IMT Application 2027: Dates, Self-Assessment Scoring and Every Point Available

When does the IMT application open for 2027?

The IMT application for 2027 entry opens on Oriel at 10am on Thursday 22 October 2026 and closes at 4pm on Thursday 19 November 2026. Both dates are confirmed on NHS England's specialty recruitment timelines page.

• Applications open: 10am, Thursday 22 October 2026 (confirmed)
• Applications close: 4pm, Thursday 19 November 2026 (confirmed)
• Interview window: Monday 11 January to Friday 2 April 2027 (confirmed, national)
• Initial offers: 5pm, Tuesday 6 April 2027 (confirmed)
• Hold deadline: 9am, Friday 9 April 2027 (confirmed)
• Upgrade deadline: 4pm, Wednesday 14 April 2027 (confirmed)
• Hierarchical offer deadline: 4pm, Thursday 15 April 2027 (confirmed)
• IMT longlisting, shortlisting, interview and ranking dates: Not yet published; due on imtrecruitment.org.uk in autumn 2026

Applications to Northern Ireland are handled separately. Register with Oriel before applications open; the account, not the form, is what takes time.

What were the 2026 IMT dates?

The 2026 IMT round opened on 23 October 2025, closed on 20 November 2025, interviewed from 12 January to 13 February 2026 and made offers by 24 March 2026, with posts starting on 5 August 2026. According to imtrecruitment.org.uk, the 2027 pages will be updated in autumn 2026.

• Applications (2026): 10am Thursday 23 October to 4pm Thursday 20 November 2025
• Longlisting (2026): By 16 December 2025
• Shortlisting (2026): By 17 December 2025
• Interview invitations (2026): By 18 December 2025
• Interviews (2026): Monday 12 January to Friday 13 February 2026
• Rankings (2026): Tuesday 24 February 2026
• Preferences (2026): 24 February to 16 March 2026
• Offers (2026): By Tuesday 24 March 2026
• Hold and upgrade (2026): Hold 1pm Thursday 2 April; upgrade 4pm Wednesday 8 April 2026
• Scoresheet feedback (2026): 2 April 2026
• Posts start (2026): Wednesday 5 August 2026

The shape is what to plan against: a month from the close of applications to shortlisting, three weeks to the first interviews, and rankings about a fortnight after the last. Expect 2027 to be later at the offer stage, since initial offers are fixed at 6 April 2027.

Who is eligible for IMT?

You are eligible for IMT if you hold full GMC registration at the time of application and meet every essential criterion in NHS England's IMT person specification for the round. A licence to practise is not required at application.

Eligibility is assessed on competences attained by the deadlines the person specification sets, not by the interview date. Check its wording against your own record early, because a missing document at the close of applications cannot be added afterwards.

Does IMT use the MSRA?

No. IMT does not use the Multi-Specialty Recruitment Assessment. Shortlisting is by the self-assessment score and prioritisation, and ranking is by the interview alone; there is no machine-marked exam anywhere in the IMT process.

That makes IMT different from Core Surgical Training, where the MSRA is 10% and shortlists the top 1,200, and from anaesthetics, where it is 15%. For IMT the autumn belongs to evidence and spoken practice, not to exam revision.

How is the IMT self-assessment scored?

The IMT self-assessment is scored out of 35 in the 2026 matrix: 30 points across six evidence domains plus 5 points unique to IMT for commitment to the specialty. You select one option per domain on the Oriel form, and the highest-scoring achievement is the one to claim.

• Postgraduate degrees: Up to 4
• Presentations and posters: Up to 6
• Publications: Up to 8
• Teaching experience: Up to 5
• Training in teaching: Up to 3
• Quality improvement: Up to 4
• Subtotal: 30
• Unique to IMT (commitment): 5
• Total (2026 matrix): 35

According to imtrecruitment.org.uk, the 2026 matrix was unchanged from 2025. The per-option points are set out domain by domain below, and the four changes confirmed for 2027 follow them. internalmedicineinterview's portfolio questions are written against the same domains.

How many IMT points are available for degrees?

Postgraduate degrees score up to 4 IMT self-assessment points in the 2026 matrix: 4 for a PhD or MD, 3 for a Masters and 1 for another postgraduate qualification.

• PhD or MD: 4
• Masters degree: 3
• Other postgraduate qualification: 1

Only degrees held at the time of application count. Intercalated degrees cannot be scored, teaching qualifications belong in the training in teaching domain, and MRCP(UK) is not claimed here.

How many IMT points are available for presentations and posters?

Presentations and posters score up to 6 IMT self-assessment points in the 2026 matrix, from 6 for a national or international oral presentation down to 2 for a regional or local poster. For 2027 the maximum rises to 8.

• National or international oral presentation: 6
• National or international poster: 4
• Regional oral presentation: 3
• Local oral presentation: 2
• Regional or local poster: 2

Evidence is a letter of acceptance or the programme naming you as presenter. Where you have more than one, claim the single highest-scoring presentation.

How many IMT points are available for publications?

Publications score up to 8 IMT self-assessment points in the 2026 matrix, from 8 for first-author original research down to 1 for a published abstract. For 2027 the maximum drops to 6, and abstracts and letters can no longer be claimed under PubMed-cited other publications.

• First-author original research: 8
• Co-author original research: 6
• Multiple other publications: 5
• Book chapter: 5
• Single other publication: 3
• Published abstract: 1

Evidence is the published article with its PubMed ID, or the acceptance letter from the journal. If you are choosing what to chase before October 2026, the confirmed 2027 change favours a presentation over a letter.

