Year 4. December 8. Sunny Skies
Each year, hundreds of senior medical residents across the country apply for sub-specialty fellowship positions. It is an intense time of interviews, after which they submit their fellowship rank list and wait anxiously for the results. There is also anxiety on the side of the fellowship programs, who wait to see if they will match their top candidates.
For some specialties such as infectious disease, nephrology and geriatrics, there are more available positions across the country than applicants. This means that some programs will not fill their quotas or could even not match anyone at all. Last Wednesday we learned the results of our fellowship match and the results could not be better. All of our fellowship programs filled their positions, reinforcing that the UCLA Department of Medicine (DoM) is a destination for the best and brightest who want to obtain world class training and experience that will prepare them to excel in their career as Internal Medicine subspecialists.
Read on to learn more about our incoming colleagues who will Lead in Innovation, Transform Care and Advance Health for All, and see where our own residents will be going.
A Fantastic Fellowship Forecast
I am pleased to share the results of the DoM’s 2026 Fellowship Match! Last Wednesday, several of our programs announced the next class of physicians and scientists who will be joining their ranks next year. We also learned where our current DoM residents will be headed. In short: The forecast looks very, very bright.
One hundred and one (101) fellows in total were confirmed into post-residency programs. The five fellows who will join the UCLA-VA Pain Medicine Fellowship Program and one fellow who will join the transplant hepatology fellowship within the UCLA Digestive Disease Fellowship Program were confirmed earlier this year. Our new fellows hail from 21 states and Alberta, Canada. Fourteen of them hold advanced degrees in addition to their medical degree. Nineteen of them were former chief residents in internal medicine. Thirteen are underrepresented minorities in medicine (URIM), based on self-identification in their applications using the pre-2004 AAMC URIM definition.
San Diego native Ritu Calla, DO will join the UCLA Nephrology Fellowship Program from the internal medicine residency at St. Bernards Healthcare. She has an eye towards a career in transplant nephrology, as she enjoys working with this patient population and finds the topic very interesting. Dr. Calla enjoyed her interview during fellowship recruitment and loves the Los Angeles area.
“UCLA was for me because it gives me the best training for my interest, the most exposure and the best tools to become extremely competent,” she said. “I’m really excited to be around people who share my interest in nephrology and really get into the subject!”
New fellow Talal El Zarif, MD, a current resident at Yale New Haven Health, will complete a cardiology fellowship through the UCLA Cardiology STAR Program. He was attracted to the program’s high-volume clinical training and research experience, which he feels lays the perfect foundation for his ambition of leading a translational research group that cares for patients with complex cardiovascular disease, particularly those with cancer who are receiving novel therapies.
“There are very few programs like UCLA that are uniquely positioned to balance both clinical and research experiences in a deeply supportive physician-scientist culture,” said Dr. El Zarif, who will also enjoy being close to family in Los Angeles. “The collaborative culture I sensed from the fellows acting as near-peer mentors also reinforced that this is a place where people invest in each other’s growth.”
Keming Yang, MD, PhD will join the UCLA STAR Program through the gastroenterology fellowship program. She believes what she learns there will help her build her career as an academic gastroenterologist and clinical investigator dedicated to caring for patients with diverse digestive issues while pursuing research that refines clinical practice and addresses care gaps.
"The UCLA STAR Program’s unparalleled culture of academic excellence, innovation and mentorship aligns perfectly with my goals and provides the ideal training environment,” Dr. Yang said, who noted that she has already learned the UCLA 8-clap from one of her attendings at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, where she is completing her residency. “Through the STAR Program, I hope to build the tools I need to become an independent physician-scientist - from advanced methodological training to grant writing, collaboration, and leading interdisciplinary research."
All forty-seven of our DoM residents who entered the match successfully matched into fellowship programs, including two into the National Clinician Scholars Program. They will be headed to seven different states in total, including 36 in California. Twenty-two will remain with us in fellowships at UCLA, and if we add the two who are going to Harbor UCLA, then 51% of our fellowship class who entered the match will continue their training at UCLA. Seventeen percent (17%) will train at other UCs (predominantly UCSF), and 11% will go to other programs within California including Stanford, Scripps, Kaiser and City of Hope. Thus, nearly 80% of our trainees are choosing to stay in California, underscoring the important role that UCLA plays in building our state’s sub-specialty workforce.
Take a moment to watch the video below to hear our residents reflections on their fellowship match results, and our department’s words of congratulations as they embark on this next phase of training.
2025 Outgoing Fellowship Match Celebration
Among the resident Bruins who will continue their journeys with us are Ambulatory Chief Resident Laura Ann Santangelo, MD and Inpatient Chief Resident Jay Alpesh Shah, MD, who couples matched this fellowship cycle. Dr. Santangelo matched into the UCLA Hospice and Palliative Care Cardiology Fellowship Program, while Dr. Shah will be joining the UCLA Cardiology Fellowship Program.
