General Surgery (ST3)
Walk into your General Surgery ST3 interview already knowing how you will answer
Rehearse for your General Surgery ST3 interview against an AI interviewer who challenges your answers. Get feedback on any session you finish, in seconds.
What is the General Surgery ST3 interview, and how do you practise for it?
General Surgery ST3 national recruitment interview, run online by NHS England: about 40 minutes over three stations, each with two consultant interviewers. The Clinical and Management stations each give you a written scenario and 5 minutes of reading time, then 10 minutes of questions about it and related questions. The 10-minute Professional Development Station asks about your career to date; no portfolio is reviewed at interview. Here one examiner voice speaks for the panel. MedMock lets you practise it out loud against an AI interview panel, with examiner-style feedback on any station you finish.
Last updated 29 October 2026
About General Surgery (ST3) recruitment
General Surgery ST3, 2025 recruitment round (Round 2). NHS England competition ratios
- General Surgery interviews are held online. The stations cover aspects of the person specification, last approximately 40 minutes, and are split into clinical, management and professional development stations.
- Each General Surgery interview station has two consultant interviewers, and one observer at most may be present who does not assess the candidate.
- The clinical and management stations each give 5 minutes of reading time and 10 minutes of questions. The professional development station gives 10 minutes of questions about the applicant's career to date.
- Portfolio evidence is not available to the General Surgery interviewers during the interview, and applicants do not need to prepare or present a hard copy of their portfolio.
- For 2026 entry, General Surgery applications and uploaded evidence are used to shortlist candidates for interview, and the shortlisting scores are added to the interview scores in the overall candidate score.
- From 2026, the minimum number of appendectomies applicants must have completed at Supervised Trainer Scrubbed (STS) level or above increased from 6 to 10.
- General Surgery recruitment is a nationally coordinated process hosted by London Recruitment Office on behalf of the General Surgery Specialty Advisory Committee, covering England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Checked on 13 October 2026 against General Surgery - Interviews, General Surgery - Overview and General Surgery - Applying. Recruitment changes each year: confirm on the official pages before you apply.
General Surgery ST3 interview practice, on demand
MedMock gives you an AI interviewer who challenges your answers, available 24/7. Pick a station, have a spoken conversation, and ask for examiner-style feedback when you finish, scored against what genuinely matters in the General Surgery ST3.
How it works
Choose a station
Choose the kind of question or scenario you want to rehearse — ethics, motivation, a role-play, and more.
Have the conversation
Speak naturally, out loud. The AI interviewer listens and asks the demanding follow-ups, just as a real interviewer would.
Get instant feedback
The moment you finish, you get specific, examiner-style feedback and a score — what you did well, what cost you marks, and precisely what to fix before the next attempt.
Practise every scenario
MedMock covers the stations you will face in the General Surgery ST3 interview. Rehearse each one until it feels routine.
Clinical station
5 minutes to read a written clinical scenario about a patient, then 10 minutes of questions about it and related questions: for example a post-operative complication such as an anastomotic leak or bleeding, or an acute surgical emergency.
Management station
5 minutes to read a written scenario about a management problem in the clinical environment, then 10 minutes of questions about it and related questions: for example governance, candour, conflict, a complaint or a trainee's performance.
Professional Development Station
The panel asks about your professional development: training to date, audit and quality improvement, research, teaching, leadership, reflection and your plans in general surgery.
Sample General Surgery (ST3) interview questions
Two questions from the topics that come up most in MedMock's General Surgery (ST3) bank.
“You disagree with a consultant’s plan for a deteriorating patient. How would you proceed?”
“A 65-year-old man with newly diagnosed colorectal cancer. Counsel on surgical options.”
Example scenarios
A sample of the General Surgery ST3 scenarios you can practise, each as a spoken conversation.
“It is day 4 post right hemicolectomy. The patient has a heart rate of 120, temp 38.5, and a rigid abdomen. Talk me through your management.”
“A foundation-year colleague on the previous take made a documentation error that delayed the diagnosis of bowel obstruction by six hours. The patient came to harm. The on-call consultant has asked you to discuss this at the next governance meeting. How would you approach it?”
General Surgery (ST3) recruitment dates 2026–27
The next General Surgery (ST3) recruitment date we hold is: Applications 19 November 2026 to 10 December 2026 (national Round 2). Checked against NHS England Medical Specialty Recruitment on 24 September 2026.
Time until Applications 19 November 2026 to 10 December 2026 (national Round 2)
— d — h — m — sGeneral Surgery (ST3) is recruited through NHS England’s national recruitment round 2, which the national timeline says is for ST3/ST4 posts. Applications are made on Oriel.
Recruitment dates change. MedMock is not affiliated with NHS England Medical Specialty Recruitment; confirm every date, application window and venue on the official site before you apply. NHS England Medical Specialty Recruitment
General Surgery (ST3) practice — your questions answered
How does the feedback work?
When you finish a station you can have it marked, and the scorecard comes back in seconds — what you did well, what cost you marks, and exactly what to work on next. Scorecards, mark schemes and model answers are included at no extra credit cost.
Can I practise specific General Surgery ST3 stations?
Yes. You can pick any of the 3 stations to drill a weak area, or run a mixed set to simulate the real interview.
How much does it cost?
You can start with a one-off £5 taster: 30 credits, which is 30 minutes of speaking practice, with no subscription. After that, or at any time, you can choose a monthly plan, which includes a monthly credit allowance. Current prices are on the pricing page.
Formats change from year to year: check the official candidate guidance or applicant handbook from the body that runs your exam or interview (the Royal Colleges, NHS England, the GMC and others) for your sitting.
Ready for your General Surgery ST3 interview?
Rehearse real General Surgery ST3 scenarios out loud and get instant, examiner-style feedback.
- Instant, personalised feedback
- Real voice-to-voice conversation
- Repeatable attempts, a different run every time
Related exams to practise
Be ready for your General Surgery ST3 interview before you walk in
Start with the £5 taster, a one-off payment for 30 credits: practise General Surgery ST3 interview scenarios out loud and get any of them marked when you are ready.
Practise your General Surgery ST3 interview