General Psychiatry Residency
Message from the Program Director
Throughout the sections of this website is an overview of our clinical training sites and curriculum. We pride ourselves on offering robust clinical training in general psychiatry and specialty areas, while also promoting resident wellness and work/life balance. We provide training opportunities throughout the state and across various settings and levels of care to ensure our residents gain exposure to a multitude of diverse psychopathologies and sociocultural demographics. Our size lends itself to creating a close-knit program and ensures adequate support for our residents. In addition to gaining clinical expertise, our residents are involved in research, quality improvement initiatives, and are key participants in medical student education.
I look forward to answering any questions you may have after reviewing our site. Our Program Coordinator, David Gerak, Associate Coordinator, Michelle Smith, the Associate Director, Dr. Shawen Ilaria, our residents, and I certainly hope you will be interested in getting to know us better.
Program Overview
The General Psychiatry Residency Program is structured to provide residents with the knowledge and expertise to deliver superior psychiatric care to their patients. This goal is accomplished through a four-year, broad-based curriculum offering exposure to diverse psychopathologies and patient populations, the full spectrum of psychiatric levels of care and care delivery models, and a variety of affiliated sites within a major academic medical center.
Our graduates are well positioned to pursue competitive fellowships or enter clinical practice with confidence and competence.
Accordion Content
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- Innovative Teaching Methods
- Early Elective Opportunities
- Training in an Academic Medical Center
- Exceptional Work/Life Balance
- Medical Student Teaching Opportunities
- Protected Full Day Didactics Every Tuesday
- Emphasis on Resident Wellness
- Diverse Patient Populations
- Urban and Suburban training locations
- Neuromodulation
- Strong Psychotherapy Training
- No Restrictions on Fast-Tracking
- Clinical Assignments Tailored to Resident Interest
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PGY-1
3 months inpatient psychiatry
3 months internal medicine
1 month emergency medicine
2 months neurology
1-2 months PTSD residential unit
1-2 months consultation liaison psychiatryPGY-2
1-2 months child psychiatry
1 month inpatient detox
1 month consultation liaison psychiatry
1-2 months geriatric psychiatry
1-2 months emergency psychiatry
5 months inpatient psychiatry
1 month electivePGY-3
Outpatient
Different clinic assignments by day of the week longitudinally for the year
1 day per week dedicated to psychotherapyPGY-4
Varies based on the number of residents fast tracking
2-3 months emergency and consultation liaison psychiatry
2-3 months elective
2-3 months residential sexual trauma unit
2-3 months partial hospital program
2-3 months long term state psychiatric inpatient unit -
University Behavioral Health Care – Middlesex County locations
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital – New Brunswick, NJ
Jersey City Medical Center – Jersey City, NJ
Capital Health Medical Center – Trenton, NJ
Trenton State Psychiatric Hospital – Trenton, NJ
Northern State Prison – Newark, NJ
Veterans Administration – Lyons, NJ
Overlook Medical Center – Summit, NJ
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Residents receive a diverse and comprehensive curriculum throughout their four years of training. Every Tuesday, residents are afforded one full day of protected time to participate in scheduled didactics. This protected time is maintained even when residents are off service on internal medicine or neurology. During these rotations, residents also attend site-specific didactics when offered. The course series offered include the following:
- Administrative Psychiatry
- Advanced Consultation Liaison
- Advanced Psychopharmacology
- Advocacy
- Basics of Psychodynamic Therapy
- Basics of Psychotherapy
- Basics of Research
- Behavioral Therapies
- Billing and Coding
- Child Development through Life
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
- Diagnostic Formulation
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy
- Exposure and Response Prevention
- Film-based Psychopathology
- Forensic Psychiatry
- Genetics
- Grand Rounds
- Group Psychotherapy
- History and Ethics of Psychiatry
- Interpersonal Psychotherapy
- Intro to Psychodynamics
- Introduction to child and adolescent psychiatry
- Introduction to consultation liaison psychiatry
- Journal Club
- LGBTQ Psychiatry
- Medical Management of Common Co-morbid Conditions
- Narcan Training
- Neuropsychiatry
- Personality Disorders
- Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
- Psychopathology through the DSM
- Quality Improvement
- Seminal Articles
- SIPS Training
- Social Determinants of Mental Health
- Substance Use Disorders
- Suicide and Violence Risk Assessment
- Supportive Psychotherapy
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All 24-hour call is taken at University Behavioral Health Care on Rutgers Piscataway Campus. When on call, the residents are responsible for coverage on the Adult and Child Inpatient Services, in addition to walk-in/emergency calls.
PGY-I:
- On call on average once every 21 days
- No psychiatry call will be taken while on internal medicine or emergency medicine rotations.
- No Weekend or Holiday Call
PGY II:
- On call on average once every 14 days
PGY-III:
- PGY-III residents are responsible for supervisory call of new PGY-I residents 5 times per year.
PGY-IV: No call responsibilities
Meet Our Residents
2026-2027
Benefits and Salary
The General Psychiatry Residency Program offers a uniform package of benefits consistent with those provided at all graduate medical educational programs operated by the medical school. Full details regarding benefits and salary are continuously updated by the Office of Graduate Medical Education.
Checks are issued biweekly and distributed through departmental offices. Direct deposit is offered, allowing for immediate access to funds via electronic transfer. Salaries below are effective for the 2025-2026 academic year.
Contact Us
David J. Gerak
Program Coordinator
General Psychiatry Residency Program
Forensic Psychiatry Fellowship Program
Phone: 732-235-4951
Fax: 732-235-4649
E-mail: dg723@rwjms.rutgers.edu
Michelle Smith
Program Assistant
General Psychiatry Residency Program
Psychiatry Grand Rounds Coordinator
Phone: 732-235-4433
Fax: 732-235-4649
E-mail: ms3943@rwjms.rutgers.edu
Department of Psychiatry
671 Hoes Lane West, D325
Piscataway, NJ 08854
- Follow Dr. Anthony Tobia on Twitter: @ATobiaMD
- Follow the Psychiatry Residency Program on Twitter: @RutgersRWJPsych