Dr. Santangelo credits her passion for palliative care to her time residency at UCLA. She intends to work as an outpatient palliative care and primary care physician and believes the hospice and palliative care fellowship program will help shape her into the kind of physician she aspires to become.
“I am so excited about getting to step back into the role of a learner and delve further into palliative care!” Dr. Santangelo said. “I am also feeling blessed to have matched with three amazing UCLA Internal Medicine graduates and am looking forward to growing together.”
Dr. Shah plans to pursue an academic career in cardiology with a focus on advanced heart failure, transplant cardiology and cardiac critical care.
“When considering my options for fellowship, it became clear that staying at UCLA would provide the ideal environment for both Laura and me to continue growing clinically, academically, and personally,” he said. “The breadth of training across our hospitals, the strong mentorship, and the chance to remain connected with the friends and community we have built here made the decision an easy one."
Seeing our DoM residents match so well was the highlight of the year for Lisa J. Skinner, MD, program director of the UCLA Internal Medicine Training Program.
“These outcomes are a testament to the caliber of trainees who entrust their education to UCLA. Their success also reflects the culture of mentorship, scholarship, and support that defines our department,” Dr. Skinner said. “Every happy resident story is one of hard work and talent, and also one of the teachers, mentors, and role models who supported them along the way.”
Congratulations to all of our residents on a fantastic fellowship match, and we cannot wait to meet our new fellows when they join us in summer 2026! Be on the lookout for the fellowship match results for the UCLA Micrographic Surgery and Dermatologic Oncology and UCLA Clinical Informatics Fellowship Programs early next year.
A Proud Day for Fellowship Program LEADERS
The directors of the UCLA Fellowship Match Program were thrilled at this year’s fellowship match results! Here are a few of their thoughts.
UCLA Cardiology Fellowship Program
“We are thrilled with our match outcomes, and we are excited to welcome the next generation of #bruinhearts from all over the country. These budding cardiologists come with diverse and unique interests and passions. We are so excited to see where these take them and to watch them drive our field forward with more innovation and discovery!”
Karol E. Watson, MD, PhD,
director
Eric H. Yang, MD,
associate director
UCLA Pulmonary Fellowship Program
"We are beyond thrilled to welcome this new class into the UCLA Pulmonary/Critical Care family. We have a stellar group of fellows joining us from across the country, representing 7 residency programs. These fellows join us with a variety of clinical and academic interests, and we look forward to welcoming them in July."
Kathryn H. Melamed, MD,
director
UCLA Multicampus Infectious Diseases Fellowship Program
“We are delighted to match seven infectious diseases fellows to UCLA! I am incredibly proud of all the hard work that our faculty and fellows did to recruit this extraordinary class. We have recruited from a broad range of backgrounds and interests, and it speaks to UCLA’s strength as an institution as to our ability to support that diverse of an array of interests.”
UCLA-VA Pain Management Fellowship Program
“We were incredibly happy to match our 5 candidates, 1 of which is from our own program. All faculty are elated since all the incoming fellows are super bright, dedicated, personable physicians and we are looking forward to working with them.”
Quynh Giao Pham, MD,
director
UCLA Nephrology Fellowship Program
“This year’s national match results were not particularly strong, as many programs were unable to fill their positions. We were therefore especially pleased to have filled all of our fellowship spots with an outstanding group of incoming fellows. They come from diverse backgrounds across the country and share a genuine passion for nephrology. We are confident that we will continue to train future leaders in the field of nephrology.”
Mohammad Kamgar, MD,
director
UCLA Endocrinology Fellowship Program
“I can't wait to welcome the new class of Endocrinology Fellows to UCLA! I am looking forward to the energy and curiosity our new fellows will bring to the program.”
Shira M. Grock, MD,
director
UCLA Geriatrics Fellowship Program
“We are excited to share the results of this year’s geriatrics fellowship match, which brought us an exceptionally strong and diverse group of incoming fellows. Their talent, curiosity, and dedication to the care of older adults will enrich our program and our community.”
Erin Cook, MD,
director
I feel the enthusiasm and pride of our fellowship program directors as they celebrate the outcomes of their fellowship match. On behalf of the DoM, let me thank all of the program directors, core faculty and staff for the work that you do in training the next generation of LEADERS and for your tireless efforts in recruiting our next class of fellowship trainees.
Welcome New DoM Faculty
I am excited to introduce to you new faculty members who joined the DoM over the past few months. These LEADERS started with us between August 19 and December 8, 2025. Please join me in welcoming our new colleagues to the department!
Dale
P.S.
P.S. The other reason I like match season is that I have the chance to make a video and audition for the Emmy’s. I had a special visitor who came to the taping of this year’s video. She might have a future in the film industry as well! It was special meeting the newest addition to the DoM family via my administrative assistant, Gilma Rodriguez, now a proud mom, who granted me permission to share this photo with you!
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