Beginning with the 2027 residency application cycle, the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) will introduce the new Scholarly Work Section, replacing the Publications section. This update gives you a broader way to showcase your academic contributions by highlighting a wider range of scholarly activities and experiences.
As you prepare your ERAS residency application, this section gives you an opportunity to provide more context around your scholarly involvement and show residency programs how these experiences have shaped your interests, skills, and goals as a future physician.
In this guide, we’ll walk through what the ERAS Scholarly Work Section includes, how it differs from the old section, what types of work you can report, and how to use the section to your advantage.
Download our 10 ERAS Experiences Guidebook to hear top tips from our Physician Advisors. Learn how to choose the 10 best experiences for your specialty and craft descriptions that impress.
What Is the ERAS Scholarly Work Section?
The ERAS Scholarly Work Section is an updated version of the previous Publications section, redesigned to show the variety of ways you can contribute to academic medicine. While the former section primarily focused on published articles and other peer-reviewed entities, the new section allows you to share a broader range of scholarly contributions.
This update gives you more flexibility in presenting your clinical research and academic experiences while helping residency programs better understand your areas of focus. Instead of simply listing completed publications, you can now provide additional context around your scholarly work and the role these experiences have played in your development.
Key updates to the Scholarly Work Section include:
- Expanded types of scholarly work: You can report a wider range of academic contributions beyond traditional publications, allowing you to share different forms of scholarly activity.
- Most Meaningful selections: You can designate up to three scholarly works that are especially significant to your academic journey or professional goals.
- Scholarly Collections: You can group related scholarly works together to highlight connections between projects, research interests, or areas of academic focus.
The Scholarly Work Section expands on how you can present your accomplishments. It’s not a new requirement to have extensive research experience or a long list of publications to be a strong residency applicant. Instead, focus on accurately representing the scholarly work you have completed and selecting entries that provide meaningful insight into your background and goals.
Most Meaningful Selection
The Most Meaningful feature allows you to designate up to three scholarly works that have had the greatest impact on your academic journey or professional development. For each selected entry, you'll have an opportunity to provide additional context to help residency programs understand why the experience was particularly meaningful to you.
As you decide which works to highlight, don't focus just on prestige. The most meaningful scholarly work isn't necessarily the one published in the highest-impact journal or associated with the largest research project. Instead, choose entries that best demonstrate your academic interests, growth, curiosity, and long-term career goals.
We recommend selecting experiences that tell a cohesive story about your development as a future physician. For example, you might highlight a project that sparked your interest in a particular specialty or strengthened your research skills. The goal is to give residency programs insight into the experiences that have shaped you, not just to showcase your biggest wins.
Scholarly Collections
Scholarly Collections allow you to group related scholarly works to present a clearer picture of your academic interests and contributions. Instead of viewing each entry as a separate accomplishment, collections can help residency programs understand how individual projects connect and how your scholarly experiences have developed over time.
Consider using a Scholarly Collection when you have multiple works that share a common theme, focus area, or larger goal. For example, if you’ve contributed to several projects related to oncology research, grouping these works can help demonstrate a commitment to that area.
However, you don’t need to create collections simply to organize your entries. A collection should add meaningful context and make your scholarly experiences easier to understand for program directors. If grouping doesn’t add insight, keeping them separate may work better.
What Counts as Scholarly Work
The expanded ERAS Scholarly Work Section is designed to capture a broader range of scholarly activities, including traditional publications and other forms of academic work. The available Scholarly Work types include:
- Journal Articles (peer reviewed)
- Book Chapters (peer reviewed)
- Journal Abstracts (peer reviewed)
- Oral Presentations
- Poster Presentations
For journal articles and journal abstracts, you will also indicate the current publication status of the work, such as whether it’s been submitted, accepted/in-press, in pre-print, or published.
When entering Scholarly Work, make sure the author information is entered correctly and listed in the order it appears in the publication. You will also need to indicate your position in the author list, including whether you are the first author.
