Doximity Again Names Barrow No. 1 for Neurosurgery Residency
For the third consecutive year, Barrow Neurological Institute is home to the country’s No. 1 neurosurgery residency program ranked by reputation, according to the Doximity Residency Navigator.
“A Barrow education develops technical excellence, of course, but it goes further. By always putting the patient first, our residents cultivate the judgment, humility, and altruism to become not only outstanding neurosurgeons but good doctors.”
-Francisco Ponce, MD, Director, Barrow Neurosurgery Residency Program
As an online networking service for medical professionals, Doximity updates its Residency Navigator each year to empower graduating medical students to make informed decisions when applying for residency programs in various specialties. According to the website, approximately 90% of graduating fourth-year medical students use this directory.
To determine the 2026-27 rankings, Doximity evaluated satisfaction surveys of current residents and recent graduates, nominations by board-certified physicians within each specialty, and objective data from various public sources.
The Barrow Difference
With 12 dedicated operating rooms, two neuroendovascular suites, and approximately 6,500 surgeries performed annually, Barrow exposes its 28 neurosurgery residents to a high volume of brain and spine cases. And with patients traveling from around the globe to receive care at Barrow, the Institute’s residents see some of the world’s rarest and most challenging neurosurgical cases.
“I think our secret sauce is that Barrow neurosurgeons take on the toughest cases from around the world, the cases that no one else wants to do, day after day,” said Barrow President and CEO Michael T. Lawton, MD, who underwent his own neurosurgery training at Barrow. “These are the challenges that drive us toward excellence, innovation, and breakthroughs. Residents in our program experience these unparalleled cases from the first consultation to the operating room to the follow-up care. This exposure breeds leaders for the next generation.”
Under the mentorship of leading subspecialized neurosurgeons, Barrow residents earn graduated autonomy so that they leave the program with competence and confidence to establish their own practices. They also learn that excellence in neurosurgery requires more than neuroanatomical knowledge and technical skills.
“Being ranked No 1. By Doximity for a third consecutive year is a reflection of our extraordinary residents, faculty, and training culture,” said Francisco Ponce, MD, director of the Barrow Neurosurgery Residency Program. “A Barrow education develops technical excellence, of course, but it goes further. By always putting the patient first, our residents cultivate the judgment, humility, and altruism to become not only outstanding neurosurgeons but good doctors.”
Dr. Ponce knows the value of a Barrow education firsthand. Like Dr. Lawton, he graduated from the Barrow Neurosurgery Residency Program himself. The same is true for Associate Program Director Laura Snyder, MD, who described the No. 1 ranking as “an honor that reflects years of dedication, teamwork, innovation, and an unwavering commitment to our patients and trainees.”
