Yale Neuropsychology Postdoctoral Residency Program

During the first year of the residency, the trainee will rotate with Dr. Towns in the Greenwich neuropsychology clinic. This clinic provides assessment for all of the neurology providers within the healthcare system (and many outside providers) in southern Connecticut. Our referral questions range widely, but typically include questions relating to memory disorders, movement disorders, cerebrovascular disease, traumatic brain injury, and neuro-oncology.

In the resident's second year, the trainee will meet with Drs. Towns and Sharp to design a tailored training experience. These may include more focused rotations in memory disorders, movement disorders, neurovascular disease, and bilingual/Spanish assessment. Minor rotations may be available (based on supervisor schedules) in epilepsy surgery, multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injury, and neuro-oncology. Each of these rotations will also include some portion of generalized neurology referral, as well. Residents are expected to choose at least two of these experiences, but will have the opportunity to complete up to four or five.

Residents also have a number of multidisciplinary opportunities, including attendance in the neurology resident noon lecture series, geriatric psychiatry lecture series, neuroimaging series, neuropathology brain cutting series, the Wada test, and Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (ADRC) case consensus conferences. When offered, residents will have the opportunity to take a course taught by Hal Blumenfeld, MD, PhD, based on his exceptional book, Neuroanatomy through Clinical Cases.

Residents are expected to complete one to two research projects over the course of their residency. Research projects may include investigator-driven projects, collaborative projects, educational projects, and/or program development and evaluation projects. Each year/project requires a product for presentation, which can be at the department level, such as the Neurology Research blast day and/or an annual neuropsychology conference presentation. The second-year project should culminate in a poster/paper presentation or a peer-reviewed paper publication.

Residents are provided with at least four hours of protected research time per week. At the beginning of their residency, they will met with a research mentor in order to conceptualize and map out their research project(s). Research mentors may change as the residency progresses, based on faculty availability and resident interests. There are many opportunities for research. Our faculty are engaged in a number of collaborative research projects across disciplines. For example, those residents who are interested in memory disorders will have the opportunity to work on projects through the ADRC.

Residents will be expected to begin the program with clear competence in neuropsychological testing and scoring, medical record review, and report writing skills. Throughout the course of the program, residents will progress to increasing levels of independence, including conducting clinical interviews, interdisciplinary consultations, didactic seminar presentations, and feedback sessions. Residents will participate in at least two hours per week of individual supervision with their primary rotation supervisor. Residents will also participate in a one-hour weekly group supervision with other residents, interns, and externs. In addition to clinical supervision, residents will meet monthly with their research mentor and the program director in order to review progress and address any concerns.

Required weekly didactic experiences include:

• Group Supervision
• Neuropsychology Seminar
• Neurology Grand Rounds
• Neurology Clinical Grand Rounds
• Neurology Morbidity and Mortality Conference

• Clinical Neuroscience Grand Rounds
• Epilepsy Surgery Conference
• Epilepsy Fellowship Lecture
• DBS Surgery Conference
• Movement Disorders video rounds
• ADRC Case Conference
• Neuropathology/Brain Cutting
• Neuro-oncology Lecture

Our program participates in the APPCN Match Program. The application process includes submission of the following:

• Cover letter articulating goals and experiences
• Curriculum vitae
• Three letters of reference (preferably including at least one letter from an internship neuropsychologist supervisor and at least one from an ABPP-CN neuropsychologist)
• Two sample case reports
• APPCN Verification of Completion of Doctorate
• Graduate school transcripts

Finally, if you have not completed your dissertation at the time of your application, then you must include a letter from the chair of your dissertation committee indicating the status of your project and your anticipated date of completion. Please also include information on the status of your dissertation in your cover letter. Materials should be emailed to Dr. Towns as a single PDF file, including recommendation letters. Additional information is available on our APPCN listing.

Applications for the following year are due by December 1 (i.e. applications for 2024 are due December 1, 2023). Applicants are notified of their application status prior to the February meeting of the International Neuropsychological Society (INS). Applicants selected for further consideration typically interview with our faulty at the INS meeting or on campus. Other interview formats will be utilized based on current COVID-19 safety recommendations (e.g. video and/or telephone interview).

The resident's salary is commensurate with that of PGY2 and PGY3 Neurology residents (in years 1 and 2, respectively). Health insurance is provided. Vacation, sick leave, family leave, and professional leave are all available, consistent with existing policies regarding resident leave. Yale New Haven Health lists additional information regarding House Staff Benefits.