INTRODUCTION: The World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS) Young Neurosurgeons Committee conducted a global survey to identify key challenges affecting early-career neurosurgeons. These challenges ranging from restricted access to advanced training and limited research funding to insufficient mentorship, work-life imbalance, and experiences of gender and racial bias pose significant obstacles to professional growth and equitable neurosurgical development worldwide. METHODS: A cross-sectional, web-based survey comprising 49 structured and open-ended questions was disseminated through neurosurgical networks, mailing lists, and social media. The target group included neurosurgeons within 10 years of completing residency. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics for quantitative responses and thematic analysis for qualitative insights. RESULTS: Of the 500 respondents, 56.1% reported limited access to advanced training, 50.6% highlighted insufficient funding opportunities, and 48.2% cited a lack of mentorship. Work-life balance was a major concern for 87.1% of participants. Reports of gender and racial/ethnic bias were noted by 40.5% and 22.4% of respondents, respectively. While most participants worked in public hospitals, institutional support for career development varied considerably. Key recommendations included structured mentorship, equitable resource distribution, improved training access, flexible work policies, and targeted strategies to promote diversity and inclusion. CONCLUSION: The findings underscore persistent structural and institutional barriers confronting young neurosurgeons globally. Addressing these challenges through coordinated strategies including mentorship networks, funding reforms, international collaborations, and inclusive leadership policies is essential to cultivating the next generation of neurosurgical leaders and ensuring equitable progress in the field.

Branch of the Human Anatomy and Histology Institute of Clinical Medicine N 5 Sklifosovsky FSAEI HE 1 M Sechenov 1st Moscow State Medical University Mokhovaya Str 8 2 125009 Moscow Russia

Department Neurosurgery Clinique Ngaliema Kinshasa Democratic Republic of Congo

Department of Human Anatomy and Histology Institute of Clinical Medicine Named After N 5 Sklifosovskiy 109240 Moscow Russia

Department of Medicine and Critical Care Multispecialty Trauma and ICCU Centre Sardar Hospital Ahmadabad Gujarat 380024 India

Department of Neurosurgery Hadassah University Hospital Jerusalem Israel

Department of Neurosurgery Hospital Regional Alejandro Cabral San Juan de La Maguana 72000 Dominican Republic

Department of Neurosurgery Istinye University School of Medicine Istanbul Turkey

Department of Neurosurgery Liaquat National Hospital and Medical College Karachi 05444 Pakistan

Department of Neurosurgery National Research Mordovia State University Saransk Republic of Mordovia Russia

Department of Neurosurgery Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh Edinburgh UK

Department of Neurosurgery Russian Peoples' Friendship University Moscow Russia

Department of Neurosurgery Servicio of the 1ro de Octubre Hospital of the Instituto de Seguridad y Servicios Sociales de los Trabajadores del Estado Instituto Politécnico Nacional Mexico City Mexico

Department of Neurosurgery University Hospital Brno Brno Czech Republic

Department of Neurosurgery University of Pavia Pavia Italy

Medical Student Autonomous University of Santo Domingo Santo Domingo City Dominican Republic

Neurosurgical Oncology Mexico's National Institute of Cancer Tlalpan Mexico City Mexico

See more in PubMed

Begagić E, Bečulić H, Skomorac R et al (2023) Accessible Spinal Surgery: Transformation Through the Implementation of Ex-oscopesAs Substitutes for Conventional Microsurgery in Low- and Middle-Income Settings. Cureus 15(9):e45350 PubMed PMC

Baisiwala S, Shlobin NA, Cloney MB, Dahdaleh NS (2020) Impact of Resident Participation During Surgery on Neurosurgical Outcomes: A Meta-Analysis. World Neurosurg 142:1–12 PubMed

Blanco-Teherán C, Quintana-Pájaro L, Narvaez-Rojas A et al (2022) Evidence-based medicine in neurosurgery: why and how? J NeurosurgSci 66(1):49–53 PubMed

Bryant JP, Nwokoye DI, Cox MF, Mbabuike NS (2021) The progression of diversity: Black women in neurosurgery. Neuro-surg Focus 50(3):E9 PubMed

Bozkurt I, Chaurasia B (2021) Attitudes of Neurosurgeons Toward Social Media: A Multi-Institutional Study. World Neuro-surg 147:e396–e404 PubMed

Charles AJ, Seas A, Corley J et al (2023) Promoting diversity in neurosurgery through a virtual symposium. J Neurosurg 139(4):1101–1108 PubMed

Cox K (1989) What are the roles of a surgical mentor? Aust N Z J Surg 59:601–609 PubMed

Calderon C, Dos Santos Rubio EJ, Negida A, Park KB (2022) Neurosurgical training in the Caribbean. Brain Spine 2:101691 PubMed PMC

Dewan MC, Rattani A, Fieggen G, et al. Global neurosurgery: the current capacity and deficit in the provision of essential neurosurgical care. Executive Summary of the Global Neurosurgery Initiative at the Program in Global Surgery and Social Change. J Neurosurg 2018; 130(4):1055–1064. PubMed

Dhaliwal P, Benzel EC (2013) Refocusing continuing medical education in neurosurgery. World Neurosurg 80(5):e103–e104 PubMed

Encarnacion Ramirez M, Ramirez Pena I, Barrientos Castillo RE et al (2023) Development of a 3D Printed Brain Model with Vasculature for Neurosurgical Procedure Visualization and Training. Biomedicines 11(2):330 PubMed PMC

Encarnacion Ramirez M, Peralta Baez I, Nurmukhametov R et al (2023) Comparative survey study of the use of a low cost exoscope vs. microscope for anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF). Front Med Technol 4:1055189 PubMed PMC

Encarnacion Ramirez MJ, Mukengeshay JN, Chumtin G et al (2024) The importance of social networks in neurosurgery training in low/middle income countries. Front Surg 11:1341148 PubMed PMC

Hey G, Guyot M, Carter A (2023) Augmented Reality in Neurosurgery: A New Paradigm for Training. Medicina 59(10):1721 PubMed PMC

Javed S, Perez-Chadid D, Yaqoob E, et al. WFNS Young Neurosurgeons Forum. Needs, Roles, and Challenges of Young Asian Neurosurgeons. World Neurosurg 2023;10:S1878–8750(23)00766–0. PubMed

Khan T, Wahjoepramono E, Wahjoepramono P, Andrews R (2023) Private healthcare initiatives in developing countries - Building sustainable neurosurgery in Indonesia and Pakistan. Brain Spine 3:101729 PubMed PMC

Lartigue JW, Dada OE, Haq M et al (2021) Emphasizing the Role of Neurosurgery Within Global Health and National Health Systems: A Call to Action. Front Surg 8:690735 PubMed PMC

Lavadi RS, Bozkurt I, Harikar MM, Umana GE, Chaurasia B (2022) The Role of Social Media on the Research Productivity of Neurosurgeons During the COVID-19 Pandemic. World Neurosurg 167:e1419–e1425 PubMed PMC

Mwang’ombe NJ (2012) The role of young neurosurgeons in the development of neurosurgery. Asian J Neurosurg 7(1):1 PubMed PMC

McLaughlin N, Khalessi AA, Martin NA. Health care economics in neurosurgery: there is no turning back. Neurosurg Focus 2014;37(5). PubMed

McLaughlin N, Khalessi AA, Martin NA. Introduction: Health economics and the neurosurgeon. Neurosurg Focus. 2014 Nov;37(5) PubMed

Minta KJ, Sescu D, Da Luz D, Kaliaperumal C. GloMNMS Study Group Collaborators. Global Mentorship in Neuro-surgery for Medical Students Study (the GloMNMS Study): a multinational multi-institutional cross-sectional audit. BMJ Open 2023;13(8):e071696. PubMed PMC

