Core competence
This will depend upon your current status and level of training; trainees with different experience will be required to give different evidence.
The application form will guide you on this, but please also visit the core capability page of this website for more information.
Please note - if you are not currently on, or have not previously completed, a pre-HST UK training programme which is valid for the specialty to which you are applying, you will likely be required to submit a completed 'Alternative Certificate' as evidence of your core competence.
Information on this can also be found on the core capability page of this website; with further guidance and the certificate itself available to be downloaded from the document library.
The short answer is no.
You must only submit one completed form; this must be the 2024 version of the alternative certificate for 2024 recruitment. You must have all capabilities as demonstrated on a single form, it is not permissible to submit multiple versions to demonstrate a complete set of capabilities. It is possible for signatories to use evidence from witnesses for capabilities that they have not personally observed. Signatories may receive alternative evidence they know to be reliable from a colleague (if the colleague is a trainee, they must be working satisfactorily as a senior trainee).
If you have an outdated version of the form, you will need to get the most current version of the form fully completed for it to be accepted; the certificate can be downloaded from the Document Library.
MRCP(UK)/alternative
After relaxation of the rules caused by the pandemic, all specialties in 2024 recruitment require you to have the full MRCP(UK) in order to take up a post. The deadline to have gained the full MRCP(UK) diploma is the first offers deadline for the round: 18 April 2024 for Round 1 and 22 October 2024 for Round 2.
Please note - alternative examinations or training can be accepted instead of the MRCP(UK) in some circumstances, please see the MRCP(UK) page of this website for more information.
Candidates who have gained the necessary core capability can apply to HST and progress through the recruitment process.
Provided that your ARCP outcome evidences that you completed the programme except for the MRCP(UK), this can be used as evidence of achievement of capability and should be attached to your form; this will generally be an ARCP outcome 3 or 4.
You can then separately demonstrate completion of the MRCP(UK), although please note that you will need to have gained Part 1 by the time you come to apply to HST. The rules for the completion of subsequent parts can be found on the MRCP(UK) section of the website.
After relaxation of the rules caused by the pandemic, all specialties in 2024 recruitment require you to have the full MRCP(UK) in order to take up a post. The deadline to have gained the full MRCP(UK) diploma is the first offers deadline for the round: 18 April 2024 for Round 1 and 22 October 2024 for Round 2.
Part 2/PACES re-sit
The first option to consider would be re-sitting the examination for the relevant part(s) of the diploma. Application, examination and results dates can be found on the MRCP(UK) website.
LAS recruitment
One further option that may be open in some cases is that of recruitment to LAS (Locum Appointment for Service) posts.
Some regions may wish to recruit to LAS posts to meet service requirements while recruitment to HST posts is going on; and unlike NTN and LAT posts, LAS posts do not require trainees to meet the full eligibility requirements as set out in the relevant person specification .
For more information, please contact the region(s) at which you are interested in working directly for this - contact details can be found on the region contacts page of this website.
UK IMT/ACCS-IM applicants
As well as an 'entry requirement' for HST post, for candidates undertaking UK IMT or ACCS-IM programmes, gaining the full MRCP(UK) diploma is an 'exit requirement' - i.e. they cannot formally complete the programme until they have gained the full diploma.
As such, candidates who will not pass the full MRCP(UK) diploma prior to the completion of their IMT/ACCS programme should contact their current region or programme director to ask for further advice; in some circumstances, you may be eligible to apply for additional training time.
Some specialties accept candidates from alternative training routes (e.g. paediatrics or general practice).
The requirements for when these examinations must be completed will be confirmed on the person specification for that specialty. The timing is usually the same as for the MRCP(UK) but please check as it is important to be aware of the requirements before you apply. It must be possible to pass outstanding examinations before the deadline given for that round; in some rounds the dates of examinations and when results are released may mean that it will not be possible to be eligible without prior completion of the examination.
Please review the relevant specialty page and person specification for more information.
Released/relinquished a post
You can, however, your application will need to be supported by a form signed by both the Training Programme Director / Head of School and the Postgraduate Dean in the region that the training took place. The form can be downloaded from the Specialty Training website (called 'Exclusion Policy Support Form').
The person specification states that this should be in 'exceptional circumstances', which: 'may be defined as a demonstrated change in circumstances, which can be shown on the ability to train at that time and may include severe personal illness or family caring responsibility incompatible with continuing to train.'
Please note that this policy applies when you have previously been released or relinquished a post in either of:
- the specialty to which you are reapplying
- general internal medicine for Group 1 specialties - if you are applying for a Group 1 specialty, which all dual accredit with GIM, and had previously been in a training programme including GIM, this would qualify
- a related core programme - this refers to IMT, core medical training, or ACCS acute/internal medicine for all specialties, and specialties which accept trainees from other pathways could include other specialties such as paediatrics, general practice etc.
The experience section of the website has more detail about this requirement.
In short, no. In general, you would only be considered to have relinquished, been released or removed from a post if you had formally taken up and begun the higher specialty training post and then departed from it at a later date; if you have undertaken a LAT post, this does not count for this criterion.
If you applied to HST previously, and then:
-
withdrew your application
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progressed through the recruitment process before declining a post offer
-
accepted a post offer, then withdrew prior to starting the post
You would not be considered as having relinquished/been removed from/released from a post in the manner described in the person specification.
UK eligibility
From 6 October 2019, all medical practitioners have been added to the Shortage Occupation List in the UK. This means that all medical practitioners are exempt from the Resident Labour Market Test (RLMT) and can apply for any specialty in any recruitment round, subject to eligibility. Applications from candidates requiring a visa will be considered on an equal basis with those who do not.