As part of your application for Nuclear Medicine ST3, you will be required to complete a self-assessment along with submitting supporting evidence to justify the score you choose.
On this page
You must select the most appropriate option from the below 7 domains. You should use your discretion to choose the descriptor that best fits your own personal experience and achievements. All achievements should be dated after the commencement of your first relevant undergraduate degree, and in any case, within the last 10 years.
If you are applying from the UK
For UK applicants - national refers to activity within the England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland or the UK as a whole. Local would mean at the level of a hospital single Trust or University. Roles outside healthcare include voluntary activity, arts, and other sciences, but not paid employment.
Scoring
For each domain, select one of the scores available. These scores are non-summative (if you match more than 1 descriptor within a domain, you cannot claim multiple). If you meet the requirements for more than one score, select the single highest which applies.
If an achievement legitimately fits under multiple domains, it is valid to claim in both categories (for example, academic work which was presented orally then subsequently published).
Scores are final when the form is submitted. This means they cannot be edited in the event of a mistake, or an additional achievement completed after the deadline.
Completed achievements only
This self-assessment must be accurate at the time of submission. You should not include any achievement which is not fully completed. For example, a degree which has not yet been awarded. Publications may be included if they are accepted by the journal, passed peer review, but remain “in press” or “pre-print”. In this case evidence should include the acceptance letter from the relevant editor. Presentations are only valid once actually given.
Over-claiming
You should be honest with your evaluation and not attempt to gain unfair advantage by exaggerating or misrepresenting achievements. If this is identified, it would represent a probity matter and could lead to outright rejection of your application, and in extreme cases, fitness to practice proceedings.
Scores are reviewed and, based on your evidence, can be revised up or down.
Additional undergraduate degrees have been removed from scoring this year according to national policy for all medical and dental specialist recruitment.
Self-assessment domains
Domain 1: Commitment to Specialty
| Descriptor |
Score |
| Multiple significant exposures to the work of a clinical radiology/nuclear medicine |
10 |
| One significant exposure to the work of a radiology/nuclear medicine department |
6 |
| Attended a radiology/nuclear medicine-based course or conference of at least 1 day in length |
2 |
| None of the above |
0 |
A significant exposure means a period of at least 3 whole day equivalent time attached to a clinical radiology/nuclear medicine department. Examples are listed below.
- A taster week/observership placement.
- A student-selected component, elective, or similar part of a degree course.
- A radiology/nuclear medicine based clinical (not lab) research project involving presence in a department/working with a radiologist.
Multiple exposures must be meaningfully different; for example, more than one of the above types. A taster week in different settings would qualify for the highest descriptor, but not 2 taster weeks offering the same experience. Other experience that could be included would be activities - examples are listed below.
- More than 2 attendances at multidisciplinary team (MDT) preparation and meeting outside the taster week setting.
- More than 2 attendances at radiology/nuclear medicine-based list such as one stop breast clinic or interventional radiology list outside the taster week setting.
- A combination of these with 3 episodes or more.
Evidence for this section could include the following.
- Letter confirming placement from clinical supervisor/education lead.
- Official university documents confirming radiology-based placement/component.
- Details of a radiology/nuclear medicine-based project with evidence of your involvement.
- Course/conference certificate.
Domain 2: Leadership and Management
| Descriptor |
Score |
Examples |
| Hold/have held a national level leadership or managerial role involving radiology/nuclear medicine. |
7 |
National role, for example, within specialist society, royal
college, nationally held fellowship position, relevant to radiology/nuclear medicine. |
| Hold/have held a national level leadership or managerial role not involving radiology/nuclear medicine, but relating to healthcare or hold/have held a local/regional level leadership or managerial role involving radiology/nuclear medicine. |
5 |
National non-radiology healthcare role, for example, within British Medical Association (BMA), royal college.
Local role, for example, committee member of
undergraduate radiology society. |
| Hold/have held a national level leadership or managerial role outside healthcare or hold/have held a local/regional leadership or management role not involving radiology/nuclear medicine but relevant to healthcare. |
3 |
National roles outside healthcare may include charity work, sports, creative arts.
Local role relevant to healthcare but not radiology/nuclear medicine, for example, Junior Doctors Forum or Mess committee, Foundation programme representative. |
| Hold/have held a local/regional leadership or management role outside healthcare. |
2 |
As above, at a local level. |
| None of the above. |
0 |
Not applicable |
Any roles claimed above must have been for a minimum period of 6 months.
For UK applicants - national refers to activity within the England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland or the UK as a whole. Local would mean at the level of a hospital single Trust or University. Roles outside healthcare include voluntary activity, arts, and other sciences, but not paid employment. Examples are given above.
Appropriate evidence would include confirmation of election/appointment, evidence of attendance at committee meetings, letters from chair or senior figure within relevant organisation. Evidence should specify the applicant by name, the role, and major responsibilities thereof.
