Preventive Medicine is a small discipline: American Medical Association data from 2002 show 83 residency programs with a total of 333 residents. Only 0.1 percent of graduating medical students choose Preventive Medicine. Compare that to Internal Medicine, which had 392 programs that year, with almost 22,000 residents representing about 6 percent of graduating medical students. (sources: AMA, AAFP, AAMC) Residency program information for Preventive Medicine is not available through the resources that graduating medical students usually use, such as AMA-FREIDA and NRMP databases, because Preventive Medicine does not generally participate in the match and there is no systematic data collection process in place. A 2004 survey of Public Health / General Preventive Medicine (PH/GPM) residency programs revealed that less than 15 percent of programs participate in the match. Fifty-seven percent of residents in PH/GPM programs are women, and 18 percent are international medical graduates. About 33 percent of residents have completed only a preliminary or transitional year before starting a residency in Preventive Medicine. Approximately 13 percent of residents had previously started another residency but did not finish. Approximately 9 percent of PH/GPM programs require completion of a full residency in a clinical discipline before beginning training in Preventive Medicine; 6 percent of programs offer only combined training programs, with Preventive Medicine and a clinical discipline (such as Internal Medicine). Almost 15 percent of programs prefer that residency applicants have prior residency training, although it is not required. Overall, the residency program acceptance rate is approximately 26 percent [please contact the author of this Web page for references]. Applying for a residency position in Preventive Medicine is slightly more complex than other specialty training programs, in part because Preventive Medicine residents earn a graduate degree in population health. This degree, usually a master of public health (MPH), often requires a separate application to the affiliated school of public health for acceptance to the degree program. While there's not much stress associated with this -- acceptance to the residency generally means that you will be accepted to the graduate degree program -- it is an additional layer of logistics that needs to be considered. There are several pathways that lead to residency training in Preventive Medicine: - The direct route: Senior medical students may apply to Preventive Medicine training programs. However, many programs do not accept applications more than one year in advance and ask medical students to apply after entering beginning their PGY-1 internship year; most Preventive Medicine residency programs do not offer PGY-1 positions. There are some Preventive Medicine programs that will accept medical student applications, however, and some even offer an affiliated PGY-1 position.
- The interrupted route: Many current Preventive Medicine residents apply during an internship or residency program in another discipline, and choose not to finish their original program.
- The combined route: There are some Preventive Medicine programs that offer combined training, usually in conjunction with Internal Medicine or Family Practice. These programs may participate in the match. There are also several Preventive Medicine programs that prefer their residency applicants to have prior residency training in a clinical discipline.
There are approximately 83 accredited residency training programs in the United States: 42 programs in General Preventive Medicine/Public Health; 37 programs in Occupational Medicine, and 4 programs in Aerospace Medicine. Programs can be found in schools of medicine, schools of public health, state or local health departments, and in federal agencies (e.g.., Centers for Disease Control) and military bases (e.g., Walter Reed Army Institute of Research). The programs are usually small and take an individualized approach to training. (source: American College of Preventive Medicine) So, how can you find out whether a program accepts medical student applications, participates in the match, or offers combined training opportunities? The best resource has traditionally been the American College of Preventive Medicine (ACPM) Preventive Medicine Residency Programs At-a-Glance. ACGME and AMA-FREIDA also host program directories, but they are less detailed. Note that AMA continues to distinguish between General Preventive Medicine programs and Public Health programs, although these training areas have been combined for several years and few meaningful differences exist. | 
