Membership/Fellowship Programs in the United Kingdom

Through various recent posts I have been talking about The United Kingdom as one of the best places in the world to pursue medical education and I also have been discussing about various levels of entry in The United Kingdom which includes, membership or fellowship programs and the licensing exams, Professional and linguistic assessments board (PLAB) test, International English Language Testing System (IELTS), UK Clinical Aptitude Test (UKCAT) or the (BMAT), etc. Out of these, fellowship or membership programs are considered best for securing good position in the UK’s healthcare system in relation to finance as well as career. These UK’s programs are trending these days worldwide for many reasons which are discussed further below in this post.

The main reason for the increased popularity of these membership/fellowship programs is that it enables you to get a consultant level posting in the UK’s healthcare system. Whereas other examinations like PLAB, are only licensing examinations which are taken up by the international medical students for getting their home country’s medical degree recognized in UK. After clearing such examinations you may only secure trainee level position in UK’s healthcare system.

Fellowship or membership programs in UK are available for various medical specialties. Most of these membership programs are provided by UK’s Royal colleges. Few of them are enumerated as follows:

• MRCOG: Membership of Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
• MRCOP: Membership of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the United Kingdom
• MRCPCH: Membership of Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
• MRCPsych: Membership of Royal College of Psychiatrists
• MRCS: Membership of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons
• MJDF: Diploma of Membership of the Joint Dental Faculties at The Royal College of Surgeons of England
• FRCR: Fellowship of the Royal College of Radiologists
• FRCA: Fellowship of the Royal College of Anaesthetists (inclusive of Anaesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Management)
• FRCS: Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons.

The above given list may not be exhaustive and you may also find various other programs on the internet. These programs offer postgraduate medical qualifications for doctors who are preparing for higher specialist training on behalf of the Royal College. These programs are recognized as an entry qualification into higher specialist training for doctors wishing to become specialist registrars. These programs comply with General Medical Council (GMC) standards on validity, reliability, feasibility, cost effectiveness, opportunities for feedback and impact on learning. It also follows best practice in assessment, quality assurance and standard-setting. The responsibility for the application of standards in the UK, since 2010, rests with the General Medical Council.

The Royal Colleges are postgraduate institutes for doctors who want to do specialization. They aren’t university or hospital and they don’t train people directly. They administer exams, approve hospital training programs, organize scientific meetings and courses and are responsible for education and standards.

Fellowship

For obtaining a fellowship there are three routes:

1. Nomination
2. Criteria
3. Self-declaration.

Nomination: For nomination, existing fellows propose the candidate to Royal College by filling up a proposal form on candidate’s behalf which is then evaluated by the Council.

Criteria: Fellowship is awarded to candidate based on their clinical achievements. Doctors who have Membership of Royal Colleges for 4 or more years (this period is different for UK candidates and international candidates) are automatically entitled for fellowship.

Declaration: The candidate has to submit personal statement for the declaration of interest to become a fellow. The candidate must hold the Membership of Royal Colleges for 4 or more years (this period is different for UK candidates and international candidates). 

The fellowship in Royal colleges is an accolade held by some of the most exceptional and innovative medical doctors in the world. It is a mark of their achievement and skill as a doctor and recognizes their ongoing contribution to the profession. Fellowship though is very lengthy process but at the same time very rewarding too. Fellowship comes up with many benefits.

Membership

For membership programs, the candidates are required to crack the entrance examinations conducted by Royal Colleges. This exam tests both, candidate's knowledge of basic medical sciences as well as the clinical skills required for the diagnosis and management of disease. Most of the membership programs examinations have same pattern. Like all of them are conducted in three parts: Part 1 and Part 2 are written examinations and part 3 is a clinical examination. Various companies, including the Royal Colleges themselves, have developed preparatory courses that focus on the nature of the questions and the required background knowledge. Moreover, publication houses are also coming up with such courses. Jaypee Brothers Pvt Ltd is world’s first publication house which has developed and started with a online course for MRCOG 1. For more information on this go to our website www.crackingmrcog.com.

These membership and fellowship programs are truly international, as they are recognized all over the world. Thousands of fellows and members are practicing worldwide in more than 100 countries including India, Australia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, UAE... and the list goes on.

Preparing for such exams could be a difficult job without any proper reading material and guidance. Medical literature is vast and one cannot read everything for the exam. Hence, nowadays it has been very necessary to get help of exam oriented courses and books. One such course being developed by Jaypee Medical Publication is for MRCOG 1. It is called “Cracking MRCOG” and it is the complete package for MRCOG aspirants. For more information on MRCOG courses, please visit our website www.crackingmrcog.com.

Cracking MRCOG is an online interactive e-learning course. This MRCOG online course is self-sufficient for the aspirants of MRCOG giving mrcog part 1 exam and mrcog part 2 exam. Buy MRCOG online courses from Cracking MRCOG and get your MRCOG exam cleared in one shot.

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