Neurology Training Pathway
How to become a neurologist in Australia — RACP Basic Physician Training, the Divisional exams, the national ANZAN MATCH into Advanced Training in Neurology (with its published CV-and-interview weighting), the neurophysiology logbook requirements, and what the published ATO data shows neurologists earn.
Two bottlenecks, not one: getting onto Basic Physician Training, then — after both Divisional exams — winning an accredited Advanced Training post through the national ANZAN MATCH. Neurology is unusual among the physician subspecialties in publishing a national scored rubric (CV 35%, interview 65%, minimum 55/100 to enter) and numeric neurophysiology logbook minimums — so there is, unusually, a published weighting to optimise against.
- Training length
- 6+ (3 BPT + 3 Advanced)
- Competitiveness
- Moderate
- Exams
- RACP Divisional Written + Clinical (end of BPT)
- Lifestyle
- Mixed cognitive + procedural; acute stroke & neurophysiology on-call
- Fellowship
- FRACP (Neurology)
- Time to qualify
- 8–11 years
Why neurology
You diagnose and manage disease of the brain, spinal cord, nerves and muscles — stroke, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and neuroimmunology, movement disorders, headache, neuromuscular disease, and cognitive and dementia disorders. The work blends complex diagnostic reasoning and long-term outpatient care with a neurophysiology and procedural core (EEG, nerve conduction studies and EMG, lumbar puncture, botulinum-toxin therapy) and genuine acute work: hyperacute stroke and clot-retrieval pathways, status epilepticus and neurological emergencies on call.
- Deep diagnostic and localisation reasoning; intellectually rich case-mix
- A published national selection rubric you can actually optimise against
- Neurophysiology and procedural skills (EEG, NCS/EMG, botulinum toxin)
- Earnings around the physician average, with a higher-than-blend median
- Two competitive bottlenecks (BPT, then the national ANZAN MATCH)
- Hyperacute stroke and neurological-emergency on-call
- Published neurophysiology logbooks add structured workload during training
- Long pathway (~6 years college training) with research expected to compete
Subspecialties
The training pathway
The same fellowship, two very different timelines. The fast route assumes everything goes right; most people land on the realistic one.
How competitive is it?
No applicant-to-offer ratio, applicant count or fill rate is published, so the reputation for competitiveness is anecdote. What is published is the rubric — see Selection. On workforce, the BMJ Neurology Open model (2023) counted about 620 adult neurologists in 2020 and projected about 896 by 2034; regional Australia (about 31% of the population) was served by only about 4.1% of the workforce (roughly 25 regional neurologists in 2020).
Unaccredited time: There's no formal 'unaccredited' tier as in surgery, but neurology selection is competitive and scores the CV against published criteria, so many do extra unaccredited neurology/registrar time and research after the Divisional exams to build a competitive CV before a successful match. No required or typical number of years is published.
Sources: RACP — Neurology Advanced Training, ANZAN — Recruitment of Trainees (national MATCH; CV/interview weighting), Simpson-Yap et al., 'Modelling accessibility of adult neurology care in Australia, 2020–2034' (BMJ Neurology Open 2023), ANZAN — Australian and New Zealand Association of Neurologists.
Selection criteria & how to apply
Neurology has two competitive entry points, and — unlike the other physician subspecialties — the second has a published national scored rubric. First you compete for a Basic Physician Training post; after three years of BPT you must pass both Divisional exams; then comes the harder step, a single national MATCH run by ANZAN (not the state PMCV or HETI matches). ANZAN publishes the scoring: the CV is 35% and the structured interview 65%, with a minimum 55/100 to enter. The CV is scored against about 14 published criteria, and three consultant-physician referees (ideally at least one neurologist) submit a standardised form. State specifics are in the accordion. The components below show those weightings:
Key documents: RACP — Neurology Advanced Training, ANZAN — Recruitment of Trainees (national MATCH rubric), RACP — Entry into Basic Training, ANZAN — Accreditation of Neurophysiology Training (Level 1/2/3).
How it works, state by state
NSW
Who runs selection: BPT is via centralised NSW recruitment into BPT networks; neurology Advanced Training selection then runs through the ANZAN NSW/ACT subcommittee under the national MATCH — not a separate HETI neurology panel. Selection is not run by the RACP.
Where to apply: HETI / NSW Health BPT recruitment; ANZAN NSW/ACT subcommittee (national MATCH) — application portal.
Positions: NSW/ACT: handled through the ANZAN NSW/ACT subcommittee; per-state first-year position count not published
Worth knowing: The largest neurology training footprint, but selection is national — the NSW/ACT subcommittee interviews and scores candidates against the ANZAN CV-35%/interview-65% rubric and feeds them into the national MATCH.
Links: HETI — Basic Physician Training in NSW, ANZAN — Recruitment of Trainees.
VIC
Who runs selection: Neurology Advanced Training selection runs through the ANZAN Victoria/Tasmania subcommittee under the national MATCH. PMCV does NOT run a neurology match (its matches cover psychiatry, paediatric rheumatology, orthopaedics, BPT and others — not neurology).
