Residency Program Benefits

2026-2027 Stipends

Insurance Benefits/Retirement

Vanderbilt University Medical Center pays the premium for HIV Indemnity Insurance, Workers Compensation, Professional and General Liability Insurance, Accident Travel, and Long-Term Disability (Basic). Health insurance with national providers, dental insurance, and life insurance are available at a significantly reduced rate to house staff. Retirement contributions are placed in a 403(b) account and are matched "dollar for dollar" (up to 5% of gross income) by the Medical Center.

Vacation

Three weeks of vacation are provided to each intern, with an additional five days provided at the winter holiday. During the resident years, three weeks of vacation and one week of "independent study" are provided, again with the additional winter holiday break. 

Meals

Each member of the house staff is given a meal allowance for the year based on the number of in-house calls expected. This typically results in approximately $600-700 to use at vending machines, the cafeteria, espresso bars, and the undergraduate campus food court. Lunch is provided at no cost four days per week at teaching conferences.

Laundry/Pagers

Scrubs are provided at no cost to the house staff through conveniently located dispensing machines. Each member is allotted three pairs of scrubs, with free laundry of these at any time. Additionally, two physician coats are provided, embroidered with the physician's name, at the beginning of the year. Dry cleaning services for these coats is also provided at no charge. House staff also receive temporarily allotted alphanumeric pagers, work phones, and laptops for the duration of their training at no expense.

Conferences

Many residents have the opportunity to present research projects at national meetings, with the sponsoring division providing financial support.

Maternity and Paternity Leave

Vanderbilt Health and the Department of Medicine support the Family Medical Leave Act, which provides up to six weeks of fully paid leave and up to 12 weeks of FMLA for maternity, paternity, adoption, severe illness in a family member, or for personal illness. The department is pleased to work with each member of the house staff in order that board requirements may still be met in a timely fashion.

See the House Staff Parent Handbook here.

Miscellaneous 

• Library: The Eskind Biomedical Library allows Vanderbilt staff access via the internet to thousands of electronically stored journals. The library also subscribes to uptodate® and mdconsult®. 
• Parking: Parking in a covered garage adjacent to the hospital is provided at no cost to house staff. 
• Banking: Direct deposit of monthly pay is available at most banks. 
• Social events: The department organizes various social events each year including an annual retreat for interns away from campus; "Senior Sendoff ," a graduation for all departing categorical, PSTP and Med/Peds residents plus a guest; and a holiday party for all house staff plus a guest (with faculty and community physicians covering hospital rotations impacted).
• Child care: Available close to campus at a competitive rate for Vanderbilt faculty and staff. For more information please visit the  Vanderbilt Child and Family Center website. 
• Information resources: These include Up-to-Date, ePocrates, Micromedex, Open Evidence, and PubMed. As a result, our residents can access clinical information and literature from any location within the hospital or clinic.
• Handbook: All medicine residents receive a copy of our annual Internal Medicine Residency Handbook, which provides general and hospital-specific guidance on diagnosis and management of common medical problems internists manage.