This Privacy Policy sets out how we, The Savvy IMG, collect, store and use information about you when you use or interact with our website, thesavvyimg.co.uk (our website) and where we otherwise obtain or collect information about you. This Privacy Policy is effective 13th November 2019.
Contents
- Summary
- Our details
- When you visit our website
- When you use our website
- Marketing communications
- Information obtained from third parties
- Disclosure and additional uses of your information
- How long we retain your information
- How we secure your information
- Transfers of your information outside the European Economic Area
- Your rights in relation to your information
- Changes to our Privacy Policy
- Children’s Privacy
Summary
This section summarises how we obtain, store and use information about you. It is intended to provide a very general overview only. It is not complete in and of itself and it must be read in conjunction with the corresponding full sections of this Privacy Policy.
- Data controller: The Savvy IMG
- How we collect or obtain information about you: when you provide it to us e.g. by contacting us, registering, uploading and downloading from our website, completing registration forms, posting blogs, or signing up for content such as newsletters. From your use of our website, using cookies and occasionally, from third parties such as mailing list providers.
- Information we collect: name, contact details, social media information, IP address, information from cookies, information about your computer or device (e.g. device and browser type), information about how you use our website (e.g. which pages you have viewed, the time when you view them and what you clicked on, the geographical location from which you accessed our website (based on your IP address), engagement history and transaction history.
- How we use your information: for administrative and business purposes (particularly to contact you, to improve our business and website, to fulfil our contractual obligations, to advertise our and other’s goods and services, to analyse your use of our website, and in connection with our legal rights and obligations.)
- Disclosure of your information to third parties: user information can be shared with partners for specific types of content and events where a user has registered their information. Other disclosures are only to the extent necessary to run our business, to our service providers, to fulfil any contracts we enter into with you and where required by law or to enforce our legal rights.
- Do we sell your information to third parties (other than in the course of a business sale or purchase or similar event): No, The Savvy IMG, does not sell data. However, when you register or sign up for certain types of content, your registration data can be shared with sponsors and partners. Examples of where we do this include event registrations, webinar signups or whitepaper downloads. We will always make it clear where any information provided will be shared with other parties.
- How long we retain your information: for no longer than necessary, taking into account any legal obligations we have (e.g. to maintain records for tax purposes), any other legal basis we have for using your information (e.g. your consent, performance of a contract with you or our legitimate interests as a business) and certain additional factors described in the main section below entitled How long we retain your information. For specific retention periods in relation to certain information which we collect from you, please see the main section below entitled How long we retain your information.
- How we secure your information: using appropriate technical and organisational measures such as storing your information on secure servers, encrypting transfers of data to or from our servers using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology, encrypting payments you make on or via our website using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology and only granting access to your information where necessary.
- Use of cookies and similar technologies: we use cookies and similar information-gathering technologies such as marketing automation tracking on our website including essential, functional, analytical and targeting cookies. For more information, please visit our cookies policy.
- Transfers of your information outside the European Economic Area: By using our website, your information may be transferred outside of the European Economic Area. We take personal data seriously and as such we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, including, for example, that the third parties we use who transfer your information outside the European Economic Area have self-certified themselves as compliant with the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield.
- Use of profiling: we use profiling to understand our users better through web and marketing analytics, provide targeted advertising and deliver a personalised user experience.
- Your rights in relation to your information
- to access your information and to receive information about its use
- to have your information corrected and/or completed
- to have your information deleted
- to restrict the use of your information
- to receive your information in a portable format
- to object to the use of your information
- to withdraw your consent to the use of your information
- to complain to a supervisory authority
- Sensitive personal information: we do not collect what is commonly referred to as ‘sensitive personal information’.
Our details
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact the data controller.
The data controller in respect of our website is The Savvy IMG.
You can contact the data controller by sending an email to info@thesavvyimg.co.uk.
When you visit our website
We collect and use information from website visitors in accordance with this section and the section entitled Disclosure and additional uses of your information.
Web server log information
We use a third party server to host our website called BlueHost Inc. the privacy policy of which is available here: https://www.endurance.com/privacy/privacy
Our website server automatically logs the IP address you use to access our website as well as other information about your visit such as the pages accessed, information requested, the date and time of the request, the source of your access to our website (e.g. the website or URL (link) which referred you to our website), and your browser version and operating system.
Use of website server log information for IT security purposes
We collect and store server logs to ensure network and IT security and so that the server and website remain uncompromised. This includes analysing log files to help identify and prevent unauthorised access to our network, the distribution of malicious code, denial of services attacks and other cyber-attacks, by detecting unusual or suspicious activity.
