Key takeaways
- The IMT interview is two 11-minute stations on Qpercom Recruit, about 30 minutes in total, each scored by two interviewers. That is the 2026 format, which the Physician Specialty Recruitment Office says will be largely unchanged for 2027.
- Station 1 is a six-minute exploration of your application and suitability, opening with a two-minute presentation, then an ethics, professionalism and governance scenario of up to five minutes.
- Station 2 is a clinical scenario of up to ten minutes followed by a one-minute handover.
- Seven domains are scored 1 to 5 by each of two interviewers, a raw maximum of 70, weighted 1.6, 1.6, 1.2, 1.6, 1.2, 0.8 and 1.6 to a total out of 96.
- To be appointable you need no score of 1, no more than two scores of 2, and a raw interview score of at least 42.
- IMT does not use the MSRA, and the self-assessment shortlists only; the interview alone forms your ranking score.
Interview Overview
The IMT interview for 2027 is two online stations of 11 minutes each on Qpercom Recruit, about 30 minutes in total, scored by two interviewers per station across seven domains and weighted to a total out of 96. That is the 2026 format, and NHS England's Physician Specialty Recruitment Office said in July 2026 that the 2027 process will be largely unchanged.
Internal Medicine Training is one of the few specialties selected on interview alone. IMT does not use the Multi-Specialty Recruitment Assessment; the self-assessment decides only whether you are shortlisted, and the interview alone forms the score you are ranked on.
Format and marks below are the 2026 position. NHS England's Physician Specialty Recruitment Office confirmed in July 2026 that the 2027 process will be “largely unchanged”, and will publish the 2027 detail in autumn 2026.
What is the format of the IMT interview in 2027?
The IMT interview is two stations of 11 minutes each, held online through Qpercom Recruit, with two clinician interviewers scoring each station independently. The whole interview runs to about 30 minutes.
- Stations: Two, 11 minutes each
- Total: About 30 minutes
- Platform: Qpercom Recruit, online
- Interviewers: Two per station, scoring independently
- Station 1: Application, achievements and suitability (six minutes, opening with a two-minute presentation), then ethics, professionalism and governance (up to five minutes)
- Station 2: Clinical scenario (up to ten minutes), then a one-minute handover
- AI use: Prohibited during the interview and disqualifying
- Status: 2026 position; PSRO says 2027 will be largely unchanged
Communication is marked in both stations rather than as a station of its own. internalmedicineinterview builds its 361-question bank around the same two stations, so practice runs in the format the panel uses.
What happens in IMT interview station 1?
IMT station 1 opens with a two-minute presentation, delivered without slides, inside a six-minute exploration of your application, achievements and suitability for IMT. An ethics, professionalism and governance scenario of up to five minutes follows.
- Presentation: Two minutes, no slides, at the start of the station
- Application, achievements and suitability: Six minutes in all, including the presentation
- Ethics, professionalism and governance: Up to five minutes, scenario not seen in advance
- Communication: Marked across the whole station
- Domains scored: Application and achievements; suitability for IMT; ethics, professionalism and governance; communication
The Portfolio Station and Ethics Station pages in this guide take each part in turn. The presentation sets the tone for the six minutes, and the ethics scenario is given only when the exploration ends.
What happens in IMT interview station 2?
IMT station 2 is a clinical scenario of up to ten minutes covering investigations, diagnosis and management, followed by a one-minute handover of the same patient. Communication is marked across the station.
- Clinical scenario: Up to ten minutes: investigations, diagnosis and management
- Handover: One minute
- Communication: Marked across the station
- Domains scored: Clinical scenario; handover; communication
The handover is its own domain with its own weighting, so it is scored separately from the clinical reasoning that precedes it. The Clinical Station page covers the structure that fits both parts.
How is the IMT interview scored out of 96?
The IMT interview is scored out of 96: seven domains are each marked 1 to 5 by two interviewers, a raw maximum of 70, and each domain's raw score is multiplied by a weighting of 1.6, 1.2 or 0.8 to give the weighted total.
- Application and achievements: Weight 1.6, raw max 10, weighted max 16
- Suitability for IMT: Weight 1.6, raw max 10, weighted max 16
- Ethics, professionalism and governance: Weight 1.2, raw max 10, weighted max 12
- Station 1 communication: Weight 1.6, raw max 10, weighted max 16
- Clinical scenario: Weight 1.2, raw max 10, weighted max 12
- Handover: Weight 0.8, raw max 10, weighted max 8
- Station 2 communication: Weight 1.6, raw max 10, weighted max 16
- Total: Raw max 70, weighted max 96
According to imtrecruitment.org.uk, a score of 3 out of 5 is satisfactory, described as the standard of a competent F2. The weightings favour the domains that discriminate most: application, suitability and both communication marks are 1.6, ethics and clinical 1.2, the handover 0.8.
In practice the two communication marks together are worth 32 of the 96, a third of the interview. internalmedicineinterview marks spoken practice answers by AI against these domains, so a candidate sees where the weighted marks are being lost.
What makes you appointable at the IMT interview?
You are appointable at the IMT interview if you meet all three conditions: no score of 1 out of 5 in any domain, no more than two scores of 2 out of 5, and a raw interview score of at least 42 out of 70.
- Rule 1: No score of 1 out of 5 from either interviewer in any domain
- Rule 2: No more than two scores of 2 out of 5 across the fourteen scores
- Rule 3: A raw interview score (RIS) of 42 or more out of 70
- Status: 2026 position, per imtrecruitment.org.uk
A raw score of 42 is an average of 3 out of 5 across the fourteen scores, the satisfactory F2 standard. That said, appointable is not appointed: in 2025 there were 8,841 applications for 1,678 posts, 5.3 to 1, so about 19% of applicants were appointed, and rank decides who they are.
