plastic Surgery (Foundations · 1 block)
- Research (Foundations · 1 block)
- Musculoskeletal Oncology (Core and Transition to Practice)
- Shoulder and Elbow (Core and Transition to Practice)
- Spine Surgery (Core and Transition to Practice)
- Trauma (Core and Transition to Practice)
- Arthroplasty (Core and Transition to Practice)
- Foot and Ankle (Core and Transition to Practice)
- Pediatric Orthopedics (Core and Transition to Practice)
- Hand and Wrist (Core and Transition to Practice)
- Knee Surgery (Core and Transition to Practice)
- Research (Core and Transition to Practice)
Where you train
Ottawa, Ontario: 6 teaching sites.
- The Ottawa Hospital: Civic Campus
- The Ottawa Hospital: General Campus
- The Ottawa Hospital: Riverside Campus
- Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario
- Hopital Montfort
- Hull Hospital (Gatineau)
- The Ottawa Hospital: Civic Campus
- The Ottawa Hospital: General Campus
- The Ottawa Hospital: Riverside Campus
- Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario
- Hospital Montfort
- Hull Hospital (Gatineau)
Record systems at the listed sites, all streams: Epic at 6 of 7; no published record for 1.
Hospital facts
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.
- 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)
Hopital Montfort
- Clinical record
- Epic (Atlas Alliance shared system), system named (how far it goes is not stated)
Hull Hospital
- Emergency visits
- 2025–2026: 14,660 · 2026–2027: 14,537
- Licensed beds
- physical health 230
For the other sites: 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
- IMG requirements, IMG stream
- Assessment by a provincial clinical assessment program
Interviews and info sessions
- Interview dates (2027 match)
- 26 Jan 2027
- 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 Orthopedic 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 | 4 | 5 years | 1 date, 26 Jan 2027 | Nothing noted |
| IMG stream | 1 | 5 years | 1 date, 26 Jan 2027 | Nothing noted |
2026 match
| Stream | Positions | Length | Interviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| CMG stream | 4 | 5 years | 1 date, 22 Jan 2026 |
| IMG stream | 1 | 5 years | 1 date, 22 Jan 2026 |
The 2026 page of the CMG stream: our summary of its CaRMS description
- The University of Ottawa Orthopedic Surgery Residency Program is a strong clinical program emphasizing solid surgical training and a collegial atmosphere.
- Residents receive comprehensive exposure to all orthopedic subspecialties across multiple teaching hospitals, with a focus on developing competent, well-rounded orthopedic surgeons.
- Research
- Residents must complete two research projects with manuscripts during core training, with dedicated research rotations and opportunities to pursue advanced degrees.
- Training setting
- Urban academic medical centers in Ottawa, including multiple hospital campuses with state-of-the-art facilities and large clinical volumes across pediatric and adult settings.
- Teaching approach
- Competency-based training focused on developing comprehensive orthopedic surgeons through structured rotations, research opportunities, and progressive skill development across multiple subspecialties.
- Enhanced skills
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- What the program looked at
- CV assessment
- Electives assessment
- Examination performance
- Extra-curricular activities
- Leadership skills
- Medical Student Performance Record
- Personal letter
- Reference documents
- Research/Publications
- Transcripts
Contacts and links
- Program director
Dr. Kevin Smit
Faculty profile of Dr. Kevin Smit(opens in a new tab)
Several projects on Vertebral Body Tethering, including Health Canada Medical Device Trials (FUTURE, BRAIVE), Pediatric Spine Study Group Prospective Study on effect of growth modulation and collaborations with the University of Ottawa Biomechanics lab on spinal motion.
- 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.
Orthopedic Surgery elsewhere
Nearest to Ottawa
- Bilingual
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