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Transitional Year: In Their Own Words
While navigating the myriad of transitional year programs, I relied heavily on prior resident experiences to choose the best fit. Not only were graduates of the UT Chattanooga TY program unanimously positive about their experience, but they were adamant that it was the best transitional year in the country. Now that I am here, it is easy to see why. The program is designed to serve the career interests of its residents, placing emphasis on education, research, leadership, service, and wellness. We have the flexibility to design a curriculum tailored to our individual needs. The hospital staff is welcoming, as is the city of Chattanooga, an outdoor recreation mecca with a lively downtown. - Ryan Moore, MD; Transitional Year Resident, Class of 2013
What attracted me to Chattanooga was the outgoing, friendly environment. The faculty are approachable, knowledgeable and dedicated to teaching. It's a pleasure to come to work everyday. - Katherine Fyall, MD; Transitional Year Resident, Class of 2013
As soon as I interviewed at the Transitional Year program at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, I immediately knew this was the perfect program for me! This exceptional program allows residents to have a diverse exposure to a variety of fields in medicine. Dr. Panda, the program director, Dr. Dooley, the associate program director, and Joyce Poke, the program coordinator, are all very helpful, encouraging, and dedicated. Dr. Panda is an incredibly caring role model and a friendly and compassionate physician. I am so excited to be a part of this enriching and excellent program that is providing me with a great amount of knowledge and experience. -Sheila Venkatesh, MD; Transitional Year Resident, Class of 2013
The transitional year program at UT Chattanooga is truly unique! It is one of the few programs allowing the residents to achieve a broad based education through a wide range of rotations. This allows the residents to custom tailor the year to meet his/her needs. The flexibility of the TY program gives the residents the opportunity to be active members of various hospital committees, leadership roles, and public health fairs. Another huge strength of the program are Drs Panda and Dooley. They are incredible teachers as well has strong resident advocates encouraging each of the residents to participate in all aspects of medicine. In summary, this is an excellent program--the residents are extremely happy, learn a lot, and work well together!
After interviewing at a variety of different transitional year and preliminary programs, I knew that the program here at Erlanger would be a great place to train. During my interview, the residents here were all enthusiastic about the opportunities available to them here as TY's. This, coupled with the flexibility of the program, really allows for us to tailor our educational experience to fit our goals and needs. I have been really impressed with the faculty, who are all personable, willing to teach, and extremely knowledgeable. Also, the program director is very compassionate and caring, and really is a very strong advocate for both our education and personal well-being, which is a great asset. Lastly, Chattanooga has been a wonderful city to live in! There are a large variety of restaurants and activities in the downtown area, and there are always opportunities to explore the outdoors!
I was fortunate enough to rotate with the department of medicine and the department of pediatrics as a medical student, so I knew what a gem this program was. Nestled in the midst of some of the most beautiful scenery you can find anywhere, this program is second to none. I was so enthusiastic about the program, the faculty, the hospital, and the city of Chattanooga that I practically hijacked the tour on my interview day! I feel that the combination of top notch educators, incredible diversity of interesting pathology, and what may very well be the most innovative program in the country would be enough to put this program at the top of anyone's rank list. However, when you add the greatest program director and one of the most beautiful and fun cities around to the mix.... it was no contest. No other program even comes close. I am so blessed to be a part of the University of Tennessee Chattanooga Transitional Year program.
My professional goal is to help patients restore their maximum function from illness, or disabling condition. My passion for rehabilitation medicine has motivated me to pursue the best training I could possible get. As soon as I interviewed at the transitional year program at University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, I knew it was going to be my top choice for the transitional year training. I was impressed by the facilities available, the flexibility of curriculum, the experienced faculty and the very caring program director. For the past year, the program has offered excellent training; I grow as a person and a physician. It has been an amazing learning experience and I feel I am very well prepared for my future training. And of course, Chattanooga is a fun, beautiful city, which definitely worth spending a year here. I am thrilled by the tireless effort made by the faculty to enable me to undergo a smooth transition into my future training. This program is definitely one of the best programs. -Ning Cao, MD; Transitional Year Resident, Class of 2009
This has been one of the best years of my and my family's life in terms of medical training and family happiness. I believe this is the best transitional year program especially in terms of medical education, research, leadership, community service, and humanism/professionalism development opportunities. We have a Program Director that is extremely dedicated to her residents and is a role model both as an incredible physician and compassionate human being. Our 2008-2009 class has been fun to work with and we all bonded well. Chattanooga is an incredible town for outdoor fun, cultural activities, and family fun. I would return to this program again and again and again... - Kurt Scherer, MD; Transitional Year Resident, Class of 2009
Chattanooga is a great city with a great downtown that is safe with a number of restaurants and shops. Affordable housing is close to the hospital. Traffic is not a problem here. Hiking, mountain climbing, mountain biking, and hanggliding are all 20 minutes away. Whitewater rafting is only 45 minutes away on the Ocoee. This is a great place to spend a year. - Jeremiah Miller, MD; Transitional Year Resident, Class of 2009
Chattanooga is a very beautiful city with mild climate; it is very family friendly and has tons of activities for kids on the weekends. We have an awesome program director who is extremely dedicated to our education; I really enjoyed my residency here. -Xiao Androulakis, MD; Transitional Year Resident, Class of 2009
Born and raised in Shiraz, Iran and moved to the States at age of 13. Followed the American dream while attending high school, college, and medical school in Memphis, Tennessee. Also lived in other cities, including Salt Lake City, Seattle, Denver, Milwaukee, etc. Working to complete my internship at UTCOM-Chattanooga/Erlanger this year and planning to attend a radiology residency program at NYU for the next 4 years.
Pros of the program:
-Amir Paydar, MD; Transitional Year Resident, Class of 2009
My year in Chattanooga has been great. I am surrounded with excellent and friendly colleagues. We have wonderful program director and coordinator that greatly care about the residents. I would definitely choose this program again. -Collins Chijioke, MD; Transitional Year Resident, Class of 2009
The Transitional Year Program at the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga has been a great experience for me. I am a graduate of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis and will be pursuing a career in diagnostic radiology at the Medical University of South Carolina. My intern year in Chattanooga has served me well. The city provides many activities from outdoor adventures to arts/crafts to sports and many more. Dr. Panda and the College of Medicine provides great opportunities to training physicians for a flexible schedule to meet the required and desired educational objectives of any resident. Also, along with the ability to tailor one's schedule for a desired benefit, Transitional Year residents are granted the luxury of working in several fields of medicine and impacting the lives of several patients. -Seth Means, MD: Transitional Year Resident, Class of 2009
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