Guideline on ST3 in medicine
A training ST3 post is considered to be one of the most difficult stages in a doctors career in the NHS. However, with proper planning and experience, ST3 can be an amazing experience.
Go through the official guideline here:
http://www.st3recruitment.org.uk
Here are some frequently asked questions:
What is ST3?
This is a registrar post.
Please go through the training structure here:
https://naseersjourney.com/2017/03/12/training-structure-in-the-uk/
What are the different specialties?
http://www.st3recruitment.org.uk/specialties/overview
These are so many! How do I choose what I want to do?
This is something you need to decide based on your personal experience rather than someone else telling you. This rule applies to everything in life- be it your career, a specific car, a specific airline, house you wish to buy, etc.
How do I get that personal experience?
By working in that specialty for at least a few months. Yes, you can always do taster sessions but sometimes a one week experience is difficult to decide about what you want to specialize in - it can help narrow down the options though.
My advice is to work in that specialty as part of your rotations as a SHO to get a better idea.
What are the different ways of getting into ST3?
For foreign medical graduates who are not a UK/EU citizen
You can work as a non trainee SHO, give your MRCP 1, 2 and PACES and then apply for ST3
Is it advisable to apply to different specialties?
Yes- absolutely. You never know what the competition ratios would be like or if you decide to do something else.
But you said that the portfolio should reflect the specialty you are interested in.
Your core medical competencies form (If you have applied after a trust grade job) or e portfolio curriculum (if you are doing IMT) will reflect that you are competent in most basic procedures expected from a registrar at the start of their training.
Basically your core competencies / IMT portfolio is already geared you up to apply for acute medicine so that is always a back up option.
I have not been able to get a ST3 post in the specialty I want to go into.
Do not worry. You can start working in the ST3 post of the specialty you have been selected for, like acute medicine. And then build your portfolio and CV and then apply in round 1 of the ST3 post of the specialty of choice.
I know a registrar who started working in acute medicine and he got a post in ST3 cardiology after strengthening his portfolio and gaining more experience in cardiology (in acute medicine, you rotate in different specialties and he chose cardiology as his first rotation).
So all is not lost if I do not get into a specialty of my choice?
Yes- that is correct. You just need to know what to do and not lose hope. If you get nervous and panic, you cannot think straight. However when you think rationally you get a solution and can easily work towards it.
What if I do not want to do ST3?
You can give PACES and work as a non trainee registrar. You will not be bound and can choose flexible working hours. You can also consider less than full time ST3 training as mentioned here:
https://heeoe.hee.nhs.uk/recruitment_ltft_faqs
I have heard that ST3 quite daunting and difficult.
This depends on your mindset. People will tell you a lot of stuff about how difficult and stressful it is, but I am sure you heard the same before you applied for medical school or decided to take this field as your profession. My advice to you is observe everything and decide yourself. No one can tell you what is best for you and it will be unfair if you do this to yourself.
Also read the relevant posts here:
http://omarsguidelines.blogspot.com/
Go through the official guideline here:
http://www.st3recruitment.org.uk
Here are some frequently asked questions:
What is ST3?
This is a registrar post.
Please go through the training structure here:
https://naseersjourney.com/2017/03/12/training-structure-in-the-uk/
What are the different specialties?
http://www.st3recruitment.org.uk/specialties/overview
These are so many! How do I choose what I want to do?
This is something you need to decide based on your personal experience rather than someone else telling you. This rule applies to everything in life- be it your career, a specific car, a specific airline, house you wish to buy, etc.
How do I get that personal experience?
By working in that specialty for at least a few months. Yes, you can always do taster sessions but sometimes a one week experience is difficult to decide about what you want to specialize in - it can help narrow down the options though.
My advice is to work in that specialty as part of your rotations as a SHO to get a better idea.
What are the different ways of getting into ST3?