The goal here isn’t to include entries just to make your application seem longer, but to help residency programs understand your academic interests, experiences, and contributions.
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The Impact on Residency Applications
How much your scholarly work matters depends on where you're applying. Some competitive specialties and residency programs place a greater emphasis on research experience, while others focus more on clinical performance, service, and other pieces of your application.
While some experts anticipate that these changes could influence how programs evaluate scholarly achievements in future Match cycles, the AAMC’s goal is to create a clearer way for applicants to present their academic contributions. The redesign emphasizes the quality, depth, and impact of scholarly work rather than simply the number of publications or presentations.
Regardless of specialty, the ERAS Scholarly Work Section is just one piece of your residency application. Program directors evaluate applicants holistically, considering your scholarly work alongside everything else. That includes the Experiences section, academic performance, program signals, letters of recommendation, personal statement, and interview performance.
My advice is to approach this section strategically. Rather than trying to maximize the number of entries, focus on presenting an accurate and thoughtful representation of your experiences. Highlight the work that best reflects your interests, demonstrates your growth, and shows the qualities residency programs value, including those outlined in the ACGME core competencies.
Remember that strong residency applications are built on more than research alone. Whether you have an extensive publication record or just a few meaningful scholarly experiences, use this section to help programs better understand the experiences that have shaped you as a future physician.
Our Physician Advisors match 99% of US clients and 88% of IMG clients into residency.
Tips for Completing the ERAS Scholarly Work Section
The redesigned Scholarly Work Section gives you more opportunities to showcase your academic experiences, but completing it thoughtfully requires preparation. Keep these tips in mind as you gather information and build your MyERAS application:
- Start gathering your scholarly work early. Don’t wait until you’re completing your application to track down publication details, presentation information, or author lists. Keep a record of your scholarly activities throughout medical school.
- Review all of your eligible scholarly contributions. Before entering information, consider the full range of work you want to include. You may come up with meaningful experiences you overlooked at first.
- Verify the status of each entry. Make sure you accurately label each scholarly work’s publication status. Incorrect publication details can create confusion or affect how programs interpret your experiences.
- Confirm author information carefully. Review the author list for each publication or abstract and enter the names in the correct order. Make sure your own name is formatted correctly and that your position as an author, including first authorship when applicable, is accurately represented.
- Choose your Most Meaningful works strategically. Select scholarly works that provide insight into your academic interests, growth, and goals instead of choosing the most prestigious publications or largest projects.
- Use Scholarly Collections when they add context. Group scholarly works together when doing so helps demonstrate an area of interest or pattern in your academic development. Avoid creating collections to organize entries without a purpose.
- Focus on accuracy and clarity over quantity. The goal of this updated research section isn’t to list all of your accomplishments. Instead, use it to help residency selection programs understand your scholarly experiences and the role they have played in your development as a future physician.
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FAQs
Common mistakes include waiting until the last minute to gather publication details, entering inaccurate authorship information, or including scholarly work without verifying its current status.
Applicants should also avoid choosing entries based on name or prestige, or trying to fill the section with as many items as possible. Focus on accuracy, context, and choosing experiences that best represent your academic interests and contributions.
Build Your Application Alongside a Physician Advisor
The ERAS Scholarly Work Section gives you another opportunity to showcase your academic accomplishments, but knowing how to present those experiences strategically can make a big difference. Personalized guidance can help you put your strongest application forward.
Our Physician Advisors have served on residency admissions committees and understand what program directors look for throughout the application review process. They can help you present your scholarly work effectively while strengthening every aspect of your ERAS application.
We match 99% of US clients and 88% of IMG clients into residency. Build your application alongside a Physician Advisor with admissions committee experience.
Jeanie Gribben, MD
Dr. Gribben is a graduate of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and a Merrill Presidential Scholar from Cornell University. She offers tutoring for Steps 1 and 2 and med school coursework, as well as advising support for medical students. She’s dedicated to personalized teaching strategies for student success.