AAMC-Thalamus 
Collaboration FAQ

No, Thalamus products have always been, and continue to be, complimentary to applicants.

Thalamus interview data is integrated and available in the DWS (provided a student releases their interview data). Applicants can also self-report interview information in Thalamus Core when they receive interview invitations from other scheduler systems, which they can then opt in to share with their medical schools in the DWS.

The AAMC-Thalamus collaboration has yielded a wealth of valuable data that has provided our colleagues at medical schools, programs, institutions, and participating specialties with information that will benefit them at the organization level and will contribute to our collective work to ease the transition to residency and improve GME.

In addition, applicants can schedule their interviews through the Thalamus Core interview scheduling software on both web and mobile (available in the Apple iOS and Google Play stores).

New for the 2026 ERAS season, Thalamus is working to release interview distribution data and broader specialty-specific dashboards available to applicants and advisors. More information will be shared as additional progress is made.

Additional enhancements and work are being planned and considered for future recruitment seasons.

The AAMC and Thalamus are committed to providing a fair and effective transition to GME. By improving the ERAS application and broadening the use of Thalamus interview management tools, both organizations are contributing to an improved process for applicants. By providing data at the school, program, and institutional levels, applicants are contributing information that can be used to make further enhancements for learners in years to come. In addition, Thalamus interview data is now used to enhance resources like the Residency Explorer tool and DWS to strengthen the information learners use to make decisions.

Given the AAMC community’s excitement about the collaboration, the AAMC and Thalamus teams have and will continue to host a broad series of events to share information about the collaboration. Helpful resources, including websites, videos, webinars, and more, will continue to be shared through various channels, including the AAMC and Thalamus websites.

Specific details regarding the AAMC and Thalamus strategic partnership are included on collaboration-specific pages on the Thalamus and AAMC websites. For additional Thalamus product information, video walkthroughs, demos, and more, please visit thalamusgme.com or the Thalamus knowledge base.

Thalamus also offers several complimentary and paid training options, in both live and recorded formats, which can be accessed through the Thalamus training page. This includes the Thalamus University Online Academy, a novel, virtual learning module platform, featuring complimentary, on-demand training, and content available 24/7 for programs and applicants.

The Thalamus customer experience team, many of whom are former program coordinators and administrators, can be contacted at any time through the help button at the bottom right-hand corner of any Thalamus webpage or by completing the Thalamus Support Form.

Starting on April 2, 2025, programs began registering for the ERAS season. Prior to June 4, 2025, users can log in to the PDWS, click on the Program Management tab, and accept the terms of use. Once the ERAS season opens on June 4, 2025, users will be presented with the terms of use to accept immediately upon login.

New for this year, registering to use the ERAS system will automatically register programs for complimentary access to Thalamus Core, Itinerary Wizard, Cerebellum, and Cortex. No other steps will be needed to receive access to Thalamus.

Bulk onboarding to Thalamus begins on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, when the 2026 ERAS season opens. The program user who opts in will receive an email containing account and login information within 72 business hours of the season opening or the date of form submission (for opt-ins after June 4). Programs are onboarded on a first-come, first-served basis.

Program access: When a program registers as participating in the 2026 ERAS season in the Program Management tab on the PDWS dashboard, the primary program contact listed in the PDWS will receive an onboarding email with access instructions starting on June 4, 2025 (or within 72 business hours of registering in the PDWS if after that date). This user will have access to all provisioned/purchased products (both complimentary and/or add-on products as applicable). Onboarding emails for Thalamus Video will be sent to the individual listed as the point of contact for the purchase.

Additionally, all program users assigned in the PDWS will automatically have accounts provisioned in Thalamus Core with similar permissions to the PDWS (see below), and viewable via the “Administration” page through the API. Program users will automatically receive a Thalamus welcome email to finalize Thalamus-specific credentials but may also authenticate into Thalamus using their AAMC (PDWS) credentials through SSO. Once a program user exists on the “Administration” page in Thalamus Core, they will be provisioned with only Thalamus Core access. Program administrators may configure Cortex and/or Cerebellum access separately and at any time. Cortex and Cerebellum access may be assigned to individual users or in bulk as needed.

