Emergency Medicine 2nd November 2023

ACCS Emergency Medicine Interview Guide 2024

If you’re thinking about applying to ACCS Emergency Medicine, the interview is a crucial element of the application process. Unfortunately, the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) and Health Education England (HEE) resources regarding the interview process are vague, that’s why we have written this blog.

When thinking about your Emergency Medicine interview, the first thing to remember is that the interview panel wants you to succeed, they are interested in your experiences and achievements. Secondly, the panel are not trying to catch you out with trick questions, it’s an opportunity to showcase your successes. The format and set-up of the interview (detailed below) have changed since COVID and thoroughly preparing for and conducting practice interviews is fundamental.

The impact of COVID-19 on ACCS Emergency Medicine Interviews 

Pre-covid, interviews were in person (often in a large centre) and would be split up into four distinct sections, each receiving its own score:

• Clinical/Ethical Station: An abstract was provided and then the candidate was asked how they would tackle the scenario.
• Portfolio Score: With the panel, you would work through a self-assessment sheet, justifying your score for achievements, such as QIPs, audits, teaching and research etc. 
• Presentation: On the day you were given a specific topic (e.g. Resilience) and then given 10 minutes to prepare a presentation. After the presentation was delivered you would be questioned by the panel.
• Commitment to Emergency Medicine: This was to demonstrate your dedication to the speciality. Themes of questions were around the Training Structure and EM Specific Issues (bed-blocking / ambulance diversions)

The ACCS Emergency Medicine Interview 2024

You may be pleased to know that the current structure and interview layout is now simpler.

Score

The overall candidate score for ACCS Emergency Medicine is made up of the MSRA + Interview Score. The MSRA counts for 40% and the interview is 60%. 

Multi-Specialty Recruitment Assessment (MSRA)

The MSRA exam is used as a shortlisting tool for interviews, so it is really important that you prepare for this exam. The exam is made up of two parts, the Clinical Problem Solving paper and the Professional Dilemmas paper. You can prepare for your MSRA using the AI-powered, adaptive Medibuddy MSRA question bank.

We have broken the syllabus down into the different topics you need to learn, as you can see from the image below.

We won’t just tell you how many questions you have answered incorrectly, our clever algorithms will show you your skill level for each topic, so you know which topics to focus on to enhance your score. When you are working through each topic, instead of giving you random questions, our algorithm is carefully selecting the next question for you, meaning you spend less time answering questions you already know and more time learning new information. You will take the MSRA exam in January, with most candidates beginning their preparation around October time. You can find out more about the MSRA, including how to prepare, here.

 Timings

The dates for 2024 recruitment are below:

• The deadline for applying to the EM ACCS programme, via Oriel, is Thursday 23rd November 2023 (for the following August intake). 
• The MSRA exam window for 2024 is between 4th January and 16th January 2024, with results released roughly 2-3 weeks later. For more information on the MSRA please see here.
• Interview slots and bookings are released by 12th February 2024, with interviews held between 29th February – 11th March 2024. 
• The deadline to rank Programmes (jobs) is between the end of February – mid-March 2024.
• Offers are normally released by the end of March and have a 48-hour deadline to either hold/upgrade/decline offers; please see the Oriel Applicant Handbook about how to manage offers here.
• Your Programme training will start in August.

Interview Overview

• Location: Since Covid specialties hold all ST1/CT1 interviews remotely. Emergency Medicine ACCS will be using the video platform Qpercom this year, a change from MS Teams.
• Panel: There are two panel members who will ask questions and assess the candidate. Occasionally a third ‘Lay Person’ is there to quality assure the process, but provides no assessments or scoring.
• Structure: Interview questions are based around your experience, application and commitment to the speciality, involvement in teaching, research, QIPs, audits and examples of teamwork. Portfolios are not reviewed within the interview.
• Timing: The entire interview is 30 minutes. The candidate joins the panel for the face-to-face (online) interview which lasts up to 20 minutes. The panel then reviews the candidates’ application for 10 minutes (without the candidates present).

