The Very New GP Trainee
"You passed your MSRA. You got your training number. Now what on earth do you actually do?"
Starting GP training is one of the most exciting — and most overwhelming — transitions in a doctor's career. This page exists to make Day One feel manageable. Whether you're a UK graduate or joining from abroad, whether you're heading to a GP post or a hospital rotation first — this is your starting point.
📅 Last updated: 31 March 2026
Other Links You May Find Helpful At This Stage
Three essential Bradford VTS pages built specifically for new trainees. Each one is worth bookmarking.
Web Resources
A hand-picked mix of official guidance and real-world GP training resources. Because sometimes the best pearls are not hiding in the official documents.
🏛 Official & Registration
- 📌 RCGP — Register as an Associate in Training (AiT) — Your very first step. Do this before anything else.
- 📌 RCGP — Workplace-Based Assessment (WPBA) Guide — Official guide to what goes in your ePortfolio and when.
- 📌 RCGP — MRCGP Examinations Overview — AKT, SCA, and WPBA in one place.
- 📌 GMC — The Medical Register — Check your registration is current and accurate.
🏥 GP Training Guidance
- 🎓 Bradford VTS — GP Training & Educational Supervision Hub
- 🎓 Bradford VTS — Scheme Induction Resources
- 🎓 Bradford VTS — GP Post Induction
- 🎓 Bradford VTS — Hospital Post Guidance
📚 Exam & Revision
- 📖 Bradford VTS — AKT Preparation Hub — One of the most comprehensive free AKT resources online.
- 📖 Bradford VTS — SCA Preparation Hub — Frameworks, phrases, and mock scenarios.
💚 Wellbeing & Support
- 💙 NHS Practitioner Health — Free, confidential support for doctors with mental health or addiction concerns.
- 💙 BMA Wellbeing Support Services — Counselling and peer support for doctors.
- 💙 MDDUS — Guides for GP Trainees — Medico-legal guidance including defence and indemnity.
⚡ If You Only Read This Section…
- Register with the RCGP before you start — no registration = no ePortfolio = big problems
- Check whether your first GP post requires you to be on the Supplementary List — failure to register means you cannot work
- Join a medical defence organisation (MDU, MPS, or MDDUS) for personal cover on top of NHS indemnity
- Attend both inductions: your post induction AND your GP scheme induction
- GP training lasts 3 years: ST1, ST2, and ST3 — the MRCGP has three parts: AKT, SCA, and WPBA
- Your ePortfolio is assessed every 6 months at an ESR — update it continuously, not in one panic sprint before the deadline
- There are 13 Professional Capabilities — everything you do in training maps to them
- Start your QIA project in ST1 — do NOT leave it to ST3 when you'll be drowning in exams
- Out-of-Hours sessions are required — do them steadily throughout training, not all at once at the end
- Feeling anxious at the start is completely normal. Virtually every trainee feels the same.
Why This Page Exists
Starting GP training is not like starting any other specialty. In hospital medicine, someone hands you a bleep and a rota and you more or less figure out what to do. GP training is different — there are registration requirements, portfolio tools, examination systems, educational frameworks, and a 3-year curriculum all waiting for you on the starting line. Nobody gives you a clear map.
This page is that map. It's written for doctors who have just joined (or are about to join) a GP Vocational Training Scheme (VTS) in the UK. It assumes no prior knowledge of how GP training works — and it explains everything in plain language, not RCGP-ese.
The most common problems new trainees report are not clinical — they are logistical and structural:
- Not knowing they had to register with the RCGP before starting
- Not understanding what the ePortfolio is for or how to use it
- Not realising they needed to be on the Supplementary List to work in GP
- Starting hospital posts without thinking about GP at all
- Leaving OOH sessions, QIA, and CEPS to the very last minute
What Is GP Training? The 60-Second Version
In the UK, General Practice (GP) is primary care — the first point of contact for patients in the community. GPs work in GP surgeries (also called practices), seeing patients with a huge variety of problems. This is different from hospital medicine, which focuses on specific specialties and is called secondary care.
To qualify as a GP in the UK, you must complete a structured 3-year training programme called GP Specialty Training (GPST). You'll have a mix of GP placements and hospital specialty placements. At the end, you sit the MRCGP examination and, if successful, receive your Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT).