Unless we are investigating suspicious or potential criminal activity, we do not make, nor do we allow our hosting provider to make, any attempt to identify you from the information collected via server logs.
Legal basis for processing: compliance with a legal obligation to which we are subject (Article 6(1)(c) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legal obligation: we have a legal obligation to implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risk of our processing of information about individuals. Recording access to our website using server log files is such a measure.
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interests: we have a legitimate interest in using your information for the purposes of ensuring network and information security.
Use of website server log information to analyse website use and improve our website
We use the information collected by our website server logs to analyse how our website users interact with our website and its features. For example, we analyse the number of visits and unique visitors we receive, the time and date of the visit, the location of the visit and the operating system and browser use.
We use the information gathered from the analysis of this information to improve our website. For example, we use the information gathered to change the information, content and structure of our website and individual pages based according to what users are engaging most with and the duration of time spent on particular pages on our website.
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interest: improving our website for our website users and getting to know our website users’ preferences so our website can better meet their needs and desires.
Cookies
Cookies are data files which are sent from a website to a browser to record information about users for various purposes.
We use cookies on our website, including essential, functional, analytical and targeting cookies. For further information on how we use cookies, please see our cookies policy.
You can reject some or all of the cookies we use on or via our website by changing your browser settings or non-essential cookies by using a cookie control tool, but doing so can impair your ability to use our website or some or all of its features. For further information about cookies, including how to change your browser settings, please visit www.allaboutcookies.org or see our cookie policy.
When you contact us
We collect and use information from individuals who contact us in accordance with this section and the section entitled Disclosure and additional uses of your information.
Email
When you send an email to the email address displayed on our website we collect your email address and any other information you provide in that email (such as your name, telephone number and the information contained in any signature block in your email).
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interest(s): responding to enquiries and messages we receive and keeping records of correspondence.
Legal basis for processing: necessary to perform a contract or to take steps at your request to enter into a contract (Article 6(1)(b) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Reason why necessary to perform a contract: where your message relates to us providing you with goods or services or taking steps at your request prior to providing you with our goods and services (for example, providing you with information about such goods and services), we will process your information in order to do so).
Enquiry forms
When you contact us using an enquiry form, we collect your personal details and match this to any information we hold about you on record. Typical personal information collected will include your name and contact details. We will also record the time, date and the specific form you completed.
If you do not provide the mandatory information required by our contact form, you will not be able to submit the contact form and we will not receive your enquiry.
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interest(s): responding to enquiries and messages we receive and keeping records of correspondence.
We will also use this information to tailor any follow up sales and marketing communications with you. For further information, see the section of this privacy policy titled ‘Marketing Communications’.
Messages you send to us via our contact form may be stored outside the European Economic Area on our contact form provider’s servers.
Phone
When you contact us by phone, we collect your phone number and any information provide to us during your conversation with us.
We record customer-facing phone calls for training and customer service purposes.
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation)
Legitimate interest(s): responding to enquiries and messages we receive and keeping records of correspondence.
Legal basis for processing: necessary to perform a contract or to take steps at your request to enter into a contract (Article 6(1)(b) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Reason why necessary to perform a contract: where your message relates to us providing you with goods or services or taking steps at your request prior to providing you with our goods and services (for example, providing you with information about such goods and services), we will process your information in order to do so).
Post
If you contact us by post, we will collect any information you provide to us in any postal communications you send us.
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation)
Legitimate interest(s): responding to enquiries and messages we receive and keeping records of correspondence.
Legal basis for processing: necessary to perform a contract or to take steps at your request to enter into a contract (Article 6(1)(b) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Reason why necessary to perform a contract: where your message relates to us providing you with goods or services or taking steps at your request prior to providing you with our goods and services (for example, providing you with information about such goods and services), we will process your information in order to do so).
When you use our website
We collect and use information from individuals who interact with particular features of our website in accordance with this section and the section entitled Disclosure and additional uses of your information.
Social Media Tools
We have a wide range of social media tools to be able to use on our website. These tools include (but not limited to); Sharing, Likes, comments and submitting content both on and off our website. By using these tools, you are providing your consent to store and use the submitted data whether personal information or general information both on and off our website.
Legal basis for processing: your consent (Article 6(1)(a) of the General Data Protection Regulation). Consent: you give your consent to us storing and using submitted content using the steps described above.
