Everyone knows that the process of becoming a qualified doctor is a long and arduous one, but what exactly do you need to do if you want to complete medical school in New Zealand?
Each country has its own regulations regarding what makes someone suitable to practise medicine. What makes someone qualified in one country may not translate to another.
With this in mind, what regulations exactly are there for becoming a doctor in New Zealand? How do New Zealand medical schools and registered medical professionals stack up against doctors from other parts of the world? Can internationally trained doctors come to New Zealand and continue practising medicine?
What Credentials Do You Need to Be a Doctor?
How does one become a doctor in New Zealand?
The process is long and arduous, as it is anywhere else in the world. It ensures that those who complete the programme to become a healthcare worker are the best of the best, ensuring a high standard of knowledge, skill, and ethics for doctors.
Education Required to Be a Doctor
The entire process starts in Year 13 in secondary school, where students must take three Level 3 NCEA exams in specific subjects and score 14 credits.
Then, students will enrol in either the University of Aukland or the University of Otago for their first year. In the first year, students will be prepared to undertake their medical school careers.
Earning a bachelor’s degree in the medical field takes 6 years.
From here, students learn on the job for a few years as they get the hands-on experience required for doctoring. This process takes 5-10 years on average.
All in all, qualified doctors in New Zealand have 12 to 17 years of education before being let loose as a full-fledged doctor.
Registrations Required to Practise Medicine
In the 7th or 8th year of medical school, aspiring doctors must apply for a Provisional General Registration with the Medical Council of New Zealand (MCNZ).
After the completion of the internship in the 8th or 9th year, aspiring doctors can then obtain the General Registration with the MCNZ.
In order to work on your own, not as a resident at an existing medical practice like a hospital, you must obtain a Vocational Registration. This typically happens after a doctor has gone through specialised training or a postgraduate programme.
Doctors can hold a General registration and a Vocational registration at the same time, and can even have more than one Vocational registration if they have more than one specialty.
Additionally, doctors will then need to obtain a Practising Certificate. In some cases, the certificate is issued at the same time as the registration. The Practising Certificate must be renewed every year for the majority of doctors.
Some doctors may need to complete professional development programmes and/or complete continuing professional development (CPD) requirements as part of their recertification application.
Are Medical Schools in New Zealand Good?
What is the quality of the medical schools in New Zealand? How do they compare with other renowned medical programmes in places like the UK and the US?
You want to be sure that if you’re investing all this time, energy, and money into a medical education that the end result is you are a well-educated, respected member of the global medical community with great job opportunities.
How Do New Zealand Universities Rank Worldwide?
The University of Auckland ranked #68 and the University of Otago ranked #206 in the QS World University Rankings 2024. While the numbers might not seem particularly high-scoring, keep in mind that there are 1,500 institutions considered in the QS ranking and about 29,347 universities in the world.
How Does Medical School in New Zealand Compare?
The schooling in New Zealand is, in fact, very comprehensive and world-renowned. Doctors are well-educated and well-trained. For this reason, New Zealand’s medical training system can contend with other medical school formats.
The UK
New Zealand’s healthcare system is modelled after the NHS in the UK. So, it makes sense that there isn’t much of a difference between the two education systems.
Doctors from New Zealand can practise in the UK with proper registration and visa applications.
The US
Even though the progression of a student in New Zealand medical school looks much different than a US med student, the level of education the two receive is comparable.
Medical school in the US takes fewer years, but one could argue that it does so at the expense of students and learning doctors, who are often overworked.
Doctors from New Zealand can practise in the US when they pass the US Medical Licensing Exams, get certified by the Educational Commission for Foreign-Trained Medical Graduates, enrol in a residency program, and take a third licensing test, plus the right visa.
Is Being a Doctor in New Zealand a Good Choice?
Doctors are one of the most important members of society, and yet they are often subjected to less-than-ideal working conditions in many different places in the world. Is working as a doctor in New Zealand a good choice for a healthy life?
The work-life balance in New Zealand is heavily considered and respected for all occupations in New Zealand; the medical field is no different. Emphasis is placed on a healthy amount of work and rest. Doctors can expect to typically work 40 hours per week.
This is great for doctors, who are less likely to experience burnout than in cultures that emphasise working as much as possible. It’s also a boon for patients, who can be sure their doctor is less likely to make sleep-deprived mistakes.
Doctors in any specialty, including GPs, also earn quite well. For example, the median income for GPs is $187,000 per year. The starting pay for a qualified surgeon or qualified physician is about $170,000 per year.
Doctors also enjoy great benefits, especially compared to other societies in the world, including annual leave, unlimited sick leave, and time and funding allocation for continued medical education.
And while the job market for doctors in New Zealand is sometimes here and there in terms of job availability, in general, it is a pretty secure job market.
And remember all the benefits that come with living in New Zealand in general, like public healthcare, friendly people, and incredible scenery and outdoor activities, paired with rather good weather for most of the year.
Can Foreign Doctors Work in New Zealand?
If you're not from New Zealand or studied in another country, you may be able to transfer to New Zealand and continue practising medicine.
First, you need to be sure that the institution you received your medical degree from is listed in The World Directory of Medical Schools (WDOMS).
If you graduated from an approved institution in Australia, you can apply for registration the same as a New Zealand graduate.
If you graduated from an approved institution in Ireland or the UK, your path to registration in New Zealand will be rather simple, since the two systems are very similar. New Zealand recognises these doctors as high-quality candidates for integration into the New Zealand healthcare system.
If you graduated from an approved institution in
- Australia
- Austria
- Belgium
- Canada
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Iceland
- Israel
- Italy
- Norway
- Portugal
- Republic of Ireland
- Singapore
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- The Netherlands
- United Kingdom
- United States of America
You may be able to apply for registration through the Comparable Health System pathway.
Whether you’ve studied from the start in New Zealand or you’re a transferring doctor from abroad, living and working as a doctor in New Zealand can be a great choice.
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