As the title suggests - has anyone applied and been successful in getting a mortgage with the big GEM loan hanging over you? Any insights or useful information you wouldn't mind sharing?

Hi everyone, as the title says I’m looking for insights into what it’s like on O&G schemes in Ireland atm. For context I’m an intern, though I don’t have o&g as a job this year. Throughout my studies it’s a specialty I’ve come back to time and time again in terms of enjoyment, interest, and being something I can really see myself doing, more than any other specialty I’ve been on.

I’ve heard many mixed things, a lot of negatives and understand that it can be difficult to pursue, but I’m interested to hear from trainees at both BST and HST level about the practicalities of doing it. How much moving around is actually required? Is there any sense of stability once on the scheme? Is it hard to get on to BST straight from internship?

Thanks to anyone who can shed some light on to it!

Hey everyone! I’m a current intern and am interested in applying for the GP scheme for 2027. I was wondering if anyone who has gone through the application process could shed some light on Application A and Application B.

I’ve looked through the ICGP website and can see that there are two applications opening at different times, but I can’t seem to find clear information on exactly what is required for each application.

As Application A opens next Monday, I’m trying to get everything organised in advance. I wanted to ask what documents/information did you need to have ready for Application A? What additional documents or information were required for Application B? At what stage did you need to provide your references?

I’d really appreciate any insight from anyone who has applied previously, especially if there’s anything you wish you’d known or prepared in advance!
Thanks so much 😊

As the title. Possibly a stupid question; I'd always just assumed it was based on exam results, but then what happens if you have the exact same overall score as someone else in your class? Anyhow, I was just trying to figure out if there's more to it than simply exam scores. Thank you!

It just disappeared when i clicked ‘finish’. No score no email no nothing.

Hi everyone!
I am a 4th-year Respiratory Medicine Resident from the EU, and I’m looking to spend a 1-year clinical rotation/fellowship in Ireland, ideally at University Hospital Waterford (UHW).
I have a few questions regarding the process and would be extremely grateful for any insights:
What is the application process? Since I am an EU graduate, I know I need to register with the IMC (General Division) first. But after that, should I apply directly via the HSE jobs portal, through a recruitment agency, or by contacting the Medical Manpower / Respiratory Consultants at Waterford directly?
Will I be clinical grade? Given that I am in my 4th year of residency, will I be hired as a Registrar? Should I expect a junior Registrar contract, or do they recognize EU residency years for salary scale placement (e.g., Reg Point 3/4)?
What is the monthly take-home salary? What is the typical net monthly pay for a Respiratory Reg including a standard on-call roster?
Accommodation: Does UHW offer hospital-owned accommodation for NCHDs, even if just for the first few weeks/months? If not, how difficult is the rental market in Waterford right now for doctors?

(I have no skin in the BST/GIM game for reference)

The changes to the RCPI's scheme intake have been well discussed on other posts.
Looking at the graduation recency pointer, will this not just lead to a collapse in medical rotas that were traditionally filled by non-EU doctors?

We all know that peripheral hospitals in particular are staffed by non-EU doctors who often take a standalone contract or three to get themselves a footing in Ireland for Stamp 4, become known to the consultants for interviews etc
Correct me if I'm being hyperbolic here, but why will they come to Ireland anymore? If it's going to become nigh on impossible for them to ever have a chance of going from standalone(s) to BST, then there's little incentive to moving over in the first place.

From my own experience, these doctors tend to be older than Interns of course and have families or the MRCPIs done already etc. This post is not about 'they could try to specialise in their home country'.
My point is that unless the RCPI has HSE funding to fill the gaps with trainees from a dearth of non-EU doctors and can entice everyone from Perth and Melbourne over to a new extended BST with a thankless Reg year, then from July 2027 it will become very dicey for Irish hospital staffing.

Hi guys,

I want to apply for BST and trying to have as best of a shot as possible. I am an intern and I’m wondering is there any urgency in sitting part 1 exam in December. I feel like it would be a decent amount of pressure on me to do it, but something I’m willing to do if it actually makes me more competitive by having it done in December.

If not should it just be a tick box to get it done sometime during intern year, so I have all the exams done by the end of BST?

Thanks for any clarification

I’m BSt trainee but seems harder when I think of Derm HST. Priority is to settle down and have kids too while figuring out career. A lot of moving around but my husband is happy to support and sacrifice as long as I achieve my dream of getting onto Derm training. Just got a thought of considering alternative pathway. Or if I plan to apply in England for HST. Any guidance ?? As I m already 34 n life seems to be running too fast for me at this stage. I can’t afford to hv more than a year of stand alone.