Programs are also able to bulk import a list (i.e., CSV file) of program users/interviewers into their program’s Thalamus “Administration” page to accommodate bulk account creation of users (i.e., those without PDWS access whose accounts would now be created through the API).

Institutional access: PDWS users that have roles of Institutional Super Users (ISUs) and Alternate Institutional Super Users (AISUs) will also be assigned the Institutional Manager (IM) role in Thalamus products. This is the highest-level permission in Thalamus and provides access to the IM view in Thalamus Core (which includes access to all programs) and the Institutional view for Cerebellum. For any additional Institutional users that do not have access to the PDWS, but require access to Thalamus products, please contact Thalamus Contact Support to request IM account access.

Roles in ERAS PDWS and Thalamus products are mapped via the following:

AAMC ERAS program: For all support and troubleshooting questions for AAMC login and ERAS products and services, please contact the AAMC Support Center.

Thalamus: For all support and troubleshooting questions for Thalamus products, services, and login, please click the “help” button on the bottom right-hand corner of any Thalamus webpage.

Both the AAMC ERAS and Thalamus support teams can assist in escalating issues to the corresponding product team as needed.

No. The PDWS will continue to be a central component of the ERAS system. Programs will still use the PDWS as part of this collaboration. The AAMC will continue to enhance the ERAS suite of tools, and this collaboration with Thalamus enables significant and rapid improvements to ERAS functionality, data analytics, and ongoing research initiatives.

New for ERAS 2026 (starting July 2025): All ERAS-participating programs will receive complimentary access to Thalamus Cortex, which can be used in place of, alongside, or in supplement to application review in the PDWS per program preference.

ERAS Interview Scheduler within the PDWS was replaced by Thalamus Core in 2023, and ERAS Analytics for Institutions was replaced with Cerebellum in 2024.

Continuing in the 2026 ERAS season (July 2025), data will continue to be transferred from the PDWS to Thalamus Core (and Cortex) via an API that was initially released for the 2025 ERAS season (July 2024). ERAS users will be able to select applicants to transfer to Thalamus Core and/or Cortex through the PDWS. Once authorized, all data for these selected applicants, including any new application information and documents, will automatically sync and be updated in Thalamus Core and/or Cortex. This replaced the need for programs to use the PDWS CSV export for transfer to Thalamus Core, and the PDWS bulk print feature to create application PDFs for upload to Cortex. An enhanced version of the API is available for the 2026 ERAS season, which includes all new updates and data fields to the ERAS application.

Yes, all fellowship and residency programs that are participating in the ERAS program for the 2026 season will have complimentary Cortex access.

All ERAS programs, including those that are already using and/or previously purchased Cortex as an add-on service, will receive it on a complimentary basis beginning July 2025.  If your program/institution has pre-paid or already paid for a recruitment season starting in or after July 2025, you will receive a refund prior to the start of the 2026 ERAS season.

Thalamus currently offers numerous resources, training materials, and webinars for Cortex. Check out the Thalamus training page for current offerings. In the coming months, look for information about joint webinars and other new learning opportunities geared specifically for new users to Cortex as well as a refresher course for current users. More information regarding a Sandbox environment for Cortex will be shared closer to the start of the 2026 ERAS season.

Cortex was initially designed as a supplementary tool for the PDWS and included a subset of data fields and filters. Since the start of the AAMC-Thalamus Collaboration in April 2023, the data field and filter set has continued to expand. Now that Cortex will be available to all ERAS residency and fellowship programs, additional work is being done (including live user feedback sessions) to ensure that all key data fields and filters are included in Cortex.

Yes, all fields screened in the PDWS will automatically appear screened in Cortex as well. Screening/Unscreening fields in the PDWS will automatically update and populate into Cortex through the AAMC Thalamus API integration. Cortex also includes the ability to internally blind select additional fields to further mitigate bias during application review.

Yes, based on community feedback and additional functionality enabled through the AAMC Thalamus API, as of the 2025 ERAS season, Track(s) Applied by Applicant have been available to view and filter in Cortex (and Thalamus Core).

