Higher Psychiatry ST4 ranks applicants partly on a verified self-assessment of 10 domains, and Domain 8 (Teaching) is worth up to 5. Attending a Teaching the Teachers course scores 2 of those 5, so for an applicant with no formal teaching on record the Erudical course is a direct, evidenced gain.
For every domain and a calculator for your own total, see Psychiatry ST4 self-assessment scoring and calculator.
How Psychiatry ST4 scores a teaching course
Domain 8 awards 2 points for “I have attended a Teaching the Teachers course, Generic Instructors course or similar”. The tier sets no minimum length and names no provider. Only your single highest tier counts, and the higher tiers need you to organise or contribute to a teaching programme (3 for a local programme, 4 for a regional or national one) or to hold an education qualification (3 for a PG Certificate, 4 for a PG Diploma, 5 for a Masters in Medical/Clinical Education).
One application covers all six ST4 specialties. NHS England puts it this way: “You will make an application to a single ST4 Psychiatry vacancy and can be considered for any/all of the 6 single specialties or 8 dual specialties in any location that declares posts.” So the same Domain 8 score serves Child and Adolescent, Forensic, General Adult, Medical Psychotherapy, Old Age and Psychiatry of Learning Disability. The self-assessment has a raw maximum of 46, and “Your verified self-assessment score will make up 25% of your final ST4 Psychiatry score.”
These values come from NHS England’s domain breakdown for the February 2027 intake (page reviewed 2 July 2026), which states: “This guidance is for February 2027 recruitment only.” The guidance for the August 2027 intake had not been published when we checked on 10 October 2026, and the domains may change.
Who gains from the course
The course scores the same 2 points as “I have some experience in formal teaching Health Professionals (such as lectures)” and as formal teaching of health-related topics to a non-medical audience. If you already score 2 or more in Teaching, the course adds nothing to your self-assessment. If you currently score 1 for informal teaching of colleagues or medical students, it takes you to 2, a gain of 1. From 0, the gain is 2.
Plan to attend the live day (09:00 to 17:00, online) ahead of submitting. The guidance asks you to “score yourself accurately at the time of application”, though for the February 2027 intake the cut-off for documents was the end of that round’s evidence upload period (16 September 2026). Should the August 2027 rules match, a certificate dated after submission but within that window may still be credited; the verifying clinician has the final say. The August 2027 round is expected to follow NHS England’s national Round 2 timetable, closing at 4pm on Thursday 10 December 2026; the psychiatry timeline itself says details of future rounds will be added once available.
What to upload as evidence
Domain 8 allows one piece of evidence for this tier, so upload a single course certificate: the Erudical certificate is the evidence that you attended the course. Tag it to Domain 8 carefully: the guidance says evidence that doesn’t match the instructions, or is tagged to the wrong domain, takes that domain’s score to zero.
Adding a presentation at NMERC
Erudical enrolment also includes a place at NMERC 2026, held online in Gather Town on Saturday 14 November 2026. Presenting is free, and abstracts close on 31 October 2026. Domain 10 (Presentations and Poster Presentations) awards its maximum of 5 for “I have presented at a regional, national, or international meeting”, and an NMERC oral or poster presentation scores at that tier. Your gain is 5 minus your current Domain 10 score. You need two documents: your slides or poster, plus the NMERC letter or abstract book, which are issued by 16:00 on 16 November 2026. As the guidance puts it, “Please note that we need both pieces of evidence to grant a score.”
Teaching and presentations are separate domains, so the two gains add. If you win a prize at NMERC, claim it in Domain 4 under “Personal award or recognition from a national recognised medical organisation or body” (4) with the prize certificate, though a prize is not something to plan on. The guidance adds: “You cannot use the same evidence in more than one domain.”
What our students say
“A very good course that facilitated learning throughout and gave me lots of ideas on how to improve my own teaching style. I would recommend.”
— D. Stonehewer“The Teach the Teacher course is really useful for those with an interest in teaching, and for those who do not teach regularly too.”
— A. RiazFrequently asked questions
How many points is a teach the teacher course worth for ST4 psychiatry?
2 points in Domain 8 (Teaching), which has a maximum of 5. Domain 8 counts only your highest tier, so the course helps only if you currently score 0 or 1 there.
Do I need a separate course for each psychiatry specialty?
No. There is one ST4 psychiatry application and one self-assessment for all six specialties and the dual programmes, so one certificate covers them all.
How much does the self-assessment count?
Your verified self-assessment makes up 25% of your final ST4 Psychiatry score. The interview is another 25% and the adjusted CASC is 50%. There is no minimum self-assessment score to be appointable.
Does this apply to the August 2027 intake?
The scoring above is from the February 2027 intake guidance. The August 2027 guidance had not been published when we checked on 10 October 2026, so check the domains again once the psychiatry timeline adds that round.
See the full teaching points by specialty breakdown, or read about the Erudical course.
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Last updated: 10th October 2026
