NHS Education for Scotland
A skilled and sustainable workforce for a healthier Scotland
NHS Education for Scotland
A skilled and sustainable workforce for a healthier Scotland
Information for Foundation Training Year Applicants
The FTY Recruitment Applicant Handbook for Prospective Trainee Pharmacists contains essential information regarding how the scheme is structured and how the recruitment process operates, including an overview of the assessment process.
Applications for the Foundation Trainee Pharmacist for the 2025-26 cohort are now CLOSED.
The Job Description, Person Specification and Professional Attributes Framework are also very important and provide specific details of the criteria that candidates are required to demonstrate throughout the recruitment process. All applicants are strongly advised to read these documents thoroughly prior to submitting an application.
In collaboration with NHS England, HEIW (Wales) and NES (Scotland), the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has published answers to commonly asked questions regarding the National Recruitment Scheme.
Recruitment timeline and online recruitment
The recruitment timeline has now been published (please see below), applicants are advised to add these key dates to their diary. There are strict deadlines for applications, booking assessment slots and for responding to offers of a FTY post. It is really important for you to ensure you plan around these dates as it will not be possible for us to make any alternative arrangements.
The online recruitment system Oriel will be used throughout the recruitment process for the following purposes:
|
Recruitment Activity |
Date |
|
Training Provider Information Statements published on TPI site |
11 April 2024 |
|
Visitation period |
11 April 2024 to 11 October 2024 |
|
Training Provider Information Statements published on Oriel |
7 June 2024 |
|
Oriel applications open |
7 June 2024 (12pm) |
|
Oriel applications close |
21 June 2024 (12pm) |
|
Reasonable adjustment submission deadline |
21 June 2024 (12pm) |
|
Training Provider Preferences open (for those submitting a list) |
15 July 2024 (12pm) |
|
Candidate Preferencing window opens |
24 July 2024 |
|
Invitation to SJT/numeracy selection centre opens |
31 July 2024 |
|
Invitation to SJT/numeracy selection centre closes |
14 August 2024 |
|
SJT/Numeracy selection centre held (Pearson VUE Test Centres)
|
19 September - 2 October 2024 |
|
Training Provider Preferencing window closes |
11 October 2024 |
|
Candidate Preferencing window closes |
23 October 2024 (12pm) * Please note, this date is earlier than the England & Wales vacancy |
|
First iteration of offers made |
6 November 2024 |
|
Hold deadline |
22 November 2024 |
|
Offers upgrade deadline |
27 November 2024 |
|
Programme commences |
July/August 2025 |
*Please note the date/items are subject to change/TBC
If you get locked out of your oriel account, please contact nationalrecruitment@nes.scot.nhs.uk for assistance.
Training Provider Information Statements
The Training Provider Information Statements allow applicants to search for Training Providers according to their preference for sector and/or geographical area.
Details of Training Providers involved in FTY for training year 2025-26 are now live on the public NES TPI site linked below.
https://nes-tpi.azurewebsites.net/TPinfo.html
The visitation window is NOW open.
As part of the selection process, applicants are required to submit a Preference List of Training Providers that they are interested in completing their training with.
For the 2024 cycle of recruitment Training Providers were given two options:
Option A – to submit a preference list – in this case it is extremely important that Training Providers get to know you prior to the selection process and it is the responsibility of the candidate to make contact with Training Providers at their earliest opportunity to increase their chance of being included on a Preference List. You should endeavour to contact all of your preferred Training Providers to discuss the opportunities for vacational or part-time employment with them, or, at the very least, to arrange to contact/visit the pharmacy and discuss the FTY with them.
Option B – not to submit a preference list – in this case it is possible for the Training Provider to be matched with any appointable candidates who have added the Training Provider to their Preference List. You are not required to contact Training Providers who are not submitting a list, however, we strongly encourage candidates to do so in order to find out more about the opportunities available if you wish to preference a Training Provider in this category.
Each Training Provider Information Statement clearly states if a Training Provider will be submitting a Preference List or not.
Training Provider Information Statements will also be published on Oriel once applications open.
Training Provider Promotional Materials
Promotional Materials for Training Providers participating in the 2024 recruitment process are now available here.
Examples and scoring guidance for the Situational Judgement Test and Numeracy Test
The Pharmaceutical Journal has published some articles for students on what you need to know about the Situational Judgement Test (SJT) and Numeracy assessment. Please refer to the links below for some examples and scoring guidance.
Situational Judgement Test (SJT) conducted at Pearson VUE
Situational Judgement Tests (SJTs) are a measurement methodology designed to assess judgement in work relevant situations. The Foundation Trainee Pharmacist SJT has been designed to assess the professional attributes expected of a Foundation Trainee Pharmacist. The scenarios have been written by subject matter experts who work closely with Foundation Trainee Pharmacists. This ensures that the scenarios presented are realistic and fair and provide an accurate reflection of what Foundation Trainee Pharmacists encounter in their role.
