Neuropathology Fellowship
This two-year Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education–accredited Neuropathology Fellowship program provides comprehensive training in diagnostic neuropathology and is centered at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Northwestern Memorial Hospital (NMH). The program has an established tradition of excellence in clinical service, teaching and scholarly activity. Fellows are actively involved in the diagnostic workup of diverse neurosurgical, neurodegenerative, neuromuscular, autopsy, forensic and extramural consult cases reviewed at NMH.
Our training program centers on contemporary approaches to diagnostic neuropathology, including rotations at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago and Northwestern's Diagnostic Molecular Biology Laboratory, and the integration of advanced molecular diagnostic techniques. The training program provides a broad foundation in neuroanatomy, gross and microscopic diagnosis and ancillary molecular techniques, including DNA methylation profiling. Our faculty includes nationally and internationally recognized experts, particularly in the fields of brain tumor biology, neurodegenerative diseases, neuromuscular pathology and forensic neuropathology.
The neuropathology fellows supervise the pathology, neurology and neurosurgery residents rotating on the neuropathology service, present during multidisciplinary neuro-oncology tumor board and neuromuscular consensus conference and lead didactic conferences and brain-cutting sessions for residents and medical students. Research and scholarly activities are individually tailored to each fellow to best serve their career goals.
Fellowship Opportunities
The program accepts one new fellow each year and requires a two-year commitment. The fellowship program will begin accepting applications for the 2029-31 academic years in 2027.
Program Faculty
About the Fellowship
Education & Research
Medical students, pathology, neurology and neurosurgery residents rotate on the neuropathology service. The neuropathology fellow supervises the rotating residents and functions as an educator to the trainees and medical students. Fellows are also first-call and serve as consultants to residents and staff on the autopsy service, cytopathology and other sections of clinical/anatomic pathology.
In general, fellows concentrate on clinical service (in particular in-house and consult neurosurgical and autopsy services) during their first year and neurodegenerative, neuromuscular, ophthalmic pathology, education and scholarly activities during their second year of training.
Research and scholarly activities are individually tailored to each fellow to best serve their career goals. Fellows are strongly encouraged to identify areas of academic interest and mentor(s), present their research and scholarly activities in national and international conferences and publish at least one manuscript based on a project accomplished during the fellowship.
The fellow with the strongest academic background and productivity may be integrated into the Physician-Scientist Training Program, where this infrastructure, mentoring and grant application guidance is already integrated into the program.
For further information on research opportunities for trainees, please visit the Starzl Academy.
Clinical Experience
The clinical neuropathology is primarily a "fellow-run" service, which provides the trainees the exposure to common and rare neuropathologic entities. Over approximately 3,000 intraoperative consultation, neurosurgical, neurodegenerative, neuromuscular, autopsy, forensic and extramural consult cases are reviewed each year. Through this exposure, fellows will develop a fund of knowledge in neuroanatomy, gross and microscopic diagnosis, ancillary histochemical/immunohistochemical, ultrastructural and advanced molecular diagnostic techniques.
The fellow presents during weekly neuro-oncology tumor board, neuromuscular consensus conference and the monthly clinicopathologic correlation conference at the Mesulam Institute for Cognitive Neurology & Alzheimer's Disease of Northwestern University.
Eligibility & Requirements
Candidates must be board-eligible or certified in either anatomic pathology (AP) or anatomic and clinical pathology, or in another medical specialty such as neurology and have had one year of AP training. Candidates for combined training in AP and neuropathology will be considered. The candidate must have passed USMLE Steps 1, 2 and 3.
Stipend
The stipend is determined by previous pathology training and experience. Find stipend information via the McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University site.
How to Apply
Please send your application package with the following components to neuropathfellowship@northwestern.edu.
- Current CV
- Cover letter including career goals
- At least two letters of recommendation
- USMLE Step Scores 1, 2 and 3
Meet Our Fellows
- 2023–25: Heather Smith, MD (Assistant Professor, Loyola University Medical Center)
- 2022–24: Nicolas Kostelecky, MD (Forensic Pathology Fellow, Western Michigan University)
- 2021–23: Pouya Jamshidi, MD (Assistant Professor of Pathology, Northwestern Memorial Hospital)
- 2020–22: Matthew McCord, MD (Assistant Professor of Pathology, University of Virginia)
- 2019–21: Alex Feldman, MD (Assistant Professor of Pathology, University of Alabama)
- 2018–20: Kwok Ling Kam, MD (Molecular and Neuropathologist, Tempus Labs)
- 2016–18: Missia Kohler-Skinner, MD (Assistant Professor of Pathology, University of Utah)
- 2012–14: Esther Bit-Ivan, DO (Southeastern Pathology Associates/Baptist MD Anderson)
- 2010–12: Kyung-Hwa Lee, MD (Neuropathologist in Korea)
- 2008–10: Steve Dubner, MD (Great Lakes Pathologists, Wisconsin)
Why Northwestern?
Housestaff training through the McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University provides diverse and challenging clinical experiences and world-class education located in the heart of the beautiful city of Chicago.
Watch a video to learn more about the fellowship experience at Northwestern: