Mentoring Program
AANS/CNS Joint Section on Women in Neurosurgery is pleased to offer an educational program for medical students interested in a career in neurosurgery. A great introduction to the field is provided in “So you think you want to be a neurosurgeon“, a resource modified in 2009 which describes the field, reflects on the necessary steps to follow to help make yourself a viable candidate in the field, and provides a suggested timeline. A number of other on-line resources are available here.
Often times, reading the above links leads to many more questions. We offer iTunes tutorials with an experienced neurosurgeon(s) to answer many of these. Please click here to listen (AANS iTunes U link).
After reviewing the tutorials, medical students may also sign up for the mentorship program. This relationship may be as simple as writing down a few questions for a neurosurgeon to answer or scheduling an in-person or phone meeting. These are excellent opportunities to ask questions about the field, about work-life balance and about the match. For those looking for additional mentorship, we are happy to contact you with an experienced neurosurgeon via phone or email to get answers to many of your questions. The mentoring program is coordinated by Drs. Roxanne Todor and Julie Pilitsis.
Once a month we will hold a skype conference call. Please set up a skype account on your phone or computer and email to Karen Yoshikawa at kny@aans.orgyour skype name. There is no cost involved in setting up a skype account. Be sure to download skype on your phone or computer and we will get back to you on the date and time. To request a mentor, please click here
While we certainly try to address any requests we receive, our program is geared for medical students. We suggest that interested high school and undergraduate students first try to independently contact their local hospitals to explore shadowing/volunteering experiences.