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Electives

Electives  The flexible part of residency, tailored to you! That said, the ACGME has rules about elective choices that must be met in order to graduate. Of note, these rules changed starting the 2025-2026 academic year. For those residents "inbetween," you can follow either old or new rules. (We recommend "new rules" for those starting in July 2024 and thereafter.)

  • OLD RULES! (classes of 2025 and 2026 can use these or the new ones)
    • There are 3 general types of electives: Core (e.g. Pulmonology), Additional (e.g. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry), and Individualized (e.g. Global Health). Use this Electives Requirements Worksheet to help you understand more. A editable copy lives within your ILP. 
  • NEW RULES! (for everyone starting July 2024 and thereafter)
    • Resident must complete 40 weeks of Individualized Curriculum. Of those weeks, 20 must be subspecialty focused, and 20 are flexible (more subspecialty, or other of your choosing). You have an elective planning sheet built into your individual ILP. See this Elective Worksheet for reference.

Options and Scheduling  Choose from a host of clinical and non-clinical options. Here's how to schedule electives: 

  1. Peruse the UMass Pediatrics Residency Electives Catalog. Make note of elective duration options and scheduling needs. Sketch out a plan of what you’d like to do for the year. (You can schedule some electives later in the year, but we recommend doing as much in advance as possible to guarantee success.)
  2. E-mail the elective contacts AND Monick with your request - including specific rotation dates as well as continuity clinic, block conference, and any planned vacation days. For resident-designed/research/study electives, make sure to fill out the appropriate template and get approval ahead of time (see below).  
  3. Once you receive confirmation, e-mail Monick so she can complete official documentation.
  4. Prior to your elective start, make sure you know what you need and where to go. Check for info on the Rotation pages or email the Faculty Leader to clarify a week or 2 in advance.

Resident-Developed Electives (RDE)  We encourage RDEs tailored to your career goals to fulfill some of those "flexible" weeks. You can find examples created by others to use/edit, or make something new.