Endocrinology Fellowship

Welcome to the USC Endocrinology Fellowship website. Thank you for your interest in our program. Our unique training program offers the clinical exposure one needs to become an exceptional endocrinologist and, at the same time, prepares you well for a career of your choice. Our successful graduates have joined large private practice groups, prestigious academic medical centers, and well-established HMO organizations. To learn more about where our past grads are now, please see our Alumni page.

The unparalleled clinical experience you will acquire by training in a public safety net, tertiary care hospital serving a population lacking access to routine healthcare (Los Angeles General Medical Center), a private medical center (Keck Hospital of USC) and a dedicated cancer center (Kenneth Norris Jr. Comprehensive Cancer Center) enables you to manage and treat a diverse spectrum of endocrine disease. In addition to obtaining excellent clinical skills, you will also have the opportunity to explore and cultivate your interest in research and endocrinology. Each year, our fellows proudly present their work at national and international conferences and publish in well-established medical journals.

In addition, a dedicated research track has been developed. We invite interested applicants to apply to the research tract. Please review our curriculum page for the specifics of this program at Los Angeles General Medical Center.

The goal of our training program is to work with you and help prepare you for a successful endocrinology career.

Jonathan LoPresti, MD, PhD Program Director, Endocrinology Fellowship Associate Professor of Medicine

What our fellows say about our program:

“One of the best aspects of training at USC is the level of autonomy given to fellows in caring for our patients. With the support of the outstanding supervising faculty, I developed confidence in evaluating patients and developing treatment plans for even the most complex endocrine disorders.”

Clinical training primarily occurs in three settings: Los Angeles General Medical Center, Keck Hospital of USC and USC/Norris Cancer Hospital. Our three hospitals provide trainees with exposure to a wide range of endocrine and metabolic diseases in patients from varied ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Year 1 & 2: Focused on fulfilling ACGME clinical requirements for board certification in endocrinology, plus introduction to research. Fellows participate in clinical fellowship including Endocrine and Diabetes consults at both Los Angeles General Medical Center and Keck; continuity of care and in general outpatient endocrine and type 1 diabetes clinics as well as clinics in pediatric endocrinology and diabetes, endocrine disease and pregnancy, diabetes and pregnancy, and type 2 diabetes.

• Conferences and lectures complement clinical training, providing education in normal endocrine physiology, mechanisms of endocrine disease, laboratory techniques, and research techniques in endocrinology and metabolism.
• Division of Endocrinology and Diabetes Grand Rounds, in partnership with DORI (Diabetes Obesity Research Institute): weekly, topic-oriented one-hour conference, with presentations by both USC and visiting faculty. Fellows gain experience in academic presenting by presenting their own Grand Rounds during training.
• Endocrine-Metabolism Core Curriculum: weekly didactic series covering pathophysiology, endocrine evaluations, and management of disease.
• Journal Club: monthly session focusing on both structural aspects of publications and ongoing review of new literature.
• Keck Endocrine Case Conference: Monthly meeting where Keck Fellow presents an interesting case and pertinent literature review to faculty and fellows.
• Pituitary Tumor Conference: weekly session to review current patient cases and discuss management.
• Research Conference: session in which fellows present and receive feedback on research progress and/or upcoming presentations.
• Thyroid Conference: weekly session focusing on the clinical management of thyroid disease. Case presentations and summary of relevant literature are presented for discussion by fellows and faculty.

Interested applicants need to apply to the USC/Los Angeles General Medical Center, Endocrinology fellowship program through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). Fellowship positions will be offered through the National Residency Match Program (NRMP).

Fellowship training consists of 24 months of Endocrinology training. After completion, fellows will be board-eligible in Endocrinology. In addition, qualified applicants may be accepted under a research track. After completing the standard two year clinical training, these individuals will have the opportunity to do a third year dedicated to research. To apply for the USC/Los Angeles General Medical Center Endocrinology Fellowship Program in ERAS, the Accreditation ID is 1430521041.

For further information, please contact the Program Coordinator: Winnie Chan at winnie.chan@med.usc.edu.