Where to apply: ANZAN Victoria/Tasmania subcommittee (national MATCH) — application portal.
Positions: VIC/TAS: handled through the ANZAN Vic/Tas subcommittee; per-state first-year position count not published
Worth knowing: A common point of confusion: unlike most Victorian physician subspecialties, neurology is NOT in the PMCV match — it is selected nationally through ANZAN.
Links: ANZAN — Recruitment of Trainees.
QLD
Who runs selection: Neurology Advanced Training selection runs through the ANZAN Queensland subcommittee under the national MATCH.
Where to apply: ANZAN Queensland subcommittee (national MATCH) — application portal.
Positions: QLD: handled through the ANZAN Queensland subcommittee; per-state first-year position count not published
Worth knowing: Selection feeds the national ANZAN MATCH with the same published CV/interview weighting; no separate standalone Queensland scoring rubric is published.
Links: ANZAN — Recruitment of Trainees.
SA
Who runs selection: Neurology Advanced Training selection runs through the ANZAN South Australia subcommittee under the national MATCH.
Where to apply: ANZAN South Australia subcommittee (national MATCH) — application portal.
Positions: SA: handled through the ANZAN South Australia subcommittee; per-state first-year position count not published
Worth knowing: A compact training footprint anchored by the Adelaide teaching hospitals; published reports describe long public neurology outpatient waits, underscoring workforce pressure.
Links: ANZAN — Recruitment of Trainees.
WA
Who runs selection: Neurology Advanced Training selection runs through the ANZAN Western Australia subcommittee under the national MATCH.
Where to apply: ANZAN Western Australia subcommittee (national MATCH) — application portal.
Positions: WA: handled through the ANZAN Western Australia subcommittee; per-state first-year position count not published
Worth knowing: Entry to BPT networks generally requires first securing employment at a network hospital; neurology selection itself is national through ANZAN.
Links: ANZAN — Recruitment of Trainees.
Other states & territories
Tasmania selects through the ANZAN Victoria/Tasmania subcommittee and the ACT through the ANZAN NSW/ACT subcommittee — the same national MATCH and CV/interview weighting as their partner state — so trainees there rotate with the larger neighbour. The Northern Territory has a very small footprint and relies on interstate rotations. See the ANZAN recruitment page for current detail.
How to optimise your application
- Prepare hard for the structured interview (tied to Interview (65%), start pre-match) — The interview is the single largest component at 65% of the mark — practise structured, case-based and motivational answers, because it outweighs the CV.
- Build the CV around the published 14 criteria (tied to Curriculum vitae (35%), start PGY2 onwards) — The CV is scored on specific items — a neuroscience PhD, a neurology elective year, first-author papers, presentations, prizes, teaching, leadership and regional work — so target those deliberately and early.
- Line up three strong consultant referees (tied to References, start BPT / post-exam) — Three consultant-physician referees (ideally at least one neurologist) who supervised you for ≥3 months in the past two years submit a standardised form — sustained neurology terms let you field strong, relevant referees.
- Pass the Divisional exams and clear 55/100 (tied to Eligibility gate, start during BPT) — Both Divisional exams must be passed and you must reach the minimum 55/100 ANZAN score to enter the match — a first-time exam pass keeps you on timeline and frees time to build the CV and prepare for interview.
Key documents & official links
- RACP — Neurology Advanced Training
- ANZAN — Recruitment of Trainees (national MATCH rubric)
- ANZAN — Accreditation of Neurophysiology Training
- RACP — Divisional Written Examination (past results)
- RACP — Divisional Clinical Examination
- CCINR — Conjoint Committee for Recognition of Training in Interventional Neuroradiology
- RACP — Standard Specialist Assessment Pathway (IMGs)
FAQ
Is neurology hard to get into?
How long does training take?
How is neurology selection different from other physician subspecialties?
Are there logbook or procedure minimums?
How much do neurologists earn?
Trained overseas? (IMG pathway)
How overseas-trained neurology doctors get recognised
Overseas-trained neurologists are assessed by the RACP under the Standard Specialist Assessment Pathway for comparability to an Australian-trained neurologist, within the Medical Board's specialist pathway. Substantially comparable applicants complete up to 12 months of peer review (supervised practice at the level of a first-year consultant); partially comparable applicants complete up to 24 months total of supervised practice including any further training and assessments. An Accelerated Specialist Pathway offers a faster, paper-based route for applicants with an eligible qualification and consultant experience from the United Kingdom (CCT/CCST), Ireland (CSCST), Hong Kong (FHKAM and FHKCP), India (MD plus DM) and Sri Lanka (PGIM Adult Medicine). The RACP does not credit overseas-based training toward the Australian neurology Advanced Training program — IMGs complete designated supervised practice, not Advanced Training credit.
See the RACP — Standard Specialist Assessment Pathway and our IMG internship guide.
Related specialties
Last reviewed 2026-06-09.