The Standard Pathway of the Australian Medical Board Explained

Obtaining registration to practice medicine in Australia is probably the most confusing of all the options IMGs have. To make some sense of the chaos and to understand the various pathways to obtaining medical registration, it’s best to start by understanding the various players in the skills assessment and registration processes.

There are 6 you should know about:

1. Australian Medical Board (AMB) – Registers all medical practitioners and students;

2. Australian Medical Council (AMC) – is the Australian verifications authority for all medical qualifications and also conducts the Standard Pathway assessment examinations;

3. Approved Competent Authorities are international authorities who are approved by the Australian Medical Board to assess applied medical knowledge and basic clinical skills – only needed for the Competent Authority Pathway;

4. Australian Specialist Medical Colleges – conduct the Specialist Pathway assessments.

5. Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) – provide verification of medical qualifications through their Electronic Portfolio of International Credentials (EPIC) service;

6. Last but not least, you, the applicant.

So, you’re an IMG who graduated from outside of New Zealand, UK, USA, Canada or Ireland who wants to gain general registration.

Your best bet is the Standard Pathway, which is administered by the AMC. There are two streams to this pathway.

I. The first is the AMC examinations stream. In this stream the applicant needs to:

1. Apply to the AMC for standard pathway and primary source verification.

2. Pass the AMC Part 1 MCQ Examination

3. Pass the AMC Clinical Examination and receive an AMC certificate

4. Secure an employment offer.

5. Apply to the MBA for provisional registration

6. On approval of provisional registration, complete 12 months supervised practice.

7. Apply to the MBA for general registration

8. Celebrate

OR

1. Apply to the AMC for standard pathway and primary source verification

2. Pass the AMC Part 1 MCQ Examination

3. Secure an employment offer

4. Apply to the MBA for limited registration

5. On approval of registration, complete 12 months supervised practice.

6. While completing the 12 months of supervised practice, Pass the AMC Clinical Examination and receive an AMC certificate

7. Apply to the MBA for general registration

8. Celebrate

A point of contention here is securing an employment offer before gaining either limited or provisional registration.

You’ll have to look for jobs with position requirements stating that they’re open for doctors eligible for registration such as the job description shown below.

After you’ve secured that position, you’ll apply for and gain either limited or provisional registration and complete 12 months of supervised practice in that institution.

II. The second stream is the workplace-based assessment stream, in this stream the applicant needs to:

1. Apply to the AMC for standard pathway and primary source verification

2. Pass the AMC Part 1 MCQ Examination

3. Secure an employment offer

4. Apply to the MBA for limited registration

5. On approval of registration, complete 12 months of supervised practice.

6. While completing the 12 months of supervised practice, complete a workplace assessment and receive an AMC certificate

7. Apply to the MBA for general registration

8. Celebrate

The only difference here is that you do away with the clinical exam by completing a workplace assessment. Keep in mind that there are limited numbers of assessment programs, and as a result, relatively few applicants are assessed through this stream.

We’ve included a table of programs and hospitals that offer workplace-based assessment below.

The contents of this article are summarized in the flowchart below: