Haematology Training Pathway
How to become a haematologist in Australia — RACP Basic Physician Training and the Divisional exams, then the joint RACP/RCPA Advanced Training (with its own RCPA Part I and Part II exams) that makes most haematologists both clinician and laboratory diagnostician, and what the data show they earn.
Two gates, then a workforce headwind. You clear Basic Physician Training and both Divisional exams, then compete for a scarce accredited Advanced Training post — hospital/network/state-run, with no national rubric or published applicant-to-offer ratio. Haematology is also the only pathology discipline modelled as oversupplied (the 2024 national review projects ~10% by 2027), so finishing doesn't guarantee a job where you want one.
Why haematology
A genuine split shift between ward/clinic and the laboratory. On the clinical side you run inpatient malignant-haematology units (acute leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma, transplant), thrombosis and haemostasis clinics, and the consult service for everyone else's bleeding, clotting and cytopenic patients. In the lab you sit at the multihead microscope reporting blood films and bone-marrow aspirates/trephines, sign out flow cytometry and special coagulation, and provide the clinical brains behind the transfusion service and massive-transfusion protocols. Few specialties let you take a patient from the abnormal film you reported yourself through to their chemotherapy and survivorship.
- Two fellowships from one training program (FRACP + FRCPA) and a skill set — clinical plus laboratory plus transfusion — that very few other specialists hold.
- Deep, long-term relationships with patients through curative-intent and chronic disease; you are often their doctor for years.
- Intellectually rich and fast-moving: targeted therapies, CAR-T, bispecifics and molecular diagnostics have transformed outcomes in a decade.
- More schedulable than procedural craft groups — a large chunk of the work (lab reporting, clinics, MDTs) is daytime and plannable.
- Clear public-private and academic options; strong research culture through HSANZ and the cooperative trial groups.
- The longest examined runway in adult medicine if you do the joint program: BPT Written + Clinical, then RCPA Basic Pathological Sciences, Part I and Part II.
- It is the only pathology discipline the 2024 national workforce review models as oversupplied, so consultant jobs are competitive and geographically constrained — finishing is not a guaranteed post.
- Heavy emotional load: you deliver a lot of cancer diagnoses and walk patients (and families) through relapse and end of life.
- Real acute on-call — neutropenic sepsis, acute leukaemia presentations, TTP, massive transfusion and catastrophic bleeding don't keep office hours.
- If you only want bedside medicine, the mandatory laboratory and morphology component can feel like a chore rather than a draw.
Subspecialties
The training pathway
The same fellowship, two very different timelines. The fast route assumes everything goes right; most people land on the realistic one.
How competitive is it?
There is no national scored selection rubric and no published national applicant-to-offer ratio for haematology Advanced Training — selection is devolved to hospitals, statewide networks and the RCPA-requested PMCV match, so 'competitiveness' has to be read off the chokepoints rather than a single number. The first real filter is RACP Basic Physician Training and the Divisional exams: in 2025 the adult-medicine Divisional Written passed 73.9% in February (625 of 846) and 64.9% in October (168 of 259), and the Divisional Clinical passed 84.0% (788 of 938). Getting onto BPT in the first place is itself competitive in the major centres. The distinctive haematology issue is what happens after you qualify. The 2018 RCPA Australian Pathologist Workforce review found 447 haematologists in the 2016 Department of Health/AHPRA dataset (520 in the RCPA's own database), of whom only 48 — about 11% — work solely in haematology, the rest holding a second (usually clinical-physician) specialty. The more recent 2024 national pathology workforce review (HealthConsult, commissioned by the RCPA) then modelled haematology as the ONLY pathology discipline in oversupply: about 21 FTE or 10% of the workforce by 2027, growing toward 32% by 2037, because the discipline produces the highest number of new Fellows of any discipline while MBS demand falls. So entry to training is achievable for a strong, committed applicant, but a substantive consultant post in your preferred city is the genuinely competitive prize. (Note: the ANZSCO occupation count of ~180 'Clinical Haematologists' on Jobs and Skills Australia is a known undercount — it misses the many haematologists coded under blended pathology/medicine categories; the ATO records 346 taxpayers under the same code — so the RCPA and HealthConsult workforce figures are the better guide. JSA has also frozen these ANZSCO profiles ahead of OSCA-based profiles from mid-2026.)
Unaccredited time: Not formally mandated, but in practice common — a year or two as an unaccredited/service haematology registrar (or strong general-medicine plus haem-lab exposure) is the norm to be competitive for an accredited post, because selection rewards demonstrated haematology experience and morphology.
