Study leave FAQs

Study leave funding will be available, for the fee only, for a maximum of one eALS/ALS course per foundation doctor during their Foundation programme (normally in F2, or occasionally in the final block of F1) as well as funding for F2 simulation training which is part of your core learning.

Funding may also be available to cover travel expenses for Foundation doctors who are required to travel to complete mandatory elements of the programme e.g. PSA.  

Please discuss with your own Foundation Programme Director.

Tasters should be undertaken within your own region, unless this is not possible due to the nature of the taster specialty e.g. rural GP. 

Please discuss with your Foundation Programme Director.

Please Note: Tasters cannot be taken outside of Scotland or the UK.

Foundation doctors cannot take study leave to prepare for specialty examinations. 

Foundation doctors (in F2) are entitled to apply for study leave time to sit a specialty examination.

Examination fees and other expenses such as travel cannot be funded.

You are entitled to leave for interviews however this should be taken as service leave, and you are contractually entitled to this however you must give adequate notice.

A foundation doctor can withdraw a study leave application at any point in the process, e.g. if the course is cancelled or a foundation doctor is unable to attend due to a change in personal circumstances. The application will be removed and marked as ‘withdrawn’ in the foundation doctors study leave record. 

You do not need to apply for study leave if your planned activity falls on a non-working day unless you are applying for funding e.g. if you are required to travel to complete a mandatory element of the programme.

The process for applying for tasters must be followed even if the taster takes place on a non-working day(s). This is due to insurance reasons as some locations incur "hidden" costs to NES.

Attendance at the formal delivered education programme is included within study leave, therefore you do not need to make a formal application via the study leave app. 

A study leave application must be completed via Turas TPM by a foundation doctor wishing to complete a Taster. 

A study leave application for time out of work must be completed via Turas TPM by a foundation doctor who is due to complete the ILS refresher or eALS/ALS course.

This type of time out of work should be processed under the Special Leave Policy. Each of the four employing Boards has their own policy available on their websites. Links to the employing Boards' policies sections of their websites can be found on the Turas Hub. Foundation doctors should submit a leave request in line with their employer's process.

Armed Force reservists may be entitled to Special Leave, for example, for training purposes. Please contact your employing Board and the Deanery team to discuss this further.

F1s do not have a study leave entitlement. Any courses other than those organised by the Deanery (i.e.  delivered foundation education programme etc.) should be taken from your annual leave or on days when you are not scheduled to be at work. This is a UK policy and applies to all F1s.

If you wish to take a taster in F1 you must apply for study leave, you may use 5 days.

In F2 you can apply for study leave for a selected number of reasons.

F2s can use up to 10 days for Tasters and this study leave is non-transferable. The up to 10 days of Taster time can be taken in either in F1 or in F2. It would usually be taken as 5 days for each specialty/GP area. Tasters are taken in your own region unless the clinical area isn’t available locally. Please see the advice on tasters on the website for further information.

Of the remainder, much is taken up with your formal mandatory foundation delivered education programme (core learning). Funding will be available in F2 if you are attending simulation training and/ or eALS/ALS.  You must request leave via the study leave app.

A further 8 days may be available for appropriate study leave. You may apply for time to attend postgraduate exams but not courses to enhance your specialty application. Study leave in Foundation can only be used to satisfy your completion of the Foundation curriculum. You are allowed to leave for interviews however this should be taken as service leave; you are contractually entitled to this however you must give adequate notice.

If you are an F2 working LTFT, please consult your employment contract and T&C's which will describe study leave arrangements for LTFT foundation doctors. 

In the first instance, please discuss the matter with your FPD. Beyond that, there is an appeals process which is described in the study leave policy (section 64-67). 

A study leave application must be completed via Turas TPM.

If you are having any issues logging in to Turas please use the green helpdesk button and submit a helpdesk request. 

Old-style paper application forms are no longer accepted.

Firstly you should request leave from the service and then submit a request on Turas for your FPD to approve. This should be submitted six weeks in advance of the leave date. If you are uncertain as to whether your application is appropriate use of study leave please contact your FPD for advice in advance of the application.

A process flowchart is available on the Scotland Deanery Study Leave pages.

Consider the training year you have ahead of you and the requirements for F2. Discuss with your educational supervisor and/or FPD any ideas you have in relation to your training and development. Contact details for all FPDs can be found here.