Academic Programs
General Psychiatry Residency
Didactic Curriculum
Our residency's didactic curriculum is strategically tailored to target specific clinical and educational milestones, customized to align with the diverse clinical settings residents' experience annually. Below are some highlights of our didactics that are represented throughout the four years of training.
Foundational Courses
At the start of each year, we kick off with comprehensive crash courses that encompass fundamental concepts and key learning objectives, laying a robust foundation for the year ahead.
Community Building
Didactic sessions provide a platform for cultivating a sense of community both within and among cohorts. Across class sessions include PRITE reviews, quality improvement projects, discussions on patient safety, and other program wide activities.
Protected Time
Residents have dedicated time each Wednesday afternoon, free from clinical duties, to attend didactic sessions.
Flexible Learning
To support a balance between professional duties and personal well-being, UC Davis offers one half-day per month of asynchronous didactic sessions, allowing residents to engage with the material at their own convenience.
Cultural Psychiatry
Cultural psychiatry is incorporated throughout our didactic sessions, where we explore the impact of diverse cultural perspectives on mental health and wellbeing. This integration ensures that cultural psychiatry is not just an add-on, but an essential and enriching element of the learning experience.
Curriculum
PGY-1
Depressive Disorders
Bipolar Disorders
Anxiety Disorders
Psychotic Disorders
Personality Disorders
Geriatric Disorders
PGY-2
Behavioral Emergencies
Advanced Management of Bipolar and Depressive Disorders
Anxiety Disorders
Advanced Approaches to Psychotic Disorders
Geriatric Psychiatry
Intro to ADHD and ASD
PGY-3
Outpatient Management of Bipolar, Psychotic and Personality Disorders
Anxiety and Obsessive-Compulsive Related Disorders
Reproductive Psychiatry
Child Psychiatry Series
Eating Disorders
Geriatric Psychiatry in the Outpatient Setting
PGY-4
Special Populations and Medically Complex Patients
PGY-1
Intro to Basic Psychopharmacology
PGY-2
Advanced Psychopharmacology for Inpatient Settings
PGY-3
Psychopharmacology Case Conference
PGY-4
Psychopharmacology Case Conference
Pipeline Drugs
PGY-1
Psychotherapy Basics
Intro to Motivational Interviewing
PGY-2
Intro to CBT and Related Topics
Intro to Supportive and Psychodynamic Therapies
PGY-3
CBT and PDT Seminars
CBT and PDT Case Conference
Group Therapies ACT, Prolonged Exposure Therapy
Modular Approach to Therapy for Children
PGY-4
Group Psychotherapy
DBT/Mindfulness
PGY-1
Intro to Neuroscience/Neuropsychology
PGY-2
Neuroscience/Neuromodulation
PGY-3
Clinical Neuroscience of Depression and Affect Regulation
Clinical Neuroscience in the Outpatient Setting
PGY-4
Neuromodulation
Neuroscience of the Future
PGY-1
Cultural Psychiatry and Mental Health Equity Seminar
Intro to LGBTQIA+ Mental Health
Intro to Health Equity and Social Determinants of Health
PGY-2
Cultural Psychiatry and Mental Health Equity Seminar
PGY-3
Cultural Psychiatry and Mental Health Equity Seminar
Culture in Psychotherapy
LGBTQIA+ Health in the Outpatient Setting
PGY-4
Cultural Psychiatry and Mental Health Equity Seminar
PGY-1
Substance Use Disorders
PGY-2
Intro to Addictions Rotation
Substance Use Disorders
PGY-3
Substance Use Disorders in the Outpatient Setting
PGY-1
Intro to Jail Psychiatric Services
Intro to Legal Issues in Psychiatry
PGY-2
Legal Testimony
PGY-3
Psychiatric Disability and Work Leave
PGY-4
Advanced Legal Issues Seminar
PGY-1
Intro to Trauma and Trauma Informed Care
PGY-2
Advanced Trauma Concepts
PGY-3
Trauma in the Outpatient Setting
PGY-4
Trauma Seminar
PGY-1
Intro to Evidence-Based Medicine
Teaching Medical Students
Intro to Scholarship
PGY-2
Quality Improvement
Evidence-Based Medicine
PGY-3
Panel Management
Digital Mental Health
Psychiatry in the Media
PGY-4
The Art of Senioring
Board Review
Recent Grad Sessions
Negotiations
Private Practice
Career Development
Psychotherapy
At UC Davis Psychiatry, we are committed to providing comprehensive training in psychotherapy. This training begins with didactic sessions in the intern year and progresses to psychotherapy cases in PGY3 with additional elective opportunities in PGY4.
Supervision
Our supervision model involves both group and individual formats conducted by a multidisciplinary team including psychiatrists and psychologists.
Didactics
Psychotherapy training is emphasized throughout all four years of the curriculum through didactic lectures and interactive seminars.
Elective Opportunities
Third year residents can add more psychotherapy cases to their panel with extra therapy supervision. They can also conduct group therapy for survivors of trauma in RESTART. Fourth year residents are offered a psychodynamic psychotherapy elective to further deepen their knowledge and continue longitudinal relationships with patients.
SF Psychoanalytic Institute and PPTP
We have a relationship with the San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute and the Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Training Program (PPTP). Our partnership traditionally includes awarding tuition to select trainees, offering a valuable opportunity for advanced psychoanalytic training.
I chose UC Davis Psychiatry because I wanted to train where community wasn’t just a listed value, but something woven into the culture with intention and care. Every step of the way, I’ve been welcomed like family. We lift each other up, celebrate each other’s wins, and support each other through the hard days. I love that our program values compassion as much as clinical excellence. UC Davis Psychiatry nurtures curiosity, collaboration, and connection, encouraging growth not just as a professional, but as a whole person."—Dafhney Ferrer, M.D., PGY-3
