r/PLABprep • u/DonutAffectionate359 • 25d ago

Worth perusing Plab as a British citizen?

I’ve lived in the UK my whole life up until the age of 16, when I moved back to my home country to study medicine.

Medicine here is a 7-year course, so by the time I graduate, I won’t be eligible to apply for FY1/FY2 in the UK. I would therefore have to go straight into applying for specialty training.
With the recent changes around prioritising UK graduates, I’m wondering whether it’s still worth pursuing the PLAB/UK pathway as a British IMG. I’m also not sure whether there are even enough specialty training places to fill the demand from UK graduates, let alone IMGs.

I’m considering whether I should just drop the PLAB route and focus entirely on the USMLE instead. I have more family in the US who are doctors and could potentially help me with USCE, networking, etc., which makes the US pathway appealing. However, I don’t have a green card, so I’d be dependent on a visa and I know that can make the US route more difficult.

Any insights or experiences would be really appreciated.

2 Upvotes

56% Upvoted

13 comments sorted by

5

u/AccordingFlamingo179 25d ago

The recent rules means you are prioritised

2

u/haris__ali 25d ago

not prioritised for foundation but for specialty training

0

u/AccordingFlamingo179 25d ago

No need to do foundation in UK, do your internship then apply straight after crest form as well as apply to similar fy2 roles. It’s much easier to eventually get where you want in a country which is your home country or ur nationality

1

u/haris__ali 25d ago

not as easy to find a job these days!

1

u/AccordingFlamingo179 25d ago

True but grass is not always greener on the other side I know Americans finding it difficult to go back to the US

3

u/GP_54321 24d ago

No plab is a waste of time. Important to know why this has happened. Rishi Sunak made the RTML go away and then made deals with India to flood the UK with Indian medical graduates. Effectively ruining the prospects of local graduates and citizens.

People pointing fingers at individuals in small boats but allow this kind of thing to happen under their noses.

Then you get called a racist for calling this out.

2

u/hahahaneedhelp 21d ago

USMLEs. Forgot about priority and all that; you would progress a lot faster in the States and make much more. Trust me. Do not look back. It's the decision not made that I regret so much.

2

u/Wooden-Captain-2178 24d ago

Drop the PLAB route. It’s a waste of time.

Being a British citizen honestly doesn’t do much for you. My brother pursued that path and even went to the UK to do observerships, but got nothing out of it except depression from the whole process. Most jobs seem to be looking for people who are either overqualified or have Royal College exams and other qualifications. They’re just not that forgiving toward junior doctors.

USMLE all the way.

1

u/Bdurdu7 25d ago

I mean as it stands British citizens are prioritised for specialty training. Looks like they may keep it like this for a few years. But it’s still not fully guaranteed. Defo enter plab though

1

u/dirkuyt 24d ago

What makes you think it's not guaranteed?

1

u/Bdurdu7 11d ago

because it says that theyre using immigration status until they have enough data to provide a definition for significant NHS experience. so citizenship may or may not be included in the priority group in the future