No. For the 2026 ERAS recruitment season, the PDWS and Thalamus Cortex continue to have independent filter sets that are not transferred or synced through the AAMC Thalamus API. For this season, Thalamus Cortex has had continued enhancements to accommodate a broadened filter set which is more closely aligned with the key/most frequently used filters in the PDWS, and incorporates feedback received during the 2025 ERAS season. Syncing filters between the PDWS and Thalamus Cortex may be explored as a future enhancement following further discussion and research in collaboration with the medical education community.

Yes, use of Thalamus is optional for programs, and you can stay with your existing system/process. Programs that choose not to use Thalamus will have limited data available in Thalamus Cerebellum for the program and institution-specific dashboards. This will continue to cause a fragmented interview experience for applicants, who will schedule interviews on multiple platforms, and make it challenging to support specialty-specific processes, research, and innovation.

All ERAS residency and fellowship programs now have complimentary access to Thalamus Cortex, Core, Itinerary Wizard, and Cerebellum. Thalamus Video is available for an additional fee, and pricing may be obtained by submitting a program inquiry form.

Yes, Thalamus Cerebellum has a program-specific view available for program directors, coordinators, and other program leadership. There is also an institutional view available for Designated Institutional Officials (DIOs), GME managers, and similar institution-wide personnel/staff. ERAS Analytics for Institutions has been sunset, and all reporting for programs and institutions will be managed through Thalamus Cerebellum.

Use of the Thalamus Core software is encouraged but optional. Programs that do not use Thalamus Core for their interview management will have minimal data and reports available in Cerebellum limited to application counts and metrics. No interview management statistics or data will be visible for programs that do not use Thalamus Core. (This includes the corresponding program data in the Cerebellum DIO/institutional view.)

All applicant data is displayed for all programs, regardless of whether the program uses Cortex (or transfers all applicants into Cortex). This is due to the AAMC Thalamus API syncing data between the ERAS PDWS and Thalamus products. Future updates to Thalamus Cerebellum are planned to provide enhanced reporting for programs using Cortex regarding application screening and review data/metrics.

Please note that programs that do not use Thalamus Core for their interview management will have minimal data and reports available in Cerebellum limited to application counts and metrics. No interview management statistics or data will be visible for programs that do not use Thalamus Core (This includes the corresponding program data in the Cerebellum DIO/institutional view).

No, currently data is only reported at the aggregate program level, independent of program/applicant track. This may be explored as a future enhancement following further discussion and research in collaboration with the medical education community.

Yes. Data exports are available for both the program and institutional views. Charts/graphs may be exported in multiple formats. Additionally, raw data tables may be exported for individual programs and aggregate institutional views. Similar aggregate statistics can be exported from the “Applicants” page in Thalamus Core through the “Export” button.

For institutions desiring an export of their entire institution’s Thalamus data set (i.e., all affiliated programs), please complete the Thalamus Support Form to inquire about enhanced data reporting and API capabilities for academic medical center/health system data warehouses or similar methods. An expanded self-service feature with enhanced data reporting is also currently in development.

Currently, Thalamus Cerebellum only fully supports residency and fellowship programs that utilize the ERAS program. The Thalamus team understands and appreciates the institutional need for comprehensive data for all institution-sponsored programs, including non-ERAS programs, non-ACGME accredited programs, smaller fellowships, and programs using other application services or paper applications. We have started an exploratory project for Cerebellum to serve as a centralized institutional data hub. For more information on this feature, and/or to meet with the Thalamus product team to further discuss institutional needs, please complete the Thalamus Support Form.

An API is essentially a “bridge” that connects two software systems and allows them to communicate and interact seamlessly. For the medical education community, the “bridge” formed by the AAMC Thalamus API serves as a “standardized language” that will enable the PDWS and Thalamus Core/Cortex/Cerebellum applications, databases, and platforms to share and access data, functionalities, and resources. This API was imagined as an integration to streamline the data transfer processes, enhancing efficiency through a comprehensive user experience, and fostering innovation for the transition to residency and fellowship.

