As a plastic surgeon, you can perform cosmetic and reconstructive surgery procedures.
A person may wish to undergo cosmetic surgery, also referred to as plastic surgery, for several different reasons. As a cosmetic surgeon, you may find yourself performing rhinoplasty, giving a facelift or even performing reconstructive surgery on accident victims. Whatever field of plastic surgery you decide to go into, you will have to complete a plastic surgery residency at a medical school. Before this, you must earn a pre-med degree and complete a general medical residency.
West Coast Schools
If you live on the west coast or are looking to complete your plastic surgery residency in the western part of the United States, there are a variety of schools to choose from. Among them is the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). UCLA offers programs in hand reconstruction, craniofacial reconstruction and microsurgery. All procedures for this program are conducted at the school's outpatient surgery facility or the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. Other cosmetic surgeon colleges on the west coast include University of Southern California (USC), University of Washington and Stanford University.
East Coast Schools
Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland offers a plastic surgeon training program, founded by John Staige Davis, the author of the first plastic surgery textbook. It's run by a staff of surgeons who specialize in nerve repair, adult and pediatric craniofacial surgery, breast reconstruction, hand surgery and cosmetic surgery. Other schools on the east coast offering a cosmetic surgery training program include the University of Pennsylvania and Brown University in Rhode Island.
Midwestern Schools
The Department of Surgery at the University of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois provides a plastic surgeon training program that is headed by surgeons who have received general surgery training as well as additional training in plastic surgery. A few surgeons have received training beyond plastic surgery in areas such a aesthetic and craniofacial surgery. Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio and Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri are other midwestern colleges that offer a plastic surgery training program.
Southern Schools
Baylor University in Waco, Texas is a school in the southern region of the country that allows you to receive training as a plastic surgeon. The DeBakey Department of Surgery at Baylor University offers a plastic surgery residency program that allows students to train at the Texas Medical Center, the largest medical facility in the world. Its six-year residency program consists of 24 months of general surgery training, eight months in para-plastic surgery and 40 months in plastic surgery training. Another plastic surgery training program in this region of the country is the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida.
