Being an interstate or New Zealand RACP paediatric trainee does not guarantee you entry into the Victorian program. When someone enters the Victorian paediatric training program, the VBPTC commits to training that person until the completion of basic training and therefore the VBPTC must ensure that there is sufficient capacity to achieve that.

Therefore, interstate trainees must go through the same process of entering the Victorian Paediatric Training Program as other applicants and apply via the central recruitment process managed by RCH and MCH.

If an interstate trainee is successful in the recruitment process, they can continue their training where they left off.

Overseas trainees must go through the same process of entering the Victorian Paediatric Training Program as other applicants.

However, once they are successful in that process, they can apply for Recognition of Prior Learning with the RACP. Applications must occur within 3 months of entering the paediatric training program and the RACP may accredit up to 12 months of previous training.

Overseas trainees will still need to complete the written and clinical exam, even if they have completed the equivalent exams overseas.

You are eligible to apply for RPL if:

– You undertook training in another RACP training program (e.g. adult physician training); or

– You undertook training in another specialty training program within Australia/New Zealand; or

– You undertook training in an equivalent overseas training program; or

– You undertook a post graduate university course; or

– You undertook academic research (e.g. PhD)

Applications must be submitted within 3 months of the date of commencement of your first paediatric training rotation.

A maximum of 12 months may potentially be granted.

Further details and application forms can be found here:
Recognition of Prior Learning (racp.edu.au)

Absolutely! You can apply for as many jobs as you are eligible for. 

If you are applying for multiple jobs, please ensure you submit a separate application for each position. When completing the VBPTC Application Form (submitted with each position) you can indicate all of the jobs that you are applying for – this will alert the employing hospitals that you are applying to enter the VBPTC at multiple levels.

No. As per RACP rules, positions are only accredited if they are centrally recruited through the VBPTC.

No. As per RACP rules, positions are only accredited if they are centrally recruited through the VBPTC.

Yes. Please note that this is a statewide program and so you may be required to work in any of the 18 VBPTC sites. This will enrich your experience overall.

At SRMO and Registrar level, trainees have the opportunity to apply to defer their training year for 12 months. A small number of deferrals can be accommodated annually, and trainees must speak with their DPE in the first instance to ensure they are well informed of the training implications.

Deferral requests are not automatically granted – they are reviewed by the VBPTC management team, DPE group and employing health service (RCH or MCH). Trainees who have a deferral request approved will be guaranteed their training position for the following year.

Deferrals can be approved for a maximum period of 12 months. If there are breaks in training for longer than this period, the VBPTC and health services will make every effort to accommodate trainees when they wish to return but cannot guarantee re-entry at a particular time.

If / when the trainee is ready to recommence training, they should contact the Statewide Coordinator (Coordinator@vbptc.com.au) to express their wish to re-enter training. The Statewide Coordinator will then liaise with the VBPTC Management Team, DPEs and health services. Please note, due to recruitment timelines, it is preferable for trainees to contact the Statewide Coordinator by April for re-entry into the training program the following year. More details regarding this process can be found here: https://vbptc.com.au/getting-into-program

Any trainee taking time away from training for a period of 8 consecutive weeks (or more) must advise the RACP: Interrupting or withdrawing from training (racp.edu.au)

No.

No, there is no CV template.

Yes.

No – ask people who know you best, regardless of their particular area of medicine.

Not necessarily. Not all JRMO positions at the Royal Children’s Hospital are accredited training positions – some are unaccredited positions and will not count towards basic paediatric training. Please check with the RCH as to whether you have an accredited or unaccredited position.

As many times as you like. It is a very competitive process and unfortunately great people do miss out each year. If you are unsuccessful but still want to become a paediatrician, you might want to consider reapplying the following year; applying for an accredited position interstate or getting experience in a paediatric setting, even if unaccredited. The more experience you have in paediatrics, the more likely you are to be confident in your career choice and the more accredited jobs you may be eligible for.

It varies each year, depending on a number of factors. However, there are approximately 45 accredited JRMO positions available each year.