- VTS — Vocational Training Scheme (your local GP training programme)
- TPD — Training Programme Director (runs the scheme)
- ES — Educational Supervisor (your main educational guide)
- CS — Clinical Supervisor (hospital post supervisor)
- ARCP — Annual Review of Competence Progression
- CCT — Certificate of Completion of Training
- AiT — Associate in Training (your RCGP status during training)
- ST1 — Year 1: often starts in a hospital specialty post
- ST2 — Year 2: mix of hospital and GP posts
- ST3 — Year 3: mostly in GP; SCA exam usually taken here
- Minimum 18 months total in GP (some regions vary)
- AKT can be taken from ST2 onwards
- SCA usually taken in ST3
- WPBA is ongoing throughout all 3 years
Your 3-Year Training Roadmap
Here's the big picture. Don't try to do everything at once — each year has its own focus.
Year 1
Settle in. Build ePortfolio habits. Start your QIA. Attend inductions. Begin OOH if in GP.
Year 2
Build clinical confidence. Consider AKT. Continue WPBAs. Get your CEPs done.
Year 3
The big year. SCA exam. Finalise WPBAs. Apply for CCT. Celebrate 🎉
| Key Milestone | When To Do It | What Happens If You Don't |
|---|---|---|
| Register with RCGP as AiT | Before Day 1 | No ePortfolio. Training stalled. |
| Get on the Supplementary List (GP posts) | Before starting GP | Cannot legally work in the GP post |
| Join a defence organisation | Before Day 1 | Gap in personal indemnity cover |
| Start ePortfolio entries | From Week 1 | Backlog becomes unmanageable; ARCP problems |
| QIA project | Start in ST1 | ST3 is already full — leaving it late causes panic |
| OOH sessions | Spread across training | Bunching at the end is stressful and looks poor |
| CEPs (Clinical Examination & Procedural Skills) | Start in ST1/2 | 5 mandatory intimate exam CEPs needed by CCT |
| AKT exam | ST2 or ST3 | Must pass to achieve CCT |
| SCA exam | ST3 (usually) | Must pass to achieve CCT |
Your 5 First-Week Actions
These are not optional extras — they are mission-critical. Do them before or during your very first week.
Register with the RCGP as an Associate in Training (AiT)
This is the most time-critical task. Without RCGP registration, you have no ePortfolio, no NTN, and no way to record any evidence. Register online at rcgp.org.uk before anything else. ePortfolio access arrives within 24–48 hours; welcome pack within 10 days.
AiT enquiries: [email protected] | 020 7344 3078
Get Your Rota and Contact Your First Post
Contact your TPDs and get your rota. Then contact the post directly to find out their induction programme, your start arrangements, and anything you need to bring or register. One email in advance removes all first-day uncertainty.
If Starting in GP — Get on the Supplementary List
The Supplementary List (Performers List) registers doctors approved to practise in a specific area. If you are not on it, you cannot legally consult patients in a GP setting — regardless of your qualifications.
Ask your Practice Manager or GP scheme administrator — they know exactly what to do. Do it early.
Join a Medical Defence Organisation
NHS indemnity covers your NHS clinical work, but not all professional activities. Join one of the three main organisations for personal cover and medico-legal support:
Book Your Scheme Induction as Study Leave — Now
There are two separate inductions: your post induction (specific to where you're starting) and your scheme induction (run by your VTS, covers the whole 3-year pathway). You must attend both. Once you have the scheme induction dates, contact your post immediately and book it as study leave — at least 6 weeks in advance.
10 Things Every New Trainee Should Know
Each one represents something trainees consistently wish someone had told them clearly, right at the start.
📋 1. Understand the 13 Professional Capabilities — Everything Maps to Them
The 13 Professional Capabilities are the framework against which everything in GP training is assessed. Your WPBAs, your ePortfolio entries, your ESR reviews, your ARCP outcomes — all map back to these 13 areas.
The shortcut: Before you write any log entry, ask: "Which capability does this demonstrate, and how?" See the full capabilities section below.
📖 2. Read a Consultation Book in ST1 — It Will Transform You
Reading a consultation skills book in your first year will improve your clinical information gathering, patient explanations, and SCA performance. Recommended: The Inner Consultation (Roger Neighbour), The Naked Consultation (Liz Moulton), The Doctor's Communication Handbook (Peter Tate).
ST1 gives you time. ST3 does not. Use it well.
🎯 3. Don't Miss Your Scheme Induction
The VTS induction is the single most efficient way to understand your entire training in one session. You'll meet your TPDs, your cohort, and your administrator. Trainees who miss it regularly report being confused for months about things that were explained there in an afternoon.
📅 4. Plan Your Courses Early — At Least 6 Weeks in Advance
You are an employee as well as a trainee. GP practices and hospital departments depend on you for service delivery. Last-minute study leave requests are frequently declined. Book early — especially for the scheme induction, half-day release, and mandatory training.
