About the Program 

Pre-residency fellows are integral members of the neurosurgical neurocritical care teams. Duties include managing floor and ICU patients, night call, and assisting in the operating room and outpatient clinic, which together provide broad clinical exposure in the neurosciences.

The pre-residency fellows at BU/BMC work alongside eight neurosurgeons, six neuro intensive care neurologists, and neurosurgical and neurology residents at Boston Medical Center (Boston, MA) and nearby St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center (Brighton, MA). Fellows also participate in weekly didactic sessions, including neurosurgical core conferences, tumor board, neuroscience grand rounds, and critical care problem case conference.  

In addition, opportunities exist for clinical or basic research both within the institution and throughout the robust Boston academic environment. 

Accepted candidates must commit to a minimum of two years in the program. Your pay, benefits, hours, days off, and vacation time will equal those of PGY1 in other accredited programs at BU/BMC.

How to Apply

Please email your CV and cover letter to Kelley Stewart, Neurosurgery Pre-Residency Fellowship Coordinator.. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis and employment offers are typically made after the residency match in March.

Apply Now

Current Fellows

Rubachandran Murugesan
Rubachandran Murugesan, MD

Vasileios Kavouridis, MD

Robert Walker
Robert Walker III, MD, MS

Mohsin Khan, MD

Victor Lopez Rivera, MD

Elizabeth Ogando-Rivas, MD

Sonora Windermere, MD, JD

Asra Askari, MD

Recent Graduates

  • Elizabeth Ogando-Rivas 2023-Present
  • Mohsin Khan 2023-Present
  • Asra Askari 2022-Present
  • Vasileios Kavouridis 2022-Present
  • Mayank Kaushal 2021-2022, Neurosurgery Residency, Wisconsin
  • Kristine Ravina 2020-2022, Neurosurgery Residency, VTC Virginia Tech Carilion
  • Wumairehan Shali 2021-2022
  • Victoria Lopez Rivera 2021-Present
  • Sonora Windermere 2021-Present
  • Robert Walker 2020-Present
  • Rubachandran Murugesan 2019-Present
  • Dmitry Kahn 2019-2021, Steward Carney, Medicine Residency
  • Mohamed Salem 2019-2021, UPENN, Vascular Neurosurgery Research
  • Mayur Jayarao 2008-2011, Neurosurgery Residency, University of Missouri Columbia School of Medicine
  • Gentian Toshkezi 2008-2011, Neurosurgery Residency, SUNY Syracuse, NY
  • Roya Saffary 3008-2011, Anesthesia Residency Stanford, CA
  • Shearwood McClelland 2009-2012, Research Radiation Oncology Indiana
  • Christine Tschoe 2009-2017, Neurosurgery Pre Residency program at Lahey, then a Neurology Resident N.C. 
  • Abdul Kader Tabbara 2012-2016, Anesthesia Residency BMC
  • Aristotelis Filippidis 2012-2016, Neurosurgery Resident BIDMC/BMC
  • Bart Thaci 2012-2015, Neurosurgery Resident UC Davis, California
  • Jehad Zakaria 2015-2016, Neurosurgery Resident Loyola, IL
  • Gina Corsaletti 2015-2019, Neurosurgery Pre Residency, Miami, Florida
  • Julie Mayeku 2016-2018, Neurosurgery Pre Residency INOVA, Virginia
  • Devon Jackson 2016-2019, Pathology Resident Howard University, D.C.
  • Nimer Abushehab 2016-2017, Neurosurgery Resident Louisiana
  • Ali Fadhil 2016-2017, Neurology Resident Cleveland, Ohio
  • Mason Anthony Brown 2016-2017, Radiology Residency Wisconsin
  • Trong Huynh MD 2017-2018, Neurosurgery research NJ, --accepted into Gen Surg Residency Rutgers, NJ
  • Hasan Ashfaque 2017-2019, Anesthesia Residency SEMC
  • Saleem Al Mawed 2017-2019, Neurology Resident Florida
  • Mehrnoush Gorjian 2017-2018, Research Neuro Oncology Lab Northwestern
  • Andres Restrepo Orozco 2017-2019, Neurosurgery Resident Grand Rapids, MI
  • Oluwaseun Omofoye “Sean” 2017-2019, Neurosurgery Resident, UC Davis, California
  • Alejandro Enriquez Marulanda 2018-2019, Neurosurgery Resident, BIDMC/BMC

Living in Boston

Although Boston is small in area (second smallest city with a population >500,000), it is densely populated, young (the median Bostonian is 31, largely due to the huge numbers of colleges and universities), and culturally and ethnically diverse. There are a number of neighborhoods within the city, each with its own flavor and energy and each with an interesting mix of the historic and the modern. 

Boston Medical Center is located in the historic South End neighborhood of Boston, walking distance from the harbor, the Charles River and community boating launch, Boston Common, the Boston Garden, the historic Beacon Hill, Back Bay, and North End neighborhoods, and countless restaurants and bars. A thirty minute drive will put you in rural countryside and will bring you through picturesque old New England towns like Lexington and Concord. Some of the best hiking on the East Coast is within three hours of the center of Boston and the Maine coastline is only one hour north of Boston.

Find out more about living in Boston

Key Program Contacts

Emanuela Binello MD Pre-Residency Fellowship Co-Director emanuela.binello@bmc.org   

Hormuz Dasenbrock MD Pre-Residency Fellowship Co-Director hormuzdiyar.dasenbrock@bmc.org

Jim Holsapple, MD Chair Department of Neurosurgery  james.holsapple@bmc.org                 

Matthew Nivison Administrative Director Neurosurgery  matthew.nivison@bmc.org