Released in July 2024 and enhanced for July 2025, the API allows for the streamlined transfer of program data including application data fields, PDFs, photos, and all application documents to Thalamus Core and/or Cortex. The API streamlines the transfer of data previously accomplished via CSV export (for Thalamus Core) or bulk print of PDFs (for Cortex). SSO allows users to seamlessly move from the PDWS to Thalamus products and use their AAMC credentials to login to all Thalamus products (in addition to their Thalamus-specific username and password).

For applicants, the API facilitates the creation of Thalamus accounts upon consuming an ERAS token and registering for the application season. An automated email will be sent to finalize account creation directly from Thalamus (no-reply@thalamusgme.com).

Key data is also shared from Thalamus Core/Cortex/Cerebellum back to the PDWS to provide enhanced data analytics involving applicant interview experiences in the DWS, powering key interview analytics in the Residency Explorer tool, streamline scoring, ranking and will start processes, and other planned innovations.

Thalamus Core: Applicants can be deleted from the “Applicants” page in Thalamus Core individually or in bulk, as long as the applicant has not been invited, sent a survey, scored, ranked, or similar actions. Applicants not meeting eligibility criteria for deletion from the program (e.g., they were invited to interview) can be withdrawn to be removed from further consideration.

If an applicant (or applicant group) is deleted, they may be re-transferred to Thalamus Core, by completing an additional authorization and export for that applicant (or applicant group) from the PDWS.

Thalamus Cortex: As of the 2025 ERAS season (and continuing into the 2026 ERAS season and beyond), programs have the ability to delete applicants from the Cortex applicant list individually or in bulk, as long as the applicant has not been evaluated, scored, or other similar actions. Applicants not meeting eligibility criteria for deletion from the programs (e.g., they were scored) can be flagged as reviewed or rejected and will not be transferred to Thalamus Core for interview management/further consideration.

If an applicant (or applicant group) is deleted, they may be re-transferred to Thalamus Cortex, by completing an additional authorization and export for that applicant (or applicant group) from the PDWS.

Once an applicant or group of applicants is authorized for transfer and exported to Thalamus Core or Cortex, their application data will sync between the PDWS and Thalamus Core/Cortex/Cerebellum automatically with any additional application updates (new data and/or documents, etc.). A new authorization/export does not need to be completed for applicants previously transferred.

For new applicants/applications that were received in the PDWS after a program’s initial or last data transfer to Thalamus products via the API, a new authorization and export must be completed for this subset of applicants/applications. Note: This can be accomplished by authorizing an export of just this subset of applicants or re-authorizing/exporting the new applicant group, in addition to applicant groups previously transferred.

For applicants previously transferred from the PDWS to Thalamus products, re-authorizing/exporting an applicant or group of applicants will never delete nor duplicate any data. Once an applicant is initially authorized for transfer to Thalamus, updated ERAS application data will automatically sync. Additionally, Thalamus-specific data (such as scores, surveys, etc.) will never be deleted nor duplicated by re-authorizing/exporting an applicant or group of applicants.

Yes. Screened data fields in the ERAS PDWS, which are then authorized and transferred to Thalamus products, will have a value of “screened” in Thalamus Core (web and mobile) and Cortex.

For institutions/programs that would like to unscreen previously screened fields (or screen previously unscreened fields) throughout the season, screened data fields will continue to be managed directly in the ERAS PDWS. The permissions set in the PDWS will persist in Thalamus products. Data transfer does not have to be re-authorized, but rather upon the screening permission being updated in the PDWS, the updated value will be synced and automatically updated in Thalamus products through the AAMC Thalamus API.

Additionally, Thalamus users can “mask” data fields in Thalamus Cortex and Core. This is an additional layer to shield/screen data to remove conscious/unconscious bias through application review/screening and interview management. Masked data fields are managed exclusively in Thalamus products.

For more information on screening data fields in the PDWS, please see the 2026 PDWS User Guide. For more information on masking data fields in Thalamus Core and Cortex, please see the Thalamus user guide.