Multispecialty recruitment assessment: one for all and all for one?

Core surgical training is the first step for those aspiring to a UK surgical career. The two-year programme is designed to equip individuals with a diverse array of attributes including clinical and operative dexterity, academic reach and demonstrable general professional credentials. Multispecialty recruitment assessment is an online assessment used for recruitment of doctors to specialty training, with scores informing specialty training interview shortlisting. Originally designed for application to general practice, it is now used for 11 different specialties, including core surgical training. It has been brought in as a recruitment tool to optimise recruitment resource based on a perceived ability to predict success in assessments related to general practice and a body of evidence casts doubt on its ability to provide a true reflection of validity for surgical craft-based training. This needs to be carefully considered to ensure appropriate selection of our future surgeons.