We may also use this information to tailor any follow up sales and marketing communications with you. For further information, see the section of this privacy policy titled ‘Marketing Communications’.
Information you submit may be stored both inside and outside the European Economic Area on our servers as well as third-party servers such as Facebook.
For further information about the safeguards used when your information is transferred outside the European Economic Area.
Registering on our Website
When you register on our website or via teachable, we collect the following information; Your Name, Email.
If you do not provide the mandatory information required by the form, you will not be able to interact with our website or on Teachable.
You can view Teachable's privacy policy here https://teachable.com/privacy-policy
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interest: registering and administering accounts on our website to provide access to content, allows you to download content and facilitates the running and operation of our business.
We will also use this information to tailor any follow up sales and marketing communications with you. For further information, see the section of this privacy policy titled ‘Marketing Communications’.
Transfer and storage of your information
Information you submit to us via the registration form on our website may be stored outside the European Economic Area on our third-party hosting provider’s servers.
Marketing communications
Our content, goods and services
When signing up for content, registering on our website or making a payment, we will use the information you provide in order to contact you regarding related content, products and services.
We will continue to send you marketing communications in relation to similar goods and services if you do not opt out from receiving them.
You can opt-out from receiving marketing communications at any time by emailing info@thesavvyimg.co.uk
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interests: Sharing relevant, timely and industry-specific information on related business services, in order to assist your organisation, grow.
Third party goods and services
In addition to receiving information about our products and services, you can opt in to receiving marketing communications from us in relation third party goods and services by email by ticking a box indicating that you would like to receive such communications.
Legal basis for processing: consent (Article 6(1)(a) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Consent: you give your consent to us sending you information about third party goods and services by signing up to receive such information in accordance with the steps described above.
Transfer and storage of your information
Information for marketing campaigns will be stored outside the European Economic Area on our third-party mailing list provider’s servers in the United States.
For further information about the safeguards used when your information is transferred outside the European Economic Area, see the section of this privacy policy below entitled Transfers of your information outside the European Economic Area.
Use of tracking in emails
We use technologies such as tracking pixels (small graphic files) and tracked links in the emails we send to allow us to assess the level of engagement our emails receive by measuring information such as the delivery rates, open rates, click through rates and content engagement that our emails achieve.
Information obtained from third parties
This section sets out how we obtain or collect information about you from third parties.
Information received from third parties
We can often receive information about you from third parties. The third parties from which we receive information about you can include partner events within the marketing industry and other organisations that we have a professional affiliation with.
It is also possible that third parties with whom we have had no prior contact may provide us with information about you.
Information we obtain from third parties will generally be your name and contact details but will include any additional information about you which they provide to us.
Legal basis for processing: necessary to perform a contract or to take steps at your request to enter into a contract (Article 6(1)(b) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Reason why necessary to perform a contract: where a third party has passed on information about you to us (such as your name and email address) in order for us to provide services to you, we will process your information in order to take steps at your request to enter into a contract with you and perform a contract with you (as the case may be).
Legal basis for processing: consent (Article 6(1)(a) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Consent: where you have asked that a third party to share information about you with us and the purpose of sharing that information is not related to the performance of a contract or services by us to you, we will process your information on the basis of your consent, which you give by asking the third party in question to pass on your information to us.
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interests: where a third party has shared information about you with us and you have not consented to the sharing of that information, we will have a legitimate interest in processing that information in certain circumstances.
For example, we would have a legitimate interest in processing your information to perform our obligations under a sub-contract with the third party, where the third party has the main contract with you. Our legitimate interest is the performance of our obligations under our sub-contract.
Similarly, third parties may pass on information about you to us if you have infringed or potentially infringed any of our legal rights. In this case, we will have a legitimate interest in processing that information to investigate and pursue any such potential infringement.
Information obtained by us from third parties
In certain circumstances (for example, to verify the information we hold about you or obtain missing information we require to provide you with a service) we will obtain information about you from certain publicly accessible sources, both EU and non-EU, such as Companies House, online customer databases, business directories, media publications, social media, and websites (including your own website if you have one.
In certain circumstances will also obtain information about you from private sources, both EU and non-EU, such as marketing data services.
We will continue to send you marketing communications in relation to similar goods and services if you do not opt out from receiving them.
You can opt-out from receiving marketing communications at any time by emailing hello@thesavvyimg.co.uk
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interests: Sharing relevant, timely and industry-specific information on related business services.
Where we receive information about you in error
If we receive information about you from a third party in error and/or we do not have a legal basis for processing that information, we will delete your information.
