Neurological Surgery
Seven years, the longest residency in medicine, covering cranial, spinal, and vascular operative work at the highest intensity in training.
- Training
- 7 years
- Entry
- Direct from medical school
- Apply through
- ERAS
- Match through
- NRMP Main Match
- Accredited programs
- 124
Among the 31 specialties
What sets Neurological Surgery apart most is training length: 7 years, longer than every other specialty.
Every rail is one dot per specialty, ordered lowest to highest, so all six read as one profile. Dots stack where specialties share a value. Neurological Surgery’s is the coloured dot — point anywhere along a rail to name the others.
one specialtymiddle halfmedian
- Programs
- Programs: 124. More than 14 of the 31 specialties reporting; fewer than 16. Reported range across specialties: 5 to 820.
- Training length
- Training length: 7 years. Longer than 30 of the 31 specialties reporting; shorter than 0. Reported range across specialties: 2 years to 7 years.
- Interviews per position
- Interviews per position: 2.7×. More than 7 of the 28 specialties reporting; fewer than 20. Reported range across specialties: 1.0× to 5.0×.
- Residents in training
- Residents in training: 1,961. More than 14 of the 30 specialties reporting; fewer than 15. Reported range across specialties: 99 to 40,131.
- States and territories
- States and territories: 43. More than 16 of the 31 specialties reporting; fewer than 13. Reported range across specialties: 4 to 52.
- First-year resident pay
- First-year resident pay: $69K. Higher than 17 of the 28 specialties reporting; lower than 10. Reported range across specialties: $60K to $73K.
Programs ranges from 5 to 820 across 31 specialties. The middle half sit between 82 and 210.
Training length ranges from 2 years to 7 years across 31 specialties. The middle half sit between 3 years and 5 years.
Interviews per position ranges from 1.0× to 5.0× across 28 specialties. The middle half sit between 2.7× and 3.5×.
Residents in training ranges from 99 to 40,131 across 30 specialties. The middle half sit between 718 and 6,616.
States and territories ranges from 4 to 52 across 31 specialties. The middle half sit between 35 and 46.
First-year resident pay ranges from $60K to $73K across 28 specialties. The middle half sit between $67K and $69K.
Every accredited program
Grouped by state, alphabetical within each. We don’t rank programs. Open any row for its deadlines, salary, visas, and reported outcomes.
124 across 43 states
Alabama1
Arizona4
Arkansas1
California10
Colorado1
Connecticut2
District of Columbia2
Florida5
Georgia2
Illinois7
Indiana2
Iowa1
Kansas1
Kentucky2
Louisiana3
Maine1
Maryland4
Massachusetts5
Michigan5
Minnesota2
Mississippi1
Missouri4
Nebraska1
New Hampshire1
New Jersey3
New Mexico1
New York12
North Carolina4
Ohio4
Oklahoma1
Oregon1
Pennsylvania7
Puerto Rico1
Rhode Island1
South Carolina1
Tennessee2
Texas8
Utah1
Vermont1
Virginia4
Washington1
West Virginia1
Wisconsin2
What the sources report
Published by the bodies that collect them. Each figure carries the year it describes, which is not always the year it was published.
Measured over time
- Main Match PGY-1 positions2022 Main Residency Match–2026 Main Residency Match · Neurological Surgery PGY-1 positions in the Main Residency Match
- 280positionsMain Match PGY-1 positions: 2022 Main Residency Match, 240; 2023 Main Residency Match, 243; 2024 Main Residency Match, 241; 2025 Main Residency Match, 268; 2026 Main Residency Match, 280.NRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
Most recent reported
- Program signalsNeurological Surgery applicants in the 2027 MyERAS application season
- 25signalsAAMC, 2027 MyERAS application season
- ACGME accredited program countAll programs on the official ACGME Neurological Surgery roster
- 124programsACGME, 2026-2027
- Advanced Neurological Surgery tracksNeurological Surgery advanced tracks
- 0tracksNRMP, 2026-2027
- Categorical Neurological Surgery tracksNeurological Surgery categorical tracks
- 123tracksNRMP, 2026-2027
- NRMP live directory track countNeurological Surgery tracks linked to the current ACGME roster
- 123tracksNRMP, 2026-2027
- Reserved physician Neurological Surgery tracksNeurological Surgery reserved physician tracks
- 0tracksNRMP, 2026-2027
- 2026 Main Match PGY-1 fill rateNeurological Surgery PGY-1 positions in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 100%NRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- 2026 Main Match PGY-1 filled positionsNeurological Surgery PGY-1 positions in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 280positionsNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- 2026 Main Match PGY-1 positionsNeurological Surgery PGY-1 positions in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 280positionsNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- 2026 Main Match PGY-1 programsNeurological Surgery PGY-1 tracks in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 121programsNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- 2026 Main Match PGY-1 total applicantsApplicants ranking at least one Neurological Surgery PGY-1 track in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 491applicantsNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- 2026 Main Match PGY-1 unfilled positionsNeurological Surgery PGY-1 positions in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 0positionsNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- Average ranked applicants needed to fill each positionNeurological Surgery PGY-1 programs that filled all positions in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 4.4ranked applicants per positionNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- Matched PGY-1 non-U.S. IMGsNeurological Surgery PGY-1 matched applicants in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 15matchedNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- Matched PGY-1 other applicant typesNeurological Surgery PGY-1 matched applicants in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 0matchedNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- Matched PGY-1 U.S. DO graduatesNeurological Surgery PGY-1 matched applicants in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 0matchedNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- Matched PGY-1 U.S. DO seniorsNeurological Surgery PGY-1 matched applicants in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 9matchedNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- Matched PGY-1 U.S. IMGsNeurological Surgery PGY-1 matched applicants in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 2matchedNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- Matched PGY-1 U.S. MD graduatesNeurological Surgery PGY-1 matched applicants in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 11matchedNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- Matched PGY-1 U.S. MD seniorsNeurological Surgery PGY-1 matched applicants in the 2026 Main Residency Match
- 243matchedNRMP, 2026 Main Residency Match
- COMLEX-USA Level 2-CE scoreConsenting matched U.S. DO seniors preferring Neurological Surgery in the 2024 Main Residency Match
- 686pointsNRMP, 2024 Main Residency Match
- COMLEX-USA Level 2-CE scoreConsenting unmatched U.S. DO seniors preferring Neurological Surgery in the 2024 Main Residency Match
- 529pointsNRMP, 2024 Main Residency Match
- Step 2 CK scoreConsenting matched U.S. DO seniors preferring Neurological Surgery in the 2024 Main Residency Match
- 256pointsNRMP, 2024 Main Residency Match
- Step 2 CK scoreConsenting matched U.S. MD seniors preferring Neurological Surgery in the 2024 Main Residency Match
- 255pointsNRMP, 2024 Main Residency Match
- Step 2 CK scoreConsenting unmatched U.S. MD seniors preferring Neurological Surgery in the 2024 Main Residency Match
- 247pointsNRMP, 2024 Main Residency Match
- Step 2 CK scoreConsenting unmatched U.S. DO seniors preferring Neurological Surgery in the 2024 Main Residency Match
- 241pointsNRMP, 2024 Main Residency Match
- U.S. DO seniors matchedConsenting U.S. DO seniors preferring Neurological Surgery in the 2024 Main Residency Match
- 2applicantsNRMP, 2024 Main Residency Match
- U.S. DO seniors unmatchedConsenting U.S. DO seniors preferring Neurological Surgery in the 2024 Main Residency Match
- 9applicantsNRMP, 2024 Main Residency Match
- U.S. MD seniors matchedConsenting U.S. MD seniors preferring Neurological Surgery in the 2024 Main Residency Match
- 161applicantsNRMP, 2024 Main Residency Match
- U.S. MD seniors unmatchedConsenting U.S. MD seniors preferring Neurological Surgery in the 2024 Main Residency Match
- 71applicantsNRMP, 2024 Main Residency Match
Specialties that measure like this one
Nearest on the six measures above — length, competitiveness, scale, geography, pay. Not a claim that the work is similar, and not a recommendation.
- OtolaryngologyHead and neck surgery spanning oncology, airway, otology, and endocrine work — broad operative range in a small, tightly-knit field.
- Plastic SurgeryReconstruction and aesthetics across the whole body, entered integrated from medical school or independently after another surgical residency.
- UrologySurgical and medical care of the urinary tract, heavily endoscopic and robotic, matched early through the AUA rather than the NRMP.
- Orthopaedic SurgeryRestoring the musculoskeletal system, from arthroplasty to trauma, with a heavily operative week and near-universal subspecialty fellowship.
How each measure is made
- Training length
- How many years the accredited residency itself runs. Specialties you enter at PGY-2 need a separately matched preliminary or transitional year before this clock starts, and any fellowship comes after it.Accredited length across programs in this specialty. A few specialties run both lengths — Emergency Medicine has three-year and four-year programs — and are shown as a range.
- Residents in training
- How many residents the specialty holds at once, counting every training year at every program. It is a measure of the field’s size rather than of its annual intake — divide by the training length for a rough sense of how many start each year.Total approved positions across all training years, summed across programs.
- Programs
- How many separately accredited residency programs the specialty has. Each one is its own application, its own interview, and its own line on your rank list.Accredited programs currently published in our directory.
- States and territories
- How many states and territories have at least one program. This is the geography question: a specialty with 400 programs across 20 states is far more concentrated than one with 100 spread across 45.Distinct states with at least one published program.
- First-year resident pay
- What you are paid during your first year of training, before any of it becomes an attending salary. The spread across specialties is narrow — this is not the number that separates them.Median PGY-1 stipend across programs — what you are paid during residency, not what the specialty earns afterwards.
- Interviews per position
- How many applicants a program interviews for each position it offers — at 4×, a program with ten spots interviews about forty people. It is a read on how far the field narrows at the interview stage, not on how many applied.Median interviews a program conducts for each position it offers.