For foreign medical graduates who are not a UK/EU citizen
You can work as a non trainee SHO, give your MRCP 1, 2 and PACES and then apply for ST3
OR
You can apply for IMT , give your MRCP 1,2 PACES (during/before IMT) and then apply for ST3.
What is the best option for me?
There is no best option - everyone has their own experiences.
I personally worked as a trust grade SHO, gave my MRCP 2, applied for core medical training after 18 months and will apply for ST3 in round 1 in 2019.
A colleague gave his MRCP 1,2, PACES during his trust grade SHO post and applied for a renal ST3 post in round 1 clearing and got a very good post in a renal center.
How should I decide what to do?
It depends on your confidence level. I personally did not feel ready for ST3 18 months into my trust grade SHO post therefore I decided to go for core medical training. I have no regrets as this allowed me to:
- Decide which region I want to work in ( which is Yorkshire rather than near London).
- Decide what I wanted to specialize in. I had only experienced cardiology, rheumatology, elderly care in my trust grade SHO post. I will be rotated in respiratory, stroke, elderly, renal, gastro and neurology in my core medical training.
- Spend more time as a SHO and polish my skills further.
I have decided to go for a particular specialty for ST3 training. What should I do?
Search for that particular specialty's details here:
http://www.st3recruitment.org.uk/specialties/overview
What is the best option for me?
There is no best option - everyone has their own experiences.
I personally worked as a trust grade SHO, gave my MRCP 2, applied for core medical training after 18 months and will apply for ST3 in round 1 in 2019.
A colleague gave his MRCP 1,2, PACES during his trust grade SHO post and applied for a renal ST3 post in round 1 clearing and got a very good post in a renal center.
How should I decide what to do?
It depends on your confidence level. I personally did not feel ready for ST3 18 months into my trust grade SHO post therefore I decided to go for core medical training. I have no regrets as this allowed me to:
- Decide which region I want to work in ( which is Yorkshire rather than near London).
- Decide what I wanted to specialize in. I had only experienced cardiology, rheumatology, elderly care in my trust grade SHO post. I will be rotated in respiratory, stroke, elderly, renal, gastro and neurology in my core medical training.
- Spend more time as a SHO and polish my skills further.
I have decided to go for a particular specialty for ST3 training. What should I do?
Search for that particular specialty's details here:
http://www.st3recruitment.org.uk/specialties/overview
Have a look at the requirements, criteria and try to meet everything. Talk to registrars working in that specialty and do everything a registrar is expected to do when you rotate in that specialty.
Attend conferences related to it and show that you are interested in this specialty by uploading relevant documents to your e portfolio.
Observe the complex procedures and attend clinics.
There is so much you can do to strengthen your portfolio.
But I have seen that there are so many vacancies. I do not need to worry about anything then.
Yes, you may get the ST3 post easily if the specialty you are going for is not very competitive but it is very important to realize that you will be a registrar on your first day. You will be expected to do clinics, specialty specific procedures, ward rounds and make decisions. Of course, you will have your consultant to guide you but you need to be fully comfortable and confident with this.
But this is the main purpose of ST3 training - to train me in that specialty rather than me knowing everything in detail beforehand.
Yes, you are absolutely correct. Here is an example: If you are a respiratory registrar and have just started and there is a patient with pleural effusion which the consultant wants you to drain, you should be able to do an ultrasound, identify the effusion and be able to drain it using the rocket kit.
For this, you need to attend respiratory ultrasound courses, do pleural taps, insert drains during your core medical training. This will not only prove show the interviewing committee that your portfolio shows that you are committed to your specialty but make you a confident registrar on your first day.
If I do not know these procedures, will my consultant be willing to teach me?
Yes. Of course! Plus you will always have a more senior registrar with more experience who can help you as well. But why wait for that when you can easily do all of these as a SHO under supervision.
So it is not the end of the world if I do not know much about procedures then?
No it is not. However you will get ample opportunities to do procedures in your rotations so try your best to take full advantage of that.