Mackel CE, Nelton EB, Reynolds RM, Fox WC, Spiotta AM, Stippler M (2021) A Scoping Review of Burnout in Neurosurgery. Neurosurgery 88(5):942–954 PubMed

Neal MT, Lyons MK. Burnout and work-life balance in neurosurgery: Current state and opportunities. SurgNeurolInt2020;11:456. PubMed PMC

Perez-Chadid DA, Veiga Silva AC, Asfaw ZK et al (2023) Needs, Roles, and Challenges of Young Latin American and Carib-bean Neurosurgeons. World Neurosurg 176:e190–e199 PubMed

Pérez-Cruz JC, Macías-Duvignau MA, Reyes-Soto G et al (2024) Latex vascular injection as method for enhanced neurosurgi-cal training and skills. Front Surg 11:1366190 PubMed PMC

Rolle ML, Williams A, Boeykens A et al (2023) Analysis of the Caribbean Neurosurgery Workforce: Scope of Practice, Challenges, and Ways Forward. World Neurosurg 179:e150–e159 PubMed

Servadei F, Rossini Z, Nicolosi F, Morselli C, Park KB (2018) The Role of Neurosurgery in Countries with Limited Facilities: Facts and Challenges. World Neurosurg 112:315–321 PubMed

Sinha S, McKenna G, Whitfield P, Thomson S, Kitchen N. UK Neurosurgery Specialist Advisory Committee on Train-ing in Neurosurgery and the Society of British Neurological Surgeons. Workforce planning in neurosurgery. Br J Neurosurg 2020;34(1):3–8. PubMed

Sufianov A, Ovalle CS, Cruz O et al (2024) Low-Cost 3D Models for Cervical Spine Tumor Removal Training for Neurosur-gery Residents. Brain Sci 14(6):547 PubMed PMC

Schupper AJ, Hrabarchuk EI, McCarthy L, Hadjipanayis CG (2023) Improving Surgeon Well-Being: Ergonomics in Neuro-surgery. World Neurosurg 175:e1220–e1225 PubMed

Ramirez ME, Peralta I, Nurmukhametov R et al (2023) Expanding access to microneurosurgery in low-resource settings: Feasibility of a low-cost exoscope in transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion. J Neurosci Rural Pract 14(1):156–160 PubMed PMC

Shlobin NA, Patel S, Dahdaleh NS (2022) Social Media as a Tool for Patient Education in Neurosurgery: An Overview. World Neurosurg 161:127–134 PubMed

Plonsker JH, Benzil D, Air EL, Woodrow S, Stippler M, Ben-Haim S (2022) Gender Equality in Neurosurgery and Strategic Goals Toward a More Balanced Workforce. Neurosurgery 90(5):642–647 PubMed

Rudnicka E, Napierała P, Podfigurna A, Męczekalski B, Smolarczyk R, Grymowicz M (2020) The World Health Organization (WHO) approach to healthy ageing. Maturitas 139:6–11 PubMed PMC

Ramirez MJE, Montemurro N, Musa G et al (2024) On the balance beam: facing the challenges of neurosurgical education in the third millennium. SurgNeurolInt 15:102 PubMed PMC

Robertson FC, Gnanakumar S, Karekezi C et al (2020) The World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies Young Neurosurgeons Survey (Part II): Barriers to Professional Development and Service Delivery in Neurosurgery. World Neurosurgery X 8:100084 PubMed PMC

Reyes-Soto G, Pérez-Cruz JC, Delgado-Reyes L et al (2024) The Vertebrobasilar Trunk and Its Anatomical Variants: A Mi-crosurgical Anatomical Study. Diagnostics 14(5):534 PubMed PMC

Ramirez MJE, Nurmukhametov R, Musa G et al (2022) Three-Dimensional Plastic Modeling on Bone Frames for Cost-Effective Neuroanatomy Teaching. Cureus 14(7):e27472 PubMed PMC

De Jesus Encarnacion Ramirez M, Peralta I, Ramirez I, et al. Development of a Novel Low-Cost Exoscope to Expand Access to Microneurosurgical Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries. World Neurosurg 2022;163:5–10. PubMed

Ramirez MDJE, Musa G, Castillo REB, et al. Three-dimensional Cerebrovascular Bypass Training. A New Low-Cost Home-Made Model. Front Med Case Rep 2021; 2, 1–10.

