ENT 15th November 2023

ENT ST3 Interview Guide 2024

If you’re considering applying for ENT ST3 (Otolaryngology), this guide will provide information to help you submit a successful application. We cover everything from the key ENT ST3 dates to the format of the interview, and how it’s scored.

ENT ST3 Competition ratios

In 2023, there were 152 applicants for 60 posts. With a competition ratio of 2.53, just under three people were applying for each post. Therefore, it’s essential that you dedicate time to your application and prepare well for your interview to beat the competition.

ENT ST3 Application

The first step in the ENT ST3 recruitment process is submitting your application. The main part of the ENT ST3 application revolves around the self-assessment questions. Here, you will have to select the most appropriate responses and then submit evidence to support your answers.

The Recruitment Office can’t help you with any of your responses, and it’s important to choose the options that you can back up with evidence.

When preparing your application, consider any ENT experience you had during medical school, foundation years, and core surgical training. Think about where your interest in Otolaryngology has come from.

When you submit your application, the only sections you can change are your personal details and your referee details. So, make sure to complete all sections of the application to the best of your ability.

ENT ST3 Portfolio Scoring

How you respond to the self-assessment part of the application will be reviewed by a panel of clinicians, who will verify your responses against the evidence you upload to the self-assessment portal, and use this to score you. You will be provided with a scoresheet that confirms these results.

Those with the highest self-assessment scores will be shortlisted and invited to an interview. However, those who aren’t shortlisted won’t have their future applications influenced by this.

ENT ST3 Self Assessment

The self-assessment form requires you to complete a range of multiple-choice questions for each section.

The ENT ST3 Self Assessment form covers a variety of key experience areas, including:

• Time spent in Recognised Allied Specialties (after Foundation Training)
• Postgraduate degrees and qualifications
• Paper Publications
• Audits
• Presentations since medical school (including audits)
• Surgical logbook
• Postgraduate Medical Teaching Experience/Qualifications

How you format your portfolio is also important. If the assessors can’t verify your evidence, you might receive a score of 0 for that question. Also, if there’s concern about your evidence being confidential, inaccurate, or falsified, it will be taken down and sent to a Scrutiny Panel.

For further support with your application, see the portfolio and self-assessment guide.

ENT ST3 Key dates 2024

The following is an overview of the ENT ST3 2024 recruitment dates:

ENT ST3 Interview Format

If your ENT ST3 application is shortlisted, you will be invited to attend an interview.
Make sure to book an interview on Oriel for a time that suits you; interview slots are offered on a first come, first served basis, so we recommend doing this as soon as possible.

The interviews for the 2024 recruitment window will be held online. This means you need a reliable internet connection and a device with a camera and microphone suitable for a video interview. It is worth testing your setup before your interview, ensuring your lighting is appropriate; having a big window behind you can affect your appearance, so it is best to shut blinds or curtains if this is the case.

At the start of the interview, you must prove your identity with either your passport or driving licence. You will be notified of this requirement, and any others, within your invitation on Oriel.

The ENT ST3 interview consists of three separate stations. Each station lasts for 12 minutes, including two minutes of reading time, and will assess you against the 2024 person specification selection criteria.

The ENT ST3 interview stations are:

Professional

This station might require you to read a paper or prepare a presentation. You can expect to find out more information about your specific requirements within seven days of the interview, once you have chosen a time slot.

The Medibuddy ENT ST3 interview question bank provides support for preparing for a potential presentation or other areas relating to professionalism that you might face at this station, and we have provided an example below.

Communication

Communication skills are important in the role of an ENT specialist. And this station is all about demonstrating these skills. To assess your skill set, this station will require you to role-play a medical scenario with an actor.

Below is an example from our ENT ST3 interview question bank with explanations of how to approach this role-play scenario.

Clinical

This part of the interview assesses your clinical problem-solving skills. Before the station, you will receive a clinical scenario. Here, you will have to describe how you would manage and lead the scenario.

The following is an example clinical question from our ENT ST3 interview question bank:

We’ve broken our ENT ST3 Interview question bank down into the three interview stations, and included some general tips, preparation and structure information, to help you maximise your interview preparation time!

ENT ST3 Interview Scoring

Your ENT ST3 interview will be scored by two independent assessors using a structured scoring system. Your scores for each station will be combined, resulting in a total score. A Lay Representative may be present during your interview; however, they won’t be assessing you. They are there to make sure the process is fair and consistent.

The ranking you receive will depend on each of your station scores, as well as your overall self-assessment score. Health Education England might set a minimum requirement for a specific area of the assessment; if your score were to fall below this requirement, you would be ranked 0.

If you are still thinking about your ST3 applications and perhaps aren’t sure if ENT is for you, or maybe you are applying to several specialties (which is often the case due to the competitive nature of specialty training!), take a look at our other ST3/ST4 resources where we provide further information on general surgery, plastic surgery, and urology.