The Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) is accredited by the Australian Medical Council for setting professional medical standards for training, assessment, certification and continuing professional development in the specialty of general practice.

ACRRM delivers a program that provides a broad range of knowledge and skills to produce safe, confident, and independent Rural Generalists to provide their communities with excellent healthcare. 

ACRRM achieves this through the breadth and depth of their competency-based, skills-focused curriculum, developed by Rural Generalists for Rural Generalists

Training is undertaken at posts that are accredited health services in which the registrar trains, under supervision, to meet the ACRRM training program requirements. ACRRM training posts are in primary, secondary, emergency and retrieval services. A training post may be a single health service or several health services.

Advanced Skills Training expands your professional scope and can include clinical privileging in hospitals, access to additional Medical Benefits Scheme item numbers as well as contributing to and expanding the pool of medical services in rural and remote communities. Having advanced skills is an essential component of being a Rural Generalist.

There is one training pathway to becoming a Rural Generalist with ACRRM, and attaining a FACRRM, however there are different funding sources and eligibility criteria.

Australian General Practice Training Program (AGPT) – Commonwealth funded

The Australian General Practice Training (AGPT) Program provides up to 1500 Australian Government-funded training places every year. Registrars who complete the program can work unsupervised as a GP or Rural Generalist anywhere in the country. ACRRM registrars can complete their training in various contexts within regional, rural, and remote practices or can remain in the same community for their entire training.

Completion of AGPT training can lead to registration with the Medical Board of Australia as a Fellowship of the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (FACRRM)

Independent pathway – self-funded

Independent Pathway (IP) is a supported and flexible training pathway with a comprehensive and structured education program, developed and delivered by experienced Fellows of ACRRM.

IP enables you to work directly with ACRRM staff and Medical Educators to craft a training plan to suit your career goals, to negotiate your own training placement and manage your own learning experience. On the Independent Pathway, you are not restricted by Commonwealth funding requirements and policy.

Rural Generalist Training Scheme – Commonwealth funded

Rural Generalist Training Scheme (RGTS) is a supported and flexible training pathway with a comprehensive and structured education program, developed and delivered by experienced Fellows of ACRRM. The scheme enables you to work directly with ACRRM staff and Medical Educators to craft a training plan to suit your career goals, to negotiate your own training placement and manage your own learning experience.

Remote Vocational Training Scheme (RVTS) – Commonwealth funded

The Remote Vocational Training Scheme (RVTS) is a flexible vocational pathway for general practice training focussed on rural, remote and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Trainees are supervised remotely via a flexible distance education model which allows them to remain within their community.

• Minimum PGY1+
• Hold Australian citizenship / permanent residency status/temporary residency (for ACRRM) on a case-by-case basis
• Australian Medical Council (AMC) recognised medical qualification.
• Applicants are required to hold general medical registration without conditions or undertakings by the commencement of training

The ACRRM application process consists of:

• Online application
• Referee reports
• Multiple mini interviews

Key intake dates and information regarding training pathway applications can be found on the ACRRM website.

The Specialist Pathway leads to Specialist registration in the specialty of rural generalism with the Medical Board of Australia and Fellowship of ACRRM (FACRRM). Doctors who have ACRRM-recognised overseas specialist qualifications in general practice or family medicine, may apply for assessment by ACRRM on the Specialist Pathway.

FACRRM Fellowship training is a four-year program made up with three years of Core Generalist Training and one year of Advanced Specialised Training. 

Three years of Core Generalist Training (CGT) which is individual and based on experience:

• primary care - 12 months
• secondary care – 3 months
• emergency care – 3 months
• rural or remote practice (MMM 4-7) - 12 months
• paediatrics
• obstetrics
• anaesthetics

1-year Advanced Specialised Training (AST) completing training in at least one of the following disciplines:

•  Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health
• Academic Practice
• Adult Internal Medicine
• Anaesthetics
• Emergency Medicine
• Mental Health
• Obstetrics and Gynaecology
• Paediatric
• Palliative Care
• Population Health
• Remote Medicine, and
• Surgery (takes 2 years)