How many IMT points are available for teaching?

Teaching scores up to 8 IMT self-assessment points across two domains in the 2026 matrix: teaching experience up to 5, and training in teaching up to 3.

• Organised a teaching programme: 5
• Regular teaching: 3
• Occasional teaching: 1
• Training in teaching: PGCert or PGDip: 3
• Training in teaching: below PGCert level: 1

Evidence for teaching experience is feedback and a letter from the organiser or supervisor confirming your role; for training in teaching it is the certificate. A teaching qualification is claimed here, not under degrees.

How many IMT points are available for quality improvement?

Quality improvement scores up to 4 IMT self-assessment points in the 2026 matrix: 4 for all stages of two cycles, 3 for some of two cycles or all of one, and 1 for some of one cycle.

• All stages of two QI cycles: 4
• Some stages of two cycles, or all stages of one: 3
• Some stages of one cycle: 1

Evidence is a letter from the supervising consultant or the project lead stating which stages you completed. A completed second cycle is the difference between 3 and 4.

What changes to IMT self-assessment scoring are confirmed for 2027?

Four changes to IMT self-assessment scoring are confirmed for 2027 by the Physician Specialty Recruitment Office: the five IMT-only points are removed, so the maximum falls from 35 to 30; publications drop from 8 to 6; presentations and posters rise from 6 to 8; and abstracts and letters are no longer claimable under PubMed-cited other publications.

• Maximum: 35 in 2026; 30 for 2027
• IMT-only commitment points: 5 in 2026; removed for 2027
• Publications maximum: 8 in 2026; 6 for 2027
• Presentations and posters maximum: 6 in 2026; 8 for 2027
• Abstracts and letters: Claimable in 2026; not claimable under PubMed-cited other publications for 2027
• Per-option points for 2027: Not yet published; due in autumn 2026

Read the direction of travel: evidence you present and discuss is worth more, and evidence you merely list is worth less. The per-option scores for 2027 are not yet published, so the tables above remain the 2026 position until they are.

How is IMT self-assessment evidence checked?

IMT self-assessment evidence is randomly audited, so keep the documentation for every point you claim. A certificate, or a letter from the awarding body or organiser, is what an auditor asks to see, and an unverifiable claim is worse than a claim not made.

• Claim one option per domain, the highest-scoring achievement you can evidence.
• Keep the evidence in the form the domain needs: certificate, acceptance letter, programme, published article with PubMed ID, or a supervisor's letter.
• Intercalated degrees cannot be scored, MRCP(UK) is not claimed, and teaching qualifications go under training in teaching.

Does the IMT self-assessment count towards your ranking?

No. The IMT self-assessment decides only whether you are shortlisted for interview. It contributes nothing to your ranking; the interview score out of 96 alone decides where you come.

In practice that means the autumn should not go into optimising a score that only shortlists you. Once you are through, the two 11-minute stations decide everything, and the Interview Overview in this guide sets out how they are marked.

How competitive is IMT?

IMT had 8,841 applications for 1,678 posts in 2025, a ratio of 5.3 to 1, so about 19% of applicants were appointed. Those are NHS England's published Round 1 competition ratios, and IMT is the largest CT1 specialty after general practice and core psychiatry.

• Applications (2025): 8,841
• Posts (2025): 1,678
• Ratio: 5.3 to 1
• Appointed: About 19% of applicants
• Comparison: Core Surgical Training 5,399 for 630, 8.6 to 1; anaesthetics 6,770 for 539, 12.6 to 1

According to NHS England in June 2026, the Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act cut 2026 Round 1 to about 16,066 prioritised applications and most ratios to about 2 to 1. The 2026 IMT ratio itself is not yet published, so 5.3 to 1 remains the last complete figure.

How does prioritisation affect the 2027 IMT application?

For 2027 the Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act 2026 applies at shortlisting as well as at offer, so prioritisation now decides who is invited to the IMT interview, not only who receives a post.

The 2027 criteria are not yet set. NHS England said on 17 August 2026 that regulations were still being agreed across the four nations and that the 2026 immigration-status proxy will not apply automatically. Expect the criteria before applications open in October 2026.

What should you do before IMT applications open on 22 October 2026?

Before 22 October 2026, register on Oriel, check the person specification against your record, gather the evidence for every self-assessment point you will claim, and start spoken practice for the two interview stations.

• Register an Oriel account and diarise 4pm on 19 November 2026; the window is four weeks.
• Confirm full GMC registration is in place at application.
• Score yourself against the 2026 matrix now and revise the claims when the 2027 per-option points are published.
• File the evidence for each claim so a random audit takes minutes, not days.
• From December, rehearse the presentation, the ethics answer, the clinical scenario and the handover aloud.

internalmedicineinterview's question bank has 361 questions across the portfolio, clinical and ethics stations, with model answers and AI-marked spoken practice, for £97 to the end of the 2027 interview window.

Top Tips

• Register with Oriel before applications open; the account setup, not the form, is what catches people short.
• Check the person specification wording against your own record early: eligibility is assessed on competencies attained by a set deadline, not by the interview.
• Claim only what you can evidence. Evidence is randomly audited.
• Do not spend the autumn optimising a self-assessment score that only shortlists you. Once you are through, the interview alone decides your rank.