Eligibility

1. Applicants must be a graduate of a US or Canadian medical school accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) --OR---
2. Be a graduate of a college of osteopathic medicine in the United States accredited by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) --OR---
3. Be a graduate of a medical school outside of the United States who meets one or more of the following qualifications:
   1. Has a currently valid ECFMG certificate
   2. Be a graduate of a medical school outside the United States who has completed a Fifth Pathway program provided by an LCME accredited medical school.
4. Applicant must have passed Parts 1 and 2 CS and CK of USMLE prior to the time they will begin training.
5. Applicant must comply with the Health Sciences Center Drug Testing Policy.
6. All PGYI positions for graduates right out of medical school will be offered following the guidelines and policies as established by the National Resident Matching Program.

Application Process
Interested applicants must submit an application through ERAS (Electronic Residency Application Service). The neurosurgery training program at the University of Utah does not accept applications from any source other than ERAS. Required materials for application include the completed ERAS application, which includes a personal statement, medical school transcripts, USMLE scores and two letters of recommendation. Candidates inquiring via phone or email about our program are directed to the departmental website, which outlines the application and interview process as well as information about the Neurosurgery faculty and program in general.

Interview Process
From the completed applications, a group of outstanding applicants are selected to be interviewed by a committee made up of the program director and additional faculty members. Applicants are notified whether or not they have been invited for interviews via email. If they are invited for an interview, the interview dates and an overview of the interview process is included in the email as well as information on the hotel, shuttle service and a dinner with our residents.

The interviews are held on several designated days, interviewing between 5-10 candidates each day. By grouping the interviews on a dedicated day we can assure all interviewees have the opportunity to meet most of our faculty and residents and to see our institution in an efficient manner. This also allows us to evaluate, discuss and rate the applicants in as fair and objective manner as possible.

On the interview day applicants receive an informational packet which includes the following:

• Welcome letter from the program director
• The day’s itinerary
• A synopsis of each resident and faculty member
• Faculty and resident publication list
• Program Description
• Stipend memo (previous year's)
• A copy of the contract they would be expected to sign (previous year's)
• J1 Visa Acknowledgement form for International Medical Graduates

Applicants are also given the website to access Department Policies online including:

• Work hours Policy
• Supervision Policy
• Moonlighting Policy
• Leave Policy
• This Resident Selection Policy
• Liability Coverage Policy
• Licensure eligibility
• Criminal Background Check Policy
• Technical Standards

Applicants interview with several faculty and residents, during which time the interviewers complete a scoring sheet on the applicants. After interviews are complete, the candidates meet for lunch with as many faculty and residents that are available. For the rest of the afternoon the applicants are taken on tours of the various clinical and research areas by designated faculty and residents from each area. An informal gathering for the applicants and residents is held at a local restaurant.

After each interview day the results of the scoring sheets are tallied and form the basis of the preliminary rank order. The faculty and resident interviewers meet to discuss the candidates and their match ranking. At the conclusion of the interview process, match-ranking lists are completed by the applicants as well as the residency programs and submitted to the NRMP. The NRMP match results are available in mid March.

The University of Utah School of Medicine does not discriminate on the basis of gender, gender identity/expression, sexual orientation, race, age, religion, color, national origin, disability, genetic information, or veteran’s status.

RESIDENT REPLACEMENT
Despite the rigorous application and resident selection process, it is possible that an active resident will leave the program. If that is the case, the Department will assess the current number of residents, the work load and work hours and the impact of having one less resident in the Department. Based on these factors, a decision will be made as to whether to attempt to hire a resident in the middle of the academic year or to wait until the next application process. Should an attempt be made to hire a resident during the academic year, an interview process would be set up with as many available faculty as possible. The other criteria for eligibility and required materials for application are the same as for the resident selection process.