When are the 2027 IMT interviews?
IMT interviews for 2027 entry fall inside the national Round 1 window of Monday 11 January to Friday 2 April 2027. The Physician Specialty Recruitment Office has not yet published IMT's own 2027 dates; in 2026 interviews ran from Monday 12 January to Friday 13 February.
- Applications open: 10am, Thursday 22 October 2026 (confirmed)
- Applications close: 4pm, Thursday 19 November 2026 (confirmed)
- Interviews: Within 11 January to 2 April 2027. In 2026: 12 January to 13 February
- Rankings and preferences: Not yet published. In 2026: rankings 24 February, preferences 24 February to 16 March
- Initial offers: 5pm, Tuesday 6 April 2027 (confirmed). In 2026: by 24 March
Interviews are held regionally by the deanery you apply to, and each region uses different dates within the window. The Application Overview in this guide carries the full 2026 timeline as a reference.
Does the IMT interview use the MSRA?
No. IMT does not use the Multi-Specialty Recruitment Assessment. Unlike Core Surgical Training and anaesthetics, there is no machine-marked exam anywhere in the IMT process; the self-assessment shortlists and the interview ranks.
The self-assessment score contributes nothing to your ranking. Once you are shortlisted, the interview score out of 96 alone decides where you come, which is why IMT rewards spoken practice more than any portfolio work in the autumn.
What has changed for the 2027 IMT interview?
The IMT interview itself is unchanged for 2027, according to the Physician Specialty Recruitment Office's July 2026 statement. What has changed sits before it: prioritisation now applies at shortlisting, and the self-assessment matrix is revised.
- Confirmed: prioritisation under the Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act 2026 applies at shortlisting as well as at offer. The 2027 criteria were still unpublished in August 2026.
- Confirmed: the five IMT-only shortlisting points are removed, so the self-assessment maximum falls from 35 to 30.
- Confirmed: publications drop from a maximum of 8 to 6; presentations and posters rise from 6 to 8; abstracts and letters can no longer be claimed under PubMed-cited other publications.
- Confirmed: applications open at 10am on Thursday 22 October 2026 and close at 4pm on Thursday 19 November 2026.
- Not published: IMT's own interview dates, ranking date and preference window for 2027.
Why do older pages describe a 25-minute IMT interview with three sections?
Because a single 25-minute interview with three sections, commitment, clinical and ethics, was an earlier IMT format. It no longer applies: the current interview is two separate 11-minute stations scored across seven weighted domains out of 96.
However, older guides and some deanery pages still carry the three-section description, and an older version of this site did too. Check any timing you read against imtrecruitment.org.uk before you plan around it.
How should you prepare for the IMT interview?
Prepare the IMT interview as four timed spoken pieces: a two-minute presentation, a five-minute ethics answer, a ten-minute clinical scenario and a one-minute handover, each marked against the weighted domains.
- Write the two-minute presentation as a spoken piece, no slides, and time it; overrunning eats the questioning that follows.
- Build one ethics structure and one clinical structure you can hold under pressure, and practise both aloud.
- Rehearse the handover as its own skill. It is one minute, weighted 0.8, and the easiest mark to lose by rambling.
- Treat communication as continuous. The two communication marks are worth 32 of the 96.
- Know your own portfolio. Application and achievements and suitability are weighted 1.6 each.
internalmedicineinterview covers all of it with 361 questions across the portfolio, clinical and ethics stations, model answers and AI-marked spoken practice, for £97 to the end of the 2027 interview window.
Top Tips
- Rehearse the two-minute opening presentation out loud and to time; there are no slides, and it sets the tone for the whole of station one.
- Prepare the handover separately. It is only one minute and carries the lowest weighting, but it is the easiest mark to lose by rambling.
- Communication is marked in both stations. Treat it as continuous, not as something you switch on for the ethics question.
- Know your own portfolio. The application and achievements area carries the joint-highest weighting.
FAQ
How long is the IMT interview?
Two stations of 11 minutes each, about 30 minutes in total on Qpercom Recruit. That is the 2026 format, which the Physician Specialty Recruitment Office says will be largely unchanged for 2027.
How is the IMT interview scored?
Seven domains are scored 1 to 5 by each of two interviewers, a raw maximum of 70, then weighted 1.6, 1.6, 1.2, 1.6, 1.2, 0.8 and 1.6 to a total out of 96. A 3 is satisfactory, the standard of a competent F2.
What is the IMT appointability score?
A raw interview score of at least 42 out of 70, with no score of 1 and no more than two scores of 2. All three conditions must be met.
Does IMT use the MSRA?
No. IMT does not use the MSRA. The self-assessment shortlists and the interview alone forms your ranking score. There is no machine-marked exam in the process.
Is there a presentation in the IMT interview?
Yes. Station 1 opens with a two-minute presentation, delivered without slides, inside the six-minute exploration of your application, achievements and suitability for IMT.
What is the IMT handover?
A one-minute handover of the clinical scenario patient at the end of station 2. It is its own domain, weighted 0.8, so it is scored separately from the clinical reasoning.
When are the 2027 IMT interviews?
Not yet published. They will fall within the national window of 11 January to 2 April 2027. In 2026 IMT interviews ran from 12 January to 13 February, with offers by 24 March.
How competitive is IMT?
In 2025 there were 8,841 applications for 1,678 posts, 5.3 to 1, so about 19% of applicants were appointed. Those are NHS England's published Round 1 competition ratios.
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