Interventional Radiology Integrated Residency

Introduction

The University of Virginia has a distinguished history of training Interventional Radiologists, beginning in 2002 with the establishment of its pioneering Vascular and Interventional Radiology (VIR) track. In September 2012, the American Board of Medical Specialties approved primary certification in Interventional Radiology through the American Board of Radiology, establishing a dedicated training pathway and ushering in a new era of formalized IR residency education.

Building on this longstanding tradition, UVA transitioned its VIR track to an ACGME-accredited six-year Integrated Interventional Radiology Residency Program. The 72-month categorical program is designed to provide residents with a comprehensive and progressively advanced education encompassing clinical medicine, diagnostic imaging, procedural expertise, and the longitudinal care of patients with complex disease.

The program begins with a Fundamental Clinical Skills (FCS) year at UVA Health, providing residents with a strong foundation in comprehensive patient care. During this year, residents gain experience in both inpatient and outpatient surgical settings, as well as the evaluation and management of critically ill patients in the intensive care units. This broad clinical foundation prepares residents for the specialized clinical and procedural training that follows throughout the Interventional Radiology residency.

The IR Integrated Residency offers an extensive and in-depth experience in the diagnosis, treatment, and longitudinal management of diseases commonly encountered by Interventional Radiologists. At UVA, innovation is integral to the training experience. Residents are immersed in an environment that embraces emerging technologies, advances procedural techniques, and continually looks toward the future of minimally invasive patient care. Research and scholarly activity are strongly encouraged, providing residents with opportunities to investigate new approaches, contribute to the advancement of the field, and help shape the future of Interventional Radiology. With a longstanding tradition of pioneering education and a commitment to innovation, UVA prepares residents not only to practice the Interventional Radiology of today, but to help define what comes next.

Our IR-Integrated residency is the #8 program in the nation, per the 2026-27 Doximity Residency Navigator.

Graduates of UVA’s Interventional Radiology Residencies are competitive applicants for positions across the country. Click here for an interactive version of our IR alumni destination map.

From April 11 to 15, over a dozen of faculty members and trainees from the University of Virginia’s Interventional Radiology Division took part in the Society of Interventional Radiology’s 2026 Annual Scientific Meeting in Toronto, Canada. Click here to learn more!

The IR residency at UVA was established in 2000 when we took our first medical student in the match, Dr. Warren Swee, for what was then known as the VIR pathway.  His six-year program gave him all the tools to practice IR at the highest level in a wide variety of practice settings.

We grew to matching two medical students a year in 2009.  Since the IR residency came in to existence in 2015, little has changed in our educational mission—to give residents all the tools they need to provide the widest possible array of minimally invasive procedures delivered in the safest possible way. We are constantly searching for ways to provide residents with the latest procedures, the most exacting consultation skills, and expert diagnostic imaging knowledge.

Our IR faculty are committed to educational excellence, hoping we provide residents a carefully balanced program of structured learning, self-study, and hands-on experience with graduated responsibility.

Our close collaboration with the diagnostic radiology faculty allow us to provide an outstanding diagnostic program, tailored to the needs of up-and-coming IRs.  We are very fortunate to have the strong support of the surgery department in providing our residents an internship, and intensive care and vascular surgery rotations that form the foundation of our 6 year IR program.

We have been very privileged to be able to train our residents in outstanding facilities.  In 2019 we moved into a new space next to the operating room with state-of-the-art equipment that includes 8 procedure rooms with CT available in two angiography suites and cone-beam CT available in 5 more suites.  We also have access to IVUS, ICE, and CE-US for all the latest in intra-procedural diagnostic imaging.

Our technologists and nurses are the backbone of our procedure quality. Their clinical expertise, their interest in continuous learning and their commitment to teaching are second to none.

The greatest pleasure for me, and the secret to whatever success we have had in training residents, has been our close-knit group of hardworking, compassionate, analytic, and creative residents.  Their support to fellow residents, and their commitment to the radiology residency and to UVA are always on display.  Together they are role models for an effective team: championing how to make resident education at UVA better, supporting the educational mission of other residents/specialties, and taking advantage of opportunities to collaborate on IR research.

If you are sincere about a career in IR, I hope you will apply.

Sincerely,

 

John Fritz Angle, MD
Director, Division of Interventional Radiology