Understanding the Medical Board of Australia’s Specialist Assessment Medical College Data

Understanding the Medical Board of Australia’s 2023 Specialist Assessment Medical College Data

The Medical Board of Australia has published its data on 2023 applications for specialist recognition through the Medical Colleges’ Specialist Assessment process.

If you're reviewing this data for the first time, it's important to understand that a "Partially Comparable" (PC) outcome can have very different implications for your ability to work as a specialist—depending on your medical specialty.

Take psychiatry, for example. If you're applying for assessment through RANZCP (Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists), you must submit a job offer alongside your college application in order to be considered. However, receiving a PC outcome means you cannot take up that consultant position. Only a "Substantially Comparable" (SC) outcome qualifies you to work as a Consultant Psychiatrist.

In 2023, 47 psychiatrists were assessed as PC after being offered consultant roles. As a result, they were unable to commence the roles they had secured. If they were willing—and if a suitable vacancy existed—they could only work at the registrar level under the PC pathway. This meant 48% of jobs offered could not be filled as intended. The gap between employer expectations and the college's policy continues to be quite a large one.

In contrast, the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (ANZCA) assessment decisions produce more flexible outcomes . I have successfully placed anaesthetists into consultant roles despite receiving PC outcomes, provided the hospital department is accredited to offer the required level of supervision.

Radiology presents an altogether different scenario. Statistically, only one person per year might be assessed as SC— in 2023, no one was. Despite this, radiologists with a PC outcome can still work as specialists. They are, however, eventually required to sit a formal exam.

These examples highlight how the implications of a PC outcome differ dramatically between specialties. It's important to exercise caution when seeking advice from colleagues already in Australia—they may only be familiar with the rules of the medical college they were originally assessed by.

If you're trying to assess your chances of success or want tailored guidance based on your background and specialty, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me directly.

Looking Ahead: What to Expect in 2024 and 2025
The 2024 application data will likely mirror 2023's figures. However, major changes are on the horizon. With the new Expedited Specialist Pathways (ESP) now in place for GPs, anaesthetists, psychiatrists, and obstetricians & gynaecologists, the 2025 data is expected to show a sharp decline in application numbers.

That’s because UK and Irish-trained specialists (For the psychiatry ESP only UK trained psychiatrists are eligible) can now apply through ESP while still in their home country—an option that is both faster and more cost-effective.

I expect SIMG college application numbers to rebound in 2026, as these specialists—having relocated to Australia in 2025 via the ESP pathway—begin applying for Fellowship through their respective colleges from within Australia. We expect applying to SIMG Specialist assessment still to be the route to Fellowship - even for those who traveled to Australia on an ESP.