Medical graduates miss out on Scottish placements as rejections soar

Medical graduates warn that changes must be made to the way job placements for doctors are allocated in Scotland, or there is a risk that more people will leave the profession.

This year, there has been an increase in the number of graduates missing out on their top choice of undertaking a two-year work placement in the country.

Jodie Thorburn studied at the University of Aberdeen. She graduated this year and applied to be based in Scotland, specifically Aberdeen, because of personal medical issues and caring responsibilities.

However, that application was rejected, including she says her appeal, despite providing a letter from her hospital consultant.

Instead, she was offered a place in the north of England.

Jodie told STV News: “In the past, it has always been a running joke that everyone in Scotland will get Scotland because there’s a place for us.

“To get the news that not only had I tried to be allocated to Scotland and got knocked back, but I was then, just through bad luck and ranking system, being sent down to England, which for me in my situation was too much.”

Once medical students graduate, they undertake a two-year work-based placement at a health board under the UK Foundation Programme (UKFP).

The system is UK-wide, meaning while people can choose Scotland as their top choice, there is no guarantee they will be placed in the country and could be placed elsewhere in the UK.

In 2025, only four students missed out on a job in Scotland when they made the country their top priority; that number increased to 103 last year, with 74 coming from Scottish universities.

The system changed in 2024 from merit-based to a more randomised system.

BMA Scotland medical students committee chair, Joe Payne, said: “It’s a bit of a troubling start to our careers when we’re told we’re essentially only a number and we will go where we’re told.

“It doesn’t make us feel valued, it doesn’t make us want to continue working in the NHS, and that level of lack of certainty and agency in our future careers doesn’t bode well for students who might want to pursue medicine in the future.”

Those are feelings shared by Jodie, she added: “It sort of throws you back into the mindset of ‘well maybe people like me shouldn’t be doctors’.

“I think that’s really wrong, and I am not afraid to say one day I will be a really good doctor.”

Public Service Delivery Scotland (PSD), which runs the UKFP in Scotland, says there was a 25% increase in the number of people making Scotland their first choice, but it is aware that allocation has been difficult for some students this year.

A PSD spokesperson said: “In 2026, 1,398 medical students across the UK ranked Scotland as their first-choice Unit of Application, representing an increase of 25% compared with 2025. This is excellent news for Scotland and reinforces its reputation as an attractive place for future doctors to train, live and work.

“In addition, all 1,197 applicants offered a post in Scotland had ranked this as their first choice. PSD Scotland is fully aware of the increase in applicants and recognise allocation outcomes this year can be difficult for individual students, particularly when personal circumstances are involved.”

“This year, 74 students from Scottish medical schools did not receive Scotland as their first-choice allocation. A revised plan, developed in collaboration with the UKFP Office and the Scottish medical schools, is in place for next year’s Foundation allocation that will prioritise Scottish Medical School Graduates wishing to stay in Scotland.”

Ellie Gudgin from Fife also missed out on a place in Scotland, family and financial reasons, she says, meant she was unable to take up her placement at the Trent Foundation School in England.

She was part of the ScotGEM programme, which is designed to train and retain doctors in the country.

She said: “I’ve done two degrees in Scotland, so that is eight years of funding from the Scottish taxpayer and the four years of bursary as well.

“So, it seems a real shame Scotland is funding all of this studying and creating doctors that are designed to work in Scotland. Our ScotGEM course is really aimed at rural doctors in Scotland, so to put all this funding into us and then for us to be sent down to England just doesn’t make any sense to me.”

Ellie says some of those on her course have gone elsewhere in the UK.

This year there has been an increase in the number of graduates missing out on their top choice of undertaking a two-year work placement in Scotland iStock

She added: “I know they are managing just now but they are struggling. I know a few who are really struggling being away from their families, away from their support system.

“They’re just having to battle through some of the toughest years of the job, they are really difficult first years and without any support system around them.”

Both Jodie and Ellie are staying in the health service and planning to apply again next year during the placement allocation process.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Foundation training places are allocated through a UK-wide process and this year has seen increased demand from graduates across the UK seeking to undertake Foundation training in Scotland.

“I understand the personal impact and the challenges created on those who had hoped to remain in Scotland but did not secure a place here.

“The Scottish Government continues to work with the UK Foundation Programme Office and Public Services Delivery Scotland to explore potential improvements that support those who study medicine in Scotland and wish to continue their training here.”