Ireland · RCPI HST Chemical Pathology · 2027 intake criteria
RCPI HST Chemical Pathology: points estimator and scoring guide
Rate yourself on each of the five rows RCPI scores to estimate your score out of 19.5, and see what you can still add before the next window.
Next applications expected October 2027
- 527 doctor reviews
- 4.7/5 rated for relevance
RCPI Chemical Pathology HST points estimator
Where these numbers come from
- 10 domains, worded as in the official guide
- 2 official sources, each dated
Method and sources
Your score adds up the option you pick in each domain, using the published rules shown on each step. "Could still add" uses only steps the guide allows before the deadline. No competition figures are shown for Irish HST. Last checked 30 October 2026.
- RCPI Entry Guidance and Advice: HST Shortlisting and Interview Criteria & Specialty Entry Requirements. 2027 intake. The page says "Applications for our 2027 Higher Specialist Training (HST) programmes are now closed." Criteria are published as tables on the page, not as PDFs.
- RCPI HST Application Guidance and Frequently Asked Questions. 2027 intake ("Applications for our Higher Specialist Training (HST) programme will open 01 October 2026.")
RCPI isn’t recruiting to HST Chemical Pathology for the 2027 intake: “Applications for the Chemical Pathology programme will not open for this recruitment cycle as there are currently no vacant posts available.” The criteria are still published. If it shortlists, it scores five rows: Professional Qualifications/Education 2.5, Publication & Audit Experience 2.5, Clinical Practice 10, Leadership & Management Experience 2.5 and Teaching Experience 2. The published total is 19.5, not 20. The interview is out of 100, with a “Pass Mark: 60 overall”. RCPI publishes only the maximum for each row, so the panel decides each mark. The calculator at the top of this page is a self-estimate: you rate yourself against each row and it adds up your own estimate, not RCPI’s score.
Where Teach the Teacher counts for Chemical Pathology
We claim the course on the Teaching Experience row, worth 2 of the 19.5, and the panel decides. The row reads “Candidate demonstrates experience with teaching, or higher qualification in teaching”. The Erudical course is a live online day with “6 hours of live teaching with an expert”, plus a self-paced course of over 12 hours in 20 modules. It isn’t a postgraduate qualification or teaching delivered, so pair it with teaching you do, such as acid-base or laboratory medicine sessions for interns. With no 2027 intake, this applies whenever the programme next recruits. At interview, teaching shares the 10-mark Research/Audit/Teaching domain; we claim the course there as formal training in teaching, and the panel decides what it adds.
Rules in the Chemical Pathology criteria that change a score
Clinical Practice is worth 10 of the 19.5 shortlisting marks, judged against “the totality of the period of training”, while publications and audit are only 2.5. The interview has a pass mark of 60 overall, so a strong shortlisting score can’t carry a weak interview. Its domains are General Suitability/Knowledge of Specialty 30, Research/Audit/Teaching 10, Relevant Career to Date 30, Clinical Questions 20 and Interview Performance 10. Publications and presentations need “proof of same”, and in any RCPI cycle nothing can be added after applications close. Check the RCPI page before planning around this form, because the programme isn’t open this cycle.
Worked example: a medical registrar with a biochemistry post
Take a registrar with MRCPI, a year in a clinical biochemistry post, a co-authored lipid-clinic paper, an audit of potassium requests, a year as Lead NCHD and a monthly acid-base session for interns. The biochemistry year carries the heaviest row (Clinical Practice, 10), Lead NCHD is named in the leadership row, and the acid-base sessions are teaching experience. RCPI publishes no marks within rows, so there’s no total. A Teach the Teacher certificate adds a teaching course beside the sessions on a row worth 2 at most; the panel decides, in whichever intake next recruits.
RCPI Chemical Pathology HST shortlisting points at a glance
Shortlisting (published; not recruiting for 2027)
Your score is the total of the domain scores, out of a maximum of 19.5.
"Applications for the Chemical Pathology programme will not open for this recruitment cycle as there are currently no vacant posts available." The published total is 19.5 (2.5 + 2.5 + 10 + 2.5 + 2), not 20. "It may be a requirement to shortlist applicants, as outlined below:" Self-estimate (owner ruling 30 Oct 2026): RCPI publishes only the maximum for each row, so the calculator asks you to rate yourself on each row (none, some, good, strong) and adds up your own estimate. These steps are ours, not RCPI's; the panel scores the real marks.
| Domain | What scores (official wording) | Max |
|---|---|---|
| Professional Qualifications/Education |
Scores the single best option you can evidence, up to 2.5 points. RCPI publishes only the row maximum (2.5). The panel decides the mark; no bands or examples of scores are published. | 2.5 |
| Publication & Audit Experience |
Scores the single best option you can evidence, up to 2.5 points. RCPI publishes only the row maximum (2.5). The panel decides the mark; no bands or examples of scores are published. | 2.5 |
| Clinical Practice |
Scores the single best option you can evidence, up to 10 points. RCPI publishes only the row maximum (10). The panel decides the mark; no bands or examples of scores are published. | 10 |
| Leadership & Management Experience |
Scores the single best option you can evidence, up to 2.5 points. RCPI publishes only the row maximum (2.5). The panel decides the mark; no bands or examples of scores are published. | 2.5 |
| Teaching Experience |
Scores the single best option you can evidence, up to 2 points. RCPI publishes only the row maximum (2). The panel decides the mark; no bands or examples of scores are published. | 2 |
| Total | 19.5 |
Shortlisting (published; not recruiting for 2027): Dates for this round
- This round closed 29 Oct 2026 (2027 intake); nothing can be added to those applications source
- Next applications open (2028 intake), expected early October 2027 expected source
- Next applications close (2028 intake), expected late October 2027: what you claim must be done by then expected source
Shortlisting (published; not recruiting for 2027): What you can still add before 29 October 2027
Nothing in this framework can realistically be added this round. Check that you have claimed everything you already hold.