Domain 3: Teaching and Training
| Descriptor |
Score |
| Have made a major contribution to a national or international teaching programme. |
5 |
| Have made a major contribution to a local or regional teaching programme. |
4 |
| Have evidence of providing organised teaching or training. |
2 |
| None of the above. |
0 |
A major contribution means a leading or organising role, such as a formal teaching fellowship or personally organising a formal, multi-session teaching course. National or international programmes should be open to all relevant learners in that discipline and would usually form part of a formal qualification, such as Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) degree, specialty diploma.
Local or regional programmes would be organised at the level of, for example, a single hospital Trust, and could include Foundation Programme teaching or similar activities. Formal teaching outside medicine, for example, to school students or in the community can also be included.
One-off, small group teaching would qualify in the third descriptor, as would evidence of solely delivering a single session to a larger local or national programme.
For the purposes of this section a formal teaching programme should have a duration of at least 3 months in total.
Appropriate evidence would include the following.
- Official documentation indicating your role as an organiser or deliverer of teaching.
- Contemporaneous feedback collated or countersigned by a 3rd party.
Domain 4: Formal Teaching Qualifications
| Descriptor |
Score |
| Hold a formal masters level teaching qualification or above. |
5 |
| Hold a formal teaching qualification awarded at postgraduate level (such as CILT, PGCert, PGDip) or FHEA. |
4 |
| Evidence of other training in teaching methods after study of at least 2 days (such as Train the Trainers). |
2 |
| No formal qualification in teaching/education. |
0 |
Evidence should be in the form of an official degree certificate or transcript clearly stating the qualification and indicating the level of study.
For this section only, formal teaching qualifications obtained prior studying medicine can be scored (for example, if you completed a postgraduate certificate in education (PGCE) before your medical degree).
Domain 5: Audit and Quality Improvement
| Descriptor |
Score |
| I have led 2 or more audits or quality improvement project relating to radiology/nuclear medicine which can be shown to have resulted in changed practice. |
7 |
| I have led an audit or quality improvement project relating to radiology/nuclear medicine which can be shown to have resulted in changed practice. |
5 |
| I have led an audit or quality improvement project but not meeting all criteria above. |
3 |
| I have contributed to, but not led, an audit or quality improvement project. |
2 |
| None of the above. |
0 |
Leading an audit/Quality Improvement (QI) project would usually include a major role in conception, data collection, analysis, and presentation. If your evidence does not demonstrate this, please select a different descriptor appropriately. Evidence could include slides from audit presentations, a formal portfolio assessment from a supervisor confirming your role.
Demonstration of changed practice could be via a closed-loop second audit cycle showing better compliance to gold standard, or by improvement in a quality metric.
Relating to radiology/nuclear medicine means that diagnostic imaging formed a major part of the project.
Domain 6: Academic Achievements
| Descriptor |
Score |
| I hold a postgraduate research degree (PhD, MD, MDRes). |
5 |
| At least one peer-reviewed publication relating to radiology/nuclear medicine as first author. |
4 |
| At least one peer-reviewed publication, not relating to radiology/nuclear medicine, as first author or at least one oral or poster presentation relating to radiology/nuclear medicine at national or international level, as first author. |
3 |
At least one peer-reviewed publication, not as first author or at least one oral or poster presentation at national or international level, as first
author. |
2 |
| At least one oral or poster presentation, at any level. |
1 |
| Published case reports or ‘letter-to-the-editor’ in peer-reviewed journal. |
1 |
| Involvement in a research team as part of an elective, intercalated degree, extended student research and enterprise project, academic foundation programme, academic summer school or other research taster. |
1 |
| None of the above. |
0 |
Please note, as mentioned above, intercalated and additional undergraduate degrees have been removed from scoring according to national specialty recruitment policy. (Points scored in this section are only for postgraduate research degrees).
Relating to radiology/nuclear medicine means the project should involve diagnostic imaging. This does not preclude papers in other fields such as surgery, oncology and so forth if they have a significant imaging focus. Publications and presentations can relate to audit/QI activity. Case reports in peer-reviewed publications are acceptable.
Presentations should be proffered papers which have been through a process of peer-review (not invited oral or poster presentations).
Evidence could include:
- degree certificate
- your Open Researcher and Contributor IDentifiersummary
- citation including DOI/indexing service identifier (for example, PMID)
- conference catalogue
Domain 7: Prizes and Awards
| Descriptor |
Score |
| Prize awarded by a recognised radiology/nuclear medicine institution/specialist society or at national/international level meeting or Distinction award of final year primary medical qualification (or equivalent). |
6 |
| Prize awarded by a recognised regional level institution or meeting. |
3 |
| More than one prize awarded by a local organisation or meeting. |
2 |
| One prize awarded by a local organisation or meeting. |
1 |
| None of the above. |
0 |
To be eligible, a prize must have been open to all peers at that level of training and geographic region, so to all medical undergraduates and/or postgraduates within a nation, region, or specific locality. A single hospital Trust, University or similar would constitute a “local” organisation.
Undergraduate or postgraduate merit/distinction awards are not included in this section.
Scholarships and elective bursaries may be included in this section as long as these were open to a competitive application.
Page last reviewed: 31 October 2023
Next review due: 31 October 2024