The National Undergraduate Neuroanatomy Competition 2022

On Saturday 9th July 2022, the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Southampton, in association with The Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland, hosted the tenth annual National Undergraduate Neuroanatomy Competition (NUNC).

Seventy-five students from across the UK and Ireland attended the one-day conference designed to inspire and enhance the skills of budding neurologists and neuroscientists, with fifty-eight attempting the challenging NUNC 2022 examination. Given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing requirements, NUNC 2022 was hosted virtually via Zoom.

Delegates sat a 2-hour examination containing a mix of multiple-choice and neuroanatomy spotter questions via a bespoke online examination platform. Delegates were invigilated using proctoring software to ensure the integrity of the competition was maintained. The overall winners for the day were Anca-Mihaela Vasilica (Pre-Clinical winner from University College London) and Jeremi Chabros (Clinical winner from the University of Cambridge). We were honoured to have talks from distinguished guest speakers, Mr Kevin Tsang (Consultant Neurosurgeon, Imperial College Healthcare NHS FT) and Mr Alistair Jenkins (Consultant Neurosurgeon, Newcastle Hospitals NHS FT).

This year’s event was led by fourth-year BM5 medical student Calvin De Louche, who was ably assisted by James Harrison and a wider dedicated team of students, faculty staff and clinicians. Given the unique challenges facing NUNC 2022, the NUNC team were able to adapt and deliver a successful tenth (and second virtual) competition which was received well by delegates. The NUNC team would like to thank everyone who supported and helped the event succeed, particularly the Centre for Learning Anatomical Sciences, the Anatomical Society (main sponsors), the Medical Defence Union, the British Medical Association and the Society of Radiologists in Training (secondary sponsors).

And so, just like that, the end of another NUNC cycle is reached, with this year's event proving to be every bit as successful for all involved. All eyes now turn to next year’s competition and a highly anticipated return to in-person running. For now, the dedicated NUNC team slip back into a phase of continuous planning and preparation, ready to build up and roar back into life at the eleventh installation of the competition in 2023.