Residency & Fellowship Eligibility and Employment

House Staff Eligibility in the Albany Med Health System

Thank you for considering Albany Medical College to further your medical education and training. We are proud to offer competitive salaries and a comprehensive benefits package to our residents and fellows. Please take a moment to review the important salary and benefit information.

Applicants must meet one of the following qualifications to be eligible for appointment to an ACGME-accredited program in the Albany Med Health System:

1. All medical residents appointed to the resident staff of Albany Medical Center including post-residency fellows, must hold a MD or DO degree (or the recognized equivalent). In addition, they must be graduates of schools approved by the LCME (Liaison Committee on Medical Education) or the AOA (American Osteopathic Association). International graduates must possess a valid ECFMG (Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates) certificate or have a full and unrestricted license to practice medicine in a US licensing jurisdiction in which they are training. All International Medical Graduates must also meet the New York State “12 Week Rule.” Scroll down to read the 12 Week Rule.
2. Medical trainees must meet the minimum eligibility criteria as described by current ACGME requirements. Albany Medical Center will not support the appointment of a medical trainee who will not meet criteria for ABMS or AOA board certification in the specialty or subspecialty he/she is training in upon program completion (if board certification is available).
3. Albany Medical Center will sponsor only J1 Visas for medical training positions.
4. All applicants must remain eligible or complete any eligibility requirements prior to their start date at Albany Medical Center. If an applicant cannot do so, his/her NRMP Match or other appointment offer may be voided.
5. Each program must have a set of written standards, appropriate to the specialty, to guide trainee selection. No trainee will be asked to sign a non-competition guarantee.
6. For each program, the selection of trainees is the responsibility of a committee of the faculty which has the opportunity to review application materials and agree as a group on those residents to be selected either through the NRMP Match or otherwise. Such decisions should ordinarily not be those of an individual program leader. Programs must not discriminate with regard to sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, disability, or any other applicable legally protected status.
7. All Albany Medical Center Programs will follow the NRMP “All In” policy. For the Main Residency Match, the “All In” Policy applies to positions for which the NRMP offers matching services. All PGY-1 positions as well as all PGY-2 positions in specialties accredited to begin at either the PGY-1 or PGY-2 level regardless of whether the program begins in the PGY-1 or PGY-2 year. PGY-2 positions that are reserved for applicants eligible to begin advanced training in the year of the Main Residency Match. For fellowships implementing the All In Policy, or for exceptions to the All In Policy, see the NRMP website.
8. When programs do not fill through the Match, residents may subsequently be appointed to unfilled positions from the pool of unmatched students, or other sources, as long as they meet institutional standards. Each program's recruitment practices MUST meet these criteria and are evaluated during Special Review. Annually or more often if changes in New York State Department of Education regulation or ACGME Requirements necessitate it require, the GME Council will discuss these criteria and revise them if applicable.

Benefits

• Albany Medical Center pension plan
• Veterinary pet insurance
• Accident insurance
• Critical illness insurance
• Life insurance - term and whole life
• Full salary for up to 5 weeks for medical disability, including post-partum
• New York State Paid Family Leave
• New York State Short-Term Disability Insurance
• Lincoln Financial Short-Term Disability Insurance
• Lincoln Financial Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Three weeks of vacation; some programs offer one week of conference time
• Lactation rooms

More information is available upon request. You can also find benefits on our Careers pages.

Extra Offerings

The following are provided to all house officers:

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provides a confidential counseling resource to employees who may be experiencing personal problems. The EAP will help to identify and explore alternative solutions to problems that may be emotional, financial, legal, marital or drug related, including identifying medical or psychological support services
• While on call at Albany Medical Center, a subsidy for meals will be provided along with a private on-call room with housecleaning services
• Residents may park free of charge in a parking lot or garage in a designated area
• Uniforms (cleaned weekly) and laundry services will be provided for residents
• Access to daycare, banking, and credit union
• Access to Albany Medical Center's fitness center
• Educational allowances are available
• Free use of Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) bus system
• Free access to CDPHP bicycle rideshare
• Wellness days
• Lockers are provided to residents at Albany Medical Center

Professional Liability Insurance

House staff members employed by Albany Medical Center are covered by the Albany Medical Center self-insurance program for professional liability claims arising from the acts and omissions of such employees within the scope of their program activities at facilities operated by Albany Medical Center.

This self-insurance program provides coverage on an occurrence basis, with limits of $1 million and $3 million. As a condition of defense and indemnification, covered individuals are required to cooperate in the reporting and defense of claims. The program is administered by the Risk Management Department.

Annual Health Assessments

New York state law requires that new residents and fellows have an initial physical examination and submit proof of measles, German measles, and varicella immunizations, as well as a TB skin test (in the last six months) prior to employment start date. Annual updates and self-assessment are performed by Albany Medical Center's Employee Health Service and are required for promotion. Immunizations are also provided by Employee Health Service.

ACLS Certification

Advanced Cardiac Life Support training is required for all residents and fellows. Certification and re-certification are provided. If additional life support certifications are required by the program to which you are applying, these will also be provided.

NYS 12 Week Rule

General Rule
An applicant who is expected to graduate (or has graduated) from a non-LCME accredited international medical school must satisfy New York State’s 12 week rule in order to be eligible participate in a medical residency training program in New York State.

The rule, promulgated by the New York State Department of Health, provides that an individual who graduates from a non-LCME accredited international medical school may not train in New York State if his/her medical school education includes more than 12 weeks of clinical clerkship rotations outside of the country in which his/her medical school is located.

For purposes of counting clinical rotation time that occurred outside of the country in which an applicant’s medical school is located, only rotations that are required for the applicant’s medical education degree should be considered.

Exception for Approved School

The New York State Department of Education has approved a list of schools that are excluded from this general rule. Applicants who attend one of the following schools are not subject to the 12 week rule:

• American University of Antigua, Antigua
• American University of the Caribbean, Cupecoy, St. Martin
• The Autonomous University of Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Mexico
• English Language Program, University of Debrecen, Medical and Health Science Center, Medical
  School, Debrecen, Hungary
• English Language Program, Medical University of Lublin, Lublin, Poland
• English Language Program, Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland
• Fatima College of Medicine, Manila, Philippines
• International Health and Medicine Program, Ben Gurion University of the Negrev, Beer-Sheva,
  Israel
• Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, India
• Medical University of the Americas/Nevis, Nevis, West Indies
• Ross University School of Medicine, Roseau, Dominica
• Saba University School of Medicine, The Bottom, Saba
• St. George’s University School of Medicine, St. George’s, Grenada
• St. Matthew’s University School of Medicine, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands
• Technion Israel Institute of Technology - Technion American Medical Students Program (TEAMS),
  Haifa, Israel
• The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
• Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Doha, Qataar*
• Xavier University School of Medicine, Oranjestad, Aruba

*Graduates of Weill Cornell Medical College are only exempt from the 12 week rule if graduated between fall 2016 and fall 2018.

In addition, there is an exception for the following institutions chartered by the New York State Board of Regents and offering registered degree programs:

• American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
• Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
• The Center for Economics Research and Graduate Education-Economics Institute (CERGE-EI),
  Prague, Czech Republic
• The Central European University, Budapest, Hungary
• Lebanese American University (LAU), Beirut, Lebanon
• The Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv, Israel