Children's Wisconsin Pediatric Radiology Fellowship
A National Leader in Pediatric Health Care
- Children’s Wisconsin (Children's) is ranked as a top hospital by U.S. News and World Report and Child magazines.
- The only freestanding Level I Trauma Center in the region that cares exclusively for children.
- Has nationally recognized cardiac, bone marrow transplant, and neurosciences programs.
A Message from Our Director
Congratulations on your decision to join the small but impactful world of pediatric radiology! The pediatric imaging department at Children’s Wisconsin is a close-knit group of radiologists, advanced practice providers, technologists, and nurses whose foremost goal is to provide the best care possible to the children of Wisconsin.
As our fellow, you’ll get to take care of children in every facet of pediatric medicine, ranging from common and classic fracture types to extremely rare autoimmune diseases and malignancies. We collaborate closely with our medical and surgical colleagues, which allows us to learn from each other and to participate in a myriad of research endeavors. We’re committed to the health of our patients, which means we are committed to helping every new generation of fellows become the best pediatric radiologists to take care of those patients. We will support you in whatever your chosen career path may be, whether you plan to practice in an academic, private practice, or hybrid setting. And whether you’re seeing Milwaukee for the first time or have lived here your whole life, we know you’ll find it a vibrant city with fantastic restaurant options, a proud sports tradition, and plenty of parks and cultural activities to keep you busy.
We’re so glad you’ve chosen pediatric radiology, and we hope you’ll choose to train with us. Please contact us if you have any questions or would like to learn more – we’d love to hear from you!
Pooja Thakrar, MD
Fellowship Program Director and Associate Professor
About Our Institutions
Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW)
The Medical College of Wisconsin brings together the most inquisitive minds in science, medicine, education and community engagement to solve the toughest challenges in health and society today. Academic medicine is at the core, where scientists, physicians and students work hand-in-hand with the community to ask the questions no one else is and fuel the continuous cycle of knowledge that’s shaping the future of medicine.
Children’s Wisconsin
Children’s Wisconsin is the region’s only independent health care system dedicated solely to the health and well-being of children. We offer a wide range of care and support for children of all ages. Our services include medical care, dental care, child and family counseling, foster care, adoption, social services, child advocacy and injury prevention.
Why Choose Our Pediatric Radiology Fellowship?
Training
The comprehensive one-year, ACGME-accredited pediatric radiology fellowship program at Children’s Wisconsin encompasses all facets of pediatric imaging. Our fellows rotate in neuroimaging, thoracoabdominal imaging (including cardiac and fetal imaging), musculoskeletal imaging, fluoroscopy, ultrasound, interventional radiology, and nuclear medicine (including PET/MRI). Faculty provide full-time clinical supervision as well as guidance, teaching, and mentorship. Our stand-alone tertiary referral children’s hospital and multiple community-based imaging centers throughout southeastern Wisconsin perform over 120,000 diagnostic imaging studies per year, exposing our fellows to a large volume of cases and a broad range of pediatric pathologies.
Pediatric radiology fellows can attend an average of two to three teaching conferences each day. Conferences include pediatric radiology departmental lectures, journal clubs, and multidisciplinary conferences with a myriad of clinical services. Fellows present at clinical and multidisciplinary conferences and have the opportunity to lead journal clubs.
Three months of elective time are built into the fellowship, during which the fellow may choose to focus on a particular aspect of pediatric radiology. Fellows also receive dedicated academic time each week to prepare for conferences and complete academic and research responsibilities.
Eligibility
- Candidates must have satisfactorily completed a diagnostic radiology residency program accredited by the ACGME or the RCPSC or an AOA diagnostic radiology program in ACGME pre-accreditation status.
- Candidates must be American Board of Radiology (ABR) eligible.
- Candidates must be eligible to obtain licensure to practice medicine in the State of Wisconsin. A valid license to practice medicine in the State of Wisconsin must be obtained prior to the start the fellowship year.
Benefits of Employment
Benefits for the pediatric radiology fellow include health, dental, and vision insurance; free parking; and three weeks of paid vacation. Pediatric radiology fellows are allowed up to one week of educational leave without interruption of pay or benefits, contingent upon approval by the program director. View more information about the benefits and conditions and terms of employment on the Graduate Medical Education Benefits page.
A Day in the Life of a Pediatric Dermatology Fellow | Dylan Applin, MD
4:30 a.m. Wake up
5 a.m. Gym
7 a.m. Drop my kids off at school/daycare
7:30–8 a.m. Arrive at work. There are two covered parking structures, each free and about a 5-minute walk to the radiology department.
8 a.m. Workday starts. Sometimes I am scheduled to run morning NICU rounds (Mondays and Wednesdays) or PICU rounds (Tuesdays and Thursdays). I run 1-2 of these conferences per week.
8 a.m.–12 p.m. Read cases. I rotate through three services: Neuro; Body/MSK/Nuclear Medicine; ED/plain films (daytime call)
12 p.m.
- Lunch (The hospital provides daily free catered lunch from the cafeteria for trainees!)
- Didactic lectures on Tuesday and Thursday; Neuro oncology conference on Wednesday; Solid tumor board on Friday
- As fellows, we start running tumor boards the second half of the academic year
1–4 p.m. Read more cases. Readouts are variable based on staff and their location. I would say it's an even split between in-person and virtual staffing. All of the staff are very adept at using Zoom for this purpose.
4–4:30 p.m. Workday ends. Time to go pick up the kids!
Current Openings & Application
Accepting Applications: Fall 2025 for the 2027-28 Academic Year
To apply, please forward the following documents to Kendra Kusch at kkusch@childrenswi.org, fax (414) 266-8666, or mail (address to the right):
- Curriculum Vitae
- Three letters of reference
- Test scores
Address correspondence to:
Dr. Pooja Thakrar
Program Director, Pediatric Radiology Fellowship
Associate Professor of Radiology
Children’s Wisconsin
Department of Radiology
9000 W. Wisconsin Ave. MS-721
Milwaukee, WI 53226
Reasons to live in Milwaukee
Contact Us
Kendra Kusch, Program Coordinator
kkusch@childrenswi.org
(414) 266-2523