How much study leave to take before FRCEM SBA

Deciding how much study leave to take before FRCEM SBA is one of the few revision questions where the wrong answer costs you weeks, not hours. Take too little and you sit the exam under-rehearsed. Take too much and you arrive at the OSCE in the same training year with nothing left in the tank, or burn an unsustainable hole in your team’s rota and your educational supervisor’s goodwill. This article is the decision: how many days, when, and in what shape. For the separate question of how to keep revising on the days you are still working, see How to Revise While Working Full Time in ED.

What is my actual study leave entitlement?

Under the national terms and conditions for resident doctors in training in England, FY1s have up to 15 days of study leave per training year and all other training grades, including ACCS-EM, ST3+ and run-through EM, have up to 30 days per year. The figure is pro rata for less than full time trainees and for contracts shorter than 12 months. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland operate their own study leave frameworks through HEIW, NES and NIMDTA respectively, and while the headline 30 day figure is broadly similar, the rules on funding, approval, and what counts as study leave versus professional leave do vary. The BMA and your local deanery study leave policy are the right places to check the exact number that applies to you.

Important practical points:

• The 30 days is an entitlement up to, not a guarantee. Service pressures, rota cover and prospective cover rules can shape how many days actually get approved in any given block.
• Exam attendance days and revision days both usually come from the same allocation in most regions, although some trusts treat exam day separately. Check your local policy.
• Study leave application windows are often 6 weeks or more in advance. Build that lead time into your FRCEM SBA timetable.
• LTFT trainees should request leave pro rata but plan the absolute number of revision days they actually need for the exam, not just the proportion they are entitled to.

Never quote a single national figure to your rota coordinator without checking the version of the policy that applies to your post.

How many days do most candidates actually use for FRCEM SBA?

Across published candidate accounts and the trainee community, the typical pattern for a first FRCEM SBA attempt sits in a fairly narrow range:

• 5 to 7 days as a final block immediately before the exam, used for timed mocks, weak topic repair and review
• 3 to 6 days distributed across the preceding 8 to 12 weeks for protected revision days, qbank blocks and one full mock
• 1 day for the exam itself

That gives a working total of around 10 to 14 days of study leave specifically attached to FRCEM SBA, often supplemented by 2 to 5 days of annual leave for the final week. Candidates sitting a resit, or those with significant time pressure from clinical work or caring responsibilities, often push the total closer to 15 to 18 days.

This is a guide, not a prescription. The right number depends on:

• your baseline qbank performance 8 weeks out
• whether you have already passed MRCEM SBA recently
• how protected your rostered non-clinical time is
• whether you are also preparing for OSCE in the same training year
• how much annual leave you are willing to use alongside study leave

What does RCEM and the curriculum say about preparation time?

RCEM does not publish a specific number of study leave days for FRCEM SBA. The College guidance frames preparation in terms of curriculum coverage rather than calendar days, and the curriculum maps the full RCEM 2021 syllabus across resuscitation, major trauma, paediatric EM, anaesthetics, intensive care, and management and quality improvement. Educator consensus and the RCEM Learning preparation guidance suggest a working assumption of at least 6 months of structured preparation for first time candidates, with around 4 to 5 months of focused work being realistic for those who have recently sat MRCEM SBA.

What this means for study leave planning is that the leave block is a finishing tool, not a primary learning tool. Candidates who try to do most of their FRCEM SBA preparation inside a 2 or 3 week block of study leave typically underperform. The leave is for consolidation, mocks and repair.

How many days should I save for the final push?

A useful default for first time candidates is a final block of 5 to 7 working days immediately before the exam, with the exam day on top. The shape that consistently works is:

• Day -7 to -5: two timed half papers, full review, error log, weak topic repair
• Day -4 to -3: one full timed mock under exam conditions, then a guideline-heavy weak topic day
• Day -2: light review of high yield thresholds, algorithm and threshold flashcards, logistics check
• Day -1: short review session in the morning only, then sleep protection, travel, ID and timing checks
• Exam day

If your rota only allows a 3 or 4 day block, compress the mock days and protect the last 48 hours. If you have 10 days of clear leave, do not fill them with new heavy learning. Two mocks, two repair days and aggressive sleep protection beat ten days of cramming.

Should I take all my study leave in one block?

No. A single end-loaded block is the most common pattern but it is rarely the optimal one. The reasons:

• Without earlier protected days, you will not have done a timed mock under exam conditions before the final week. That is the single most useful diagnostic tool you have.
• A long final block magnifies fatigue. By day 6 of self-directed revision most candidates plateau in retention.
• Concentration tends to be highest on the first 3 to 4 days of a block. Distributing days earlier captures that high yield window twice instead of once.

A pragmatic split for full time trainees is something like 1 protected day every 2 to 3 weeks across the preceding 8 to 12 weeks, plus a final 5 to 7 day block. LTFT trainees often achieve the same effect by trading non-clinical days rather than booking formal study leave for every distributed day.

How does my training stage change the answer?

FRCEM SBA can be attempted from ST4 onwards in UK EM training, and the typical study leave allocation looks slightly different depending on what stage you are at and what else you are revising for in the same year.