Interview Scoring

There is very limited information available about how the interview is scored and there are no formal resources/mark schemes offered by RCEM. The below information has been extrapolated from the EM ACCS Interview Feedback received in July 2022.

In 2022, the interview was scored out of a total of 50 marks. There were 5 questions and each answer received a mark out of 5 from each of the two panellists. Therefore, the total for each answer is a maximum of 10.

The mark /50 is then converted into a percentage and this makes up 60% of your overall candidate score. According to the interview feedback, an answer that received 5/5 was one that showed: “candidates are able to lead the question, direct and explore the question in detail, using a depth of reflective commentary and cover all aspects of the suggested responses”.

In addition, an answer that received a 4/5 was one that showed: “candidates can expand on the question, cover a good breadth of the question, are able to reflect and add depth to their response, but there are areas that have not been fully explored”.

Both descriptions are vague, but this highlights that the panel values detailed answers which include reflection e.g. “what you have learned from ‘X’ and how you will apply ‘Y’ in the future”.

Interview Preparation

Due to the interview details being so vague, we recommend doing as much preparation as you can to ensure you are ready for whatever questions come up. To help you, we have been busy building our ACCS Emergency Medicine Interview question bank, written by previously high scoring trainees covering themes and questions that have come up in previous years.

We have broken our ACCS Emergency Medicine Interview question bank into the different themes that could be included in the interview. We recommend preparing for your interview like you would an exam, and our easy to navigate dashboard will show you which questions you have completed, and which questions you need to go back to.

For each section, we have provided tips and advice and comprehensive examples to help guide you when putting your answers together. We recommend working your way through each scenario, reading the tips and advice and the example, and then formulating your own personal answer using everything you have learned.

Here is an example of an interview question from our question bank, which shows a question that was asked in the 2022 interview that surprised people!

As well as this, we recommend the following:

Practice, practice, practice!

• Practising interviews may seem a little awkward / embarrassing at first, but there is no better preparation than to answer questions out loud.
• Try with a few different people (senior colleagues, friends and family) to gain as much feedback as possible. If that isn’t possible, try answering questions in front of a mirror or record yourself. This might seem even more intimidating, but listening to yourself answer questions will help pick up on hesitations, pauses and when you may lose focus.

Write out your CV

• Before starting to think of how to answer questions, it may be useful to go over or refresh your CV so you are aware of what achievements you have and how you can integrate your experiences into your answers. You will have done more than you think! 

Structure

• Try to maintain a set structure for each question. This will help you recall and formulate your answers and is a useful tool to revert back to if you get stressed or flustered on the day.
• Our ACCS Emergency Medicine Interview question bank will be able to show you more information on the certain types of structures of questions, including example answers.

Tips for your ACCS Emergency Medicine Interview 

Pre-Interview:

• Try to keep on top of emails from Oriel, many will be sent throughout the application process and it can make life much easier if they are organised.
• DO NOT delete the email which contains the link to your Qpercom interview – keep it safe!
• Test Qpercom on your laptop/computer to make sure it is working. Also, ensure your Wi-Fi and microphone are working with no issues.

Interview Day:

• Dress smart and look professional – you may be at home but it is still an interview.
• Have a pen and paper nearby to take notes.
• Try to place your computer/laptop in a well-lit and quiet room (there is a risk of the interview being terminated if the panel hears other voices / loud noises).
• Have your phone nearby (and on Do Not Disturb) – ready to use the Personal Hotspot function, in case there are Wi-Fi /connection issues.
• Listen to each question, take a deep breath and then answer, speak slowly and calmly following the answer structure you have prepared.

Post Interview:

• Relax! 
• Well done and try not to over analyse the interview!

The interview will go quicker than you think, so remember to showcase yourself and your commitment to Emergency Medicine. Good Luck! 

This blog is written by Alice McBride, a Junior Doctor who was successful in the MSRA and ACCS Emergency Medicine Interview for the 2022 intake and has the most up-to-date information available.

Further reading:

MSRA Guide 2024

ACCS Emergency Medicine Interview Question Bank 

Day in the life of an Emergency Medicine ST1