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IMG, Straight to Foundation Programme, year 2?! Help...

Hi.

I noticed there aren't too many international medical students on this forum, and couldn't find anyone with a similar problem to mine, but maybe this will sound familiar. If you have done this, or know someone who has, can you please advise me on what to do.

I'm a medical student from Croatia. I'm in my fifth year now (out of six years) of medical uni. I have a long term boyfriend in Liverpool and the plan was for me to move over when I finish my university. I have spent years believing I can enroll in the NHS Foundation Programme, and that the recent accession of Croatian in the EU will make that even easier for me. I have been reading different websites, exchanged emails with Foundation Programme people and GMC, talked to people in Deaneries, and prepared to start my applications for FP 2015 this summer, when today I have been told that Croatian graduates can't get a provisional registration with the GMC and as such can't go into Foundation Programme year 1.

I'm so angry that after so many emails, only now, a few months before I would start applying for the eligibility check, I have been told this. I am also slightly thankful that I have been told at all, because talking to all these authorities as a future IMG from a country that has just joined the EU hasn't been easy, and I have met a lot of indifferent people.

Anyway. Today I have found out that apparently, Croatian medical graduates can only apply for a full licence to practice in the UK.

Now I have no idea what to do. Can I apply for Foundation Programme year 2 wihtout having completed the year 1, and how? I can't seem to find any guidelines on this even though I remember reading something like that ages ago (maybe I'm wrong).

Also, I am concerned about getting a full licence to practice as it says that to get one, I need a certificate of my primary medical education and an internship. These internships are defined as 12 months long with at least 3 months in medicine and 3 months in surgery. In Croatia, the internship we do after uni recently changed and it's not 5 months long altogether, so no chance of fullfiling the GMC definiton of internship.

Does anyone know is it possible to do some kind of an internship in the UK, after completing medical university, but without actually doing FP year 1 ,or having a full licence. I guess this would be very difficult, without any kind of licence?

I have no idea what to do now. I have been preparing for Foundation Programme and have been working on SJT example tests, and getting my eligibility papers all ready. Now all of a sudden I have been told that I can't take that route, but I haven't been told what other options I have.
Reply 1
Avatar for Sarky
Sarky
18
Original post by Mareep
Hi.

I noticed there aren't too many international medical students on this forum, and couldn't find anyone with a similar problem to mine, but maybe this will sound familiar. If you have done this, or know someone who has, can you please advise me on what to do.

I'm a medical student from Croatia. I'm in my fifth year now (out of six years) of medical uni. I have a long term boyfriend in Liverpool and the plan was for me to move over when I finish my university. I have spent years believing I can enroll in the NHS Foundation Programme, and that the recent accession of Croatian in the EU will make that even easier for me. I have been reading different websites, exchanged emails with Foundation Programme people and GMC, talked to people in Deaneries, and prepared to start my applications for FP 2015 this summer, when today I have been told that Croatian graduates can't get a provisional registration with the GMC and as such can't go into Foundation Programme year 1.

I'm so angry that after so many emails, only now, a few months before I would start applying for the eligibility check, I have been told this. I am also slightly thankful that I have been told at all, because talking to all these authorities as a future IMG from a country that has just joined the EU hasn't been easy, and I have met a lot of indifferent people.

Anyway. Today I have found out that apparently, Croatian medical graduates can only apply for a full licence to practice in the UK.

Now I have no idea what to do. Can I apply for Foundation Programme year 2 wihtout having completed the year 1, and how? I can't seem to find any guidelines on this even though I remember reading something like that ages ago (maybe I'm wrong).

Also, I am concerned about getting a full licence to practice as it says that to get one, I need a certificate of my primary medical education and an internship. These internships are defined as 12 months long with at least 3 months in medicine and 3 months in surgery. In Croatia, the internship we do after uni recently changed and it's not 5 months long altogether, so no chance of fullfiling the GMC definiton of internship.

Does anyone know is it possible to do some kind of an internship in the UK, after completing medical university, but without actually doing FP year 1 ,or having a full licence. I guess this would be very difficult, without any kind of licence?

I have no idea what to do now. I have been preparing for Foundation Programme and have been working on SJT example tests, and getting my eligibility papers all ready. Now all of a sudden I have been told that I can't take that route, but I haven't been told what other options I have.


You could apply for standalone F2 posts. They are scarce but they do exist. My friend resigned from her F2 post and applied for a stand-alone job in the midlands because her partner moved up there.

We also had quite a few people where I did my F1 who were doing clinical placements in order to get experience. So it is not unheard of. I'm not sure how they went about arranging this and it was in Kent, so quite a long way from Liverpool.

Hopefully someone will come along who knows more!

Good luck
Reply 2
Avatar for Mareep
Mareep
OP
2
Thank you for your answer!

If only it was that simple though.

I could apply for F2 posts, and that will be the plan, once I get final comfirmation from GMC that I can't sing into the 2 year lasting Foundation Programme. But as a Croatian citizen, I don't have the right to work in the UK like most EU country citizens have. I would have to get a purple certificate which seems to be a bit complicated to get, ie I can get the right to work only if the employer can't find anybody else with a right to work, and I have to be granted one. Sounds weird, but that's how it was explained to me.

Regarding placements, I have done a couple of elective placements in the UK myself. It's not too difficult to get them while I'm a student. But once I finish my university I will no longer be a student, and I think it would be a problem to ask to get a clinical placement lasting at least 10 months when I'm not a student, but a graduate, but don't have the right to work.

I thought joining the EU would make it easier for me to move to the UK, but this seems pretty complicated to me.
Yeah, the fact that Croatia joined the EU isn't going to help you until 5 years pass and the transitional labour market restrictions are lifted. Your status is currently equivalent to that of candidates from outside the EU, and AFAIK they have a very hard time getting lower level jobs, because of the high number of EU applicants.

You probably can be self-employed though, so it might be worth talking to locum agencies if they'll take a subcontractor. You would have to move around a lot though.
Reply 4
Avatar for supanogi
supanogi
6
Hey,

You can also apply for Stand - Alone FY1 post, which is probably better as you are just finishing medical school. This is done by the NHS jobs website/ BMJ jobs. They are adverstised between now and August, so keep watching. (usually there's a few jobs in the mersey deanery!)

Of course, after that you will need to apply to Stand-Alone FY2.

Good Luck
Hey, I'm a medical student (6th year) from Croatia and I'm experiencing the same situation as you have. I'm really hoping that you found a way around this. Please share your wisdom with me.

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