It is currently an excellent time to consider a career in neurology.
The specialty is extremely varied and a growth area due breakthrough advances in research and the increasing demand for neurologists both acutely (liaison neurology, acute stroke) and in the management of chronic neurological disorders.
Neurology - trainee characteristics
Neurology is a broad specialty in which trainees will work independently and within an MDT to see patients with acute and chronic problems. It will suit trainees who:
- are good communicators and have good clinical skills
- are problem solvers with an interest in clinically relevant neuroscience
- are team players but able to work with a measure of independence
Training in an ST3 neurology post
The specialty of Neurology has changed dramatically in the last few years. Advances in neuroimaging and molecular biology and the emergence of effective therapies has improved the management of many conditions including stroke, epilepsy, peripheral neuropathy, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease. Ground-breaking treatments are transforming neurological outcomes, for example antisense oligonucleotides in previously untreatable conditions such as Huntington’s Disease, and mechanical thrombectomy for patients with large-vessel ischaemic stroke.
Training in neurology consists of five years, one of which - if combined with enough clinical activity - may be relevant research. Usually the training is based around regional neuroscience centres with rotation to other neurology units, including district general hospitals. Training, education and assessment are delivered by local deaneries following a GMC-approved curriculum developed by the Specialist Advisory Committee in conjunction with all stakeholders, including the Education committee of the Association of British Neurologists, and the Association of British Neurologists Trainees committee.
Research opportunities
There are plenty of opportunities for research, and many trainees undertake a period of research towards a higher degree as part of their neurological training (as an out-of-programme activity) to obtain an MD or PhD.
Neurology in demand
Recently there has been an increase in the number of consultant neurologists and it is likely that new posts will continue to be developed despite the current financial climate in the NHS, such is the demand for specialist neurological care. Most district general hospitals will require several neurologists in order to deal with GP referrals, inpatient referrals, and ward care.
Furthermore, the National Stroke Strategy has increased the need for specialists, including neurologists, with an expertise in the care of patients with cerebrovascular disease, and all neurologists who train according to the new curriculum will be eligible to apply for posts which involve stroke medicine.
Medical Care
Find out more about neurology and the services delivered by the specialty on Medical Care – the RCP’s online guide to service design.
Neurology and Shape of Training
In the next two years there are very important changes happening in neurology training although it will continue to be a five-year programme.
Trainees starting their training in August 2022 will follow a new curriculum. They will dual accredit in Neurology and Internal Medicine, and obtain sub-specialty training in Stroke Medicine, during their five-year training programme.
Currently (2020), entry into neurology training is possible following successful completion of a Foundation Programme followed by a Core Medical Training programme (Core Medical Training (CMT) or Acute Care Common Stem - Acute Medicine (ACCS-AM)), with full MRCP. This route of recruitment will continue to be the case in Round 1, February 2021 for posts starting in August 2021, but these trainees will have to change to the new curriculum before 2024.
Trainees who started - or start - training before August 2021 can remain on the current curriculum (2010), and although it will not be compulsory to transfer to the new curriculum they will be encouraged to do so. The GMC would like all trainees to be on the new curriculum by 2024, but there will clearly be exemptions from this.
In 2022, applications for specialty training will be for posts starting (August 2022) at ST4 level, for trainees who have completed three years of Internal Medicine Training (IMT1-3). From 2021 trainees who have completed Foundation and Core Medical Training will be eligible to apply for an IM3 year, starting in August 2021 (or later), and will then be eligible to apply to specialty training in 2022 (or later).
Further information
General / application queries
For general queries relating to areas such as eligibility criteria, making an application or the Oriel system, please contact the Physician Specialty Recruitment Office.
Queries regarding the progress of a submitted application should be directed to the lead recruiter for this specialty. The lead recruiter for neurology in 2021 is Thames Valley.
| Health Education Thames Valley | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Postal address |
Health Education England – Thames Valley |
|||||
| email address | [email protected] | |||||
| website | https://www.hee.nhs.uk/hee-your-area/thames-valley | |||||
Eligibility
This specialty uses the standard ST3 eligibility criteria, and does not accept candidates from any alternative training routes.
