I'm a current Cedars R3. I just want to chime in since my experience has been somewhat different than what's been described by one of the posters. Yes, in general, Cedars can be cush. Cushness vs. rigor I think generally is a function of # of call months x frequency of call x intensity of call. I think intensity of Cedars wards is most of what makes Cedars "cush." As a 2 resident, 3 intern, + 1-2 med student team, you might commonly get 12-15 admissions q4days, maybe capping at 20 1-2 call cycles out of 7, and there is generally good discharge flow. Not the typical capping per call at county programs. But during the VA wards, you get your volume: essentially capping q4days at 10 admissions per resident + 2-4 more admissions on q4d short call with slower turnover. ICUs are typical intensity. Does "cushness" translate to better/worse training? As long as there is some exposure to volume to increase efficiency, having this extra time in a lighter ward month allows residents to read more and do more research if they want to, even as an intern, and a lot of people going into competitive fellowships do just that. Or you can waste time. If you tend to waste free time, maybe a program that forces you maximum volume will be better.
Re academic/community hybrid: Not sure what makes a program academic. this is a program that attracts more clinically minded residents. Nevertheless, we are expected to teach medical students and co-residents. We are expected to hold didactic sessions, including a senior grand rounds. There are many didactic sessions, more clinically oriented, held by faculty. And there are tons and tons of research with TIME to help with them. Graduates tend to do private practice > clinician educator >>> clinical/translational research PI with an RO1 grant/health services researcher -- not sure if this is very different compared to most "academic" programs. Having said that, there are "community" type of programs that may do a better job at teaching vs. Cedars...Olive View and Scripps Mercy come to mind.
Re mentorship: It's a big program so it can be easy to hide in the crowd and get lost. There's no formal mentorship program for specialties you're interested in. But it's kinda like going to a large good public school: if you have initiative and are motivated, there are tons of great mentors at Cedars and at the VA to do a lot of things. There are plenty of seniors or recent graduates/fellows to ask for advice. GI, cards, endo, rheum divisions, research, and mentorship are exceptionally strong here. There are also plenty of mentorship opportunities for renal and pulm. I've heard people having a harder time finding Heme-onc mentorship, but there are well known VA mentors, and UCLA is definitely accessible (we are UCLA affiliated and teaching attendings have UCLA appointments, similar to Harbor, Olive View, and Kaiser-UCLA). It just takes more initiative/motivation. Probably the weakest mentorship of the conventional fellowships is Allergy. Having said that, people find mentors and match very well. I personally haven't heard of anyone discouraged from pursuing a fellowship--i've heard of people being suggested that they might need more investment in research to improve chances (for cards, specifically, for someone without much if any research done). But if a Cedars resident is advised not to attempt to apply for fellowship, its not for a lack of availability of mentors.
In all its a good program with very nice people and lots of available research to prepare you for a competitive fellowship. But you do have to be motivated enough to use those extra hours for research. Some places like Stanford, UCLA or UCSF may have enough brand name to land you a competitive fellowship spot without as much extra work, but I'd imagine that would still be a risky move. With regards to comparing Cedars with USC, I think you'll have a better chance matching for competitive fellowships coming from Cedars.
