Core Psychiatry had the sharpest ratio rise of any MSRA specialty. Applications went from 4,650 for 492 posts in 2024 to 10,677 for 489 posts in 2025, taking the published competition ratio from 9.45:1 to 21.83:1 in a year. NHS England's modelling counted 1,136 appointable UK graduates for about 480 posts, roughly 2.4 per post. Its separate all-appointable-applicant calculation gave a ratio of 12.4 to one.
Those post totals come from different recruitment snapshots, so 489 and about 480 belong with their own source. Either way, there were far more appointable candidates than places. The score of 186 is the floor in each paper. A competitive rank will demand more.
The growth is visible on NHS England's 2024 and 2025 competition-ratio pages. Its prioritisation impact modelling supplies both appointable calculations. Your personal odds still depend on the cohort and priority rules.
Your MSRA result is the selection process
After eligibility checks, the MSRA alone decides Core Psychiatry CT1 offers. Interview and portfolio stages are absent. The Core Psychiatry MSRA rules require a raw score of at least 186 in each paper, so both papers must clear their own floor.
Your result shows both paper scores, an overall score and a rank. That rank is calculated within the Core Psychiatry applicant cohort. If overall scores are tied, the raw Professional Dilemmas score is considered first, followed by the raw Clinical Problem Solving score.
A successful score can be transferred between Psychiatry recruitment rounds within the same 12-month cycle, provided the selection process remains unchanged. Round 1 for an August intake always requires a new sitting. An eligible later-round transfer is ranked afresh against that Psychiatry cohort, so its rank can rise or fall. Offers stay with their original round.
The choice to transfer or resit is made in the application and becomes final at submission. A resit supersedes the earlier outcome even when the new score is lower, with no route back to the old result. The marking outcome is final. The cross-specialty distinctions are set out in our MSRA resit and score-transfer guide.
The dates published so far
The national 2027 Round 1 timeline is confirmed. The Psychiatry-specific MSRA and booking dates were still unpublished at the time of writing.
- Applications open at 10:00 on Thursday 22 October 2026.
- Applications close at 16:00 on Thursday 19 November 2026.
- Requests to review an Oriel priority-status decision close at 17:00 on 24 November 2026.
- The national interview window runs from 11 January to 2 April 2027, although Psychiatry has no interview.
- Initial offers are due by 17:00 on 6 April 2027.
- The hold deadline is 09:00 on 9 April; upgrades close at 16:00 on 14 April 2027.
For the 2026 cycle, the main MSRA window ran from 6 to 19 January. A second window from 12 to 25 February was reserved for people applying only to GP, Core Psychiatry or both, subject to capacity. Applying to another MSRA specialty put the candidate in the January group. NHS England had not confirmed the same split for 2027, so keep both months workable until your invitation arrives.
Use the message and booking instructions in Oriel, then check our Oriel walkthrough and full 2027 dates page. A date remembered from the last cycle is not a booking.
Round 3 is a separate uncertainty. The Psychiatry posts page carries anticipated regional numbers for a February 2027 intake, including Northern Ireland, with each minimum and maximum still "to be confirmed". But NHS England's confirmed Round 3 list, published on 6 July 2026, includes Psychiatry ST4 alone. Core Psychiatry CT1 is absent. At the time of writing, a CT1 Round 3 is anticipated by the posts-page scaffolding and remains unconfirmed.
Check yourself against the 2026 person specification
The 2026 Core Psychiatry CT1 person specification is the latest published version. The 2027 document was still pending on 3 August 2026, so use this for an early self-screen and repeat the check when the new version appears.
- You need a recognised medical degree, the right to work in the UK, and full GMC registration and a licence to practise at the time of application.
- Existing eligibility for a CCT or CESR in Psychiatry, or for the Psychiatry specialist register, excludes an application.
- You need recent evidence of foundation competence. The routes include current UK Foundation Programme employment, a current GMC-approved specialty programme with an NTN or DRN, a UK Foundation Programme Certificate of Completion, or 12 months of medical experience after full registration (or equivalent post-licensing experience) plus CREST.
- You need a valid driving licence or a commitment to arrange alternative transport for emergency and domiciliary care across the programme.
The specification also expects a demonstrated interest in Psychiatry and a realistic understanding of the work. If CREST is your route, use the accepted form and check the supervision and signatory rules before asking anyone to complete it. Our CREST form guide follows those rules from the official guidance.
NHS England has not published a Psychiatry breakdown
The Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act applied at the offer stage for 2026 entry. NHS England published national results and a separate statement about GP; the Psychiatry-specific prioritisation fill figure remains undisclosed. GP's 100% category and the 98% figure across all specialty posts apply to their stated scopes alone.
For 2027, prioritisation applies from shortlisting through offers. Your earned MSRA rank stays intact, while the priority rules determine whether and when the application is considered. The 2026 immigration-status proxy belonged to that cycle. Regulations for a possible additional priority group based on significant NHS experience and/or immigration status were due in early autumn 2026 and remained unpublished at the time of writing. Check NHS England's live prioritisation page and our guide to the Act before applications close.
Where CT1 is meant to lead
Core training runs for 36 months, from CT1 to CT3. The MRCPsych examination has multiple-choice papers and the Clinical Assessment of Skills and Competencies (CASC).
Higher training then usually runs from ST4 to ST6. One ST4 application can preference posts across all single and dual-specialty pathways. Availability still varies by recruitment round.
What this means for an IMG
IMGs make up about 40% of the psychiatric workforce, according to a Royal College of Psychiatrists briefing. That workforce share tells you little about access to a CT1 post under the 2027 rules. The College's Psychiatry Medical Training Initiative is closed to new placements following the national MTI shutdown on 31 March 2026. Doctors already in placements can complete them; a replacement route remains unconfirmed.
If you qualify for a priority route, establish which route and keep the supporting evidence aligned with the Oriel answers. Otherwise, a high MSRA score remains necessary for a good rank while priority status is decided separately. Psychiatry's own 2026 non-priority outcome is unknown, so a precise success percentage would fill a data gap with guesswork.
A non-priority applicant who meets the person specification can submit, but this should be one strand of a wider plan. Our 2027 MSRA guide for IMGs deals with the decision to sit, while the routes still open to IMGs covers trust-grade and clinical fellow work, SAS careers, the Portfolio Pathway and alternatives outside UK training.
Open the free question bank when you are ready to put a number on your baseline; full access has a one-off fee, and CT1 selection gives those MSRA marks the final word.
Before you commit to psychiatry
What MSRA score do you need for Psychiatry?
The fixed appointability floor is 186 raw in each paper. A competitive target depends on the 2027 cohort, and the offer cut-off remains unpublished. For the August 2025 intake, an NHS England FOI response recorded 531 as the lowest MSRA score attached to an accepted offer anywhere; that pre-Act cohort is useful history rather than a 2027 forecast.
Can you transfer last year's MSRA score?
Transfer is available within the published 12-month Psychiatry cycle while the selection process remains unchanged. Round 1 for the August intake requires a fresh sitting. An eligible transfer is re-ranked against its new cohort, and the submitted transfer decision is final.
Do IMGs still have a chance in 2027?
Yes. Prioritisation now applies at shortlisting as well as offers, and the Psychiatry-specific 2026 outcome remains undisclosed. A non-priority IMG should prepare for the MSRA seriously while keeping credible employment and career routes open in parallel.