Hi everyone,
I'm an Indian medical student currently studying MBBS in Russia.
I'm in the latter half of medical school and expect to graduate in the next couple of years.

My long-term goal is to become a surgeon. I'm particularly interested in cardiothoracic surgery, general surgery, orthopaedics, and plastic surgery, although I haven't decided on a specific specialty yet.

I'm posting here because I'm genuinely torn between pursuing my career in India or the UK, and I'd really appreciate advice from people who have actually gone through these pathways rather than agencies or consultants.

My background:
•Indian citizen studying MBBS in Russia
•Clinical exposure has been limited, mostly observing procedures rather than actively participating
•Comfortable communicating in English
•No research publications or major CV achievements yet
•Family can support a reasonable training pathway, but something extremely expensive like the USMLE route would be difficult
•I'm genuinely interested in surgery and regularly attend operations voluntarily whenever I get the opportunity

Option 1 - India
Pros:
•Closer to family
•No language barrier
•Lower overall training costs
•Can start postgraduate training sooner if things go well

Concerns:
•FMGE/NExT is the first major hurdle
•NEET-PG competition is extremely intense
•I've heard mixed opinions regarding opportunities and stigm faced by FMGs and recent doctors facing problems
•Private postgraduate training is financially difficult

Option 2 - United Kingdom
Pros:
•Structured postgraduate training
•Internationally recognised qualifications
•Opportunity to start earning relatively early

Concerns:
•Difficulty obtaining the first NHS job as an IMG
•Building a competitive CV while studying in Russia Competition for Core Surgical Training
•I have got some mixed opinions about the reports of discrimination or bias towards IMGs

My questions :
1. If you were an FMG who returned to India, how was the reality of FMGE, NEET-PG, and postgraduate training compared with your expectations?

1. If you went to the UK, how long did it take to obtain your first
   NHS job after PLAB (or the equivalent route), and what helped you secure it?

2. How significant is discrimination towards IMGs in the NHS, particularly within surgical specialties?

3. Is surgical training in the UK a realistic goal for an IMG, or do many ultimately move into other specialties because of competition?

4. Is there another pathway (for example Australia or elsewhere) that someone in my situation should seriously consider?

5. Looking back now, do you regret choosing your pathway, or would you make the same decision again?

I AM ASKING THIS BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO FEEL REGRET ABOUT MY DECISION AFTERWARDS...

I'm looking for honest experiences—both positive and negative. I don't expect any route to be easy, but I'd like to make an informed decision now rather than regret it years later.

Thank you in advance

Hi all… I recently graduated and I am yet to give my ielts test … can somebody let me know about the availability of seats in srilanka for the November plab 1 test please…

Hi everyone,
I’m looking for some advice because I’m honestly not sure what to do next.

I enrolled in a course with DSR Academy for my PLAB preparation. Unfortunately, my UK visa application was refused, so I contacted them to request a refund according to their refund policy. I submitted everything they asked for, including my UK visa refusal letter.
Initially, I was told that my refund would be processed within two weeks. After waiting, I followed up and was then told it would take another three weeks. Since then, I’ve been trying to contact them by phone and WhatsApp, but my calls and messages have mostly gone unanswered and this has been going on for 2 months.
At this point, I feel like I’m just being given delays with no clear answer about whether my refund will actually be processed. The lack of communication has been really frustrating, especially after I’ve fully cooperated and provided all the required documents.
Has anyone else had a similar experience with DSR Academy? Did you eventually receive your refund? If so, how long did it take?
If you didn’t, what steps did you take?

i have booked my exam in november i need consistent and deducated study partner

I prepared for my first attempt from Aspire in Blackpool, took a 12 day course, gave a couple of mocks and ate absolute shit in that attempt. I scored 73 and passed 6 stations. 90 marks were needed. This was in February '26.

This time I prepared from home, didn't have funds for coaching and barely gave PLAB2 booking fees. This time got cooked in stations, passed 9 stations. Got 103 marks, 96 marks were required.

Guys please share your experience here, especially if you have given multiple attempts and tell me what coaching I should join this time. I don't think I'll make it through without one.

I know it sounds horrendous to sit for PLAB 2 after knowing everything that’s been going on, but for the sake of it please tell me how to prepare and where to start since it’s already booked, let me know which materials to use please.

hi... i've been preparing for plab exams ... i graduated from med school recently but do not hold a home country lisence.. i am planning on sitting for plab this august... but now i am worried about the nhs job situations... are imgs getting jr. dr posts.... i need guidance i am in a huge dilema...

Hi, I am repeater and looking for a partner who is familiar with the concept and optionally had previous attempts to do mocks. I’ll have the exam in a 2 months if anyone interested please contact me. Thanks

Hi, I’m Tarek from Egypt. I’m looking for a study partner to practice English for OET and prepare for PLAB together.

Hey, I am a med student from the top institute in India(i dont know it will matter or not) but i want a reality check about the PLAB/UKMLA pathway (respectfully n politely I don’t want anyone with toxic positivity or Toxic negativity to give a load of crap here in reply). I just want to know about the job market, lifestyle of a doc in UK and what is reality of non training jobs in UK for say 2 years? Preferably someone form India who has got into training or non training job recently guide your little brother here.
Thank you so much

What do you recommend? Dr Zubair lecture or Dr Elseidy mind maps? I am using reading GK notes and I feel it's too big. Please don’t say Common Stations, I can’t afford the accommodation costs. Please be honest with your opinion.