The numbers above are working defaults from the candidate community, not entitlements. Check the version of the study leave policy that applies to your post and discuss the allocation with your educational supervisor at your initial or mid-year meeting.

What about annual leave?

Most candidates supplement study leave with annual leave for the final week. There are two reasons this is sensible:

• Study leave is often capped per block by local policy, so a 7 day leave run may need to combine study leave and annual leave to be approved.
• Annual leave is a flexible buffer if study leave is declined or partially approved, particularly in trusts where rota gaps are heavy.

A common shape is 5 days of study leave plus 2 days of annual leave for a 7 working day final block, or 3 days of study leave plus 4 days of annual leave if the final week falls across a weekend and a planned non-working day. Avoid using all your annual leave on revision; you will need recovery time afterwards, particularly if OSCE follows in the same training year.

When should I book my study leave?

Apply earlier than you think you need to. Most regions ask for at least 6 weeks notice for study leave, and FRCEM SBA sittings cluster around the same dates nationally, which means rotas are under pressure from multiple trainees wanting the same windows.

Practical sequence:

1. As soon as you book the exam, draft your study leave request: total days, suggested distribution, and the final block dates.
2. Discuss the plan at your next educational supervisor meeting and ask them to support the request.
3. Submit the formal request through your deanery study leave system, with the exam date and any supporting evidence (course bookings, mock paper purchases) attached.
4. Follow up after 2 weeks if you have not had a decision.
5. If part of the request is declined, ask which specific days are the problem and propose alternatives rather than withdrawing the whole application.

If your rota does not allow your preferred block, ask whether nights or twilight shifts can be swapped around the dates rather than refusing leave outright. Most rota teams will engage with a specific alternative.

How do I justify the leave at ARCP?

Study leave taken for FRCEM SBA preparation needs to be recorded in your e-portfolio. Most deaneries expect:

• study leave entry showing the dates, total days, and the activity (FRCEM SBA preparation or examination)
• a brief reflection or learning record covering what was revised, what was identified as weak, and how that was addressed
• the exam result, once available, attached to the portfolio

This matters at ARCP because study leave that is not properly recorded can be flagged as missing evidence, even if the leave was clinically and educationally appropriate. Record the leave when you take it, not the week before your ARCP panel.

How does this differ if I am taking the OSCE in the same year?

If you plan to sit FRCEM SBA and OSCE in the same training year, the study leave decision changes. You cannot front-load all your leave into SBA and expect to recover for OSCE. A workable distribution is:

• 8 to 12 days for SBA preparation and exam
• 10 to 14 days for OSCE preparation and exam, including any formal OSCE course
• Residual for ALS/APLS recertification, CPD courses and conferences

If your OSCE sitting is within 2 to 3 months of SBA, treat them as one campaign and plan the leave together at the start of the year. If OSCE is more than 6 months later, you can plan them more independently but reserve at least 7 to 10 days for OSCE in advance to avoid running short.

What if my study leave is declined?

Declined or partially declined study leave is not unusual, especially in trusts with heavy rota gaps. The escalation path:

1. Ask for the specific reason in writing. Service pressures are a valid reason; an unexplained refusal is not.
2. Speak to your educational supervisor and your training programme director. They can advocate for the leave through formal channels.
3. Check your local study leave policy for the appeal route. Most deaneries have one.
4. If exam day itself is at risk of being refused, contact the BMA. Refusal of leave that prevents attendance at a College examination is a serious concern and typically gets reversed once it reaches the right level.
5. As a fallback, use annual leave for the days you cannot get approved as study leave. It costs you flexibility later in the year but it preserves the exam plan.

Do not try to revise through a denied leave request silently. The cost of an underprepared sitting is higher than the cost of a difficult rota conversation.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Booking all your study leave in one block and skipping mocks earlier in the run-up
• Treating the final week as a primary learning phase rather than a consolidation phase
• Burning all your annual leave on revision and arriving at OSCE with no buffer
• Forgetting to record the leave in your e-portfolio
• Applying late and then arguing for exceptions when the rota is already locked
• Using post-night days as part of your study leave block (they are recovery days)
• Assuming your colleagues will pick up cover without prospective cover arrangements being in place
• Not telling your educational supervisor about the exam date until after the leave is declined

Key takeaways

• Most FRCEM SBA candidates use around 10 to 15 days of study leave for the exam, typically as a 5 to 7 day final block plus distributed days for mocks earlier in the run-up.
• The 30 day annual study leave entitlement for non-FY1 resident doctors in England is the working ceiling, but the exact figure depends on your contract, training stage, LTFT status and the version of the policy that applies in your nation and deanery.
• Distribute at least some days across the preceding 8 to 12 weeks. A single end-loaded block is the most common shape and rarely the best one.
• If OSCE is in the same training year, plan SBA and OSCE leave together at the start of the year rather than year-by-year.
• Apply early, record the leave properly for ARCP, and escalate declined requests through the educational supervisor and TPD route before falling back to annual leave.
• The leave block is a finishing tool. The actual preparation happens in the months before.

Related on EM Final Exams

• How to Revise While Working Full Time in ED
• FRCEM Revision Plan for LTFT Trainees

Authoritative Sources

• RCEM — FRCEM Exams
• BMA — Study, professional and special leave
• NHS Employers — Prospective cover guidance for study leave

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