Surgical Education Fellowships Vary Widely in Support

Most US surgical education fellowships require teaching and simulation work, but resources and leadership support differ a lot from program to program.

• Of 28 identified US fellowships, 19 responded (68%), including 15 accredited and 4 non-accredited programs.
• Teaching was required by 84% of programs and simulation by 89%, but only 53% reported departmental education PhD support.
• Median dedicated director time was 0.2 full-time equivalent, and 74% of programs had a single fellowship director.

For prospective fellows, this is the first national snapshot to compare what programs actually offer, including funding, statistical support, and internal-candidate preference. It does not show whether these differences affect graduate outcomes, so use it to ask better questions during interviews, not to rank programs.