Dear Neurosurgery community, I am an IMG and have been working in a basic science lab for almost 4 years. I applied in this match cycle and received two IVs from the places where I rotated. My Step 2 CK score is low (220). I have reached out to many PDs and residents, and they've given me mixed opinions about continuing on the path to becoming a neurosurgeon. I finally took a chance and came to the USA, and I have published 40-plus publications. I have strong LORs, and I am waiting to get lucky with IVS; my mentor also reached out to individual programs on my behalf. Keeping this in mind, I want genuine guidance and options moving forward from the neurosurgery community and would appreciate any kind of advice. I am also thinking of a pre-residency fellowship if I don't end up matching. Any advice on pre-residency fellowships based on my profile, and which will help me for the next cycle, will be much appreciated. Thanks so much!

What do you guys think is the best operative atlas for spine surgery?

Hi everyone.

I have an upcoming residency interview and really want to make the most of the opportunity. As a non-US IMG, this may end up being my only interview, so I’m trying to prepare as thoroughly as I can.

So far, I’ve been going through common interview questions and writing out answers. I also know the basics of being respectful to everyone, stay calm, maintain good posture, be professional, and try to come across naturally.

For those who have been through residency interviews, what else would you recommend? Are there common mistakes to avoid, things you wish you had known beforehand, or specific ways of preparing that you felt actually made a difference?

Hi everyone! Not new to the community but new profile after finally completing all of the years of training. I'm a skull base neurosurgeon in the northeast passionate about community outreach and medical education. AMA!

M2 attending CNS for the first time at the end of October. Not presenting anything so just attending to network. Would appreciate any and all advice for how to make the most of my time there—Thanks!

Hey everyone! I'm signed up for the ABNS Neuroanatomy Exam this October. This might be a little too pedantic, but for the Rhoton images in the ABNS Neuroanatomy Exam, do fill-in-the-blank answers need to match the image labels exactly, or are anatomically equivalent answers accepted?

Some labels differ in articles, singular/plural wording, or terminology, for example, “meatal segment of facial nerve” versus “meatal segment of the facial nerve.” Will the computerized test accept minor wording differences, and is there a list of accepted synonyms? I want to focus on identifying the anatomy correctly rather than memorizing the exact wording of each image label.

Hi, I am looking to buy the TEW kit, the one used for percutaneous RF ablation in trigeminal neuralgia. I did a couple cases during fellowship abroad but the equipment doesn’t seem to exist in my country. I’ll be attending the WSSFN meeting in Marseille at the end of this month, and have a few days in Paris. My hospital will subsidize if I can actually get my hands on one. Would be grateful if I can get any leads. Thank you!

Hey everyone!

Any neurosurgery residents or consultants here interested in skull base looking to collaborate on a paper?

I’m putting together a straightforward comparative review looking at vessel transposition vs. Teflon interposition in MVD for trigeminal neuralgia.

If you’re interested in co-authoring, send me a DM and we can chat through the details on Discord or Telegram! :))

Hi all,

Crazy title, I know. I'm a PGY-2 (R1) who was between ortho (with plans for spine) and NSGY. Majored in Neuroscience in college, love the brain, went ortho for a myriad of reasons that will make this post too long.

I did not match ortho and matched into my backup speciality of radiology. My plan with Rads was to go for NIR.

However, all throughout prelim year and now rads, all I can think about at work is surgery. Every single day. I have been trying to seek open PGY-1 positions to transfer into, whether it be ortho or NSGY, but these are extremely few and far between.

Does anyone have any advice for what I should do from here? Can be anything from how to continue pursuing NSGY/ortho spine (I spoke with the NRMP and I can't enter the match as I am fully matched, that would be a match violation, and I can't forfeit my position bc that's just far too much of a gamble) to telling me I need to just suck it up and move on.

Thanks all.

The 11th Edition of Greenberg’s Handbook of Neurosurgery is coming.

New material on Moyamoya and Cushing disease to adult hydrocephalus, seizure surgery, spinal classifications, ICH, acute ischemic stroke and TBI.

Release date: September 16, 2026.

For neurosurgery residents, this is probably as close as we get to a new edition of the “bible” dropping.

Anyone else planning to get the 11th edition?

link to preorder

I am going to be applying to the match next year and found out I will be in the middle to lower tiers of my med school class in the MSPE. However, I have plenty of research (30+ papers), good connections with my mentors, and have done well on my third year shelves. I will be taking step 2 in 7 months and will aim for a 255-260+.

Do neurosurgery reviewers read the MSPE in detail and will raise red flags if I am placed in the middle/ lower percentile of my class despite having other aspects of my application that are strong?

Hi everyone, I’d really appreciate it if you could share programs where you trained that gave residents early and meaningful operative autonomy.

I’m not really talking about shunts or wound washouts, but more so cases like brain tumor resections, where residents eventually get to operate from start to finish with appropriate supervision. I realize aneurysm clipping is more of a senior resident thing, so that may not be the best example.

I’m mainly trying to figure out which programs really let residents progress in the OR, give them increasing independence, and leave them well prepared to operate confidently after residency.

Would especially appreciate firsthand experiences from residents or graduates. If you prefer, feel free to send me a DM.

Hi all,

Moved from the UK to the US and planning on sitting a few exams over the next 6 months having done my UK exams. I’ve been looking over the usual resources, Greenberg, etc and came across the above question bank. I’ve not seen another one like it, but was wondering if anyone had any experience with it and if it was any good? The demo questions looked alright.

