India’s top-performing medical graduates are signaling a major shift in career priorities in this year’s NEET-PG counselling, where stability and a predictable work-life balance are increasingly outweighing the traditional appeal of surgical fields. In the first round of NEET-PG 2025, general medicine and radiology dominated the preferences of high-ranking candidates, while general surgery recorded one of its steepest declines in recent years. This shift reflects growing concerns about stressful working conditions, long training periods, and rising medico-legal pressures associated with surgical practice.
Among the top 1,500 candidates, 632 students (42%) opted for MD General Medicine, reaffirming its standing as a gateway to numerous superspecialties. Radiodiagnosis closely followed, attracting 447 candidates (30%), aligned with its perception as a field offering more structured hours…
