Irish Grad, Considering UK Residency

[NK24]

Hello Everyone,
I'm hoping someone can give me some info re: UK residency.

I'm an American citizen, graduate of an Irish medical school in '07. After graduation, I completed 6 months of intern training, but had to withdraw from program due to health problems.

I am now thinking of resuming my medical career, and am considering UK residency. Are there any websites/organizations out there detailing the application process? How about rankings of different programs? I am basically looking for any info on the application process. Will I still have a chance of getting a spot even though I've been away from medicine for over a year?

My other option is to apply for residency in the US. I am familiar with the application process there, and have taken the USMLEs, but I am unsure whether my Irish training will translate well there. Does anyone have any experience with this? Will it be harder to match in the US having been "idle" for a year?

Any advice you can give will be greatly appreciated.
-NK24

[Scottish Chap]

Hello Everyone,
I'm hoping someone can give me some info re: UK residency.

I'm an American citizen, graduate of an Irish medical school in '07. After graduation, I completed 6 months of intern training, but had to withdraw from program due to health problems.

I am now thinking of resuming my medical career, and am considering UK residency. Are there any websites/organizations out there detailing the application process? How about rankings of different programs? I am basically looking for any info on the application process. Will I still have a chance of getting a spot even though I've been away from medicine for over a year?

My other option is to apply for residency in the US. I am familiar with the application process there, and have taken the USMLEs, but I am unsure whether my Irish training will translate well there. Does anyone have any experience with this? Will it be harder to match in the US having been "idle" for a year?

Any advice you can give will be greatly appreciated.
-NK24

Sorry to hear about your issue.

You use the word "internship" (usually used in North America), but your post suggests that you did not do this in the U.S. or in the U.K. I'm assuming you did this in Ireland?

For the U.K., you'll probably qualify for the foundation years (FY1 and 2) but, as you'll read on here, many internationals find that they cannot secure a position after the second year. This means that you might effectively have wasted those years. I'm not sure how much of an issue it will be in the U.K. having taken some time off. Somebody with more knowledge than I might answer that.

For the U.S., I think you'll be fine. You'll probably have to explain your absence at the interview, but absolutely do not make a big deal of it in your ERAS essay. There is a place on the ERAS form to declare any postgraduate medical training. It would help your case if you could secure a letter of recommendation from your internship. If you don't care where you do your training in the U.S. and as long as it's nothing amazingly competitive like dermatology or neurosurgery, you should match.

Good luck!