Please visit the am I eligible? section of this website for further information.
Please note that due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation, certain recruitment processes have been affected for round 2 ST3 PSRO-coordinated specialties. As a result, the below information on this page is not applicable for this round only and should not be used where the process has changed. Please refer to the applicant guide for the latest information about how round 2 will operate.
Further guidance about the scoring format of interviews will be published to each specialty page and we hope to have this updated by application closing date. Please visit the specialty pages closer to the time for updated information.
Interview content
You will spend approximately 10 minutes at each of the three interview stations, with three-to-five minutes' transfer time between each. Thus the overall time for the interview will be approximately 40-45 minutes.
Click on the relevant stations below for more information on the content of the interview.
Please note that this is subject to change, and will be confirmed by the date of interview.
This is where your application form and training to date will be reviewed. This will include checking the documentation you have brought along to ensure all content on your application form is correct.
Evidence checking
Normally your evidence folder will have been reviewed by the interviewers immediately prior to your arrival in the station. They will be:
• Checking that your achievements in your evidence folder match that claimed on your application form.
• Considering your career progression to date.
• Identifying areas about which they may wish to question you during the interview.
Areas for assessment
The two main aspects of discussion here, on which you will be assessed, will be your suitability for and commitment to ST3 training in the specialty, and your achievements and engagement with training and learning to date.
Scoring at the station
It is important to recognise that the scores awarded to you at this station will not purely be about your achievements, as this already contributes towards the scoring via your application form. Interviewers will be deciding upon scores via a combination of factors, for example: your responses to the questions asked, the breadth and quality of your achievements and your career progression.
Prior to arriving at station 2 you will be given a clinical scenario to review. Upon arrival at the station you will be asked questions relating to this scenario.
The clinical scenario will be relatively brief (two/three sentences), so once you have read this, the remainder of the pre-station time will allow you to undertake some short preparation (just mental preparation - this does not mean making notes, etc.)
Scenario considerations
The scenario will describe a hypothetical clinical situation which has arisen in which you are, or have become, involved. Some points to consider when reviewing the scenario and preparing for discussion are:
- what steps you would take
- any potential treatments possible
- any further information you would gather
- how you would go about communicating with any people (eg patients, family members, colleagues) involved in the scenario.
You should take into account any other factors you deem appropriate, using your experience and professional judgement.
Areas for assessment
One mark will be awarded to you based on your suggestions and responses to the clinical scenario. The second mark will be on the communication skills you display.
This will be both an assessment of how you would communicate with patients, colleagues, etc. in the scenario, as well as of how well you communicate with interviewers at the station
At this station, you will be asked to give a presentation, which you are expected to prepare in advance on a given subject (see below). This will then be followed by a discussion on professionalism & governance.
The station will be divided into three parts - three minutes for your presentation and a further two for discussion of it (both of which will feed into the first assessment area here); followed by a five minute discussion of professionalism and governance.
Presentation
Upon arrival at station 3, you will need to give a presentation on the following topic, for no more than three minutes:
'An interesting case I have been involved in/a case that has changed my practice'
When preparing your presentation, please bear in mind the points below:
- Clarity & relevance most important - Select a topic that is relevant to neurology, and which you can present with clarity. This is more important than trying to impress by choosing a subject that is esoteric or complex. It should be relevant to your application where possible.
- No aids/resources provided - There will be no projectors or laptops for PowerPoint, no OHPs, flip-charts, etc. You are welcome to use prompts on small cards, but these should be for your own use only, and should not be given out as hand-outs.
- Three minute time limit - Your presentation must last for no more than three minutes. Please note that you will be stopped after three minutes so as to allow further discussion to take place, so try and get your main points across before then. At the same time, bear in mind that interviewers will be assessing the level, depth and content of your presentation, as well as expecting some structure.
Interview nerves will also be taken into consideration.
Post-presentation discussion
Once your presentation is finished (interviewers will stop you at the three minute-mark), interviewers will discuss it with you and ask further questions relating to the items you raised, plus any further points.
