Changes in the interview process for 2021/22
Obviously, the biggest change is that interviews will be conducted online using Microsoft Teams platform and approximately 1,100 candidates will be interviewed.
Previously, all applicants attended a single national interview and were eligible to preference all available posts at all participating deaneries. Historically, candidates would apply for a specific deanery and could have had more than one interview in different areas. This makes it key to get it right on the day!
This change made it even more important to reflect your true capabilities at your interview. Many applicants in previous years would use one of their interviews as a 'dry run' before their first choice UoA. Clearly this was no longer be possible (and is unlikely to be possible in coming years), but with careful preparation of your portfolio and practice of interview skills, you can make sure that you perform on the day.
Improving Surgical Training (IST)
The Royal College of Surgeons is working with Health Education England (HEE) to pilot new competence-based, run through surgical training programmes in a number of surgical specialties. The pilot trials improvements in the quality of training, a better balance between service and training for trainees, and professionalisation of the role of the surgical trainers. It also seeks to develop members of the team from other professional backgrounds to work alongside surgical trainees to improve patient care.
The pilot training programme for general surgery commenced in August 2018, the pilot expanded to include urology and vascular surgery from 2019, and then trauma and orthopaedic surgery from 2020.
Applications for both IST and traditional core surgical training (CST) posts are made through Oriel. Offers will be made on the basis of preferences and scores achieved at interview. For more information, please see https://www.rcseng.ac.uk/careers-in-surgery/trainees/ist/ist-faq/
The implementation of Oriel was the first time that all medical and dental specialty recruitment had been delivered successfully through a single recruitment system.
The benefits this system offers to applicants includes but is not limited to:
Previously, all applicants attended a single national interview and were eligible to preference all available posts at all participating deaneries. Historically, candidates would apply for a specific deanery and could have had more than one interview in different areas. This makes it key to get it right on the day!
This change made it even more important to reflect your true capabilities at your interview. Many applicants in previous years would use one of their interviews as a 'dry run' before their first choice UoA. Clearly this was no longer be possible (and is unlikely to be possible in coming years), but with careful preparation of your portfolio and practice of interview skills, you can make sure that you perform on the day.
Improving Surgical Training (IST)
The Royal College of Surgeons is working with Health Education England (HEE) to pilot new competence-based, run through surgical training programmes in a number of surgical specialties. The pilot trials improvements in the quality of training, a better balance between service and training for trainees, and professionalisation of the role of the surgical trainers. It also seeks to develop members of the team from other professional backgrounds to work alongside surgical trainees to improve patient care.
The pilot training programme for general surgery commenced in August 2018, the pilot expanded to include urology and vascular surgery from 2019, and then trauma and orthopaedic surgery from 2020.
Applications for both IST and traditional core surgical training (CST) posts are made through Oriel. Offers will be made on the basis of preferences and scores achieved at interview. For more information, please see https://www.rcseng.ac.uk/careers-in-surgery/trainees/ist/ist-faq/
The implementation of Oriel was the first time that all medical and dental specialty recruitment had been delivered successfully through a single recruitment system.
The benefits this system offers to applicants includes but is not limited to:
- A single registration process; applicants only need one log in for the entire recruitment year and only need to enter certain parts of the application form once
- A site that lists all vacancies and enables applicants to apply to any specialty in one place
- The ability to book and manage interviews and assessment centres within one location
- Applicants have their own profile and status updates for each specialty they have applied to; meaning they can see when they have been longlisted, shortlisted, invited to interview or offered a post