Neurosurgery Elective for Preclinical Medical Students: Early Exposure and Changing Attitudes

The neurosurgery elective course significantly increased student knowledge across several areas and changed perceptions about collegiality, quality of life, and family-work balance, while not altering the students' views about the difficulty of training. Adopting a neurosurgery elective geared towards preclinical medical students can significantly change attitudes about the field of neurosurgery and has potential to increase interest in pursuing a career in neurosurgery.