The SJT will be a written test examining five of the attributes from within the Foundation Trainee Professional Attributes Framework. It will consist of 52 scenarios to be completed in 104 minutes. When responding to each scenario you will be asked to place yourself in the role of a Foundation Trainee Pharmacist and indicate what you should do in response to the situation presented.
Within the SJT there will be two types of response format:
Numeracy Test conducted at Pearson VUE
The numeracy test will be taken directly before the SJT in the same room. The test is designed to test numeracy with less clinical context than the GPhC registration assessment. It will last 20 minutes.
The numeracy test is designed to provide assurance of an applicant’s ability to carry out basic pharmaceutical calculations. There are ten questions and the time allowed for the exercise is 20 minutes. These calculations are not provided in a clinical context and are designed to test mathematical ability rather than practice knowledge.
Calculators are permitted to be used during the test. You may not use calculators on smartphones, tablets, smartwatches or equivalent technology. Answers will be free text (i.e. not multiple choice).
IMPORTANT: calculators will not be provided at selection centres.
For more information on Numeracy & SJT, please visit Foundation Pharmacist Recruitment :: Pearson VUE
SJT / Numeracy Sample Paper
The Sample Paper consists of 35 SJT scenarios presented in the two formats you will see in the actual test, and 10 numeracy questions. The paper is presented in an online computer-based format which looks and behaves like the real test you will sit when visiting a Pearson Vue centre. This will allow you to be become familiar with the general functionality of the interface while answering questions which have undergone the same creation and testing process as the real questions. Click on the link below to access the sample paper.
Paper Version
You can also find paper versions of the online test below. The SJT paper version contains full answer keys and rationales provided at the end of part 2 (these are not provided at the end of the online test). The numeracy paper contains 10 questions, followed by answers.
You are encouraged to attempt the papers without looking at the answers in the first instance, and to time yourself in preparation for your assessment sitting (the online paper already contains a timer). These can be accessed below.
SJT Sample Paper with Rationales
Numeracy Sample Paper and Answers
SJT Scoring Guidance
Please see details below on how the SJT responses will be marked and scored.
Trainee requests to NES after accepted offers
Following matching, prospective trainees may have exceptional circumstances where they require a change to their current offer of training.
There are 2 processes available to prospective trainees in these circumstances
1) Special Circumstances Process
There is a formal process to manage applicants with special circumstances who require placement in a certain geographical area or specified location for their training. If, following the matching process, your matched training provider is unable to accommodate these requirements, you will need to follow the below process for special circumstances requests.
Special Circumstance Guidance Document
Once you have read the guidance document linked above, you should complete the below proforma. The proforma should be submitted to the NES Pharmacy team at nes.ftypharmacy@nhs.scot The team will assign an appropriate NES Pharmacy team member who will manage your request once this form has been submitted.
Special Circumstances Proforma
Next Steps – once you have been assigned a NES Pharmacy team member, you can view and submit the relevant submission forms below, along with the requested documents. Please do not submit this information until NES Pharmacy have been in touch.
Please see the individual forms to be submitted depending upon the criterion you are applying under:
Medical condition submission form
Parental responsibility submission form
2) Deferral Process
There is a formal process to manage applicants with deferral requests who can no longer start with their training provider on the agreed dates.
Once you have read the guidance document linked above, you should complete the below proforma. The proforma should be submitted to the NES Pharmacy team at nes.ftypharmacy@nhs.scot The team will assign an appropriate NES Pharmacy team member who will manage your request once this form has been submitted.
Next Steps – once you have been assigned a NES Pharmacy team member, you will be asked to provide your supporting evidence (per the guidance document). Please do not submit this information until NES Pharmacy request it.
Visa and Immigration
Some pharmacy graduates will require a work visa to enable them to undertake Foundation Training in the UK. It is the graduate’s own responsibility to ensure that you follow the government’s visa processes correctly.
For visa and immigration guidance please visit https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-visas-and-immigration.
Pharmacist Support is an independent charity that provide a wide variety of support services to pharmacists and pharmacy students. This includes online information on finding a foundation trainee pharmacist placement and a list of job vacancy sites that students may find helpful. For your emotional support they offer a range of wellbeing resources , a Listening Friends peer support service, or a counselling service for psychological and emotional support. Please have a look at their webpages Pharmacy Support or alternatively contact them at info@pharmacistsupport.org or on 0808 168 2233 or 0808 168 5133
Contact us
For any queries regarding the Foundation Training Year Recruitment process, please contact the Pharmacy Recruitment Team by going to the Service Desk here and submitting a support request.
For general pharmacy queries relating to training premises approval or any queries not related to the recruitment process, please email the Pharmacy Team - nes.ftypharmacy@nhs.scot