Both GP colleges scored high on registrar satisfaction, while the RACP and the intensive care college trail behind.
The RACGP has won the title of the least-worst medical college based on registrar experience in this year’s AMA Specialist Trainee Experience Health Check – but that doesn’t mean it was without faults.
ACRRM, for its part, came runner-up.
Across five dimensions and 23 criteria, the RACGP was the only college to receive either average or significantly-more-favourable-than-average feedback from registrars on all counts bar one.
It only received significantly-less-favourable-than-average feedback on one criteria, a question about whether participants got paid for unrostered overtime.
The RACGP was the only college to report significantly-more-favourable-than-average scores on several measures, including clear communication around training changes, job responsibilities which did not prevent registrars from meeting training requirements, having a good work/life balance, having a safe mechanism for raising concerns, and providing clear information about how training fees were spent.
Overall, the RACGP received a B minus grade.
The rural college was not far behind, receiving a C plus.
It received significantly-less-favourable-than-average scores on two criteria: payment for unrostered overtime, and the proportion of registrars considering leaving medicine within the next 12 months.
ACRRM and the RACGP were the only two colleges to receive significantly better than average feedback on whether registrars knew who to contact with questions on their training, whether the college engaged with registrars, whether registrars received support when needed and whether training costs have led to stress.
The data came from AHPRA’s 2025 Medical Training Survey and was analysed by an independent statistician for the AMA.
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AMA vice president Associate Professor Julian Rait told The Medical Republic that the RACGP’s apparent success potentially stemmed from the fact that it had struggled to attract registrars in the recent past.
“Although that’s not the college’s fault – it’s probably more the systemic issues around general practice that to contribute to that – I think the college of GPs is very genuinely committed to making sure that the training experience of their juniors is really good, and I think that shows up in the survey,” he said.
The GP college went from having had just over 35% of registrars agree with the statement “the college seeks my views on the training program” in 2019 to having more than 60% agree in 2025.
Across all colleges, a common pain point for registrars was feedback on exam performance; just 39% said they had received useful feedback, and just 44% said that feedback was timely.
“Trainee doctors spend years and thousands of dollars preparing for these exams, so they really deserve better from our specialist colleges,” Professor Rait said.
“Now, that’s not to diminish the fact that, obviously, the colleges make a remarkable contribution and the fellows who voluntarily teach and supervise and mentor for the exams are terrific.
“We’re not trying to undermine all the work and effort that’s put into making Australia’s specialist graduates amongst the best in the world in terms of the quality of their training and their performance.
“But we just think that there’s room for improvement.”
When it came to exam feedback, the colleges could potentially learn a thing or two from ACRRM, which was the top performer. More than 60% of its registrars agreed that they had received useful feedback, and close to 70% agreed that the feedback was timely.
The RACGP, meanwhile, was the top scorer for work/life balance, with around 80% of registrars agreeing that their work-life balance was good.
Professor Rait stressed that the low grades for the colleges across the board were not an indictment of Australia’s training system.
“There’s just a lot going on in health services at the moment that is not very conducive to a healthy work-life balance, and other things,” he said.
“I think that it just means that the colleges need to maintain their focus on engaging with trainees and supporting them as best as possible, given the sometimes-tumultuous experiences people have in the public hospital system.”
In its response to the report card, the Council of Presidents of Medical Colleges pointed to its recently-established doctors-in-training college network, which aimed to “tackle shared training issues, exchange ideas and deliver joint projects”.
