Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The ESSQ is intended for doctors in the early stages of their careers (pre-MRCS) and therefore those who already possess the MRCS or FRCS are ineligible.

  If you have passed Part A but not Part B of the MRCS you are still eligible to apply

  It is expected that you will be planning to begin the MRCS examinations within two years of commencing the programme (Year 1 follows the MRCS Part A syllabus, and Year 2 is designed to support Part B)

Basic Eligibility Criteria

Applications are made online (see 'Apply for 2013' for guidance) and scans of supporting documentation will be required.

To be eligible you must:

  1. Upload an acceptable basic medical degree certificate, normally obtained within five years of the proposed date of admission to the programme.

  2. Upload a final degree transcript (final year medical students can upload an interim transcript.  Any offer of a place would then be conditional on providing final documentation following graduation).

  3. Provide contact details of two referees: one of these should be from a teacher from your medical school, and another from a consultant (or equivalent senior colleague) with whom you have worked. Both references must refer specifically to your suitability for the ESSQ.

  4. Prepare a personal statement of no more than 200 words.

  5. Confirm in the personal statement that you are continuing your learning in a supervised clinical environment. 

  6. If English is not your first language, you also need to provide evidence of proficiency in English.

See further details regarding each of the above criteria below.

top Detailed Guidance on the Eligibility Criteria

1. Basic medical degree certificate

The programme is geared towards those just beginning a career in surgery therefore it is expected that applicants will be within five years of receiving their MBChB (or equivalent). If you got your degree more than five years ago but meet all the other criteria, then you must be working in a supported clinical environment for the duration of the programme and be able to demonstrate an on-going commitment to surgery.

We need an uploaded scan of the original basic medical degree certificate and academic transcript.  The qualification and awarding university must be listed in the World Health Organisation Directory of Medical Schools.

2. Final degree transcript

A degree transcript is an inventory of the courses taken and grades earned throughout a degree course.   The transcript is normally given with the degree certificate. 

Final year medical students should upload an interim academic transcript and may be offered a conditional place on the programme with the expectation that an uploaded scan of the final medical degree certificate and transcript will follow. Some applicants may also be invited to defer their place for a year. 

3. References

One reference should be from a teacher from your medical school, and the other from a consultant (or equivalent senior colleague) with whom you have worked. These are academic references and therefore the following points should be addressed:

  • Title and position of referee
  • How long they have known you and in what capacity
  • Their opinion of your ability to manage the study required on this programme (note that this is a Masters level distance learning programme delivered online).
  • Any additional information they may feel is useful

You will be given the opportunity to enter your referees' email addresses to the online form; the system will then email your referees automatically.  This allows your referees to upload your references electronically to your application.  If you obtain your reference personally, the reference MUST be on the headed paper of his/her institution and must be signed by the referee. 

More information on references can be found here www.ed.ac.uk/studying/postgraduate/applying/references

4. Personal statement

The personal statement is a part of the online application form and it should contain details of your involvement with and commitment to a career in surgery and confirmation that you will be working in a supervised clinical environment while you are studying on the ESSQ.

It is easier if you write this statement before starting the application.

Personal statements may be checked by anti-plagiarism software.

5. Working in a supervised clinical environment

In the personal statement, you also must include information about the type of post you will be working in for the first year of the programme and its location, if known.  You should give evidence that the ESSQ programme will be relevant to your clinical training.

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6. Evidence of English language proficiency

If English is not your first language you must provide evidence of good written and spoken English skills. Please see the University of Edinburgh's English language requirements here.

If your medical degree was taught and examined in English and you passed it less than two years before the start date of the programme (which is 2 September 2013) then this is acceptable evidence of proficiency in English.  You will still need to submit evidence of this as part of your application. 

As with the medical degree, any English language qualification tests must have been passed at the required level within two years of the start date of the programme.  English language qualifications dated over two years ago are not acceptable.

If you have a different language qualification and wish to know if this will be acceptable, please contact the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine at the University of Edinburgh mvmpg@ed.ac.uk

Online Pre-sessional Academic Language Course (OPAL)

In summer 2013, the University of Edinburgh is running a new online pre-sessional academic language course (OPAL) to help international online distance learning Masters students prepare for their programme of study.  Places will be available, free of charge, to students who have been offered a place on the MSc in Surgical Sciences. Please contact the ESSQ office for further information: essqinfo@rcsed.ac.uk

Conflicting Studies

With the exception of those to whom special permission has been granted by both the College and the Senatus Postgraduate Studies Committees to pursue studies with a view to obtaining a professional qualification, candidates must not, during the period of their registration, take courses or pursue studies in this or in any other institution with a view to obtaining any degree, diploma or professional qualification other than the one for which they are registered in this University.

Candidates who have been registered for a postgraduate degree immediately prior to their proposed period of study at the University of Edinburgh may be admitted on the assumption that all written work for that postgraduate degree will be submitted for examination before the start of Week 0 in the year of entry to the Edinburgh degree. Candidates admitted on this basis who do not provide evidence of such completion by the end of Week 4 of Semester 1 will be formally withdrawn from their studies at the University of Edinburgh.
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