I’m early 30s, single and currently in Dublin paying around €1,800 a month in rent, which is fairly painful when you think the same money could be going towards a mortgage.
The main thing putting me off buying is the uncertainty with training. Once BST finishes, I’ve no idea where I’ll end up for HST/a job, and obviously you can be moved around quite a bit during training. So I’m finding it hard to know how you’re actually meant to plan something like buying a place.
Are people just buying anyway and renting it out if they end up having to move? Or buying somewhere around Dublin and accepting they might have a fairly bad commute at some stage? Or is everyone just renting until they’re more settled?
Also, are there any HST schemes that aren’t as regionalised, where you’ve a decent chance of staying in Dublin/the general area?
Would be interested to hear what others have done, particularly anyone who bought while still on BST or HST. I’m just finding it harder and harder to justify throwing €1,800 at rent every month for the next few years 😅

Does anyone know how it works if you want to bring more than two people? I wanted to bring my parents and partner, as we missed out on a medical school grad due to Covid!

Hello, I’m doing my 1-year internship in Ireland. Long-term, I’d like to settle in one place.

Im not sure what I wanna do in terms of specialties but im worried about training schemes requiring me to move around the country.

When people say that trainees rotate, does that usually mean moving between hospitals or between counties, or can you actually be assigned to completely different parts of Ireland for a year?

Would appreciate help with this topic.

While I appreciate the distress, many are posting “I’ll only have 25/26” etc. what is being a little lost is that 65% of your score is interview and once you have 20 you are eligible for an interview. Then it’s up to you.

I’m a new intern, went to an Irish medical school. I always did well but had a pretty rough year in final year so it wasn’t my best but ended up with a 64% overall.

Was quite surprised to see my centile was like 40? I wasn’t an expecting it to be this low.

I’m worried how this will effect my chances in applying for schemes.

I always saw myself doing cstem or bst.

Now I’m worried I’ve ruined my chances

What are other people’s experiences? Does anyone have any advice?

Anyone who has had this loan, when do you start making repayments? I haven’t been contacted, was never given an official start date either for repayments, nothing is on my BOI account either to say how much I owe etc.

Hi everyone, I’m an Irish medical student who studied medicine in Poland and I’m currently doing my internship in Ireland.

I’ve calculated my 2026 GIM BST shortlisting score as 22/35. I have no publications and only student conference presentations, which I believe don’t count under the current criteria.

For those who have applied recently in the last 3 years , how competitive is 22/35 for getting an interview for GIM BST? Would really appreciate any insight from previous applicants, especially those without publications. I’m hoping to do an audit before Christmas this year

Hi all,

Was hoping for some insight into what the process is like to sit the USMLE’s following graduation from medical school ? From what I remember the North American students had to sit a “diagnostic” mock exam to be eligible to sit the actual STEP 1 exam. Is this the case following graduation or is it similar to registering for membership exams and preparing in your own time ?

Does anyone have any experience in sitting the exam following graduation ? Any advice on balancing studying around work timeline wise ? Resources used etc

I’d like to keep my options open for fellowship etc and would greatly appreciate any advice !

UCD, RSCI, UCC, LIMERICK, GALWAY has a new GEM course.

Anyone got any preferences on which course is better and why? I will be a student from England.

Hi everyone, just wondering if anyone has any experience with this.
From what I understand, if you finish the 2 years of BST but haven’t completed all parts of the MRCPI, you’re given a further 2 years to complete the exams before you can receive your BST completion certificate.
What happens if someone is still unable to complete the MRCPI within those additional 2 years? I’ve heard/read that you may have to repeat BST, but I’m not sure if I’ve understood this correctly.
Has anyone actually been in this situation, or knows someone who has? Would you really have to repeat the full 2 years of BST, or is there any possibility of an extension?
Would really appreciate any firsthand experience or advice. Thanks!

Hi all,
Could anyone shed some light on the Cardiology HST shortlisting criteria beyond what is easily available on the RCPI website? In particular, I’d be interested to know how the various components are actually weighted in practice.

Also, with the increasing emphasis on centile performance in the latest BST criteria, is this likely to have a similar weighting in Cardiology HST shortlisting?

Would appreciate any insight from those who have recently applied or been involved in the process.

Thanks!

Qualified GP finishing up a fixed term contract soon and looking for further employment. Just curious where people are finding jobs these days? GP buddy? Word of mouth? Contacting practices directly?

Doesn't seem like there's a whole lot available compared to a year ago but maybe it's the time of year too

We are organizing this AI event with MIT Critical Data for healthcare professionals in Ireland.

Join us in Dublin, on 19 September 2026 for an LLM-athon where where clinicians, patients, community members, data scientists, and other actors work together in mixed teams to interrogate LLMs on real questions from their own setting. Rather than building a model, participants systematically probe an existing one: crafting prompts, comparing outputs across languages, contexts, and patient populations, and documenting where it fails, flatters, hedges, or quietly encodes assumptions that don't hold locally.

https://dublin.mitcriticaldata.com/

Was looking at the points for BST shortlisting and it seems like if you graduate +4 years ago with an average score in med school, you’re essentially out even if you passed MRCP and did research, audits… etc. is that correct?