This discussion will take place for (approximately) another two minutes.
Professionalism & governance
Following the presentation will be a discussion of professionalism and governance. This discussion will be prompted by a short question (often a single sentence) provided by interviewers. This will not be given to you before arriving at the station - this will be given verbally by interviewers once the presentation is finished.
This section of the interview is designed to assess your demonstration and understanding of professionalism and governance in a given situation.
Familiarise yourself with Good Medical Practice
Please note - assessment of professionalism & governance is underpinned by the principles of GMC Good Medical Practice.
Interview scoring
Appointable - automatic
If you are awarded a score of at least 3/5, for all marks given to you at your interview, then you will automatically be classed as appointable.
If your 12 interview scores contain one or two marks of 2/5 (and the rest 3/5 or above), and you receive a total raw interview score of 36 or above, then you will automatically be classed as appointable.
Not appointable - automatic
If any of the 12 scores awarded to you at interview are 1/5, this will reflect poor performance and an area of major concern.
If three or more of your 12 interview scores are of 2/5, this will reflect several areas of concern across your whole interview.
Should your interview assessment falls under either category above, the level of concern over your potential progression to ST3 will see your application classed automatically as not appointable .
Total score calculation
After interview, a weighting is applied to the scores in each area, as well as the application form score, to give a 'total score'. This score determines your ranking which is used to inform how offers are made. The weighting of different sections, as well as the method by which your total score is established, can be seen by clicking on 'Total score calculation' below.
Please note that this is subject to change, and will be confirmed by the date of interview.
| Int. 1 | Int. 2 | Weighting | Max score | |
| Station 1 | ||||
| Evidence | / 5 | / 5 | x1.6 | / 16 |
| Suitability for specialty | / 5 | / 5 | x1.2 | / 12 |
| Station 2 | ||||
| Clinical scenario | / 5 | / 5 | x1.6 | / 16 |
| Communication mark | / 5 | / 5 | x0.8 | / 8 |
| Station 3 | ||||
| Presentation | / 5 | / 5 | x1.6 | / 16 |
| Professionalism and governance | / 5 | / 5 | x1.2 | / 12 |
| Raw interview score | / 60 | |||
| Interview score (including weighting) | / 80 | |||
| Short-listing (app form) | / 80 | x0.25 | / 20 | |
| Overall assessment score | / 100 | |||
As part of the process of applying to ST3, you may wish to gain an idea of how recruitment progressed in previous years for the various specialties participating in the nationally-coordinated recruitment.
To this end, we have published data dating back to 2013 (where this is available), based around four main areas:
-
Competition ratios - application numbers submitted to each specialty, along with the number of NTN and LAT posts available in each. It is worth noting that posts are subject to change throughout the round (increasing on average between 20-40%), and post numbers for this data are taken at the end of the round.
-
Shortlist scores - the scores awarded to all submitted applications, including average scores and distribution nationally.
-
Total scores - the total score awarded to all candidates who completed the full recruitment process for a specialty (application and interview), including some analysis of scores.
-
Post fill rates - the number of posts filled by region.
We have published information for all specialties participating in our process that year; consequently not all specialties will have data in all cases.
Round 1
| Year | Apps. | NTN posts | LAT posts | Total posts | Comp. | Unique* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 188 | 46 | 3 | 49 | 3.8 | 59% |
| 2019 | 129 | 44 | 4 | 48 | 2.7 | 61% |
| 2018 | 128 | 46 | 3 | 49 | 2.6 | 49% |
| 2017 | 115 | 42 | 3 | 45 | 2.6 | 65% |
| 2016 | 131 | 42 | 4 | 46 | 3.7 | 62% |
| 2015 | 98 | 34 | 12 | 46 | 2.1 | 67% |
* the percentage of unique candidates that only applied to this specialty (out of the 24 PSRO-coordinated specialties)
Round 2
| Year | Apps. | NTN posts | LAT posts | Total posts | Comp. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 43 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 4.3 |
| 2017 | 39 | 16 | 3 | 19 | 2.1 |
| 2016 | 42 | 13 | 3 | 16 | 2.6 |
| 2015 | 30 | 12 | 8 | 20 | 1.5 |
Indicative post numbers
Indicative vacancy numbers are available in the table below, broken down by region and divided between substantive national training number (NTN) and locum appointment for training (LAT) posts. In many cases these will be presented as a range (e.g. 1-4) as it is not always possible for regions to know at this stage how many vacancies there will be.