Disclosure and additional uses of your information
This section sets out the circumstances in which will disclose information about you to third parties and any additional purposes for which we use your information.
Disclosure of your information to service providers
We use a number of third parties to provide us with services which are necessary to run our business or to assist us with running our business
These include the following: Internet services, IT service providers and web developers.
Our third-party service providers are located both inside and outside of the European Economic Area.
Your information will be shared with these service providers where necessary to provide you with the service you have requested, whether that is accessing our website or ordering goods and services from us.
We do not display the identities of our service providers publicly by name for security and competitive reasons. If you would like further information about the identities of our service providers, however, please contact us directly by email and we will provide you with such information where you have a legitimate reason for requesting it (where we have shared your information with such service providers, for example).
Legal basis for processing: legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interest relied on: where we share your information with these third parties in a context other than where is necessary to perform a contract (or take steps at your request to do so), we will share your information with such third parties in order to allow us to run and manage our business efficiently.
Legal basis for processing: necessary to perform a contract and/or to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract (Article 6(1)(b) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Reason why necessary to perform a contract: we may need to share information with our service providers to enable us to perform our obligations under that contract or to take the steps you have requested before we enter into a contract with you.
Disclosure and use of your information for legal reasons
Indicating possible criminal acts or threats to public security to a competent authority
If we suspect that criminal or potential criminal conduct has been occurred, we will in certain circumstances need to contact an appropriate authority, such as the police. This could be the case, for instance, if we suspect that we fraud or a cyber-crime has been committed or if we receive threats or malicious communications towards us or third parties.
We will generally only need to process your information for this purpose if you were involved or affected by such an incident in some way.
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interests: preventing crime or suspected criminal activity (such as fraud).
In connection with the enforcement or potential enforcement our legal rights
We will use your information in connection with the enforcement or potential enforcement of our legal rights, including, for example, sharing information with debt collection agencies if you do not pay amounts owed to us when you are contractually obliged to do so. Our legal rights may be contractual (where we have entered into a contract with you) or non-contractual (such as legal rights that we have under copyright law or tort law).
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interest: enforcing our legal rights and taking steps to enforce our legal rights.
In connection with a legal or potential legal dispute or proceedings
We may need to use your information if we are involved in a dispute with you or a third party for example, either to resolve the dispute or as part of any mediation, arbitration or court resolution or similar process.
Legal basis for processing: our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation).
Legitimate interest(s): resolving disputes and potential disputes.
How long we retain your information
This section sets out how long we retain your information. We have set out specific retention periods where possible. Where that has not been possible, we have set out the criteria we use to determine the retention period.
Retention periods
Server log information: we retain information on our server logs for 3 months.
Correspondence and enquiries: when you make an enquiry or correspond with us for any reason, whether by email or via our contact form or by phone, we will retain your information for as long as it takes to respond to and resolve your enquiry, and for 36 further month(s), after which point we will archive your information.
Newsletter: we retain the information you used to sign up for our newsletter for as long as you remain subscribed (i.e. you do not unsubscribe).
Membership: we retain the information you used to sign up for our memberships for as long as you remain subscribed (i.e. you do not unsubscribe).
Criteria for determining retention periods
In any other circumstances, we will retain your information for no longer than necessary, taking into account the following:
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- the purpose(s) and use of your information both now and in the future (such as whether it is necessary to continue to store that information in order to continue to perform our obligations under a contract with you or to contact you in the future);
- whether we have any legal obligation to continue to process your information (such as any record-keeping obligations imposed by relevant law or regulation);
- whether we have any legal basis to continue to process your information (such as your consent);
- how valuable your information is (both now and in the future);
- any relevant agreed industry practices on how long information should be retained;
- the levels of risk, cost and liability involved with us continuing to hold the information;
- how hard it is to ensure that the information can be kept up to date and accurate; and
- any relevant surrounding circumstances (such as the nature and status of our relationship with you).
How we secure your information
We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to secure your information and to protect it against unauthorised or unlawful use and accidental loss or destruction, including:
- only sharing and providing access to your information to the minimum extent necessary, subject to confidentiality restrictions where appropriate, and on an anonymised basis wherever possible;
- using secure servers to store your information;
- verifying the identity of any individual who requests access to information prior to granting them access to information;
- using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) software to encrypt any payment transactions you make on or via our website;
- only transferring your information via closed system or encrypted data transfers;
Transmission of information to us by email
Transmission of information over the internet is not entirely secure, and if you submit any information to us over the internet (whether by email, via our website or any other means), you do so entirely at your own risk.