Sources: RACP — Past Divisional Written Examination results (pass rates), RACP — Past Divisional Clinical Examination results (pass rates), HealthConsult — Australia Pathology Workforce Review Project, final report (2024; haematology the only oversupplied discipline, 2022–2037 modelling), RCPA — Australian Pathologist Workforce 2018: Haematology (headcount: 447 / 520 / 11% sole haematology), Jobs and Skills Australia — Clinical Haematologists (ANZSCO 253313) occupation profile.
Selection criteria & how to apply
Haematology selection is genuinely two-stage, and neither stage uses a published national points table. Stage one is selection into RACP Basic Physician Training, run by states/networks during the annual medical recruitment round. Stage two — the one that matters for haematology specifically — is selection into an accredited Advanced Training post, which is run by individual hospitals, statewide networks, or in Victoria/Tasmania/Northern Territory through the RCPA-requested PMCV computer match. The components below are assessed qualitatively; the RACP and RCPA do not publish percentage weightings, so treat anyone claiming a precise 'score' with suspicion.
Key documents: RACP — Joint Haematology Advanced Training (program requirements), RACP — Clinical Haematology Advanced Training (RACP-only stream), RCPA — Joint Trainee with RCPA (joint training programs), RACP — Accredited Sites for Advanced Training in Haematology (Australia).
How haematology training is organised in each state and territory
NSW Not published as a single statewide haematology number; advertised by individual sites/networks. NSW Health publishes a Physician (Haematology) medical-workforce factsheet, which models a need for only about 0–1 new fellows per annum to 2035 — consistent with a flat workforce.
Who runs selection: Basic Physician Training runs through 11 RACP-accredited BPT networks coordinated by HETI (the Health Education and Training Institute) with the NSW Ministry of Health and the RACP; each network spans metropolitan, regional and rural sites. Haematology Advanced Training posts are then recruited by the individual hospitals/networks that hold accredited clinical and laboratory positions.
Where to apply: HETI — Basic Physician Training in NSW — application portal.
Positions: Not published as a single statewide haematology number; advertised by individual sites/networks. NSW Health publishes a Physician (Haematology) medical-workforce factsheet, which models a need for only about 0–1 new fellows per annum to 2035 — consistent with a flat workforce.
Worth knowing: Networked BPT with a central annual medical recruitment campaign (roughly July–October). Advanced Training haematology selection is devolved to the accredited hospitals/networks rather than a single state match.
Links: HETI — Basic Physician Training in NSW, HETI — The BPT Networks, NSW Health — Medical Workforce factsheet: Physician (Haematology).
VIC Not published as a fixed annual number; positions are those offered by participating VIC/TAS/NT health services through the match each year.
Who runs selection: BPT is delivered through Victorian health-service networks. Entry to new haematology Advanced Training is run through the PMCV (Postgraduate Medical Council of Victoria) computer match, conducted at the request of the RCPA — and this match covers Victoria, Tasmania and the Northern Territory together. It handles new applicants to the Clinical (CHAT – Paediatric), Laboratory (LHAT) and Joint Haematology Advanced Training programs, including paediatric haematology.
Where to apply: PMCV — Haematology Match (Allocation & Placement Service) — application portal.
Positions: Not published as a fixed annual number; positions are those offered by participating VIC/TAS/NT health services through the match each year.
Worth knowing: A formal computer match shared across three jurisdictions. Existing trainees are re-contacted by the RCPA for reapplication; interstate/NZ trainees who have already passed Part I (Joint/LHAT) or are CHAT trainees should NOT apply through PMCV; Overseas Trained Specialists (excluding NZ) are only assessed if positions remain unfilled by local applicants.
Links: PMCV — Allocation & Placement Service, PMCV — Haematology New Trainees (match scope: VIC/TAS/NT).
QLD About 41 haematology training positions statewide (clinical and laboratory).
Who runs selection: A single statewide Queensland Haematology Advanced Training network, recruited through the annual Queensland Health RMO and Registrar campaign. Trainees rotate between metropolitan and regional centres and across public and partnered private facilities, covering clinical, laboratory and joint training.
Where to apply: Queensland Health — RMO and Registrar campaign (Haematology pathway) — application portal.
Positions: About 41 haematology training positions statewide (clinical and laboratory).
Worth knowing: Apply via the RMO campaign and select the Clinical Haematology/Lab sub-specialty, preferencing your hospitals. Because it's a statewide network, most trainees spend some time in regional centres, and appointments are coordinated jointly by the RMO Campaign Coordinator and Pathology Queensland's Medical Support Unit.
