Shortlisted for the CST Interview 2027 with Two Weeks to Go: the Plan

If you have been shortlisted for the Core Surgical Training (CST) interview with two weeks to go, the plan is: upload your evidence and index sheet in the first three days, have the three-minute presentation written and timed by day four, then spend ten days on daily spoken five-minute management and clinical scenarios, with one full 30-minute mock on day twelve. Two weeks is the real gap: in 2026, invitations went out on Friday 13 February, the evidence portal ran from 16 to 26 February, and interviews began on Monday 2 March.

Reviewed and updated 10 September 2026. The format and timings are NHS England's published 2026 position; the 2027 CST dates are not yet published, so the plan is written in days from the invitation rather than calendar dates.

Key takeaways

• In 2026 the gap from CST interview invitation (13 February) to the first interview day (2 March) was 17 days, and the evidence upload closed on day 13.
• The evidence upload and index sheet come first, because a missing index sheet scores zero for portfolio evidence and a missed deadline withdraws the application.
• The interview is two 15-minute Qpercom stations: three live five-minute scenarios, and a 3-minute presentation plus two 5-minute portfolio questions.
• Ten of the fourteen days should include at least one five-minute scenario answered out loud and timed, because the questions are given live with no reading time.
• One full 30-minute mock on day twelve, then two light days, beats cramming to the night before.
• Book the Oriel interview slot the day the invitation arrives; slots are first come, first served.

What should you do on the day the CST interview invitation arrives?

On the day the CST interview invitation arrives, book your Oriel slot, read the presentation topic, and open the evidence upload checklist. NHS England's interviews page says slots are booked through your Oriel account on a first come, first served basis, by the deadline in the invitation.

The invitation is also when the presentation topic is issued, and it is the only part of the interview you can prepare word for word. Everything else is given live.

Your own interview may fall anywhere in the block, so the plan below is fourteen days long and assumes the earliest slot. If yours is later, stretch the middle section, not the first three days.

How do you get the CST evidence upload right in the first three days?

You get the evidence upload right by completing the index sheet first, attaching exactly one item per box per domain, and checking every supervisor letter for a GMC number before you press upload. NHS England's portfolio guidance says candidates who omit the index sheet "will score 0 for their portfolio evidence".

1. Day 1: fill in the index sheet with the letter you are claiming in each of the five domains and the single item that proves it.
2. Day 2: open each PDF and check it for patient-identifiable data, because any instance scores zero, and confirm each letter carries the supervisor's GMC number.
3. Day 3: upload on the first day the portal opens, then screenshot the confirmation. Do not wait for the closing day.

In practice the single commonest mistake is uploading a second item to "strengthen" a domain. The guidance says assessors review only the first item, so the extra file can only displace the one you wanted read.

How do you write the three-minute CST presentation by day four?

You write the three-minute CST presentation by choosing three points that answer the topic, opening with the answer, and timing the spoken version to about 2 minutes 45 seconds. The station then gives the panel two minutes of questions on it, marked on content, presentation skills and questioning.

The CST presentation is a pre-prepared three-minute verbal presentation, delivered without slides at the start of the portfolio station, on a topic issued with the interview invitation.

• Point one: what you did, with one specific example from your own work.
• Point two: what it changed, for patients, a team or you.
• Point three: how it maps to core training, in one sentence.
• Close on the answer to the topic in a single line, so the two minutes of questions start from something clear.

Rehearse it aloud at least once a day from day four onwards. The coresurgeryinterview bank has a practice-presentation mode that records and times it, and the free samples let you try the spoken format before paying.

How should you practise the CST management station in the second week?

You should practise the CST management station by answering one new scenario out loud every day, in five minutes, against the three marked domains: probity and professional integrity with awareness of safety and ethics, judgement under pressure and prioritisation, and communication. The scenario is given live, so the opening structure must be automatic.

A workable opening is patient safety first, gather the facts, act within your competence, escalate to the named senior, document, and reflect on the system. It takes 20 seconds to say and leaves four and a half minutes for the scenario itself.

However, the panel is marking judgement, not the framework. Once the structure is automatic, spend the practice time on the awkward middle: the colleague who refuses, the patient who declines, the consultant who is not answering.

How should you practise the CST clinical station in the second week?

You should practise the CST clinical station with two five-minute scenarios a day, spoken and timed, covering acute surgical presentations and post-operative complications at the level of a core trainee. The domains marked are clinical skills and knowledge, judgement under pressure and prioritisation, and communication.

The topics above are examples of the kind of scenario a core trainee meets, not a leaked list. Each clinical answer should run from a structured assessment through initial management to a named escalation, and stop at five minutes even if it is unfinished.

When should you do a full CST mock interview?

You should do one full 30-minute CST mock on day twelve, two days before the earliest interview slot, in the real order: a 15-minute management and clinical station with three scenarios, then a 15-minute portfolio station with the presentation and two domain questions. Have someone score every item from 0 to 6 using NHS England's descriptors, from "no evidence" to "outstanding".

That said, the mock is diagnostic, not a performance. Its job is to find the one station that is still short of time or structure, so that days thirteen and fourteen fix that and nothing else.

If nobody is available to run it, the coresurgeryinterview AI-marked spoken practice scores a recorded answer against the station domains, and its 299 questions include the two-part portfolio questioning that most candidates under-rehearse.

How do you prepare for the two CST portfolio questions?

You prepare for the two portfolio questions by writing a two-minute account for every letter on your index sheet, because the panel chooses which two domains to ask about and you will not know until they do. Each question lasts five minutes and is marked on skills and knowledge.

• For the audit or QI item: the problem, your role, the change measured, and what you would do differently.
• For the publication or presentation: the question it answered, your contribution, and one limitation.
• For teaching: who you taught, how you knew it worked, and what you changed after feedback.
• For operative experience: the case types, your level of involvement, and one case you learned most from.
• For the taster or elective: what you saw, what it confirmed about surgery, and what it changed in your plan.

In practice the panel has already read the evidence. They are testing whether the person who uploaded it can talk about it with the depth the letter claims.

What should the last two days before the CST interview look like?

The last two days before the CST interview should be light: one short spoken run of the presentation each day, one five-minute scenario, a technology check, and sleep. Qpercom interviews are terminated if the panel cannot see you, so the camera, microphone and photographic ID need testing on day thirteen, not on the morning.

On the day, you will pass a connectivity check, wait in a virtual lobby, confirm identity, and pan the camera around the room. Then it is 30 minutes, and the fortnight is what decides them.