REGISTRATION PATHWAYS
STANDARD PATHWAY
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This pathway applies to IMGs who are not eligible for the Competent Authority pathway or the Specialist Pathway. IMGs who have a primary qualification in medicine and surgery awarded by a training institution recognized by both the Australian Medical Council and the World Directory of Medical Schools (WDOMS) can apply for assessment under this pathway.
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IMGs applying for the Standard pathway should apply directly to the Australian Medical Council (AMC). Once you have done the mandatory check of your degree, you must sit for the AMC Examinations, which is a 2-part examination, a written examination (AMC CAT MCQ or AMC Part 1) and a structured clinical examination (AMC Part 2) or approved workplace based assessment program.
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You could actually begin to apply for jobs once you have successfully passed your written exam or AMC Part 1. But you will have to complete your AMC Part 2 at some point later on to be able to progress towards general registration.
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The Standard pathway has two alternative processes leading to the award of the AMC Certificate:
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- Standard pathway (AMC examinations) - Assessment is by examination only - the AMC CAT MCQ Examination (also known as AMC Part 1) and the AMC Clinical Examination (or AMC Part 2). Most non-specialist applicants will be assessed through this method.
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- Standard pathway (workplace-based assessment) - Assessment is by examination and workplace-based assessment - the AMC CAT MCQ Examination and workplace-based assessment of clinical skills and knowledge by an AMC-accredited authority. There are limited numbers of assessment programs, and as a result, relatively few applicants are assessed through this pathway. The AMC accredited authorities are:
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- Central Coast Local Health District
- Flinders Rural Health South Australia (in partnership with Mt Gambier Hospital)
- Hunter New England Local Health District
- Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District
- Launceston General Hospital
- Monash Health
- Mid North Coast Local Health District
- Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service
- Western Australia Country Health Service
- Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service
IMGs on the Standard pathway, once granted a limited or provisional registration, must successfully complete 12 months of supervised practice (minimum of 47 weeks full-time service) in an approved position.
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Chart taken from http://www.medicalboard.gov.au/
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COMPETENT AUTHORITY PATHWAY
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Competent authority pathway is for people who have worked in comparable health care systems to Australia. These include the USA, UK, Canada, NZ, and Ireland. You would not need to give AMC exams through this pathway. Essentially, all you need to do is secure a job offer and have the intended supervision for this position assessed by the Medical Board of Australia. Once you are successfully approved for registration through this pathway, you are given provisional registration which will progress to general registration after one year of working in Australia with satisfactory supervisor reports.
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The Competent Authority pathway is for overseas-trained non-specialists but is also available to specialists, including general practitioners. This pathway leads to general registration.
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Conditions:
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1. Graduates of Medical schools in the United Kingdom with GMC Registration and 1 year of FY1 experience in the United Kingdom or internship experience in the United Kingdom or a country approved by the United Kingdom.
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2. IMGs who passed the PLAB 1 and 2 with GMC Registration, and hold 1 year of FY1 experience or 1 year of internship experience in the United Kingdom or a country approved by the United Kingdom.
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3. Graduates of Medical Schools in Canada or IMGs who completed all parts of the LMCC and hold 1 year of Residency Training experience in Canada or 1 year of training experience in a country approved by Canada.
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4. Graduates of Medical Schools in the United States and IMGs who hold USMLE Step 1, 2CK, 2CS, and 3 or NBME's 1, 2, and 3 and hold two years of Residency Training Experience in the US.
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5. Graduates of Medical Schools in New Zealand who have completed the NZ Registration Examination and hold two runs of the Internship that is approved by the MCNZ.
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6. Graduates of Medical Schools in Ireland who hold Internship experience in Ireland or a country approved by Ireland and are registered in the Irish Medical Council.
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For Further Information Kindly Refer To: http://www.medicalboard.gov.au/Registration/International-Medical- Graduates/Com patent-Authority-Pathway.aspx
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Charts taken from http://www.medicalboard.gov.au/
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SPECIALIST PATHWAY
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This pathway is for overseas trained specialists who have satisfied all the training and examination requirements to practice in a specialty in another country. Through this pathway, overseas trained specialists can apply to be assessed against the capability of a similar Australian trained specialist. A process that is called “comparability”.
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In general, specialist must apply to the Australian Medical Council (AMC) for primary source verification of their medical qualifications first, as in the prior pathways. However, they do not apply to the AMC or the Medical Board for assessment, they apply to the relevant specialist college. The college assesses comparability against the criteria for an Australian-trained specialist in the same field of specialty practice.
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Applying for the Specialist Pathway assessment involves quite a bit of time and money. It can cost around 5000-10000 AUD. The candidate will need to fill out an extensive application outlining all of your past experiences to date. The more complete and detailed you make this generally the better the outcome. The college may just reject you based on your application. But generally, in the case of most colleges you are then invited to an interview to further explore your credentials.
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There are possible 3 outcomes for this assessment process, the candidate can be deemed:
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1. not comparable 🡪 think about other pathways
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2. partially comparable 🡪 college views you as being within 2 years of becoming a specialist
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3. substantially comparable 🡪 college views you as being within 1 year of becoming a specialist
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If you achieve comparability you will still need to secure an appropriate post where you can receive peer review oversight by other specialists in your field which may involve completion of workplace-based assessments or a period of supervised practice. In the case of partially comparable it is also likely that you will need to sit further college examinations.
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It is highly unlikely that you will be given complete equivalence and thus be allowed to work as a specialist straight away. Usually, they will accept part of your training and ask you to train further in Australia in the same field and pass the remaining exams. E.g., they may approve two years of FCPS training and ask you to do the remaining two-three years in Australia and pass the exams.
If you gain a post and complete all the college requirements, you will finally be granted recognition as a specialist in AU and can practice that field of specialty independently.
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The assessment and job finding are two separate processes, you will need to find a job for yourself once your assessment result is given. Some specialties are easier than others to get into like psychiatry etc. Surgery is almost next to impossible. For people who wish to pursue the Australian dream but cannot find a job in their specialty, another option is to go through the standard pathway and change their specialty which is unfortunate, but in some cases more practical.
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My general advice to specialists is to pursue this pathway only if you have Western experience as a specialist or have significant non-Western experience after the completion of your specialization. People who have just completed their fellowships recently may be better suited to the standard pathway.
For Further Information Kindly Refer To:
http://www.amc.org.au/assessment/pathways/specialist
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Chart taken from http://www.medicalboard.gov.au/
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SHORT TERM TRAINING IN A MEDICAL SPECIALTY PATHWAY
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The short-term training in a medical specialty pathway is for IMGs who are overseas trained specialists or specialists-in-training wishing to undertake a short period (usually up to 24 months) of specialist or advanced training in Australia.
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This pathway does not lead to registration as a specialist in Australia. IMGs seeking to qualify for specialist registration apply for registration via the specialist pathway - specialist recognition.
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IMGs who have a primary qualification in medicine and surgery awarded by a training institution recognized by both the Australian Medical Council and the World Directory of Medical Schools (WDOMS) and who have satisfied all the training and examination requirements to practice in their field of specialty in their country of training or who are no more than two years away from completing their specialist training overseas, can apply for assessment under this pathway (short term training in a medical specialty pathway).
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IMGs applying for the Short term training in a medical specialty pathway apply directly to the relevant specialist medical college for the assessment using a Board application form (AAMC- 30) before applying to the Board for registration. For Further Information Kindly Refer To:
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