London - General Surgery
Western UniversityLondon, OntarioCMG stream
At a glance
- Approx. quota
- 6
- Length
- 5
- Applications per year
- 51–200
- Offered interviews
- 51–75%
CMG stream · open to Canadian medical graduates
Info session
details info sessions of this programSun 15 Nov 2026,7:00–9:00 pm ESTvia CANPREPP source (opens in a new tab)
Interviews
1 date, 27 Jan 2027
London, 3 teaching sites · optional rural rotation
What stands out about this program
Very few fellowship programs, maximizing resident operative exposure.
From “Important information” on the CaRMS page
Access to Canadian Surgical Technologies and Advanced Robotics (CSTAR) centre.
From “Program highlights” on the CaRMS page
Self-scheduling for senior residents and protected 5th-year study time.
From “Program highlights” on the CaRMS page
- Western's General Surgery program is a five-year Competence by Design residency based at three London sites.
- Residents complete a 3-month mandatory community rotation, with linkages to regional communities including Windsor, Stratford and Owen Sound.
- Senior residents take home call at 1 in 4, while juniors do night shifts.
- Full-time research and a Master's option of a year or more are available.
What training looks like
- Setting
- Academic / tertiary hospital
- Regional community
- Rural exposure
- Optional rural rotation
- Focus areas
- Small program
- Research
- Offered · research project · protected time
By year
Not stated on CaRMS page
Other rotations
- general surgery (Foundations to Discipline · 8-blocks)
- trauma (Foundations to Discipline · 2-blocks)
- transplantation (Foundations to Discipline · 1-block)
- vascular (Foundations to Discipline · 2-blocks)
- thoracic surgery (Foundations to Discipline · 2-blocks)
- critical care (Foundations to Discipline · 2-blocks)
- endoscopy (Foundations to Discipline · 4-blocks)
- community surgery (Foundations to Discipline · 3-blocks)
- pediatric surgery (Foundations to Discipline · 2-blocks)
- breast surgery (Foundations to Discipline · 2-blocks)
Where you train
London, Ontario: 3 teaching sites; optional rural rotation.
- London Health Sciences Centre, University Campus
- London Health Sciences Centre, Victoria Campus
- St. Joseph's Hospital
Record systems at the listed sites: Oracle Health (Cerner) at 3 of 3.
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
- OneChart (Cerner electronic patient record), system named (how far it goes is not stated)
St. Joseph's Hospital
- Clinical record
- Cerner (OneChart), system named (how far it goes is not stated)
Hospital size and activity: Ontario doesn't publish this as open data.
About London
People
422,324residents, 2021 Census
Housing
3.8%rental vacancy rate
Winter and summer
−5.4 °CJanuary mean21.0 °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
- Return of service
- Not stated on CaRMS page. Check the provincial return-of-service rules.
Interviews and info sessions
- Interview dates (2027 match)
- 27 Jan 2027
- Format
- Traditional (one on one/two on one)
Info sessions
Sun 15 Nov 2026
7:00–9:00 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 (as the program states it)
- In-house and home call · frequency “1 in 4”
- 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 | 6 | 5 years | 1 date, 27 Jan 2027 | Nothing noted |
2026 match
| Stream | Positions | Length | Interviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| CMG stream | 6 | 5 years | 1 date, 28 Jan 2026 |
The 2026 page of the CMG stream: our summary of its CaRMS description
- Western University's General Surgery Residency is a comprehensive 5-year program that provides exceptional surgical training with a focus on clinical skills, research, and career flexibility.
- The program emphasizes broad clinical experience across subspecialty areas, with a unique combination of small program size and large clinical volume that ensures frequent interaction between staff and residents.
- Research
- Full-time research opportunities available, with funding for conference presentations and potential for obtaining a Master's degree.
- Training setting
- Training occurs across three main sites in London, Ontario, including London Health Sciences Centre (University and Victoria Campuses) and St. Joseph's Hospital. The program also includes rural regional components with linkages to several community hospitals.
- Teaching approach
- The program follows a Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME) approach, focusing on progressive skill development, frequent formative assessments, and tailoring rotations to individual resident career goals.
- Enhanced skills
- Not stated on CaRMS page
- What the program looked at
- Application score
- Interview performance
- Reference letters
- Research/scholarly activities
- Leadership potential
- Interpersonal skills
Contacts and links
- Program director
Dr. Julie Ann Van Koughnett
- Program office
Residency Program Administrator, Division Administrator
Per CaRMS. Staff change during the cycle, so check the CaRMS program page(opens in a new tab) before emailing. Site staff and other contacts are listed there too.
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 London
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