🔬 5. Start Your QIA Project in ST1 — Not ST3
A Quality Improvement Activity is required every training year. ST1 is the ideal time: you have headspace, you're fresh and curious, and ST3 is already packed. Ask your trainer early for ideas — they'll have plenty.
🌙 6. Do Your OOH Sessions Steadily — One Per Month
Out-of-Hours experience is mandatory. Aim for roughly one session per month during GP posts. Bunching them all at the end is stressful and looks poor to ARCP panels. Record each session in your ePortfolio with a reflection linked to the OOH capabilities — not just a number.
🏥 7. In Hospital Posts, Remember You're a GP Trainee
It's easy to forget GP training entirely when you're in a busy specialty post. But you're always a GP trainee. In every specialty, ask: "What would I do as this patient's GP?" Use hospital posts to complete CEPs, request Mini-CEXs, and build log entries that demonstrate GP-relevant learning.
📂 8. Treat Your ePortfolio as a Living Document
ARCP panels can spot a batch of rushed pre-deadline entries. Write at least one entry per week, aim for twice the minimum WPBAs, and ensure each entry is concise, reflective, and mapped to a Professional Capability. Strong portfolios are built over time, not in the week before the deadline.
🤝 9. Make a Great First Impression — Early Effort Pays Dividends
The reputation you build in your first few weeks tends to stick. Be on time, show genuine curiosity, listen before you speak, and follow through on what you say you'll do. People who are liked get more teaching, more opportunities, and better references. It's not complicated — it just requires consistency.
In both GP and hospital posts, treat everyone you work with as your equal — including receptionists, nurses, healthcare assistants, phlebotomists, porters, and cleaners. Not because it's politically correct. Because it's true.
They are equal to you as human beings. Just because you hold a medical degree does not make you superior. In the UK, that attitude is not respected — it is noticed, and not in a good way.
We appreciate that in some countries — including Nigeria, Pakistan, India, Iraq, Iran, and others — there is a strong hierarchical divide between doctors and other healthcare workers. In those systems, doctors are placed on a pedestal and others are expected to defer. That is not how the UK NHS works. Here, every member of the team is valued equally, and a doctor who behaves otherwise will quickly find themselves isolated.
Get to know your colleagues — receptionists, nurses, HCAs, pharmacists — as you would get to know friends. Ask how they are. Learn their names. Thank them. If you genuinely build those relationships, you will have an easier, happier, and more supported working life. The receptionist who likes you will go the extra mile for your patients. The nurse who trusts you will flag the patient you need to know about. The whole team works better when everyone in it feels respected. This is not soft advice — it is one of the most practical things we can tell you.
🌐 10. Use Bradford VTS — 1,000+ Free Resources, All in One Place
Bradford VTS was created in 2002 to make GP training more accessible. It's free, widely used, and full of resources for AKT prep, SCA practice, ePortfolio guidance, clinical learning, and consultation skills. You have 3 years. Dip in and out. You're already in the right place.
Understanding Your MRCGP — The 3-Part Exam
The MRCGP is the licensing exam for UK General Practice. It has three independent components — you must pass all three to receive your CCT.
Failing any one component does not invalidate the others. You can resit. But all three must be passed before you can apply for your CCT.
| Component | What It Tests | Format | When To Take It |
|---|---|---|---|
| AKT Applied Knowledge Test | Clinical knowledge, evidence-based practice, health informatics | 200 MCQs (3.5 hours) — computer-based at test centres | From ST2 onwards. Most take in ST3. |
| SCA Simulated Consultation Assessment | Clinical reasoning, consultation skills, communication | 13 role-play stations — remote (video) | Usually in ST3 |
| WPBA Workplace-Based Assessment | Clinical performance and professional behaviour in real practice | Portfolio: CBDs, COTs, CEPs, MSF, PSQ, QIA | Ongoing across all 3 years |
- 80% clinical medicine, 10% evidence/statistics, 10% health informatics
- Primarily NICE and BNF aligned
- Building clinical knowledge habits now makes AKT prep easier in ST3
- Resources: Bradford VTS AKT hub
- Assesses data gathering, clinical management, and interpersonal skills
- The consultation habits you build from Day 1 are directly relevant
- Start using consultation models from ST1
- Communication books read now = SCA marks gained later
Your ePortfolio — What It Is and Why It Matters
The ePortfolio is your central record of learning, development, and clinical experience throughout training. It is hosted on FourteenFish and is reviewed by your Educational Supervisor at every 6-monthly ESR and by the ARCP panel annually.
| Tool | What It Is | Minimum Required |
|---|---|---|
| CBD | Case-Based Discussion — structured review of a real case | 6/year (ST1/2), 12 in ST3 |
| COT | Consultation Observation Tool — observed consultation | 6/year (ST1/2), 12 in ST3 |
| CEP | Clinical Examination & Procedural Skills | Ongoing; 5 mandatory intimate exams by CCT |
| MSF | Multi-Source Feedback — 360° colleague feedback | Once per review period in ST1 & ST3 |
| PSQ | Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire | Required in ST3 |
| QIA/QIP | Quality Improvement Activity/Project | Every training year |
Aim for twice the minimum number of assessments. Write at least one log entry per week. Quality beats quantity — but both matter.