We cannot be responsible for any costs, expenses, loss of profits, harm to reputation, damages, liabilities or any other form of loss or damage suffered by you as a result of your decision to transmit information to us by such means.
Transfers of your information outside the European Economic Area
Your information may be transferred and stored outside the European Economic Area (EEA) in the circumstances set out earlier in this policy.
We will also transfer your information outside the EEA or to an international organisation in order to comply with legal obligations to which we are subject (compliance with a court order, for example). Where we are required to do so, we will ensure appropriate safeguards and protections are in place.
Your rights in relation to your information
Subject to certain limitations on certain rights, you have the following rights in relation to your information, which you can exercise by writing to the data controller using the details provided at the top of this policy.
- to request access to your information and information related to our use and processing of your information;
- to request the correction or deletion of your information;
- to request that we restrict our use of your information;
- to receive information which you have provided to us in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format (e.g. a CSV file) and the right to have that information transferred to another data controller (including a third-party data controller);
- to object to the processing of your information for certain purposes (for further information, see the section below entitled Your right to object to the processing of your information for certain purposes); and
- to withdraw your consent to our use of your information at any time where we rely on your consent to use or process that information. Please note that if you withdraw your consent, this will not affect the lawfulness of our use and processing of your information on the basis of your consent before the point in time when you withdraw your consent.
In accordance with Article 77 of the General Data Protection Regulation, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority, in particular in the Member State of your habitual residence, place of work or of an alleged infringement of the General Data Protection Regulation.
Further information on your rights in relation to your personal data as an individual
You can find out further information about your rights, as well as information on any limitations which apply to those rights, by reading the underlying legislation contained in Articles 12 to 22 and 34 of the General Data Protection Regulation, which is available here:http://ec.europa.eu/justice/data-protection/reform/files/regulation_oj_en.pdf
Verifying your identity where you request access to your information
Where you request access to your information, we are required by law to use all reasonable measures to verify your identity before doing so.
These measures are designed to protect your information and to reduce the risk of identity fraud, identity theft or general unauthorised access to your information.
How we verify your identity
Where we possess appropriate information about you on file, we will attempt to verify your identity using that information.
If it is not possible to identity you from such information, or if we have insufficient information about you, we may require original or certified copies of certain documentation in order to be able to verify your identity before we are able to provide you with access to your information.
We will be able to confirm the precise information we require to verify your identity in your specific circumstances if and when you make such a request.
Your right to object
You have the following rights in relation to your information, which you may exercise in the same way as you may exercise by writing to the data controller using the details provided at the top of this policy.
- to object to us using or processing your information where we use or process it in order
- to carry out a task in the public interest or for our legitimate interests, including ‘profiling’ (i.e. analysing or predicting your behaviour based on your information) based on any of these purposes; and
- to object to us using or processing your information for direct marketing purposes(including any profiling we engage in that is related to such direct marketing).
You may also exercise your right to object to us using or processing your information for direct marketing purposes by:
- clicking the unsubscribe link contained at the bottom of any marketing email we send to you and following the instructions which appear in your browser following your clicking on that link;
- sending an email to info@thesavvyimg.co.uk, asking that we stop sending you marketing communications or by including the words “OPT OUT”.
Sensitive Personal Information
‘Sensitive personal information’ is information about an individual that reveals their racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, or trade union membership, genetic information, biometric information for the purpose of uniquely identifying an individual, information concerning health or information concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation.
Our website does not allow you to register any ‘Sensitive Information’, however if we ask for this, you will be considered to have explicitly consented to us processing that sensitive personal information under Article 9(2)(a) of the General Data Protection Regulation.
Changes to our Privacy Policy
We update and amend our Privacy Policy from time to time.
Minor changes to our Privacy Policy
Where we make minor changes to our Privacy Policy, we will update our Privacy Policy with a new effective date stated at the beginning of it. Our processing of your information will be governed by the practices set out in that new version of the Privacy Policy from its effective date onwards.
Major changes to our Privacy Policy or the purposes for which we process your information
Where we make major changes to our Privacy Policy or intend to use your information for a new purpose or a different purpose than the purposes for which we originally collected it, we will notify you by email (where possible) or by posting a notice on our website.
We will provide you with the information about the change in question and the purpose and any other relevant information before we use your information for that new purpose.
Wherever required, we will obtain your prior consent before using your information for a purpose that is different from the purposes for which we originally collected it.
