Medicine Jobs | Hospital Staff Solutions

Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP)

The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) is the specialist medical college responsible for training, assessing and accrediting physicians and paediatricians in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.

The College oversees physician training across more than 30 adult medicine and paediatric specialties, including General and Acute Care Medicine, Cardiology, Endocrinology, Gastroenterology, Respiratory Medicine, Geriatric Medicine and many others. It also assesses overseas-trained physicians seeking specialist recognition in Australia. See more here.

Becoming a Physician

Doctors wishing to become specialist physicians complete the RACP Physician Training Program, which consists of:

Basic Physician Training (BPT)
Written and clinical examinations
Advanced Training in a chosen specialty
Workplace-based learning and assessments
Ongoing professional development

Training generally takes at least six years, depending on the specialty chosen. Successful completion leads to Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (FRACP).

Overseas-Trained Physicians (OTP)

If you have already completed specialist physician training overseas, you may be eligible for assessment through the RACP as an Overseas Trained Physician (OTP).

The RACP assesses whether your qualifications, training and clinical experience are comparable to Australian specialist standards before making a recommendation to the Medical Board of Australia.

Specialist Assessment Pathways

The RACP offers two primary pathways for overseas-trained physicians seeking specialist recognition in Australia:

Standard Specialist Assessment Pathway

Suitable for most overseas-trained physician specialists with recognised specialist qualifications

Accelerated Specialist Pathway

Eligible specialists from selected countries and qualifications, offering a streamlined assessment process

Depending on the assessment outcome, applicants may be required to complete supervised practice before becoming eligible for specialist recognition. See more here.

Eligible Physician Specialties

The RACP assesses overseas-trained specialists across a wide range of physician specialties, including:

General and Acute Care Medicine, Cardiology, Endocrinology, Gastroenterology, Geriatric Medicine, Infectious Diseases, Medical Oncology, Nephrology, Neurology, Respiratory Medicine, Rheumatology, Rehabilitation Medicine, Clinical Haematology, Clinical Immunology & Allergy, Occupational & Environmental Medicine, Public Health Medicine, Palliative Medicine, Sleep Medicine, and many other adult medicine and paediatric specialties.

What RACP Assesses

When assessing overseas-trained physicians, the College considers: