From February 2020, the Specialty Certificate Examination (SCE) in Nephrology and the European Certificate in Nephrology that was originally developed between the UEMS Renal Section and Boards and the European Renal Association (ERA) became a single examination called the European Specialty Examination in Nephrology (ESENeph).
The examination is delivered jointly in partnership with the ERA, the European Section and Board of Nephrology, the UK Kidney Association and the Federation of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the UK.
In the UK, the examination continues to be the General Medical Council (GMC) approved mandatory summative assessment of knowledge for trainees in Renal Medicine as part of the requirement for the award of a Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT) and therefore entry onto the Specialist Register.
This combined, high quality exam will help to drive standards and promote the harmonisation of nephrology training across the European Union.
The ESENeph is delivered every nine months. See the table for key dates for the next examination below
| Exam date | Application period | Pearson VUE booking window | Reasonable Adjustment Deadline | Results release | Certificates posted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
13 September 2023 |
24 May - 21 June 2023 | 21 June - 19 July 2023 | 29 June 2023 |
4 weeks after exam date |
8 weeks after results release |
| 22 May 2024 | 31 January -28 February 2024 | 28 February-27 March 2024 | 06 March 2024 | 4 weeks after exam date | 8 weeks after results release |
Please ensure you apply for your examination within the application period and have submitted your reasonable adjustment request by the reasonable adjustment deadline.
Eligibility requirements
There are no entry requirements for the ESENeph, although candidates in UK training posts would normally take the examination as part of their higher specialty training. The UEMS Renal Section and Board have reviewed the performance of candidates in the United Kingdom and now advise UK based trainees dual accrediting in General Internal Medicine and Nephrology to attempt the examination during ST5 in order to ensure that they have time for 3 attempts prior to CCT. Those in single accreditation programme may wish to consider a first sitting in their ST4 year.
EU candidates would normally take the examination towards the end of their specialisation.
If you have passed the SCE in Nephrology you are not permitted to apply for the ESENeph.
How to apply
Instructions on how to apply for the new examination are here.
Examination fees
| Candidates sitting in the UK | £700 |
| Candidates sitting in ESENeph full member, associate member and observer countries* | €800 |
| Candidates sitting the examination in all other countries and territories | £875 |
| *A defined list of countries is available here |
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Qualification
Trainees who hold MRCP(UK), have gained the Certificate in Nephrology and who are recommended for a CCT will be entitled to apply for the postnominal MRCP(UK) (Nephrology). One year of free ERA membership is offered to all the candidates who register and pass the examination.
Curricula and blueprints
The Specialty Training Curriculum for Renal Medicine is published by the Joint Royal Colleges of Physicians Training Board (JRCPTB).
The examination is made up of questions covering the whole curriculum, selected by a predetermined blueprint:
Resources for trainees
Preparation for the SCE requires a wide breadth of knowledge around the curriculum and should involve reading of textbooks, journals and guidelines. Experience of the MRCP(UK) examination provides an excellent background to the format of the examination.
Suggested sources and reading are listed below:
Journals
- American Journal of Kidney Diseases
- Clinical Nephrology
- Clincal Kidney Journal (CKJ)
- Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (and sister clinical journal)
- Kidney International
- Nephrology, Dialysis and Transplantation
- Transplant International
- Transplantation
Textbooks
- American Journal of Kidney Disease – publishes the US core curriculum in nephrology which gives detailed notes across the entire renal curriculum
- Comprehensive Clinical Nephrology (Eds Feehally, Floege, Johnson)
- Handbook of Kidney Transplantation (Eds Danovitch et al)
- Oxford Handbook of Dialysis (Eds Levy et al)
- Oxford Textbook of Nephrology (Eds Davison et al)
Websites
- Doctors.net.uk
- Edinburgh Renal Unit
- European Renal Association - European Dialysis and Transplant Association (ERA-EDTA)
- Hypertension, Dialysis, Clinical Nephrology
- Nephrology discussion group
- The Nephron Information Center
- UK Renal Association
- UK Renal Registry
- Ukidney
- NDT-Educational
Sample questions
The questions are in ‘best of five’ multiple choice format. This format, in addition to testing core knowledge and comprehension, also assesses the ability to interpret information and to solve clinical problems. There will be five options – one correct answer and four alternatives to the correct answer. The four distractors will be closely related to the preferred option but less correct, therefore acting as plausible alternatives.
These questions give an indication of the type of question you can expect in the exam. Please take part in our interactive sample question test.