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RCPI
HST Clinical Pharmacology
A five-year RCPI dual-certification SpR programme in Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics and General Internal Medicine, one of the smallest medical HST intakes in Ireland.
How the length works
Dual CSCST with General Internal Medicine.
Duration: 5 years (SpR1-SpR5), dual CSCST in Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics and General Internal Medicine; one year may be full-time research (OCPE)
Annual intake: 2 HST Year 1 trainees in 2024/2025 (6 CPT SpRs across all years) - HSE NDTP Medical Workforce Report 2024-2025, Table 7
Applications: 2026 intake: applications opened 1 October 2025 and closed 29 October 2025 (application fee EUR 100). Next application cycle opens October 2026. Interview (2026): 11 February 2026.
Entry: After BST in General Internal Medicine (or approved equivalent) + MRCPI in General Medicine. The MRCPI Clinical Examination relevant to the specialty must be passed before the HST interview. IMC registration eligibility, English language competency and eligibility to work in Ireland required at application.
Exams: No specialty examination requirement identified in the 2025 curriculum beyond MRCPI held at entry.
HST Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics is a five-year RCPI Institute of Medicine programme leading to dual CSCST in Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics and General Internal Medicine; one year may be gained from full-time research through the Out of Clinical Programme Experience route. The RCPI page for the specialty notes there are currently 8-10 practising clinical pharmacologists in Ireland, and the intake is correspondingly small: two SpRs entered year 1 in 2024/2025.
Entry requires BST in General Internal Medicine (or equivalent) and MRCPI in General Medicine, with the clinical examination passed before interview. Selection uses a single published 100-mark scheme covering CV (30), national policy (20), teaching and prescribing (30), knowledge and vision (10), and research and audit (10).
How selection is scored
Shortlisting and Interview (combined)max 100
Teaching and prescribing30
RCPI publishes a single combined 100-mark scheme for Clinical Pharmacology rather than separate shortlisting and interview tables.
Where you train
Named hospital lists are not published per specialty; SpRs rotate through RCPI-approved training sites nationally in preapproved 6- or 12-month posts. At least one clinical year must be completed in a training site outside the Dublin area; a maximum of two clinical years may be spent in the same site. The IOM handbook notes exceptions to rotation rules for smaller specialties such as Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics because of the small number of training sites.
Where this leads
Award of CSCST (dual certification in Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics and General Internal Medicine) confers eligibility for entry on the Specialist Division of the IMC register and for consultant posts. Documented post-CSCST routes: the RCPI/HSE register of approved Post-CSCST Fellowship posts and HSE NDTP Aspire Fellowships, open to doctors within two years of CSCST.
Facts last verified 2026-07-27. Scheme details change year to year; always confirm against RCPI's current documentation.