MEDICAL SCHOOL
Four to six years
The first step is an undergraduate or graduate-entry medicine degree, which the BMA says normally takes four to six years. From 2024–25 students must also pass the Medical Licensing Assessment.
Check the stages
HOW THE TRAINING WORKS
Graduation is
the halfway mark.
Becoming a doctor in the UK takes far longer than a degree.
After four to six years at medical school come two foundation years and then specialty training, which the BMA says runs from about three years for general practice to five to seven years in other specialties. This independent guide maps the route in plain English.
DEGREE then years more
Check a stage- Degree and MLA
- Two foundation years
- Specialty training
- One long, staged route
THE SHORT ANSWER
Three stages,
many years.
The route has the same shape for everyone.
What varies is the specialty at the end.
FOUNDATION
F1 and F2
Every graduate who wants to practise in the UK completes an integrated two-year foundation programme, a bridge between medical school and specialty training.
How it runs
SPECIALTY
Around 60 choices
After foundation, doctors train in general practice or one of around 60 specialties. The specialty chosen decides how many more years the training takes.
See the numbersGeneral information only, not medical advice. For advice about your own health, speak to a doctor, pharmacist or other qualified health professional.
THE ROUTE, STEP BY STEP
From lecture hall
to specialist.
The names change along the way: student, foundation doctor, resident doctor, and finally a doctor on the GMC specialist or GP register.
Study medicine
A degree of four to six years, taught in traditional, integrated or problem-based styles depending on the school.
Pass the MLA
From 2024–25 the Medical Licensing Assessment, a knowledge test plus a clinical skills assessment, is part of graduating.
Complete F1 and F2
The two-year foundation programme, open to graduates eligible for provisional GMC registration.
Train in a specialty
Run-through or core-then-higher training, ending with a Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT).
TWO NUMBERS WORTH KNOWING
Thousands start
every year.
One figure on new doctors starting foundation,
one on medical school places in England.
≈ 10,000 a year
UK graduates allocated to F1
The UK Foundation Programme Office lists allocating approximately 10,000 UK medical graduates to F1 training programmes across the UK as one of its key objectives.
FOUNDATION · UKFPO
7,500 places
Medical school training places in England
The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan records a 25% rise in medical training places since 2018, from 6,000 to 7,500, and sets an ambition of 15,000 places a year by 2031/32.
PLACES · NHS ENGLAND
The workforce plan also planned a rise to 10,000 places by 2028/29 and a medical degree apprenticeship, piloted from 2024 with 200 funded places in 2024/25.
A QUICK STAGE CHECK
Where on the route
is the doctor?
Pick a stage of training to see roughly how long it lasts. The bar shows how long that stage is compared with the others.
Based on BMA guidance on the medical training pathway. Lengths vary by specialty and by person; this is general information, not careers advice.
THE MEDICAL LICENSING ASSESSMENT
One standard
for every new doctor.
The MLA has two parts. The Applied Knowledge Test is two 100-question papers taken on consecutive days, and the Clinical and Professional Skills Assessment tests consultations, examinations and practical procedures.
It is designed so that UK graduates and doctors who trained abroad meet one consistent standard before joining the medical register. This site is an independent informational guide, not connected with any medical school, college or regulator.
Questions
Questions people ask
How long does it take to become a doctor in the UK?
The BMA says a medical degree normally takes four to six years, followed by the two-year foundation programme. Specialty training then lasts from about three years for general practice to five to seven years in other run-through specialties.
What is the Medical Licensing Assessment?
A two-part assessment: an Applied Knowledge Test and a Clinical and Professional Skills Assessment. From the 2024–25 academic year, UK medical students must pass it as part of their degree to practise in the UK.
What is a resident doctor?
The BMA uses the term for doctors in postgraduate training, through the foundation programme and higher specialist training, after they graduate from medical school.
What is a CCT?
A Certificate of Completion of Training. Doctors receive it at the end of a run-through or higher specialty programme, and it allows entry onto the GMC specialist or general practice register.
Can doctors train part-time?
Yes. The BMA says doctors in training have the option of flexible training, also called less than full-time training (LTFT).
Sources
- BMA: Medical training pathway
- BMA: Courses at medical school
- UK Foundation Programme: About the UKFPO
- UK Foundation Programme: 2 Year Foundation Programmes
- University of Liverpool School of Medicine: Introducing the MLA
- NHS England: NHS Long Term Workforce Plan
Updated