Can we apply for more than one ST3 specialty?
Yes you can. Please read this:
"You can make as many applications as you wish to different specialties, providing you meet all the eligibility criteria and required competences of the post(s) as detailed in the person specification.
Applicants are advised to consider the high level of competition for some specialties and geographies."
https://specialtytraining.hee.nhs.uk/Recruitment/Application-guidance
Observe the complex procedures and attend clinics.
There is so much you can do to strengthen your portfolio.
But I have seen that there are so many vacancies. I do not need to worry about anything then.
Yes, you may get the ST3 post easily if the specialty you are going for is not very competitive but it is very important to realize that you will be a registrar on your first day. You will be expected to do clinics, specialty specific procedures, ward rounds and make decisions. Of course, you will have your consultant to guide you but you need to be fully comfortable and confident with this.
But this is the main purpose of ST3 training - to train me in that specialty rather than me knowing everything in detail beforehand.
Yes, you are absolutely correct. Here is an example: If you are a respiratory registrar and have just started and there is a patient with pleural effusion which the consultant wants you to drain, you should be able to do an ultrasound, identify the effusion and be able to drain it using the rocket kit.
For this, you need to attend respiratory ultrasound courses, do pleural taps, insert drains during your core medical training. This will not only prove show the interviewing committee that your portfolio shows that you are committed to your specialty but make you a confident registrar on your first day.
If I do not know these procedures, will my consultant be willing to teach me?
Yes. Of course! Plus you will always have a more senior registrar with more experience who can help you as well. But why wait for that when you can easily do all of these as a SHO under supervision.
So it is not the end of the world if I do not know much about procedures then?
No it is not. However you will get ample opportunities to do procedures in your rotations so try your best to take full advantage of that.
Can we apply for more than one ST3 specialty?
Yes you can. Please read this:
"You can make as many applications as you wish to different specialties, providing you meet all the eligibility criteria and required competences of the post(s) as detailed in the person specification.
Applicants are advised to consider the high level of competition for some specialties and geographies."
https://specialtytraining.hee.nhs.uk/Recruitment/Application-guidance
Is it advisable to apply to different specialties?
Yes- absolutely. You never know what the competition ratios would be like or if you decide to do something else.
But you said that the portfolio should reflect the specialty you are interested in.
Your core medical competencies form (If you have applied after a trust grade job) or e portfolio curriculum (if you are doing IMT) will reflect that you are competent in most basic procedures expected from a registrar at the start of their training.
Basically your core competencies / IMT portfolio is already geared you up to apply for acute medicine so that is always a back up option.
I have not been able to get a ST3 post in the specialty I want to go into.
Do not worry. You can start working in the ST3 post of the specialty you have been selected for, like acute medicine. And then build your portfolio and CV and then apply in round 1 of the ST3 post of the specialty of choice.
I know a registrar who started working in acute medicine and he got a post in ST3 cardiology after strengthening his portfolio and gaining more experience in cardiology (in acute medicine, you rotate in different specialties and he chose cardiology as his first rotation).
So all is not lost if I do not get into a specialty of my choice?
Yes- that is correct. You just need to know what to do and not lose hope. If you get nervous and panic, you cannot think straight. However when you think rationally you get a solution and can easily work towards it.
What if I do not want to do ST3?
You can give PACES and work as a non trainee registrar. You will not be bound and can choose flexible working hours. You can also consider less than full time ST3 training as mentioned here:
https://heeoe.hee.nhs.uk/recruitment_ltft_faqs
It all depends on you.
I have heard that ST3 quite daunting and difficult.
This depends on your mindset. People will tell you a lot of stuff about how difficult and stressful it is, but I am sure you heard the same before you applied for medical school or decided to take this field as your profession. My advice to you is observe everything and decide yourself. No one can tell you what is best for you and it will be unfair if you do this to yourself.
Also read the relevant posts here:
http://omarsguidelines.blogspot.com/
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