It is the intention that indicative post numbers for all regions will be published prior to the application opening date, although this cannot be guaranteed. Please note that this table is not likely to be updated subsequent to indicative numbers and actual numbers will be confirmed when programme preferences are opened later in the round.
Numbers subject to change
Please be aware that it is not uncommon for vacancy numbers to change as the round progresses.
More commonly, post vacancy numbers can increase as the round goes on (and confirmation of posts becomes available); but it is also possible that numbers can reduce as well. In the past, post numbers have risen an average of 20-40% from the start to the finish of the round but this can vary greatly for individual specialty/region combinations.
It is possible that regions which do not have a post at the start of the round may declare one after applications have closed. Whilst we try and minimise instances of this, it is not always possible to predict vacancies so even if there appears not to be a vacancy in your preferred specialty/region combination, you may wish to consider applying in case one becomes available during the round; you can check with the region concerned if you wish to check on the likelihood of a post arising.
Generally, once a region enter a post into a round they would always have at least one post available and would only withdraw it in exceptional circumstances.
Round 1 interview dates & post numbers
| Region | NTN posts | LAT posts* | Evidence upload date(s) | Interview date(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East of England | 2-3 | N/A | 8 January-18 January 2021 |
23 February - 24 February 2021 |
| East Midlands | 1 | N/A | ||
|
London and KSS |
Kent, Surrey & Sussex 0 |
N/A | ||
|
London 0-14 |
N/A | |||
| North East | 0-2 | N/A | ||
| North West |
Mersey 0-3 |
N/A | ||
|
North Western 0-1 |
N/A | |||
| South West |
Peninsula 0-1 |
N/A | ||
|
Severn 0-1 |
N/A | |||
| Thames Valley | 1 | N/A | ||
| Wessex | 1-2 | N/A | ||
| West Midlands | 4-6 | N/A | ||
| Yorkshire & Humber | 0-5 | N/A | ||
| Scotland** | 2 | TBC | ||
| Wales | 0-1 | TBC |
*English LATs
Please note, English regions do not recruit to LAT posts.
**Scotland post numbers
If you are interested in working in Scotland, a breakdown of post numbers by the four Scottish deaneries is available on the Scottish Medical Training website. This has details of all specialty training post numbers in Scotland, including specialties which are not part of the nationally-coordinated process.
Please note that whilst we endeavour to keep the Physician ST3 recruitment website up to date, the SMT website will always be the more accurate one where they differ.
Interview Content
The interview will consist of four question areas which will be between 4-6 minutes each in length. You will be marked on these questions.
Including time for questioning, the interview will be approximately 20 minutes.
Please note that this is subject to change and will be confirmed by the date of interview.
You will need to give a presentation on the following topic, for no more than three minutes:
'An interesting case I have been involved in/a case that has changed my practice'
When preparing your presentation, please bear in mind the points below:
- Clarity & relevance most important - Select a topic that is relevant to neurology, and which you can present with clarity. This is more important than trying to impress by choosing a subject that is esoteric or complex. It should be relevant to your application where possible.
- Three-minute time limit - Your presentation must last for no more than three minutes. Bear in mind that interviewers will be assessing the level, depth and content of your presentation, as well as expecting some structure.
-
No aids/resources allowed – you are not allowed to use any visual representations, such as PowerPoint, when giving your presentation and you must not share your screen. You are welcome to use prompts on small cards, but these should be for your own use only.
Post-presentation discussion
Once your presentation is finished (interviewers will stop you at the three minute-mark), interviewers will discuss it with you and ask further questions relating to the items you raise and any further points.
This discussion will take place for approximately three minutes.