Encarnacion Ramirez, M. D., Peralta Baez, I. A., Reyes Soto, G., NtalajaMukengeshay, J., Tshiunza, C. M., Rosario, A. R., Vladimir Nikolaevich, N., Nurmukhametov, R., Kannan, S., Simfukwe, K., Duchén Rodríguez, L. M., Chmutin, G., Chmutin, E., Sufianov, A., Soriano Sanchez, J. A., Demetriades, A. K., Baldoncini, M., Campero, A., Piavchenko, G., . . . Lafuente, J. (2024). Challenging assumptions: “unveiling meritocracy’s reality in neurosurgery”. Frontiers in Surgery, 11, 1423999. 10.3389/fsurg.2024.1423999 PubMed PMC

Encarnacion RM (2021) Cerebrovascular aneurysm clipping training models with pulsatile blood flow. Russian jour-nal of neurosurgery 23(2):128–133

Gusev EI, Konovalov AN, Volodin NN, et al. [Continuing medical education in Russian neurology and neurosurgery]. ZhNevrolPsikhiatrIm S SKorsakova. 2009;109(5):5–9. Russian. PubMed

Gnanakumar S, El Ela A, Bourquin B, Robertson FC et al (2020) The World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies Young Neurosurgeons Survey (Part I): Demographics, Resources, and Education. World Neurosurgery X 8:100083 PubMed PMC

Hoffman C, Härtl R, Shlobin NA et al (2022) Future Directions for Global Clinical Neurosurgical Training: Challenges and Opportunities. World Neurosurg 166:e404–e418 PubMed

Larson AS, Haines SJ, Pilcher WH, Piva TE, Grande AW (2020) From the Historical Examples of Drs. Osler, Cushing, and Van Wagenen: Lessons on the Importance of Mentorship in Contemporary Neurosurgery. World Neurosurg 140:251–257 PubMed

Di Rocco C, Frassanito P, Tamburrini G (2014) The young neurosurgeon. Childs NervSyst 30(4):553–555 PubMed

Torres CSO, Mora AE, Campero A et al (2023) Enhancing microsurgical skills in neurosurgery residents of low-income countries: A comprehensive guide. SurgNeurol Int 14:437 PubMed PMC

Trojanowski T. European Association of Neurosurgical Societies. Continuing education--the EANS concepts. ActaNeurochir Suppl. 2001;78:165–7. PubMed

Uppal S, Saggar V, Mehra A, Sharma M, Duggal P, Tripathi M (2023) Experience as a young neurosurgeon. IP Indian J Neurosci 9(3):115–117

Ukachukwu AK, Still MEH, Seas A et al (2022) Fulfilling the specialist neurosurgical workforce needs in Africa: a systematic review and projection toward 2030. J Neurosurg 138(4):1102–1113 PubMed

Uhl JF, Sufianov A, Ruiz C et al (2023) The Use of 3D Printed Models for Surgical Simulation of Cranioplasty in Craniosynostosis as Training and Education. Brain Sci 13(6):894 PubMed PMC

Weiss HK, Garcia RM, Omiye JA et al (2019) A Systematic Review of Neurosurgical Care in Low-Income Countries. World Neurosurg X 5:100068 PubMed PMC

Wang A, Karunungan KL, Shlobin NA, DiCesare JAT, Holly LT (2021) Diversity and inclusion in neurosurgery. Lancet Neu-rol 20(6):419–420 PubMed

Young T, Tropeano MP, Cannizzaro D, Jelmoni AJM, Servadei F, Germano IM (2024) The Current Landscape of Neurosurgical Oncology in Low-Middle-Income Countries (LMIC): Strategies for the Path Forward. World Neurosurg 184:e291–e298 PubMed