- Intimate exam CEPs — need observers; plan ahead
- Form R — annual; do not forget
- CPR certificate — renew annually
- Safeguarding Level 3 — update annually
The 13 Professional Capabilities — Plain English
These are the 13 areas against which everything in your GP training is assessed. Learn them early and map every log entry to them explicitly — it makes your portfolio significantly stronger.
Before you write any log entry, ask: "Which of the 13 capabilities does this demonstrate, and what evidence do I have for it?"
Common Mistakes New Trainees Make
Trainees assume someone else will handle this. No one will. Register yourself, now, before anything else.
"I saw a patient with chest pain" is not a learning log. Ask: what did I learn? What would I do differently? Which capability does this evidence?
Every hospital post is a GP training opportunity if you use it — for WPBAs, CEPs, learning logs, and GP-focused clinical thinking.
Leaving all OOH to the final months is stressful and looks poor at ARCP. Aim for one per month during GP posts.
QIA is required every year. ST3 is full of exams and assessments. ST1 is the right time.
Last-minute requests are declined. Book at least 6 weeks in advance — including for the scheme induction.
GP training is self-directed. You must identify learning needs, request WPBAs, and come to meetings prepared. Trainees who wait fall behind.
Your Wellbeing Matters — And Anxiety Is Normal
Almost every GP trainee experiences anxiety, self-doubt, and overwhelm at some point — especially in the first few months. This is not a sign that you're in the wrong career. It's a sign that you're a thoughtful doctor adjusting to a complex new role.
- Worried they are not clever enough or not ready
- Unsure whether they're doing the ePortfolio correctly
- Exhausted by the combination of clinical work and training demands
- Anxious about making a clinical mistake
- Comparing themselves unfavourably to colleagues who "seem to have it together"
These feelings are common, shared, and manageable. If you are struggling, talk to your ES or TPD — they have seen this many times and are there to help.
Guidance for International Medical Graduates (IMGs)
If you qualified outside the UK, starting GP training involves adjusting to a primary care model that may be very different from what you trained in. This section addresses your specific challenges directly.
- GPs are the first point of contact for almost all healthcare
- Patients are registered with a specific practice
- GPs manage everything from minor illness to complex chronic disease
- Hospital referral requires GP authorisation in most cases
- GPs prescribe, investigate, counsel, and coordinate care — all in a 10-minute consultation
- Patient-centred, holistic consultation — not purely biomedical
- Managing uncertainty without extensive investigations
- Shared decision-making, ICE, and patient autonomy
- NHS communication norms and culture
- Shorter consultations with higher complexity
- Read a consultation skills book early — the patient-centred approach is different from many international systems
- Watch UK GP consultations — Bradford VTS YouTube has demonstrations of what "good" looks like
- Ask to sit in with experienced GPs — seeing different styles helps you build your own
- Attend all half-day release sessions — essential for understanding the system
- Ask questions freely — curiosity is encouraged in UK GP training, not seen as weakness
Your international experience is an asset, not a deficit. The skills and perspectives you bring from practising in different health systems often make you a broader, more adaptable clinician. Thousands of IMGs have become excellent UK GPs. You will too.
Insider Pearls — What Trainees Wish Someone Had Told Them
Trainees who approach the ePortfolio as box-ticking produce entries that reflect exactly that. Trainees who approach it as a genuine learning record produce entries that make ARCP panels confident and ESRs smooth. The same time, invested differently, yields completely different outcomes.
Trainees who perform best in the SCA are those who have been consulting in a patient-centred, structured way for 2–3 years before the exam — not those who crammed a consultation framework in the final month. Every consultation from Day 1 is practice.
The quality of your relationship with your trainer is the single most important variable in whether you enjoy your GP post. Come to tutorials prepared. Bring cases. Ask for feedback. Trainers who feel their teaching is valued invest more energy into it.
Overwhelming feelings in the first months of GP training are nearly universal — a response to genuine complexity, not evidence that you shouldn't be there. Competence and overwhelm can coexist. In new trainees, they usually do.
