To ensure safe and equitable inclusion in the recruitment process for all applicants, and in accordance with national consensus recommendations, the Boston Children’s Hospital Child Neurology and Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Training Programs will be holding all recruitment activities virtually. We are committed to providing applicants with extensive opportunities to get to know our residents, our faculty, and our facility.

The Department of Neurology accepts about seven new child neurology residents and at least one neurodevelopmental disabilities resident into its training program each year.

In the 2023-24 Match, incoming residents can apply for the following types of positions:

• A Combined Neurology and Pediatrics Residency, also known as the Categorical Program (five positions, NRMP program code 1259185C0): this program includes a two-year general pediatrics residency in the Boston Combined Residency Program (BCRP) and a three-year child neurology residency at Boston Children’s Hospital. The general pediatrics residency is done through the Boston Combined Residency Program at Boston Children’s Hospital/Boston Medical Center. Note: If you choose this option, you must also apply separately to the Peds-Categorical Track/Boston Children’s Hospital (NRMP program code 1259320C0). The same application can be sent to both programs. There is no need for customization for the pediatrics application. Application review and interviews will be conducted by both the BCRP and Child Neurology programs to provide the applicants a holistic experience to learn about the outstanding pediatrics and child neurology training experiences here at Boston Children’s.
• We are excited to offer a second option for Boston Children’s Child Neurology applicants, with a two-year general pediatrics training at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital (MFCH) at Westchester Medical Center. Candidates pursuing this option must submit an application separately to MFCH. About MFCH: MFCH is the only pediatric referral center between New York City and Albany, and is the premier tertiary care center for the children of the Hudson Valley. Located a few miles north of New York City, it serves a large, diverse catchment area that includes urban, suburban, and rural environments, and children from every background imaginable. The welcoming residency program is medium-sized (60 residents) and provides trainees the full spectrum of inpatient pediatrics, seeing pathology that ranges from the common to the previously undescribed. MFCH offers a broad range of continuity clinic sites: residents choose from among a hospital-based clinic, private practices, and federally qualified community health centers for their longitudinal experience. MFCH residents are hard-working, mutually supportive, and fully invested in the care of their patients and their own education. MFCH values diversity in all its forms and embraces inclusiveness as part of the learning process. MFCH has trained residents as part of the American Board of Pediatrics Child Neurology Pathway for many years and is excited to partner with Boston Children’s Hospital to create a single pathway. Learn more at this link.
• Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Residency Categorical Position (one position, NRMP program code 1259186A0): includes a two-year general pediatrics residency at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Mass., and a four-year NDD residency at Boston Children’s. Note: If you choose this option, you must also apply separately to Baystate. Interviews will be conducted by both programs in order for applicants to learn about the advantages and opportunities in training at both sites.
• Reserve Position for Child Neurology (one position, NRMP program code 1259185R0, “Reserved for Physicians”) is available only for residents who will be ready to begin their child neurology residency training in summer 2024. Reserve positions require that the applicant will have completed one of the following by June 2023: a) at least two years of general pediatrics residency; b) one year of general pediatrics and one year of internal medicine; c) or one year of pediatrics and one year of relevant research. We welcome applications from residents currently in their second year of postgraduate training, even if they are part of a typically three-year program. Clinical training must have been performed in qualified residency programs, which are defined by the ACGME as the following: ACGME-accredited residency programs, AOA-approved residency programs, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC)-accredited or College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC)-accredited residency programs located in Canada, or residency programs with ACGME International (ACGME-I) Advanced Specialty Accreditation. Please note that this policy is set by the ACGME accrediting body and applies to all U.S. accredited child neurology programs, therefore unfortunately our program cannot make exceptions even for highly trained physicians. Those who do not qualify for this position are welcome to apply to our categorical positions as described above.

Matching

Matching will be done through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). Your completed application will be forwarded to the Child Neurology Residency Selection Committee for review. Categorical child neurology or neurodevelopmental disabilities candidates will also spend a day interviewing with program leadership at the BCRP or Baystate respectively. The matches will be simultaneous with the general pediatrics match.

Interviews

In the 2023-24 Match, in accordance with national consensus recommendations, all interviews will be conducted virtually. About 30 to 40 candidates will be invited to interview by the Resident Selection Committee and will have opportunities to meet virtually with several clinical and research faculty, as well as current neurology residents. Recruitment activities will include recorded informational videos, an orientation session with our chief residents, a series of interviews, Q&As with residency program leaders, and opportunities to interact formally and informally with our faculty and our neurology residents.

If you are invited for an interview, we will try to arrange for you to meet with clinicians or researchers in your area of interest. For MD/PhD applicants and those with significant research background and interest, we will work with the Boston Combined Residency Program to arrange additional sessions to meet with scientists in specific fields of interest and discuss research and fellowship opportunities at Boston Children’s and Harvard Medical School. Please let us know if there is anyone you would like us to schedule you to meet.

Our application review process takes approximately six weeks from date on which we receive applications, and interview invitations are sent once review is completed. Please note that applicants from the same school may be invited at different times. We expect to have issued all this year’s interview invitations by Nov. 10, 2023. We will let applicants know if they will not be interviewed by that date. We receive late applications after the Nov. 20 deadline, but interviews are only rarely granted to those who apply late unless there are extenuating circumstances, in which case please alert us by email.

2024 interview dates:

• Monday, Nov. 13, 2023
• Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023
• Monday, Dec. 11, 2023
• Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2023
• Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023
• Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023
• Friday, Jan. 12, 2024 (if needed)

As some dates are customized for specific interviewees (e.g., research-oriented applicants, neurodevelopmental disabilities), you may receive an interview invitation to a specific date. Certainly, if that date doesn’t work for you, just let us know, and we will find an alternative. Our policy is that we do not send more invitations to interview than we have interview slots available. We do not read applications in any systematic order, and we issue invitations for interviews when enough applicant information is available for us to decide.

For specific questions about the child neurology residency, please contact the residency program director, Miya Bernson-Leung, MD, EdM, at miya.bernson-leung@childrens.harvard.edu.

For specific questions about the neurodevelopmental disabilities residency, please contact the residency program director, Elizabeth Barkoudah, MD, at elizabeth.barkoudah@childrens.harvard.edu.

For general questions about the application process, please contact Stephanie Hansbury at 617-355-7819 or stephanie.hansbury@childrens.harvard.edu.