Synapse
⌘+K
Synapse
PulseExploreClubsResearchersJournals
Instagram
HomeClubsExplore
August 14, 2026Journal of the Royal Society of MedicineOpen Access

Competition and equity in NHS specialty training, 2021–2024: longitudinal cohort analysis of protected-characteristic outcomes

View Full Paper
Ask AI
Bookmark
Share

Authors

DADinesh AggarwalUniversity of CambridgeMRMeera Roy-ChowdhuryNXNicola XiangImperial College Healthcare NHS Trust

Discussion

Loading...

Member takes

Implication

Longitudinal cohort study uncovers declining success rates and demographic disparities in NHS specialty training applicants, highlighting persistent recruitment inequities.

Key Points

  • To evaluate appointment equity, demographic disparities, and temporal competition trends across protected characteristics in NHS specialty training recruitment from 2021 to 2024.
  • Conducted a longitudinal cohort study of all medical and surgical specialty training applications (N=214,893) submitted to NHS England between 2021 and 2024 using data obtained via annual Freedom of Information requests.
  • Quantified application success rates across protected characteristics, graduation origin (UK vs non-UK), and specialty choices.
  • Overall appointment rates fell from 32.7% (12,419/37,971) in 2021 to 17.2% (13,929/81,189) in 2024, with UK graduates outperforming non-UK graduates (40.7% vs 15.5%; Δ25.2%, 95% CI 24.8–25.6, p < 0.001).
  • Female applicants achieved higher success than males (27.5% vs 22.2%; Δ5.3%, 95% CI 4.95–5.70, p < 0.001), while pregnant or maternity-leave candidates had significantly lower success (21.3% vs 25.8%; Δ4.5%, 95% CI 3.15–5.82, p < 0.001).
  • Adjusting for country of graduation, all 15 minority ethnic groups demonstrated lower odds of appointment compared with White-British applicants, with the largest disparities seen in Black Caribbean and Bangladeshi candidates.

Cite This Study

Aggarwal et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a7ec79cb70b84ec8b914175https://doi.org/10.1177/01410768261475034
View Full Paper
Ask AI
Bookmark
Share

Also Consider

Synapse has enriched 4 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context:

  1. 1The role of medical schools in UK students’ career intentions: findings from the AIMS study2024 · 8 citations
  2. 2Is there a sufficient supply of clinical academics for UK medical schools? A retrospective cohort study2024 · 2 citations
  3. 3Evaluation of three short‐listing methodologies for selection into postgraduate training in general practice2008 · 80 citations
  4. 4Discrimination of Black and Muslim Minority Groups in Western Societies: Evidence From a Meta-Analysis of Field Experiments2021 · 70 citations