Recruitment
From 2027 onwards, recruitment for F2 Stand-alone programmes will no longer be carried out by the UKFPO on a UK-wide basis on behalf of the four UK statutory education bodies (SEBs). Please see the announcement in the News section for further details.
Each SEB is responsible for deciding what happens next for F2 Stand-alone vacancies in their respective nations, and the UKFPO will share further information as it becomes available.
F2 Stand-alone posts are not the only employment and career development opportunities available to doctors who hold full registration with the GMC. Please refer to our Careers advice and returning to practice page where you can find links to relevant resources.
What is an F2 Stand-alone programme?
F2 Stand-alone programmes are one-year fixed term Foundation Year 2 (F2) level vacant posts that arise within Foundation Schools outside of the national 2-year Foundation Programme application process. F2 vacancies can occur for several reasons, for example a 2-year foundation programme has become vacant after the national FP application process, or the second year of a 2-year foundation programme is not taken up by the incumbent F1.
F2 Stand-alone programmes are suitable for doctors who have one or two years of postgraduate experience or have completed an internship/F1 equivalent but are seeking further experience before pursuing GP or specialty training. To be eligible to apply for an F2 Stand-alone programme, you must be eligible for Full Registration with the General Medical Council (GMC).
F2 Stand-alone programmes are one-year fixed-term appointments. This means that Stand-alone F2 programmes are unlikely to be extended if the foundation doctor does not meet the requirements for satisfactory completion of the foundation programme within the 12-month fixed-term appointment.
Applicants who are currently working as part of the two-year or F2 stand-alone programme or have successfully completed the F2 year and received a Foundation Achievement of Competency Document (FACD)/Foundation Programme Certificate of Completion (FPCC) are not eligible to apply for F2 Stand-alone posts.
What does Foundation Year 2 entail?
In Foundation Year 2 (F2) doctors remain under clinical supervision (as do all doctors in training) but take on increasing responsibility for patient care. In particular, they begin to make management decisions as part of their progress towards independent practice. F2 doctors further develop their core generic skills and contribute more to the education and training of the wider healthcare workforce, for example nurses, medical students and less experienced doctors. At the end of F2, they will have begun to demonstrate clinical effectiveness, leadership and the decision-making responsibilities that are essential for hospital and general practice speciality training.
Satisfactory completion of F2 will lead to the award of a Foundation Programme Certificate of Completion (FPCC), which indicates that the foundation doctor is ready to enter a core, specialty or general practice training programme.