The three published selection stages, what the NHS says about timing and feedback, and which reasoning details are not officially confirmed.
The NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme (GMTS) has three stages: an online Future Potential Assessment, an Alignment Assessment with video responses, and a half-day Virtual Assessment Centre. The scheme publishes timings and offers practice for each question type, but the pages we read do not name the question types or the test provider.
| Stage | Format (as published) | What the scheme says |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Future Potential Assessment | Online | About 45 minutes but not time limited. Practice for each question type first. A feedback report for every candidate. |
| 2. Alignment Assessment | Online with video responses | Around 60 minutes. Only the video questions are timed, with preparation time before recording. |
| 3. Virtual Assessment Centre | Live, half a day | Several exercises, meeting the NHS team and other candidates. Feedback regardless of outcome. Runs January to February 2027. |
After the centre, successful candidates are matched to placements using scores and location preferences, followed by pre-employment checks. The scheme's page also says the video answers in stage 2 are reviewed by people and that AI is not used for that review.
The apply page, as read on 12 October 2026, shows applications for the 2027 intake closing on 28 October 2026 at 11:30am. Applicants need a 2:2 degree or above (or equivalent) in any subject and the right to work in the UK for the length of the scheme. Existing NHS employees follow the same process as everyone else.
Dates move each year, so open the live page before planning anything.
Here is the honest position. The scheme tells candidates that stage 1 includes practice for each question type, and that hints and tips videos and practice tests similar to the real assessments are offered for stages 1 and 2. In the pages we could read, it does not list the question types by name, nor the provider.
Some third-party prep websites describe stage 1 as combining situational judgement, numerical reasoning and verbal reasoning, but those sites disagree about the supplier and the timings, and some are commercial products. Treat their lists as indicative, not as NHS information.
A provider case study published by the psychologists Pearn Kandola, undated on the page, describes NHS graduate recruitment moving from paper forms and verbal and numerical tests to automated online tests of motivational traits and situational judgement. It is useful background, but it describes an earlier redesign and cannot be treated as the current process. The apply page remains the authority.
Every candidate receives a report after stage 1, and the centre feedback is given whatever the outcome. The scheme encourages unsuccessful candidates to reflect on that feedback and address development areas before applying again. If you reapply, take the weakest area from the report and give it a fixed block of weekly practice.
The apply page describes one assessment window after another, and the stages are linked. Stage 2 opens once you are notified of success at stage 1, and the centres run in a short season from January to February 2027, so a late application leaves less breathing room for practice. Apply earlier in the window if you can, because the scheme itself says that doing so gives you more time to complete the assessments.
ReasonEra can help with the reasoning parts you choose to practise: it takes a screenshot of a sample situational judgement, numerical or verbal question and shows the answer with step-by-step reasoning in Quick Verify or Tutor Explanation mode. It does not replace the scheme's own practice tests, and it does not know what is in your live assessment. You get 3 free trials and then a 14-Day Pass for 49 €. The stage 2 video questions and any values or motivation content are not something ReasonEra covers.
The NHS is a collection of separate employers, so a trust, board or national body sets its own selection steps. This guide covers the Graduate Management Training Scheme because it publishes clear stages. For any other NHS vacancy, the job advert and your invitation are the only reliable guide.
Hiring processes are revised from year to year, so double-check the specifics before you plan around them.
We built ReasonEra to help you understand how reasoning questions work, but some assessments are proctored and many forbid any assistance, so read your invitation and keep ReasonEra for preparation.
There are three: the online Future Potential Assessment, the Alignment Assessment with video responses, and a half-day Virtual Assessment Centre. Placement matching and pre-employment checks follow for successful candidates.
The scheme says it takes about 45 minutes but is not time limited. Candidates get practice for each question type first.
Not publicly confirmed on the scheme pages we read, which do not list the question types. Some third-party preparation sites describe numerical, verbal and situational judgement content, but they disagree on details.
Yes. The scheme says every candidate receives a feedback report after stage 1 and that feedback is given after the Virtual Assessment Centre whatever the outcome.
Yes. The scheme's FAQ says unsuccessful candidates can apply again and advises reflecting on the feedback first.
The scheme says the video answers in the Alignment Assessment are reviewed by people and that AI is not used for this.
Upload a practice question and compare the reasoning with your own. A free account starts you with three trials.
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Notes. Public pages are the only basis for the facts stated here, as listed above. Names of employers and tests are used only to describe the assessments candidates may meet.