Interview (published; not recruiting for 2027)
Your score is the total of the domain scores, out of a maximum of 100.
No total row; the five domains (30, 10, 30, 20, 10) add up to 100. "Pass Mark: 60 overall". Self-estimate (owner ruling 30 Oct 2026): RCPI publishes only the maximum for each row, so the calculator asks you to rate yourself on each row (none, some, good, strong) and adds up your own estimate. These steps are ours, not RCPI's; the panel scores the real marks.
| Domain | What scores (official wording) | Max |
|---|---|---|
| General Suitability/Knowledge of Specialty |
Scores the single best option you can evidence, up to 30 points. Interview domain worth 30. RCPI publishes the category and its marks only; the interview panel scores it. | 30 |
| Research/Audit/Teaching |
Scores the single best option you can evidence, up to 10 points. Interview domain worth 10. RCPI publishes the category and its marks only; the interview panel scores it. | 10 |
| Relevant Career to Date |
Scores the single best option you can evidence, up to 30 points. Interview domain worth 30. RCPI publishes the category and its marks only; the interview panel scores it. | 30 |
| Clinical Questions |
Scores the single best option you can evidence, up to 20 points. Interview domain worth 20. RCPI publishes the category and its marks only; the interview panel scores it. | 20 |
| Interview Performance |
Scores the single best option you can evidence, up to 10 points. Interview domain worth 10. RCPI publishes the category and its marks only; the interview panel scores it. | 10 |
| Total | Not published as a single figure: this is the sum of the domain maxima. | 100 |
Interview (published; not recruiting for 2027): Dates for this round
- This round closed 29 Oct 2026 (2027 intake); nothing can be added to those applications source
- Next applications open (2028 intake), expected early October 2027 expected source
- Next applications close (2028 intake), expected late October 2027: what you claim must be done by then expected source
Interview (published; not recruiting for 2027): What you can still add before 29 October 2027
What each of these adds is the difference between the option you would reach and the one you already hold, so it can be nothing if you hold that option already. The calculator works out the gain from your own answers.
- Research/Audit/Teaching. For the next intake (window expected October 2027): complete the Erudical Teach the Teacher course (live day plus self-paced) and keep both certificates, and keep a dated log of teaching you deliver, with feedback where you can get it. Gets you to: Some (about a third of the marks).
Evidence traps
- Chemical Pathology isn't recruiting for the 2027 intake, so check the RCPI page before planning around this form.
Applications for the Chemical Pathology programme will not open for this recruitment cycle as there are currently no vacant posts available.
source - The interview has a pass mark of 60 overall, so a high shortlisting score can't carry a weak interview.
Pass Mark: 60 overall
source - Clinical Practice is worth 10 of the 19.5 shortlisting marks; publications and audit are only 2.5.
Clinical Practice | Candidate shows evidence that present achievement and performance is commensurate with the totality of the period of training, e.g. experience in specialty, attendance at specialty clinics, etc. | 10
source - Every publication, presentation and research item needs proof uploaded with the application, and RCPI reviews only the documents it asks for.
Verifiable proof will be required. Please follow the instructions on the application form. ... Please only upload the requested documents. Additional documents will not be reviewed.
source
Sources
- RCPI Entry Guidance and Advice: HST Shortlisting and Interview Criteria & Specialty Entry Requirements, 2027 intake. The page says "Applications for our 2027 Higher Specialist Training (HST) programmes are now closed." Criteria are published as tables on the page, not as PDFs.
- RCPI HST Application Guidance and Frequently Asked Questions, 2027 intake ("Applications for our Higher Specialist Training (HST) programme will open 01 October 2026.")
For every row, the interview marks and the official dates on one printable page, add your email and we’ll send you the PDF.
Email me the printable version
Check your inbox. Your printable cheat sheet is on its way to .
While you wait, work out your score with the calculator. If the email isn't there in a few minutes, check your junk folder.
Chemical Pathology HST questions, answered
How many points is teaching worth for RCPI HST Chemical Pathology?
2 of the 19.5 shortlisting marks, for “Candidate demonstrates experience with teaching, or higher qualification in teaching”. At interview, teaching shares the 10-mark Research/Audit/Teaching domain.
Is RCPI recruiting for HST Chemical Pathology in 2027?
No. “Applications for the Chemical Pathology programme will not open for this recruitment cycle as there are currently no vacant posts available.” The criteria are still published.
How is HST Chemical Pathology shortlisting scored?
Professional Qualifications/Education 2.5, Publication & Audit Experience 2.5, Clinical Practice 10, Leadership & Management Experience 2.5 and Teaching Experience 2, a published total of 19.5.
What is the pass mark for the HST Chemical Pathology interview?
60 overall. The interview covers General Suitability/Knowledge of Specialty 30, Research/Audit/Teaching 10, Relevant Career to Date 30, Clinical Questions 20 and Interview Performance 10.
Does a teach the teacher course count for HST Chemical Pathology?
We claim it on the Teaching Experience row (2 marks), and the panel decides. It applies to the next intake that recruits.