Children’s Privacy
Because we care about the safety and privacy of children online, we comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA). COPPA and its accompanying regulations protect the privacy of children using the internet. We do not knowingly contact or collect information from persons under the age of 18. The website is not intended to solicit information of any kind from persons under the age of 18.
It is possible that we could receive information pertaining to persons under the age of 18 by the fraud or deception of a third party. If we are notified of this, as soon as we verify the information, we will, where required by law to do so, immediately obtain the appropriate parental consent to use that information or, if we are unable to obtain such parental consent, we will delete the information from our servers. If you would like to notify us of our receipt of information about persons under the age of 18, please do so by contacting us by using the details at the top of this policy.
43 Responses
Hi very interesting post. What does it mean : training and non training jobs? (do they make reference to the entrance to specialty training or not? thank you
Hi! Yes, non-training jobs are not part of specialty training.
Hi Nick and Kim!
Firstly, thank you for writing these blogs. Needless to say, they are very informative and useful. I had few questions given my current status. I am from India and I have not done any post-graduation, in short, I hold a plain MBBS degree. However, I have worked as a medical officer ( Position for MBBS degree holders in India) for over 5 years now. I had recently applied to the University of London for a PG diploma in Public health and was accepted by LSHTM. I chose a distance learning program keeping in mind the current pandemic situation.
My questions are as follow:
1) Given my experience (bear in mind just as an MBBS and not a postgraduate )Can I skip FY 1 and FY2? Instead, opt to start directly with CT1? (I have completed my internship in India)
2) Given that I am currently studying Public Health and have worked for 5 years will that put me under the category of overqualified?
3) If need be which will be more appropriate action for me WAST or FY2?
PS – I have started the process of PLAB. I will be writing PLAB 1 next year Feb.
Thank you
Hi Dr! Great to hear from you. To answer your questions:
1. If your experience fits Pattern A or Pattern B as described here, then you can skip FY1. If you can get a valid CREST form signed off, then you can skip FY2. It is unlikely you will get a valid CREST form signed off from India, so best to do that in the UK. You need to work with the same consultant for a minimum of 3 months + complete everything on the form in order for it to be signed.
2. No, only certain specialties have overqualification criteria, mostly surgery. Which specialty are you planning to apply for?
3. WAST is closed as far as we’re aware, so a non-training job or FY2 standalone is your best bet.
Good luck with PLAB!
Hello Dr.
Thank you for helping us with your guidance
I wanted to ask if I want to pursue Emergency Medicine training and having overseas experience, is it better to go for a 1 year non trainee job in A &E or WAST pathway or FY2 standalone? Also is there a link for CREST form?
Hi there! Thank you visiting our website 🙂 WAST is now closed so it would be either a non-training job or FY2 standalone. Non-training jobs are open all year round while FY2 standalone has a fixed timeline so it depends on you. I would apply for both and see how it goes, it doesn’t have to be one or the other. You can find a link to the CREST form in our useful links page 🙂
Hi Nick and Kim!
Thank you for the amazing work you do!
I had a follow-up question-Is there any down-side that you could think of on doing a WAST job as compared to the FY2 standalone or the junior doctor jobs at the NHS?
Hi Ishi! Unfortunately WAST is closed at the moment due to COVID so because of that, I would look into the other 2 options first, don’t wait around for WAST. But if it does open up again, the downsides are that the specialties you will rotate in are limited to medicine and psychiatry, and locations are limited to rural areas in England. If you’re not bothered by that then it should be ok!
Hi Nick,
I’m a 5th year medical student from Turkey. In here, medical schools are 6-year long and the 6th year is internship, so this means I won’t have my diploma before completing internship. Can I still apply for WAST while doing my internship?
Thanks in advance.
You can as long as you meet the rest of the eligibility criteria and application deadlines. When the new application guide comes out, please check the timelines.
Hello.
Can one apply for both FY2 and WAST to maximize chances?
Hi, yes you can.
Hello,
What about tge third option which is neither WAST nor StadaloneFY2 but overseas 12 month training/non training job after overseas internship,can I get more details about it like qhat are their eligibility criteria for it ,how to get accepted and be considered as an alternative to FY2?
Thankyou.
Hi there, eligibility criteria depends on the individual job. You’ll need to search for these jobs on the NHS jobs website. For it to be accepted as an alternative to FY2 it should be in an acute specialty (ie with sick inpatients, not an outpatient only specialty) at a hospital under supervision and you need a valid CREST form. Please see this article under the section “ENTRY REQUIREMENTS” https://thesavvyimg.co.uk/what-you-need-to-know-about-applications-to-specialty-training-in-the-uk/ Best of luck!
