Question 1

How are the best Thoracic surgery - independent residency programs ranked?

Accepted Answer

MatchPath ranks programs by the MatchPath Program Score — a transparent, objective composite of the teaching hospital's CMS Overall Star Rating (quality), the program's size relative to other Thoracic surgery - independent programs (ACGME-approved positions), its teaching hospital's NIH research funding (where available), and its accreditation standing. It is not a reputation survey; the exact weights are published and every program shows the signals behind its score.

Question 2

What is the best Thoracic surgery - independent residency program?

Accepted Answer

By the MatchPath Program Score, University of Colorado School of Medicine currently ranks first among Thoracic surgery - independent programs. The full ranked list above shows each program's score and the factors behind it, so you can see why.

Question 3

Is this an official residency ranking?

Accepted Answer

No. There is no official ACGME, NRMP, or government ranking of residency programs. The MatchPath Program Score is our own transparent composite of objective, public data (CMS hospital quality, ACGME positions and accreditation) — published so you can see exactly what drives each position. It reflects the teaching hospital's measured quality and the program's scale, not a subjective judgment of the training.

Question 4

Does a program's rank mean it's the right fit for me?

Accepted Answer

Not on its own. The score weighs objective signals every applicant can verify, but fit also depends on your specialty goals, location, IMG-friendliness, visa needs, and salary. Use the ranking as a starting shortlist, then compare programs side by side.

Question 5

How is this different from the Doximity or U.S. News residency rankings?

Accepted Answer

Reputation rankings like Doximity are built from surveys of physicians' opinions. The MatchPath Program Score uses no opinions — only objective, public data (CMS hospital quality, ACGME positions and accreditation), with the weights published and every input shown. You can audit exactly why a Thoracic surgery - independent program sits where it does.

Question 6

Which of these Thoracic surgery - independent programs are IMG-friendly?

Accepted Answer

The score itself doesn't factor in IMG acceptance — filter the Thoracic surgery - independent program list by "IMG-friendly" to rank by reported IMG acceptance rate, then check each program's IMG percentage, visa sponsorship, and Step 2 CK expectation. All of it is free to view.

#	Program	Location	CMS	Score
1	University of Colorado School of Medicine	Aurora, CO	5	99
2	Mass General Brigham	Boston, MA	5	98
3	Baylor University Medical Center	Plano, TX	5	97
4	University of Pennsylvania Health System	Philadelphia, PA	5	97
5	NYU Grossman School of Medicine	New York, NY	5	97
6	New York Presbyterian Hospital	New York, NY	5	97
7	Stanford Health Care	Stanford, CA	5	97
8	University of California (San Francisco) School of Medicine	San Francisco, CA	5	97
9	Mass General Brigham	Boston, MA	5	93
10	University of Utah Health	Salt Lake City, UT	5	91
11	University of Michigan	Ann Arbor, MI	4	91
12	Emory University School of Medicine	Atlanta, GA	4	91
13	University of Virginia Medical Center	Charlottesville, VA	4	88
14	University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center	Dallas, TX	4	88
15	Washington University/B-JH/SLCH Consortium	St Louis, MO	4	88
16	Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine	Baltimore, MD	4	88
17	Vanderbilt University Medical Center	Nashville, TN	4	87
18	University of Kansas School of Medicine	Kansas City, KS	5	84
19	McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University	Chicago, IL	5	84
20	Rush University Medical Center	Chicago, IL	5	82
21	UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine/UCLA Medical Center	Los Angeles, CA	4	82
22	Baylor College of Medicine	Houston, TX	3	81
23	Houston Methodist Hospital	Houston, TX	5	80
24	Corewell Health – Grand Rapids/Michigan State University	Grand Rapids, MI	5	80
25	University of California (San Diego) Medical Center	La Jolla, CA	5	80
26	UPMC Medical Education	Pittsburgh, PA	3	79
27	Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center	Boston, MA	4	79
28	University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics	Madison, WI	4	75
29	Virginia Commonwealth University Health System	Richmond, VA	4	75
30	University of Chicago Medical Center	Chicago, IL	4	75
31	University of Florida College of Medicine	Gainesville, FL	4	75
32	Cedars-Sinai Medical Center	Los Angeles, CA	5	75
33	University of Washington School of Medicine	Seattle, WA	3	73
34	Ohio State University Hospital	Columbus, OH	3	73
35	Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine	Bronx, NY	3	73
36	University of Iowa Health Care Medical Center	Iowa City, IA	3	73
37	Loyola University Medical Center	Maywood, IL	3	73
38	Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals, Inc	Milwaukee, WI	4	70
39	Penn State Milton S Hershey Medical Center	Hershey, PA	4	70
40	Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell	Manhasset, NY	4	70
41	Ochsner Clinic Foundation	New Orleans, LA	4	70
42	University of Kentucky College of Medicine	Lexington, KY	4	70
43	Indiana University School of Medicine	Indianapolis, IN	2	69
44	University of Southern California/Los Angeles General Medical Center (USC/LA General)	Los Angeles, CA	2	69
45	Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center	Winston-Salem, NC	3	65
46	Loma Linda University Health Education Consortium	Loma Linda, CA	3	65
47	Cleveland Clinic Foundation	Cleveland, OH	5	64
48	Allegheny Health Network Medical Education Consortium	Pittsburgh, PA	2	63
49	University of Rochester Medicine	Rochester, NY	2	63
50	Case Western Reserve University/University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center	Cleveland, OH	3	61

Best Thoracic surgery - independent Residency Programs

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