Page Contents
If you are a doctor or an IMG who has passed his/her respective AMC or equivalent exam and now wishes to seek a job in Australia as a doctor then read on. This article will provide you with doctor vacancies in Australia for IMGs.
Information before entering Australia
Before I provide you with the information for the vacancies, there is an array of information you should be familiar with as an IMG. This includes the salary of doctors in Australia, living expenses, where to work/live and how you handle things in before you know about doctor vacancies in Australia for IMGs.
Cost of living
The cost of living in Australia varies from your closeness to the capital city. The closer you are the more expensive your living cost will be, outskirts cost way less. Sydney is popular for the most expensive state in Australia whereas salaries are higher in NSW comparatively.
Living expenses in Australia range from the cost of living, accommodation, childcare costs, the Australian schooling system, public health insurance, and private health insurance. However what concerns you is only the accommodation and cost of living.
Accommodation
Knowing you have the proper accommodation for the duration of your work in Australia is essential. Some hospitals offer at the spot accommodation. This type of accommodation is usually a shared type basic accommodation where you share your living facilities i.e bathroom, kitchen etc. This kind of accommodation is better suited for single individuals and is very cheap. Although it is very simple, it has its perks. You get to meet like-minded people that boost your relative knowledge. Depending upon the hospital, they may provide you living for the duration of your contract, or may ask you to leave after a specific period of time. Most often 3 months
If however, you choose to rent you accommodation, know that not all places are well furnished so, therefore, you need to look for places that are in fact well furnished. Some popular websites mentioned below will help you find the right place.
Other living expenses
Else than these, there are a few things you should keep in mind before you move to Australia. Bulleted below
- Visa application
- Personal medicals
- Private health insurance
- Public health insurance
- Accommodation costs
- Airfare and travel costs
- Police check
Eligibility to work as a doctor
To work as a doctor in Australia, You must be eligible to practice medicine in Australia and for that, you have to be registered with the Medical Board of Australia. The registration categories include:
- Specialist registration
- General registration
- Limited registration
- Provisional registration
- Non-practicing registration
- Student registration
Procedure for IMGs to work as doctors
If however, you are an IMG (international medical graduate) the process for you is a bit different. You need to take one of the three assessment pathways mentioned below to be eligible.
- Standard pathway
- Competent Authority pathway
- Specialist pathway
Below is an outlined table for you to understand before we go into details (you might want to zoom in a bit on this chart)
You might want to know about AMC before you get into all this so click here
Standard pathway
The Standard Pathway is for international medical graduates (IMGs) seeking general registration with the Medical Board of Australia (the Board) and involves completion of the written examination (CAT MCQ) and the structured clinical examination of the Australian Medical Council (AMC) or approved workplace based assessment program.
Eligibility
The Standard Pathway is for IMGs who are not eligible for the Competent Authority Pathway or the Specialist Pathway.
IMGs who have a primary qualification in medicine and surgery awarded by a training institution recognized by the AMC is eligible to apply for assessment under this pathway.
The Standard Pathway has two alternative processes leading to the award of the AMC Certificate:
- Standard Pathway (AMC examinations) – Assessment is by examination only—the AMC CAT MCQ Examination and the AMC Clinical Examination. Most non-specialist applicants will be assessed through this method.
- Standard Pathway (workplace-based assessment) – Assessment is by examination and workplace-based assessment—the AMC CAT MCQ Examination and workplace-based assessment of clinical skills and knowledge by an AMC-accredited authority. Currently, assessment programs in four states have been accredited to pilot workplace-based assessment. As a result, relatively few applicants are assessed through this pathway.
IMGs on the standard pathway must successfully complete a 12 month period of supervised practice (minimum of 47 weeks full-time service) in an approved position. This is a Medical Board of Australia requirement, not an AMC requirement.
Primary source verification
Part of the Standard Pathway process, through the AMC, is the primary source verification of an IMG’s primary qualifications through the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG).
Before applying for the Standard Pathway, IMGs must apply for primary source verification of their qualifications.
More info about Primary source verification here
Competent Authority pathway
The Competent Authority pathway is for IMGs who are non-specialist or specialists (including general practitioners) and are seeking general registration with the Medical Board of Australia (the Board).
The Board has approved a number of international authorities as competent to assess, for medical registration, the applied medical knowledge and basic clinical skills of IMGs.
