The Department of Neurological Surgery at Weill Cornell Medicine is proud to celebrate Match Day 2026 and welcome Neerav Kumar and Robert Oris to our residency program! Selected from a national pool of more than 300 applicants! Neerav and RJ previously completed sub‑internships with the department, where their professionalism, work ethic and clinical maturity made a strong impression on our faculty and trainees.
Jeffrey Greenfield, MD, PhD
This year’s match is especially meaningful as the incoming residents join the program under the leadership of Residency Program Director Dr. Jeffrey Greenfield and Associate Program Director Dr. Ibrahim Hussain, both of whom played key roles in shaping this year’s highly competitive match process and vision for the next generation of neurosurgical training.
A Class Poised to Contribute From Day One
“Our faculty and residents were deeply impressed with both incoming trainees during their sub‑internships,” said Dr. Jeffrey Greenfield, Residency Program Director. “Their work ethic, reliability and fund of knowledge set them apart from an already stellar applicant pool. I expect them to bring that same energy on day one as they contribute to the excellent patient care we provide at Weill Cornell and NewYork-Presbyterian. They stood out not just for their accomplishments and intellect, but for their humanity, integrity and curiosity,” he said. “We are confident they will thrive in our nationally recognized residency and also help shape it for the better. Welcome to our family.”
Meet the Incoming Residents
Neerav Kumar, a graduate of Princeton University (summa cum laude) and Weill Cornell Medicine, brings a strong foundation in molecular neuroscience and gene therapy research, including work in the Molecular Neurosurgery Research Lab focused on viral approaches to restoring neuronal function in Parkinson’s disease.
Robert “RJ” Oris, a graduate of Brown University and then Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, served as a lead clinical research fellow in spine surgery at the Rothman Orthopaedic Institute, where he oversaw research teams, contributed to numerous publications and presented nationally.
Training Under New Leadership
This year’s residents are the first to train under Department Chair Dr. J Mocco and Program Director Dr. Greenfield, marking the beginning of a new chapter for the residency program. With expanding faculty in cerebrovascular neurosurgery, neurosurgical oncology and complex spine surgery, trainees will benefit from increased subspecialty depth and new opportunities across the clinical and research spectrum.
“They are joining the residency at a transformative time,” said Dr. Hussain. “They will benefit from a new generation of world‑class cerebrovascular surgeons, neurosurgical oncologists and complex spine surgeons joining our faculty.”
Ibrahim Hussain, MD
A Training Program Evolving With the Field
As neurosurgery rapidly advances through artificial intelligence, robotics, augmented imaging and data‑driven diagnostics, the residency program continues to update its curriculum to prepare trainees for the next era of the field.
“One of the most exciting aspects of this class is that both incoming residents have already engaged in areas such as AI, big‑data analysis and personalized medicine,” Dr. Hussain noted. “They have published in these areas, and we look forward to guiding them through residency with these innovations in mind.”
Residents will also have access to cross‑campus collaborations with Cornell Tech, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Cornell Biomedical Engineering, and Rockefeller University, creating an ecosystem where translational discovery and interdisciplinary research are integral to training.
Looking Ahead
Match Day represents the beginning of a transformative journey for each new resident. As Weill Cornell Neurosurgery expands its clinical programs, strengthens its research enterprise and embraces the future of technological innovation, the department is excited to welcome a class whose skills, curiosity and values align with its mission.
We congratulate Neerav Kumar and Robert Oris on joining the Weill Cornell Medicine Neurosurgery Residency Program and look forward to the impact they will make on our patients, our department and the future of neurosurgical care.