Hi everyone! I’m a 4th-year medical student at the University of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, interested in neurosurgery/neuroscience research. I have experience in literature reviews, data collection, research proposals, basic statistics, and Python, and I’m currently learning AI/ML. I’m particularly interested in systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and clinical research, and I’m open to remote collaboration internationally. If you’re working on a project and looking for a motivated medical student, feel free to DM me. Thank you!

I'm helping source guests for This Is Your Brain, hosted by neurosurgeon Dr. Phil Stieg (former Neurosurgeon-in-Chief, NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell). The show explores the science of being human - from consciousness and confidence to addiction, memory, and longevity - through conversations with leading physicians, surgeons, and researchers.

If you're in medicine, surgery, or neuroscience and have a story, study, or perspective worth sharing with a curious, engaged audience, I'd love to hear from you. Bi-weekly episodes, ~25–30 min, remote via Zoom - easy to fit into a busy schedule. If you'd like to learn more about the show, take a look at www.thisisyourbrain.com

Drop a comment or DM me, or reach out directly: [carlos@microimagetech.net](mailto:carlos@microimagetech.net)

Hey everyone. Looking at neurosurgery locums jobs in the interim before starting a faculty position next year. I’m wondering what a normal rate is as I’m being asked. Also anything to watch out for? Thanks so much

Im a medical student without a home program and interested in pursuing nsgy. I am currently doing some projects under one physician but its not entirely where my interests lie. Any advice for finding mentors/physicians to do research under? I have been trying to cold email but its so hard to find email addresses and when i do, I usually domt get a response.

Would really appreciate any advice!

Hello everyone! I'm a US IMG and I'm looking for reseearch fellowships to build for my match application later for neurosurgery. It's been a bit confusing so if you know about any opportunity or any leads I should follow I would really appreciate it since I know no one in NS

Apologies for the controversial question that’s been published on a ton.

M3/4 here deciding which path. Have been planning to do nsgy since I was young, several nsgns in my family, but I’m most called to spine and less interested in cranial. I just don’t really care to do 14 hour skull base cases through the camera.

The problem is that I also have zero interests in joints (outside of spine) and knees/shoulders are boring. I just love spine (I’m a former pt). My CV and mentors are a blend of neuro and ortho spine so I think I could apply to either without issue.

Any thoughts or advice? Which residency is better? I’m only looking at white collar programs (my PhD is all spine BME focused) so nsgy residency would have 2 extra research years, whereas ortho would be shorter I guess. Is nsgy residency substantially harder than ortho? What pros and cons should I be thinking about that aren’t even on my radar?

Honestly the biggest downside of ortho is that nsgns in my family would roast me for being a “bonehead” for the rest of my life, but I can take that I guess

We have an open 2-year Neuroendovascular Fellowship position in New York available for an immediate start.

There is some flexibility, so a slightly later start date may also be possible for the right candidate.

If you're interested or know someone who might be a good fit, please send me a direct message. I'd be happy to provide more details.

I have a nagging feeling I chose the wrong speciality.

I was dedicated to neurosurgery before med school and during the first two years. Spent an entire month spending every second I could in the OR with my home program. Got involved in a good amount of research before and during med school. Bench work ~2 years prior to med school and clinical research during. Ended up deciding psych would be better for me. But now that I’m in residency, I’m having buyer’s remorse. I just keep wishing I had more responsibilities and more workload. Not to mention, the patients and pathologies are the coolest in all of medicine. I feel like residency should be more than this. I just keep wishing I would have stuck with neurosurg.

I’ve read of one person switching from psych to neurosurgery during residency. How realistic is this? I have several pubs, most of which are in neurosurgery. I applied with upper teens in pub items in ERAS and would have more now. I was great in my surgery rotations, definitely disappointed some preceptors by going the psych route. US MD, Average step score and no AOA. Would I have a chance reaching out to my residency institution’s neurosurgery PD?

I realize this feeling will probably go away eventually, but I feel looking into this will be part of the coping process for me.

Hi everyone,

I am a second year MD student, and I’m starting to feel very strongly about neurosurgery. Of course, since life is never without some humor, I was diagnosed with essential tremor a few months ago (M, 27 y/o). My neurologist said it is a minor case. Low dose propranolol (10-15 mg) has been generally helpful during dissections and the like, though stakes are obviously quite low with those things.

I will be seeing my neurologist again now that I am really starting to consider neurosurgery as a career path. While obviously my neurologists advice will be most important, and my clerkship year + trialing propranolol will be telling as well. I wanted to hear from people in the field about this topic. Is it realistic to “rely” on propranolol throughout residency and beyond? Is age-related worsening of ET something to worry about?

If anyone has any personal experience, your perspective would be incredibly appreciated at this time.

Thank you very much!

So I just finished my first year of med school in the UK and although I passed I didn’t particularly get high grades.

However, I do get to shadow and do some research under a particular neurosurgeon consultant. He didn’t ask for my specific grade, just asked if I got into the next year and congratulated me.

I was honest enough to mention that I underestimated med school and will hopefully do better. I’m worried and a bit embarrassed about mentioning that I didn’t do well, especially since his med school grades where impressive

In short I’m really hoping I didn’t blow my chances, so far all he said is that it only gets easier and carried on talking about the next step for research.

Are they really important and any advice on studying?

Im an incoming med student ive been heavily considering neurosurgery but also service (independently). Any anecdotes of matching/life through the military? I just talked to a recruiter who made it sound like there were a good amount of spots.