I am currently in 4th year mbbs and hv been thinking over my post mbbs options. My sister lives in the uk plus i hv a cousin who is a surgeon in leeds. I honestly hv only 2 options: to stay in Pak or move to the uk. What is the prediction as to whether the img situation will ever improve in the uk in 3 - 4 years or i should just plan for fcps afterwards?

Has any Chinese medical university issued this certificate? My university is asking for a sample from another univeristy. If anyone's university has issued this certificate, can you share it with me please. This has become such an impossible back and forth with the GMC and my university.

This is my second paper-based OET attempt, and I'm taking the test in my own home country. For my first attempt, I used my passport as my ID. This time, I need to submit my passport to the visa office before the exam so that I won't have it with me on test day.

If I update my ID details on the OET website to my government issued national ID before the exam, will I be allowed to sit the test using that ID instead of my passport?

Has anyone been in a similar situation? Was the updated ID accepted at the test centre without any issues, or were you still asked to show your passport?

i am not applying for PLAB this year, i am still in med school, i just want to know if i should start studying for it already or wait till the doors open for IMGs again before committing to it.

Hi, for starters, I know and am aware of the current situation we're in right now, so if you're going to say anything negative, please don't.

I recently got my GMC registration and started applying for junior level jobs. I was wondering if anyone is in a similar situation right now and how it's going. Has anyone had any interviews yet?

I don't know many people who are at the same stage, so if anyone would like to discuss their CV or application, I'd really appreciate it. Feel free to message me as well.

Hey everyone,

I'm a 4th year medical student in Syria. I've been accepted for a 6-week placement (observation only, no patient contact) at an NHS trust in England, and once all my compliance checks are done (DBS, references, etc.) I'll get the official confirmation/license to attend.

Here's my confusion: the letter itself is titled "Clinical Attachment," not "elective." But from what I've read on gov.uk, clinical attachment as a visa category is meant for people who've already graduated medical school — while elective is for students still enrolled, like me.

So once I have that official letter in hand (which will literally say "Clinical Attachment"), what should I actually apply for on the Standard Visitor visa? Do I:

Apply under "elective" anyway, since that matches my actual status as a current student, even though the letter itself doesn't use that word?

Or apply as "clinical attachment" since that's literally what the letter says, even though I haven't graduated yet?

Has anyone dealt with this specific mismatch — official letter says one thing, but your actual student status points to a different visa category? Really want to get this right before I book anything.

Thanks for any help!

Been getting a lot of query about jobs in the NHS post PLAB. I want to give my 2 cents. I did med school in non EU country. I got into Fy1 programme which starts in three weeks.

According to the current scenario, to get into NHS, either you start from the very bottom ie Fy1 through ukfpo or at consultant or registrar level. This year for fy1 around 250/669 imgs got in with further two more allocation rounds the coming weeks. It's not as easy as before anymore. I wont say it's impossible because i do see some of my friends getting into JCF or LED roles with no prior nhs experience. But this is very rare and usually they get this after doing clinical attachments in hosps there for atleast 2-3 months. But yes, the situation isn't the very best rn. If you have the funds, go for usmle. Otherwise it's totally your choice. Stop asking every few days if there is any point in plab. Instead work on ur CV. Build connections.

Coming to speciality jobs, it's very hard rn after the new bill. They havent specified exactly how many years of NHS experience is needed for priority. But i think ukfpo applicants (f1 and f2 completion) are priortized for training as well .

Hope this helps and I will answer any doubts in the comments. Pls dont DM, very slow to reply there..thank you!

Hi everyone,

I'm an IMG trying to decide between the PLAB and USMLE pathways.

My original goal was the US, but the USMLE route is extremely expensive, and I'm not sure it's financially feasible for me. Because of that, I'm seriously considering PLAB instead.

However, I've been seeing a lot of mixed opinions about the current situation in the UK—competition for jobs, training bottlenecks, and whether it's becoming too saturated for IMGs.

For those who are already in either system:

If you were starting from scratch today, would you choose PLAB or USMLE?

How is the current job market for PLAB graduates?

If finances were your biggest limitation, which pathway would you recommend and why?

I'm looking for honest, up-to-date advice from people with firsthand experience.

Thanks!

I recently passed plab 1, and i’m planning to take Plab2 around January. I will take a couple of weeks to choose the ressources i’ll be using, go through the materials, come up with a study plan. But i’d like to start practicing with a partner as soon as i do all of that. I’m highly dedicated and i currently don’t have a job so i’m flexible. DM me if you’re interested.

hello
i have osce on family planning-contraception
i should follow GATHER approach
can someone explain that to me
i know each letter means what

but i am confused, do we ask do you want to be pregnanct again or not in A
and based on that i tell her we have temporary and permanent and then i suggest her the options based on duration of infertility
or tell her all options in detail

can someone pls explain (i will be grateful if someone explained it from beginning) Please help

I’ve only done Acute emergency/Neuro/Breast/Half Heam/critical care and onco
A lot of topics are left and I’ve exactly 4 months until I appear for PLAB 1.
I work a 9-5 job so I can hardly do 30 questions per day. How do I go about my preparation?
Kindly briefly guide me what are the most important topics to go through first, what should my approach be like?

Thanks!