New Trainee Welcome Day 2025
The College holds an annual New Trainee Welcome Day, aimed at new trainees appointed to a run-through training programme with a National Training Number (NTN) who are commencing pathology training, each year.
The event aims to introduce new trainee pathologists to their College and its role, and to understand pathology training programmes and examinations and the support available.
Chemical pathology
The New Trainee Welcome Day for chemical pathology was held on Friday 5 September. A recording of the welcome day will be available shortly.
[Insert document linking, New Trainee Welcome Day 2025 Programme - Chemical Pathology]
Histopathology
The New Trainee Welcome Day for histopathology was held on Friday 26 September. A recording of the welcome day will be available shortly.
[Insert document linking, New Trainee Welcome Day 2025 Programme - Histopathology]
Medical microbiology and medical virology
The New Trainee Welcome Day for medical microbiology and medical virology was held on Friday 19 September. A recording of the Welcome day will be available shortly.
[Insert document linking, New Trainee Welcome Day 2025 Programme - Medical Microbiology and Medical Virology]
FAQs
I am an academic NIHF ACF infectious diseases/medical microbiology full-time trainee - if I have 3 months of research during my ST3 year, would we still be able to sit the exam in autumn ST4?
You need to talk to your educational supervisor, as there is flexibility. The exam guidance says: "Medically qualified candidates are required to have been trained in a recognised Regional Specialist Training Programme in microbiology or virology for a period of normally not less than 12 months". Plus, your educational supervisor/sponsor has to sign off on your application to confirm that you are sufficiently prepared.
Does the college suggest how often we should expect to have an SDL (self-directed learning day - for portfolio, admin, audits, reflections, etc.) in our rotas?
There isn't a single national deanery policy for self-directed learning time, but rather a variety of recommendations and requirements that vary by specialty and training level. The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges recommends 4 hours of self-directed teaching (SDT) per week for higher specialty trainees. We recommend that you consult your educational supervisor/training programme director regarding information regarding your work schedule and SDT.
Do you have any advice for seeking out-of-programme research opportunities for trainees in regions where academic clinical fellowships do not exist?
Trainees should talk to their training programme director about research links with the department and research leads. The training programme director will be able to help you identify out-of-programme research opportunities.
For academic trainees, is there any recommendation on how much microbiology, virology, inpatient infectious diseases, clinics, etc., to get during Combined Infection Training?
It depends on what you are training in. For example, if you are in infectious diseases/virology, you need to ensure you get 6 months’ training time in virology as a priority. The training is bespoke as it depends on the timelines of grants, PhD, etc. We would encourage trainees to meet with their educational supervisor/training programme director to plan their training and what their priorities for their clinical training.
Can a 3–4-month infectious disease experience in places like Africa or India count as infectious disease exposure, or is it considered out of programme? Are there any mandatory courses for everyone?
This experience would be an out-of-programme experience (OOPE). Each OOPE is different, and the skills you obtain depend on the post. Laboratory experience could count towards being an infectious disease consultant. We recommend that you consult your educational supervisor/training programme director regarding information on an OOPE and training that can count.
The only mandatory course is the ALS. The list of courses is a mix of free and expensive. At your Penultimate ARCP, we expect to see evidence of leadership or management, but we don’t mandate a specific course; it's up to the trainee. The list of courses that have an asterisk next to them is highly recommended.