Tasters

Tasters provide an opportunity to experience a specialty not included in trainees’ two year Foundation Programme, and thereby develop ideas and understanding of that specialty and inform career choices. Tasters can also benefit those who have already made career decisions as it suggests to employers that they are dedicated and committed to their chosen specialty. We encourage all trainees to arrange a taster during their first F2 rotation so that they have completed it in advance of the recruitment process to specialty training programmes which usually commences in November of the F2 year. It is also possible for trainees to “borrow” up to 5 days of their F2 study leave in order for them to complete a taster during the final four-months of their F1 year.

The formal policy for "Provision of Specialty Tasters for Foundation Doctors" is available to download on the right hand side of this page.

Available internal tasters

A spreadsheet of the tasters available at your trust can be downloaded from the individual trust/site page via http://www.stfs.org.uk/affiliated-trusts.

Available external tasters

Kings College Hospital ran a GU Medicine/HIV Taster for F2 doctors from 31 October - 1 November 2012.  Full details are available to download on the right hand side of this page.

For information

An article “Sampling specialties: Taster days for UK foundation doctors” which appeared in the December 2009 edition of the Student BMJ is available to download on the right hand side of this page.