Program Requirements

Applications are accepted only through ERAS. Documents that are mailed, faxed, or emailed will not be incorporated into your file.

A completed application in ERAS must include:

• ERAS Common Application
• Curriculum Vitae
• Personal Statement
• USMLE Transcript
• 4 Letters of Recommendation, including one from current program director

International Graduates must possess valid ECFMG certificates and have the State of California eligibility letter. We only accept J-1 visas. US clinical experience is required.

Applications submitted through ERAS will be reviewed. If your application is selected for an invitation to interview, you will be contacted via email.

Interview Timeline

July: USC/LAC+USC Medical Center, Endocrinology Fellowship application open in ERAS.

September – October: Invitations to interview are sent via email to determine availability.

The interview day gives applicants the opportunity to learn more about the USC/Los Angeles General Medical Center, Endocrinology Fellowship Program, and a chance to discover what it is like to be a fellow. Specific details will be sent with interview invitations.

Please click on the links below to explore the benefits offered to Endocrinology fellows:

LA County Paid Employees:

LA County GME Site: https://dhs.lacounty.gov/lageneral/graduate-medical-education/applicant-information/

CIR LA County Page: https://www.cirseiu.org/los-angeles-county-usc-medical-center/

CIR Main Benefits Site: https://www.cirseiu.org/benefits/

USC Paid Benefits:

USC Employee Benefits: https://employees.usc.edu/benefits-perks/

1st Year Fellows

Anya Joyo, MD
Residency: LAGMC/USC
Med School: University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine

Tochukwu Madu, MD
Residency: Huntington Hospital
Med School: KSOM USC

2nd Year Fellows

Diana Ashouri, MD
Residency: University of California, Riverside
Med School: University of Aleppo Faculty of Medicine

Christopher Pham, MD
Residency: USC/LAGMC
Med School: Rutgers New Jersey Medical School

The focus of our NIH-funded research of our endocrine faculty is on metabolism and the brain. The program is mentored by Dr. Kathleen Page.

Dr. Page is a physician scientist with two major research programs: (i) neuroendocrine regulation of appetite and feeding behavior (ii) maternal-fetal programming for obesity and diabetes and is the principal investigator of the BRANCH Lab for Brain Regulation of Appetite, Nutrition, Cognition at USC (for details, see www.drkatiepage.com).

Dr. Page also serves as director of the USC Diabetes and Obesity Research Institute Clinical Research Unit. She has a background in endocrinology and neuroimaging and over 15 years of experience in integrating fMRI and endocrine data to understand the neuroendocrine regulation of appetite, cognitive function, and risk for obesity and diabetes in children and adults. Her laboratory uses state-of-the-art neuroimaging methods combined with rigorous metabolic and dietary assessments and objective measures of physical activity and sleep to provide a comprehensive understanding of neuroendocrine regulation of eating behavior and metabolic risks, and the impact of lifestyle factors on these processes. To date, her studies have shown that acute ingestion of fructose compared to glucose leads to much smaller increases in circulating levels of insulin, greater activation of brain appetite and reward regions, and increases in appetitive behavior. These studies provide mechanistic insights into epidemiological evidence linking fructose consumption to overeating and obesity. Current studies in her laboratory are aimed at understanding effects of sugar and non-nutritive sweeteners on brain reward and appetite pathways and eating behavior in obese, overweight, and lean individuals and the role of in utero exposures to maternal gestational diabetes mellitus and obesity on brain development and obesity and type 2 diabetes risk in children. Dr. Page’s long-term vision is to identify mechanisms and markers of disease in people at highest risk for obesity and diabetes, whether related to in utero exposure to maternal metabolic disorders or other environmental influences, and to develop at test interventions to prevent obesity and its related complications. Her multidisciplinary team includes collaborators in neuroimaging, psychology, preventive medicine and statistics, and trainees at all levels including undergraduate students, medical students, graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and junior faculty. She is committed to providing exceptional mentorship to endocrine fellows and to teaching trainees about the roles of neuroendocrine regulation of appetite and early-life programming in health and disease and applying these concepts into valuable experiences in clinical-translational research.