Stanford Forensic Psychiatry Fellowship Program
Program Description
Thank you for your interest in Stanford’s forensic psychiatry fellowship program. Our mission is to train the next generation of leaders in forensic psychiatry embodying the highest standards of ethics, scientific rigor, scholarship, and professionalism.
Correctional rotations are based in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) system, primarily at San Quentin and CMF (California Medical Facility, a California State prison dedicated to inmates with medical and psychiatric needs). Fellows with a particular interest in exploring a career in correctional psychiatry leadership may elect to rotate with the chief of psychiatry and other administrative leaders in the CDCR to gain deep systems-level knowledge. Fellows may also have the opportunity to testify in administrative law hearings, such as PC2602 involuntary medication hearings.
Fellows rotate at the VA PM&R inpatient and outpatient units with the goal of developing particular expertise in evaluating claims of brain damage and other biological factors in leading to offensive behaviors, guiding sentencing determinations, and assessing disability.
Fellows participate in the Santa Clara County court panel to perform court-appointed forensic psychiatric examinations including competency to stand trial evaluations and evaluations of criminal responsibility. These evaluations provide ample opportunity for supervised preparation of forensic psychiatric reports in criminal contexts.
Our program’s didactic curriculum connects fellows to a diverse network of forensic psychiatrists and psychologists. Program faculty meet with fellows in weekly case conferences to share insights on the forensic assessment, report-writing, and planning for testimony in a wide range of civil and criminal cases.
Our fellowship is integrated with the Stanford School of Law. Fellows can elect to participate in didactics at the School of Law, which include courses on Neuroethics by Hank Greely, Mental Health Law, and Criminal Law. In addition, fellows interface with law students on a range of cases as part of the Law Student Clinic.
Fellows have protected time throughout the year to access and participate in a wide range of research efforts in the Law School, School of Medicine, Center for Biomedical Ethics, and Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute. Stanford is fortunate to house all its schools on one unified campus, thus enabling ideal conditions for cross-fertilization and idea incubation, which drive innovation and scholarship.
Our fellowship is ACGME accredited for 2 fellows.
Information regarding the annual stipend and benefits can be found on the GME website. Note that incoming forensic psychiatry fellows are considered to be PGY-5s, regardless of prior fellowships completed.
Stipends and Benefits
Stipends 2023-24
| Year | Annual | Per Month |
| I | $74,027.20 | $6,168.81 |
| II | $77,771.20 | $6,480.81 |
| III | $83,657.60 | $6,971.33 |
| IV | $88,400.00 | $7,366.53 |
| V | $93,953.60 | $7,829.32 |
| VI | $98,092.80 | $8,174.24 |
| VII | $103,604.80 | $8,633.57 |
| VIII | $108,326.40 | $9,027.03 |
For more information, please visit the GME Office site.
Benefits
Annual educational allowance $2,000* |
Paid in November providing, all required HealthStream and EPIC/LINKS modules are completed by house staff's assigned deadline |
Cell phone allowance $1,000* |
Automatically added to paycheck in July |
Food allowance $10 per day (shifts of 12 hours or longer for clinical rotations only at SHC & LPCH)* |
Payments made on last paycheck of each month Meal money is taxable income |
Housing stipend $7,200 per year (paid as $600 monthly)*+ |
Automatically paid on 1st paycheck of each month |
Medical, dental, vision, and long-term disability insurance provided |
Eligible to participate on house staff's hire date |
Moving allowance (new hires only) $3,000* |
Automatically added to a paycheck in August |
1% annual bonus based on completion of a Quality Improvement Project* |
Automatically paid at the end of each academic year in June |
Cost of initial CA MD license and renewals |
Paid upon reimbursement submission for academic year expense occurrence |
Cost of initial DEA and renewals |
Paid upon reimbursement submission for academic yearexpense occurrence |
Cost of USMLE Part Ill for Interns |
Paid upon reimbursement submission for academic year expense occurrence |
* Please see House Staff Policies and Procedures for full details.
Subject to appropriate taxes
How to Apply
We adhere to the AAPL common application process and timelines.
Based on efforts by Dr. Choi and others to reform the application process to be more applicant-friendly (view the article), application timelines have been revised for the 2025-2026 fellowship year (see sidebar for summary of timelines, see AAPL website for full details).
Applicants are encouraged to contact the program director, Dr. James Armontrout, for any questions regarding the fellowship and/or application process.
Please note that Stanford Health Care does not sponsor H-1B Visas; only J-1 Visas can be sponsored for this fellowship.
Positions for the 2024-2025 Fellowship year have been filled.
We will begin accepting applicants for the 2025-2026 Fellowship year on May 1, 2024.
Summary Timeline for 2025-2026 Fellowship Year
- May 1, 2024: First day that programs can review applications and/or contact applicants to schedule interviews.
- August 1, 2024: First day that programs can conduct interviews.
- September 16, 2024: First day that programs can offer positions to candidates.
- 7 calendar days after offer of position: Programs can withdraw an offer if they have not received an acceptance from the applicant.
- 24 hours after accepting a position: Applicants must inform all other programs to which they have applied that they have accepted a position and are withdrawing their candidacy.
Program Leadership and Faculty
Contact Information
James Armontrout, MD
jarm@stanford.edu
c/o Romola L. Breckenridge
Stanford University Forensic Psychiatry Fellowship
Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences
Stanford University School of Medicine
401 Quarry Road, Room 2208
Stanford, CA 94305-5723
Romola L. Breckenridge
Program Coordinator
romola@stanford.edu
Ph: (650) 736-1743