The approved competent authorities are:
- General Medical Council (United Kingdom – for the PLAB examination or for graduates of GMC-accredited medical courses in the United Kingdom)
- Medical Council of Canada (LMCC)
- Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates of the United States (USMLE)
- Medical Council of New Zealand (NZREX)
- Medical Council of Ireland (graduates of medical courses in Ireland accredited by the Medical Council of Ireland).
IMGs who have a primary qualification in medicine and surgery awarded by a training institution recognized by both the Australian Medical Council and the World Directory of Medical Schools (WDOMS) and who have completed training or assessment with an approved competent authority may apply for provisional registration via the Competent Authority Pathway.
Under section 53 of the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, as in force in each state and territory (the National Law), the Board can grant provisional or general registration on the basis of equivalency of qualifications or through the successful completion of an examination. The Board has determined that applicants who meet the requirements of the Competent Authority pathway may be eligible for provisional registration under the National Law.
Please note that IMGs who qualify for provisional/general registration via the Competent Authority pathway are NOT eligible to apply for limited registration.
Following satisfactory completion of 12 months of supervised practice (minimum of 47 weeks of full-time service), Competent Authority pathway registrants may be eligible to apply for general registration with the Board.
Eligibility
IMGs who meet the criteria in one of the competent authority categories may be eligible for provisional registration via the Competent Authority Pathway. IMGs must have secured an offer of employment before applying to the Board for registration.
- Requirements for eligibility for the Competent Authority pathway – updated August 2015 (74.9 KB, PDF), Word version (63.4 KB, DOCX)
Note: Australian clinical experience can be substituted for post-examination or post-training experience for the purposes of meeting the criteria for eligibility for the Competent Authority Pathway.
This period of practice in Australia may also be accepted as meeting the requirements for the 12 month period of supervised practice which is required to gain general registration via the Competent Authority Pathway.
Knowledge for applicants for Category A and B.
- Information sheet – Competent Authority pathway Category A (99.9 KB, PDF), Word version (77.5 KB, DOCX)
- Information sheet – Competent Authority pathway Category B (107 KB, PDF), Word version (79.6 KB, DOCX)
Primary source verification (PSV)
Prior to the Board application, applicants who are eligible to apply via the Competent Authority pathway must apply to the Australian Medical Council (AMC) for primary source verification (PSV) of their qualifications.
The AMC verify qualifications through the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) Electronic Portfolio of International Credentials (EPIC).
Further information is available on the AMC website.
Specialist Pathway
The Specialist Pathway is for international medical graduates (IMGs) in one of the following categories:
- overseas-trained specialists applying for assessment of comparability to the standard of a specialist trained in that specialty in Australia (specialist recognition)
- overseas-trained specialists applying for an area of need specialist level position in Australia (area of need)
- overseas-trained specialists or specialists-in-training wishing to undertake a short period of specialist or advanced training in Australia.
Eligibility
IMGs who have a primary qualification in medicine and surgery from a training institution recognized by the AMC and have satisfied all the training and examination requirements to practice in their field of specialty in their country of training can apply for assessment under this pathway (specialist recognition or area of need).To be eligible for short-term training, the IMG must have completed their training or be no more than two years away from completing their specialist training overseas.
Primary source verification
Before applying for the Specialist Pathway, IMGs must apply to the AMC for primary source verification of their qualifications through ECFMG’s Electronic Portfolio of International Credentials (EPIC).
After all the info above, one still needs to know about the salaries of doctors in Australia.
Salaries
Doctors in Australia are paid handsomely. They have strong salary/remuneration packages. It is common for medical centers and practices, they offer a percentage of billings (usually 66% and up), along with paid overtime. The salary you get depends on your qualifications and position for which you have applied.
You can know the details of the salaries of doctors in Australia here
Jobs And Doctor vacancies in Australia for IMGs
We hope this article helped you, knowing more about doctor vacancies in Australia for IMGs, their cost of living, and life. Leave your queries in the comments below. Thankyou
Can you please give a comparison of applying through standard pathway and applying through competent pathway after getting GMC registration, including finances, time, and jobs opportunities.? I shall be really grateful. Thank you
Can you please give a comparison of applying through standard pathway and applying through competent pathway after getting GMC registration, including finances, time, and jobs opportunities.? I shall be really grateful. Thank you
I will try my best to write an article answering the questions you mentioned Dr Ayesha. Thankyou