There are no differences between the rosters.

We commit to training all accredited JRMOs for their entire basic paediatric training. In order to accomplish this, we must be able to ensure that we can supervise, provide all requirements and examine each trainee who enters the training program. For this reason, there must be a cap to the number of accredited trainees that we accept each year.

There are no specific job share positions for JRMOs. If you would like to discuss job share possibilities for the Metropolitan Stream or unaccredited positions, please discuss with the Medical Workforce Unit at the RCH. Unfortunately it is not possible to job share in the Extended Rural Stream at this point.

As a JRMO you are employed by RCH but you will not complete your entire JRMO year onsite at RCH (or Monash). Rotations to secondment sites will be included in all rosters and will ensure that you receive a well-rounded experience. Please note that this is a statewide program and it is expected that travel to different hospitals will be required during training.

No, you cannot use an international location. This category is for Australian based consideration only.

Yes.

No. If you choose to leave the Stream that you have been allocated, you will be leaving the training program. If you feel that you deserve special consideration, please refer to the Special Consideration Guidelines.

The JRMO yearly rosters will be generated and issued to all successful applicants. All JRMOs are asked to preference the rosters in order of their most favourable to least favourable rosters. Preferences are then collated and allocated. If you would like to swap a full term of your allocated roster, you may be able to do so with another JRMO, pending approval from RCH MWU. If you are unable to find someone to swap with you, you must work that rotation.

Please note: When applying to the Extended Rural Stream the rosters are already determined and you MUST be able to work the roster as written within that stream.

Unaccredited JRMO jobs will give you great experience in paediatrics which may help with your conviction to embark upon a career in paediatrics, however, unaccredited JRMOs are not given any special consideration in the application process.

A Primary Hospital is your parent hospital. For JRMOs and registrars, this is the Royal Children’s Hospital. For SRMOs, this is Monash Children’s Hospital. A Training Site is the hospital that you will physically be at for the duration of the rotation.

Yes – they are counted as core general paediatrics rotations.

A term is usually 13 weeks. The RACP will count a minimum of 10 weeks as a complete core term (e.g. doing 10 weeks of ED is sufficient to tick off that requirement).

The RACP will only count core time if you are in the rotation for a minimum of 4 weeks. Contact your DPE if you have any issues with this.

The start date should be the first date that you are working and the end date should be the last Sunday of the rotation.

If you take annual leave during the rotation, put in the comments section “includes [insert number] weeks of annual leave”. The RACP permits up to 8 weeks of leave (annual, personal etc…) in any training year. Any time (weeks) during a rotation not worked due to leave must be documented, as it will not count towards your training time.

A perinatal NICU is one that has deliveries at that site. Mercy Hospital, Monash Newborn and the Women’s Hospital all are Neonatal sites with a perinatal NICU. Conversely, RCH has a Neonatology Unit without a perinatal NICU.

This can count as a general paediatric rotation so mark this as a general paediatric specialty. In the comments section you can write “includes [insert number] weeks of annual leave”.

Unfortunately you cannot make up accredited time by doing locum shifts. You must complete a minimum of 4 weeks in a core rotation in order to have it accredited.

People often join study groups with people whom they have or currently work with. If you remain unable to find a study group, please contact the Chief Resident Medical Officer.

No – the National College Lecture Series will give you a fantastic base but is not exhaustive. Please also read around the topics and attend the local Q&A sessions to get additional and up to date information from the experts.

Some trainees work part-time in their registrar year in order to help prepare for the exam. Whilst this is absolutely fine (as long as your employer can accommodate you) please note that there is no need to do this. Many trainees also find that working and being around patients and clinicians is also a very useful way to prepare for the exam.

Absolutely not. All hospitals in the VBPTC have excellent consultants who are keen to help you and will be very happy to assist you in your exam preparation. The long case presentation timetable will have you presenting long cases to consultants at all different hospitals. In addition, you are welcome to come to the short case tutorials, regardless of which hospital you are based.