Trainees have a higher study leave quota in ST1 and ST2 than in ST3. The instinct is to "save" it for exams — but the system is designed the other way around. Use your ST1 and ST2 days proactively for courses, reading, and skills development.
GP training is 3 years. You are not expected to consult perfectly in Week 1 of ST1. You are expected to engage, learn, reflect, and grow. If you are doing those things, you are doing it right — even when it doesn't feel that way.
Ask yourself in every patient encounter: "What would I do as this patient's GP?" It keeps your GP identity active, generates useful portfolio entries, and trains you to think in terms of primary care management and referral appropriateness.
For Trainers — Teaching the New Trainee
The first few months of a placement are foundational. What happens in early tutorials sets the tone for the entire relationship — and often for the trainee's broader approach to learning.
🔍 Common Blind Spots in New Trainees
- Not understanding what the ePortfolio is for
- Writing descriptive rather than reflective log entries
- Not knowing the 13 Capabilities exist
- Thinking clinical knowledge is all that matters — undervaluing consultation skills
- Not asking for WPBAs because they don't want to "bother" their supervisor
- Carrying anxiety silently rather than surfacing it
💬 Tutorial Ideas for Early Training
- Map the 13 capabilities together — what are their natural strengths?
- Co-write a learning log entry — model what good reflection looks like
- Discuss a case where you (the trainer) were uncertain — normalise not knowing
- Ask openly: "What's worrying you most about training right now?"
- Show them the ARCP progression descriptors — make the expected trajectory concrete
- "Tell me about a patient you saw this week that taught you something."
- "If that patient came back tomorrow, what would you do differently?"
- "Which of the 13 capabilities have you demonstrated well this month? Where's the gap?"
- "What does your best version as a GP look like in 3 years' time?"
Common Questions
❓ What is the difference between an Educational Supervisor and a Clinical Supervisor?
Your Educational Supervisor (ES) oversees your educational development throughout training, reviews your ePortfolio, writes your ESR, and supports your overall progression. In GP posts, this is usually your trainer.
Your Clinical Supervisor (CS) oversees your clinical work in a specific post. In hospital posts, this is typically a consultant or registrar. They write a Clinical Supervisor's Report (CSR) that feeds into your ESR.
❓ When should I take the AKT?
You are eligible from ST2 onwards, but most trainees take it in ST3. Talk to your TPD and ES about the right timing for your rotation. Regardless of when you sit, building clinical knowledge habits from ST1 makes preparation significantly easier later.
❓ What happens at an ARCP?
An ARCP (Annual Review of Competence Progression) is a formal review by a panel at the end of each training year. The panel reviews your full ePortfolio evidence and makes a decision on progression. Common outcomes:
- Outcome 1 — Satisfactory; continue to next year
- Outcome 2 — Satisfactory with additional requirements
- Outcome 3 — Inadequate; training extended
- Outcome 6 — Completion of training (final year)
Maintain a strong ePortfolio throughout the year — not a scramble in the final weeks.
❓ What is LTFTT?
Less Than Full Time Training. If you need to work at reduced hours for health, caring, or other approved reasons, you can apply to train at 50%, 60%, 70%, or 80% WTE. Training time is extended proportionally, but the total number of assessments required remains the same. Speak to your TPD early if this applies to you.
Final Take-Home Points
🏁 The Bits to Remember Tomorrow
- Register with the RCGP before anything else — your ePortfolio depends on it
- GP training = 3 years + 3 exams (AKT, SCA, WPBA) + 13 Professional Capabilities — know the map before you start walking
- Your ePortfolio is a continuous learning record, not a pre-ARCP form — update it weekly from Day 1
- The Supplementary List is mandatory before starting any GP post — do not assume someone else will sort it
- OOH, QIA, and CEPs should be spread across training — not bunched at the end
- In hospital posts, always ask: "What would I do as this patient's GP?" — it transforms your portfolio
- Read a consultation skills book in ST1 — the SCA starts now, even if the exam is 2 years away
- Anxiety at the start is normal and universal — it is not a sign you shouldn't be here
- Your trainer, TPD, and ES are there to support you — make that relationship work
- Bradford VTS has over 1,000 free resources. You're already here. Use them. Come back often.
You've Got This. 🎉
GP training is demanding, complex, and sometimes deeply uncertain. It is also one of the most rewarding professional journeys in medicine. The best GPs remember what it felt like to stand exactly where you are standing now.
Explore Bradford VTS →Bradford VTS — Free for all UK GP Trainees, Trainers & TPDs since 2002. Made with ❤ by Dr Ramesh Mehay.
Medical information is provided for educational purposes. Always refer to current NICE guidelines, BNF, and RCGP guidance for clinical decisions.