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Eligibility
An applicant must meet one of the following qualifications to be eligible for appointment:
- Graduation from a medical school in the United States or Canada, accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) or graduation from a college of osteopathic medicine in the United States, accredited by the American Osteopathic Association Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (AOACOCA); or
- Graduation from a medical school outside of the United States or Canada, and meeting one of the following additional qualifications:
- Holding currently valid certificate from the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) prior to appointment; or
- Holding a full and unrestricted license to practice medicine in the United States licensing jurisdiction in which the ACGME-accredited program is located.
- All prerequisite post-graduate clinical education required for initial entry or transfer into ACGME-accredited residency programs, AOA-approved residency programs, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC)-accredited or College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC)-accredited residency programs located in Canada, or in residency programs with ACGME International (ACGME-I) Advanced Specialty Accreditation.
- Residency programs must receive verification of each resident’s level of competency in the required clinical filed using ACGME, CanMEDS, or ACGME-I Milestones evaluations from the prior training program upon matriculation.
- A physician who has completed a residency program that was not accredited by ACGME, AOA, RCPSC, CFPC, or ACGME-I (with Advanced Specialty Accreditation) may enter an ACGME-accredited residency program in the same specialty at the PGY-1 level and, at the discretion of the program director of the ACGME-accredited program with approval by the GMEC, may be advanced to the PGY-2 level on ACGME Milestones evaluations at the ACGME-residency in those specialties for which an initial clinical year is not required for entry.
Audition Rotations:
Mercy Hospital Fort Smith Internal Medicine program offers to fourth year medical students inpatient and elective audition rotations. Audition rotations begin in late July through January of the application cycle. There are two-week rotations available on inpatient and four-week rotations available on sub-specialty/elective rotations.
All students wishing to rotate are required to fill out the Audition/Sub-Internship Rotation Request Form. The form must be filled out and returned by the deadline listed on the form. Students may be required to have an affiliation agreement between the hospital and medical school. The student apply must confirm that an agreement is in place prior to the start of the rotation. In addition, once the rotation is confirmed with the Program Coordinator, the student is responsible for completing all the requirements outlined in Mercy’s Individual Learning Experience and be submitted at least 3 weeks to the start of the rotation. There will be NO EXCEPTIONS to these requirements.
At this time, we do not offer observerships or sponsor externships for international medical graduates/students. All Graduates of Medical School wishing to do an audition rotation to treat patients under the supervision of a physician during the 2 week residency audition rotation, such Medical School Graduates would need to apply for and receive a Graduate Registered Physician license prior to the rotation.
Application Process:
All applicants are required to submit their application through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS), listed as “Arkansas College of Osteopathic Medicine/Mercy Program -Internal Medicine Program”
Mercy Fort Smith Internal Medicine Program participates in the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP). The NRMP match numbers include:
2295140C1 - Internal Medicine - Categorial
Program Material Requirements:
- ERAS Application
- Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE)
- 2 Letters of recommendation
- Medical School Transcript
- Personal Statement
- Photograph
- USMLE/COMLEX Step/Level 1
- USMLE/COMLEX Step/Level 2 (must be scheduled at time of application and received no later than January 30th
International Student Applicants:
Mercy Hospital – Fort Smith Internal Medicine Program uses the J-1 visa program sponsored by the Education Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG).
H1B and F1 visas are not accepted.
To be eligible for consideration, the following is required by the program:
- All International Medical Graduates who enter ACGME-accredited programs must be certified by Education Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG). All International Medical Graduates must meet the ECFMG Certification and requirements.
- To initiate sponsorship application, applicants must provide their USMLE/ECFMG Identification Number. If applicants do not have this Identification Number must contact ECFMG.
- To obtain Initial Sponsorship in an ACGME-accredited Clinical Training Program, applicants must complete the following documentation checklist.
- Meet all other requirements outlined for ECFMG Certification or Exchange Visitor Sponsorship Program (EVSP) applicable to individual as outlined on the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates website.