Thankyou for the reply,
I mean to work overseas 12 month not in Uk after my home internship , can I get the CREST signed overseas and use it as an alternative to FY2 ?
Thankyou.
Hello. Thank you very much for the useful information.
I was wondering if 12 months of post-internship have to be consecutive or not. After 2 years of internship, I worked for half a year and then left clinical work. Next year I am coming back to clinical work while attending a part-time graduate Master’s course. The Master’s course requires an overall 4-weeks of absence from work. Since I am spending all my holidays for my studies, I hope next year’s one-year post-internship clinical experience will count as valid (even without counting on the half-a-year experience just after internship). But if there is a concern that my experience won’t be valid because of 4-weeks off, I think I’ll work a few more months to be sure that I can apply for ST1/CT1.
As a sidenote, in my country doctors are allowed only a week-long holiday per year, so I am taking extra three-weeks off. I am worried that it may affect the assessment of eligibility check.
Hi there, there is nothing in the CREST form that says it has to be continuous. Also even if it has to be continuous, I don’t see why valid gaps like completing a Masters should held against you. Good luck!
Hi Tan
First of all, many thanks for the amazing article. Second, I graduated from Med school in 2013 and completed my internship and achieved a higher diploma in Family medicine in 2018. For WAST, should I need full GMC registration? I mean I should complete not only plab 1 and OET, plab 2 is needed?
so I can’t join the program without finishing those exams?
Hi there, yes, if you’re going through the PLAB route, then you must complete both PLAB 1 and 2 in order to join the programme. You can APPLY for WAST before you do all of this, but you can’t START until you have full GMC registration.
Hello, Dr.Nick! I had one more doubt. Do we need valid IELTS at the time of applying for WAST? Like for example, if a candidate is unsuccessful in obtaining WAST job offer after getting fully GMC registered and has to wait for 1 year to apply for next cycle and his/her IELTS expires the following year, is it mandatory for the candidate to retake IELTS?
Thanks once again,
Kin Regards,
Shreyas.
Hello, Dr.Nick! Thank you so much for such an eloquent article about WAST. I have passed my PLAB 1. However, due to the Covid-19 epidemic and the lock-down, I am unable to take PLAB 2 anytime soon. Considering that I might pass PLAB 2 and obtain full GMC Registration by (may-be) Mid 2021, what would you suggest? Shall I apply for WAST now in May, 2020 or wait? Since as per the above mentioned information, we are given 18 months to complete all the exams?
Thanking you in advance,
Kind Regards,
Shreyas.
Hi Dr. nick!
My friend are planning to go into specialty training (not Gp/Psychiatry). Is it still advisable to undergo WAST? I’m asking this because of the application deadline of WAST seems more favorable than standalone FY2, since we can apply on June instead of Jan/Feb which is too rushed for us.
Hi Tanya! It’s really up to you whether you feel the benefits of WAST are suitable for your situation. Just bear in mind that the WAST applications that are open in June are to start the WAST programme in Feb 2021, not August 2020.
Thank you Dr. nick! But job availability-wise, is there a higher chance for IMGs to get into the WAST program? Or do we need special qualifications? Or would you recommend a non-training job, or straight to FY2? But this is in regards that we’re only able to finish PLAB1&2 by midyear of 2021 ? I’m sorry for asking so much, my friend and I are a bit lost on what to do
No special qualifications are needed for WAST, standalone FY2 or SHO level non-training jobs since these are all junior-level jobs. If you’re only able to complete PLAB mid-year, then you will not be able to start WAST or Standalone FY2 August 2021. You can apply for WAST which will start Feb 2022, Standalone FY2 to start August 2022, or any non-training job to start any time of year after you pass PLAB. Good luck!
Hi, thanks for the very helpful posts. Just a few quick questions, i’m a 5th year medical student now, do you have any tips to improve my CV before i graduate? Courses or internships etc… Also, would an exchange program to the UK during my summer break(provided by my uni) contribute?
Thx in advance. ?
Hi Aiman, I would recommend to review the person specifications and scoring criteria for the specialty you want to apply for. Generally completing a quality improvement project, presenting it, organising a teaching programme, doing a medical student elective in the specialty you want to apply for, and publishing in a peer-reviewed publication are all things you can do as a student to improve your CV. If you need any detailed guidance about this, do check out our IMG Masterclass. Good luck!