Links: Queensland Health — Haematology Advanced Training (RMO campaign), Queensland Health — Queensland Haematology Training information.
SA Not published as a fixed statewide number; haematology Advanced Trainee/registrar posts are advertised through SA Health Careers as they arise.
Who runs selection: BPT and Advanced Trainee haematology posts are recruited through SA Health's centralised medical trainee / Advanced Trainee recruitment, with the major clinical and laboratory training based in the statewide Haematology and Oncology services (e.g. the CALHN Cancer Program).
Where to apply: SA Health — Advanced Trainees recruitment — application portal.
Positions: Not published as a fixed statewide number; haematology Advanced Trainee/registrar posts are advertised through SA Health Careers as they arise.
Worth knowing: Centralised SA Health medical recruitment with an annual Advanced Trainee round; some haematology registrar roles are also open to trainees from other programs seeking haematology experience and to suitably experienced career medical officers who have completed BPT.
Links: SA Health — Advanced Trainees recruitment, SA Health Careers — Trainee Medical Officer recruitment.
WA Not published as a fixed statewide number; clinical haematology trainee posts are advertised across the tertiary Perth hospitals and PathWest.
Who runs selection: BPT and haematology Advanced Training posts are recruited through WA Health's centralised medical recruitment, advertised on MedCareersWA. Clinical and laboratory haematology training is concentrated at the tertiary Perth sites — Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Royal Perth Hospital, Fiona Stanley Hospital and PathWest.
Where to apply: MedCareersWA — WA Health medical recruitment — application portal.
Positions: Not published as a fixed statewide number; clinical haematology trainee posts are advertised across the tertiary Perth hospitals and PathWest.
Worth knowing: All public-hospital medical vacancies, including haematology registrar/trainee roles, are posted centrally via MedCareersWA. The Postgraduate Medical Council of WA (PMCWA) supports junior-doctor recruitment, but haematology Advanced Training entry is via the WA Health hospital posts.
Links: MedCareersWA — medical recruitment portal, WA Health — Medical recruitment.
TAS Not published separately; Tasmanian posts form part of the shared VIC/TAS/NT PMCV haematology match.
Who runs selection: Tasmania does not run its own separate haematology match — new haematology Advanced Trainees in Tasmania are recruited through the RCPA-requested PMCV computer match shared with Victoria and the Northern Territory. BPT is undertaken in the Tasmanian Health Service.
Where to apply: PMCV — Haematology Match (covers TAS with VIC & NT) — application portal.
Positions: Not published separately; Tasmanian posts form part of the shared VIC/TAS/NT PMCV haematology match.
Worth knowing: Being inside the PMCV match means a Tasmanian applicant preferences through the same three-jurisdiction system as Victoria; the small number of accredited Tasmanian posts means much training is networked and some time is typically spent interstate.
Links: PMCV — Allocation & Placement Service (VIC/TAS/NT haematology match), Tasmanian Department of Health — careers.
ACT Not published as a network total; Canberra Health Services advertises an accredited clinical haematology Advanced Trainee post (one-year, PGY4+), and has also advertised a haematology laboratory registrar post.
Who runs selection: BPT is delivered through the Canberra/ACT Physician Training Network, and haematology Advanced Training is recruited by Canberra Health Services, which offers an accredited clinical-haematology registrar post.
Where to apply: Canberra Health Services — JMO recruitment — application portal.
Positions: Not published as a network total; Canberra Health Services advertises an accredited clinical haematology Advanced Trainee post (one-year, PGY4+), and has also advertised a haematology laboratory registrar post.
Worth knowing: The clinical post is accredited by the CJCT RACP/RCPA for one year of core clinical training and is suitable for either the joint (FRACP/FRCPA) or FRACP-only route, with dual-Fellowship candidates who have passed FRACP Part I preferenced; it covers inpatient and outpatient malignant and non-malignant haematology. Recruitment is through the annual JMO campaign.
Links: Canberra Health Services — Clinical Haematology Registrar (Advanced Trainee), Canberra Physician Training Network.
NT Not published; the Royal Darwin Hospital haematology post is small in number and forms part of the VIC/TAS/NT PMCV match for new trainees.
Who runs selection: New haematology Advanced Trainees in the Northern Territory are recruited through the RCPA-requested PMCV match shared with Victoria and Tasmania. The Territory's training is based at Royal Darwin Hospital, which offers a combined clinical-and-laboratory haematology experience.
Where to apply: NT Health — medical officer recruitment (and PMCV match for new trainees) — application portal.