This question will be a discussion of professionalism and governance.
This discussion will be prompted by a short question (often a single sentence) provided by interviewers. This will not be given to you before - this will be given verbally by interviewers once ethical scenario discussion is finished. This question will last approximately 4 minutes.
This section of the interview is designed to assess your demonstration and understanding of professionalism and governance in a given situation.
Familiarise yourself with Good Medical Practice
Please note - assessment of professionalism & governance is underpinned by the principles of GMC Good Medical Practice.
This is where your application form and training to date will be reviewed. Interviewers will ask you questions based on your career, achievements to date and your engagement with training and learning.
It is important to recognise that the scores awarded to you will not purely be about your achievements, as this already contributes towards the scoring via your application form. Interviewers will be deciding upon scores via a combination of factors, for example: your responses to the questions asked, the breadth and quality of your achievements and your career progression.
This question will take approximately 4 minutes.
This question will focus on your suitability for and commitment to ST3 training in the specialty and give you opportunity to expand on the information provided in your application form.
This question will last approximately 4 minutes.
Scoring Framework
The score of 1-5 an interviewer will award you for each assessment area is judged in relation to how well you perform against an expected level. Below is the framework used to award scores at interview, as well as interpretation of what these scores represent:
|
Mark
|
Rating
|
Assessment
|
|
1 |
poor |
not considered appointable |
|
2 |
area for concern |
performed below the level expected; possibly unappointable, subject to discussion and performance in other areas |
|
3 |
satisfactory |
performed at the level expected during CT2; the candidate is suitable for an ST3 / LAT post |
|
4 |
good |
above average ability; the candidate is suitable for an ST3 / LAT post |
|
5 |
excellent |
highly performing trainee; the candidate is suitable for an ST3 / LAT post |
As shown in the table, for each of the question areas at interview, 3/5 is considered a satisfactory score; and reflects the level of performance that would be expected of a trainee ready to progress to a specialty training programme.
Should your performance go above and beyond this expected level, interviewers can award marks of 4/5 or 5/5 as appropriate.
Conversely, should your interview performance not reach the expected level, then interviewers can award marks of 1/5 or 2/5, as reflects their level of concern over your performance.
Appointability
From the eight scores awarded during your interview, an 'appointability' status will be calculated to determine whether you can be considered for an offer.
The intention is to ensure successful candidates can display competence consistently across all areas of assessment covered at interview, rather than allowing outstanding achievement in one or more areas to make up for sub-par performance elsewhere.
Appointability is awarded automatically and is based on two factors: individual interview scores and the 'raw interview score'.
Appointability criteria
To be classed as 'appointable', you must meet three criteria below:
- none of your 8 interview scores can be 1/5
- no more than two of your 8 interview scores can be 2/5
- your RIS must be 24 or above.
If you meet all three requirements, your application will be assessed as appointable, and can progress to be considered for post offers.
However, if you fail to meet any of these requirements, your application must then be assessed as not appointable, and it will progress no further in that round.
Total Score
After interview, a weighting is applied to the scores in each area, as well as your application score.
These scores are then combined to give your total score which determines your ranking, which will in turn be used to inform how offers are made. The weighting of different sections, as well as the method by which your total score is established, is detailed in the table accessible through the link below:
|
|
Interviewer 1
|
Interviewer 2
|
Weighting
|
Max score
|
|
Question 1 |
||||
|
Presentation |
/ 5 |
/ 5 |
2.5 |
25 |
|
Question 2 |
||||
|
Professionalism & governance |
/ 5 |
/ 5 |
2.5 |
25 |
|
Question 3 |
||||
|
Application & training |
/ 5 |
/ 5 |
1.2 |
12 |
|
Question 4 |
|
|||
|
Suitability & Commitment |
/ 5 |
/ 5 |
1.8 |
18 |
|
Raw interview score |
/ 40 |
|||
|
Interview score (w weighting) |
/ 80 |
|||
|
Application score |
/ 56 |
0.36 |
/ 20.16 |
|
|
Total score |
/ 100.16 |
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|
|
|
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