Hi Nick
Kudos to the good work that you have been doing in terms of guiding IMGs and providing them with valuable, concise and up to date information.
I have a query and was hoping that you could help me with this, I have been added to the talent pool of WAST scheme after clearing the interview I recently had. Now if I opt to be considered for the start date of August 2020 would I be eligible to apply in the first round in November 2020 in General surgery or Trauma and orthopedics? According to your article I should be able to, just rechecking with you.
Thanks
Hi there, please see the FAQ at the end of the article about applying to ST3 after WAST. You would be eligible but it may not be a smart career move. Also, do note that immigration rules are changing in the next few months. It may be that all IMGs are exempt from RLMT and eligible in Round 1! We’ll need to wait to see what happens.
Hi Nick, any advice on how to best prepare for the WAST recruitment interview? I studied the application guidnce and the Personal specs, I am still not sure about how to ace it, aside from studying cases for acute medicine, reviewing plab2 materials.
appreciate ur support.
Tony
Please see our dedicated article about the WAST interview for tips.
Thanks for these pieces of valuable information but I have a question. I am an IMG with about 4 years of experience after graduation in my country ( Egypt ) . So, do i have a chance in WAST ? Is this experience is considered much more than they need ? BTW I am setting for PLAP 1 in march and I have not completed any postgraduate degree.
Hi, thanks for your question. As answered in the FAQ, there is no formal experience limit however the WAST office says the following:
This means those with less experience are prioritised as they are most suitable for this level of work.
Hi Nick,
I have applied and shortlisted for the WAST interview in May. I have done the PLAB exams and have got the full GMC registration. My question is how should I prepare for the interview? Do you have any advice on that?
Thanks a lot for the super helpful post!
Beat,
Yamama
Please see our dedicated article about the WAST interview for tips.
If i have MRCP and did WAST will i be exwmpted from RLMT if i applied to ST3 job
Hi, there are currently no written guidelines about applying directly to ST3 after WAST. It’s best to check with the WAST office and the office that deals with applications for the specialty you want to apply to.
Bear in mind, WAST helps applicants reach the requirements for ST1 not ST3. ST3 jobs have their own requirements which will not be fulfilled by doing WAST. You can check the requirements for ST3 jobs in the Eligibility and Career Progression section of the person specifications.
If you already have the requirements for ST3 and you are only planning to use WAST to become RLMT exempt, it may not look good on your CV to work at FY2 level immediately prior to taking on a registrar job. Person specifications state that applicants must “have evidence that their present level of achievement and performance is commensurate with the totality of their period of training”. WAST also states you should ideally have no more than 24 months experience in the UK to apply. Please contact the WAST office and the office that deals with applications for the specialty you want to apply to for clarification.
Hello Nick
I have a query regarding the WAST which i hope you would be able to clear. I am awaiting my ielts results and planning to give plab 1 in march , for which i recently started studying. I have 5 years of experience after my undergraduate course in casualty general medical officer and as emergency junior mo in India. Will that Also when i tried to fill in the application for march interviews , i had the option of august 19 start date only . when should i start applying for the visa ? be an hindrance to apply for WAST
Hi doctor, thanks for your question! You should be able to apply now and then only start when all you have passed your exams and gained full GMC registration and a Tier 2 visa. However for specific guidance on completing the form please direct your query to the WAST office. I have found them to be very approachable and respond comprehensively within a couple of days to any questions: wast.recruitment@hee.nhs.uk
Very interesting article for the duration of east will the IMG Doctor be paid and how much is his monthly stipend
Hi doctor, the WAST programme is 12 months long. It is paid at the same rate as an FY2 doctor. Please see the official guidance in the link at the end of the post for the information about pay.
Hi Nick and Kim!
I graduated in March 2020 and recently passed my PLAB1 and my PLAB 2 is in April. I have 6 months work experience at Apollo Hospitals(Multispeciaity hospital)after my graduation and stopped working there to focus completely on my PLAB1 exam preparation. My doubt is regarding the 12 month post graduate experience that is necessary in order to apply for CT-1 posts. Can I do a non-training job for another six months in uk and compensate for remaining months with the experience I have in India (Apollo Hospitals) in order to fulfill the 12 month post graduate experience. WAST is definitely a nice opportunity but I have to do it for 1 whole year. I’m just wondering if my experience in India will be useful so that I can save some time.
Thanks in advance
Hi Mounika! Yes, you can.
Btw, WAST is currently closed and we don’t know when it’s going to reopen.