Positions: Not published; the Royal Darwin Hospital haematology post is small in number and forms part of the VIC/TAS/NT PMCV match for new trainees.
Worth knowing: The RDH role is unusually combined (clinical + laboratory) with a Territory-wide transfusion service, major-trauma transfusion input, an active outreach clinic to Alice Springs, and even malaria-microscopy exposure. Applications for training posts run roughly June–September, but queries are welcomed year-round.
Links: NT Health — Royal Darwin Hospital Medicine (medical officer recruitment), PMCV — Allocation & Placement Service (VIC/TAS/NT haematology match).
How to optimise your application
- Pass the Divisional Written first attempt (tied to RACP Basic Physician Training + Divisional exams, start From BPT year 1 (eligible to sit after 24 months)) — Treat the Written as the real gate it is — adult-medicine pass rates run in the mid-60s to low-80s percent and resits cost you a year. Start a structured question-bank and study schedule early rather than cramming the final months.
- Get real haematology and morphology exposure before you apply (tied to Demonstrated haematology experience (the de-facto selection differentiator), start BPT and/or an unaccredited registrar year) — Do haematology terms, spend time at the multihead microscope, and get a supervising haematologist who will write a strong, specific reference. This is what separates applicants when there's no points table.
- Decide early: Joint (FRACP+FRCPA, 4 yrs) vs Clinical Haematology (FRACP only, 3 yrs) (tied to Joint Haematology Advanced Training vs RACP-only Clinical Haematology, start Late BPT / when choosing posts) — If you want to report the lab and hold dual fellowship, commit to the joint program and its RCPA Part I/II exams. If you only want bedside haematology, the shorter RACP-only Clinical Haematology pathway exists (36 months, 24 core clinical + 6 core laboratory) — but it limits laboratory scope and is less flexible for the job market.
- Use the PMCV match deliberately if you're in VIC/TAS/NT (tied to Selection into an accredited Advanced Training post, start Application year) — Understand the PMCV haematology business rules, preference broadly and honestly, and note that interstate/NZ trainees who've already passed Part I and Overseas Trained Specialists are handled differently — read the rules rather than assuming it's a single merit list.
- Build a transferable sub-niche and stay geographically flexible (tied to The oversupplied consultant workforce, start Mid-Advanced Training) — Pick a marketable sub-area (transplant/cellular therapy, coagulation, lab/morphology, lymphoma) and a post-Fellowship fellowship, and be honest that your first substantive consultant job may require relocating or a regional/laboratory-weighted role.
Key documents & official links
- RACP — Joint Haematology Advanced Training (requirements & structure)
- RACP — Clinical Haematology Advanced Training (FRACP-only stream)
- RCPA — Haematology Trainee Handbook 2026
- RCPA — Joint Training with the RACP
- RACP — Divisional Written Examination
- RACP — Past Divisional Written Examination results (pass rates)
- RACP — Accredited Sites for Advanced Training in Haematology (Australia)
- HealthConsult — Australia Pathology Workforce Review Project, final report (2024)
- RCPA — Australian Pathologist Workforce 2018: Haematology
- Jobs and Skills Australia — Clinical Haematologists (ANZSCO 253313)
- HSANZ — Haematology Society of Australia and New Zealand
- RACP — Standard Specialist Assessment Pathway (IMGs)
FAQ
Is haematology hard to get into?
How long does haematology training take?
What's the difference between Joint Haematology and Clinical Haematology?
What exams do I have to pass?
How much do haematologists earn in Australia?
Do I need to do an unaccredited registrar year first?
What's the lifestyle and on-call like?
I trained overseas as a haematologist — can I work in Australia?
Trained overseas? (IMG pathway)
How overseas-trained haematology doctors get recognised
Overseas-trained haematologists don't re-sit Australian training; they apply to the RACP for a specialist comparability assessment against the Australian Joint Haematology / Clinical Haematology standard. The RACP judges your qualifications, consultant experience and recent practice as substantially comparable, partially comparable or not comparable to an Australian-trained specialist. 'Substantially comparable' means you're at the level of a newly qualified Fellow and complete up to 12 months of peer review; 'partially comparable' means up to 24 months (FTE) of supervised practice combining top-up training and peer review before full specialist recognition and a place on the AHPRA specialist register. 'Not comparable' means the gap can't be closed within 24 months of supervised practice.
See the RACP — Standard Specialist Assessment Pathway for international medical graduates and our IMG internship guide.
Related specialties
Last reviewed 2026-06-01.