Psychiatry Foundation Fellowship (PFF)

We will not be recruiting to the Psychiatry Foundation Fellowship for 2024-2026 due to a lack of funding. We hope to offer alternative support for foundation doctors interested in psychiatry later in 2024, details of which will be available here when available. 

If you are entering Foundation Training, please consider joining the College for free as a Foundation Doctor Associate member to, among other benefits, receive a monthly newsletter listing current opportunities and support. Please also visit our foundation webpages to view the support we can offer, as well as those of our divisions, devolved nations and College Faculties. If you have any questions about this, or about careers in psychiatry, please contact us at careers@rcpsych.ac.uk. 

 

Information evening

We held an online information evening on Wednesday 8 March 2023 for prospective applicants. The recording is now available to watch.

You can also download a summary of the post-webinar Q&A session.

What are the benefits?

The PFF aims to improve exposure to psychiatry for foundation trainees and to support them to understand and explore careers in psychiatry. As part of the fellowship, trainees will have access to a range of benefits:

In addition to this, the College will award a variety of benefits over the two years, providing access to:

  • Development days - Fellows will attend three development days organised by the College. These will consist of a variety of activities that will enhance your understanding of and skills relating to mental health and career development. They will provide an opportunity to network, to meet peers and senior psychiatrists and to discover more about research, education and broader careers in psychiatry.
  • CPD fund of £1,500 to use over the course of the two years in foundation training. These funds can be spent on activities contributing to the enhancement of your interest in the psychological aspects of health as well as your career in psychiatry. Use of funds must be discussed and approved with the College.
  • International Congress - You will be given free registration to attend our International Congress. This includes a formal networking event with College Officers, members, and other Fellows and bursary holders. Your accommodation and travel costs will be covered.
  • CPD Learning – You will be given access to the Royal College of Psychiatrists' eLearning Hub. There are over 225 modules and more than 140 podcasts to keep you up to date with new research and best practice psychiatry. 
  • TrOn – Trainees Online is our online learning resource to support trainee psychiatrists prepare for MRCPsych exams.
  • Journal subscriptions - You will be given print copies of the Royal College of Psychiatrists' journals: BJPsych Bulletin, BJPsych Advances, and The British Journal of Psychiatry.
  • Opportunity to network and collaborate with PFFs across the country.

What to expect from the Fellowship

As part of the fellowship, you will receive the benefits above and be expected and supported to:

  • Attend three development days over the course of your foundation training – Fellows will attend development days organised by the College. These will take place three times a year (dates for the 2023 cohort are listed below).
  • Attend and participate in networking opportunities – Appointed Fellows will attend an induction event where they will have the opportunity to meet the Specialist Advisor for Foundation and other fellows, with whom you will organise a WhatsApp group to stay in touch for peer-led activities and other networking opportunities.
  • Participate in evaluation of the fellowship – As part of the ongoing review and improvement of the PFF programme, we will be conducting an evaluation of the fellowship. You will be expected to participate in this through surveys and interviews and will be expected to do so for up to 5 years after the fellowship.

How can I apply?

Applications for the 2023 cohort are now closed.

Please note: PFF positions are subject to confirmation of funding.

Application form

In order to give applicants time to prepare their responses to questions on the application form, we are releasing some of the questions before the application window. In addition to some short-form answers, you should prepare responses to the following questions:

  1. What aspect of psychiatry do you find most challenging?
  2. Give an example of where you have had to innovate. This does not need to be work/ professionally related and can be an example from another area of your life.
  3. Describe a situation where you have failed to achieve a desired objective and what you learnt.

Please note: The PFF application process has changed from previous years. The application process will be separate from the UKFPO application process and will not be conducted through Oriel. Applicants will apply directly to the RCPsych.

At the point of application, you will need to confirm which Foundation School you have been allocated to and have been / will be offered a UK Foundation Programme commencing in August 2023. For more information about programme matching timelines, please visit the Foundation Programme or contact your allocated Foundation School.

You do not need to have been allocated a psychiatry placement as part of your foundation programme.

Late applications will not be accepted under any circumstances.

Eligibility criteria

  • You must have been allocated to and have been / will be offered a UK Foundation Programme commencing in August 2023. For more information about programme matching timelines, please visit the Foundation Programme or contact your allocated Foundation School
  • You must be a Student Associate member of the College.

Foundation schools

Applicants who have been offered a Foundation Programme in any area of the UK may apply.

PFFs will be distributed equitably across England with a maximum of 3 in each English Foundation School and 2 in each Devolved Nation- Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Key dates

  • Thursday 13 April – UKFPO publishes full programme matches.
  • Thursday 13 April 2023 - Psychiatry Foundation Fellowship applications open.
  • Thursday 4 May 2023 – PFF Applications are closed.
  • June 2023 – Fellows appointed.
  • 1 September 2023 – Fellowship commences.
  • 31 August 2025 – fellowship ends

Development days

  • Thursday 5 October 2023 – In person at the RCPsych
  • Thursday 18 January 2024 – Online
  • RCPsych Congress 2024 – In person

Queries

If you have any queries please contact  careers@rcpsych.ac.uk.

FAQs

No, you do not need to apply through Oriel. Apply directly to the RCPsych using the application form linked above.

The application window is 13 April – 4 May 2023.

In addition to access to RCPsych journals and eLearning, you will be invited to three development days that will provide an opportunity to network, to meet peers and senior psychiatrists and to discover more about research, education and broader careers in psychiatry.

Unfortunately, our funding does not allow us to allocate individual mentors to each PFF. However, we will encourage and support you to form productive mentoring relationships with local colleagues and through introductions at development days and other College activities.

No. If you have been offered and have accepted an academic foundation programme, you are not eligible to apply for the PFF.

Yes, you do not need to be doing a Foundation Programme that includes a psychiatry placement.

Yes – as long as you have been accepted onto a two-year UK Foundation Programme commencing August 2023, you can apply.

Read more to receive further information regarding a career in psychiatry