Summary of Membership Categories

The College membership categories allow all those working in the field of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, worldwide, to have a formal link with the College.

A summary of each category follows:

Honorary Fellows

Distinguished people outside the medical profession who are elected by the Council. Honorary Fellows may use the designatory letters FRCOG.

Fellows ad eundem

Awarded to persons who are not members of the College and who have contributed to the advancement of the science or practice of obstetrics and gynaecology whom Council considers have furthered the interests of the Specialty. Fellows ad eundem are entitled to use the designatory letters FRCOG.

Nominations can only come from existing Fellows and Members of the College. The 2012 round is now open and the form can be downloaded from here.

Fellows honoris causa

Awarded to persons who are not members of the College and who can demonstrate:

  • the highest level of dedication and achievement in clinical care, or
  • the highest level of support to the development of women's healthcare services, or
  • the highest level of work/support for the RCOG

Fellows honoris causa are entitled to use the designatory letters FRCOG. 

Nominations can only come from existing Fellows and Members of the College. The 2012 round is now open and the form can be downloaded from here.

Fellows

The award of the Fellowship is not merely a reflection of a time interval since passing the Membership examination but it also implies a continued contribution to the specialty and a maintenance of standards and practice. It is a mark of senior status and not a recognition of completion of training. Fellows are elected each year from the Membership and should normally have been members for at least 12 years and have made a significant contribution to obstetrics and gynaecology by research, teaching or publications. Fellows are entitled to use the designatory letters FRCOG. Details of how to be considered for election to the Fellowship are online here.

Members

The Membership examination is intended for those who wish to specialise in obstetrics and gynaecology. Members of the College must be fully qualified doctors who have passed all parts of the Membership examination having fulfilled the regulations regarding training and are subsequently admitted to the Membership at a meeting of Council. Members are entitled to use the designatory letters MRCOG

Membership without Examination

Doctors holding a NHS consultant or honorary post at consultant level in the British Isles for a minimum of one year may apply for Membership of the College without Examination, subject to fulfilling the strict criteria. Upon admittance at a meeting of Council these individuals are eligible to use the designatory letters MRCOG.

Further details and an application form are available here.

Trainees - pre-membership

Doctors training in obstetrics and gynaecology who have not yet passed their Part 2 MRCOG examination. This currently includes all trainees have passed their Part 1 MRCOG and are registered as a Trainee on the Trainees Register xxxx. From August 2007, this category will include all trainees appointed to Specialty Training programmes in the UK. Doctors in training who are appointed to FTSTA posts, or those with Part 1 and not in an ST or FTSTA position, are encouraged to register at this level.

Diplomates

The College organises a Diploma examination for doctors training to become general practitioners (family doctors) who wish to include obstetrics and gynaecology as part of the service they provide. Those doctors that complete the training programme and satisfy the examination requirements are entitled to use the designatory letters DRCOG after their name.

Associates

Medical practitioners worldwide who are working in the field of women's healthcare but who do not hold the MRCOG and wish to be linked with, and support, the activities of the RCOG.

Applicants must have a medical degree.

This category only applies to those applicants who are not eligible for any other category of College membership. No individual who has been removed from the Register of Fellows and Members or deprived of membership privileges, for whatever reason, shall be eligible to apply.

For more information on how to apply and the benefits, please click here.

Affiliates

Those working for the benefit of women's healthcare and who wish to be linked with the activities of the RCOG but do not hold a medical degree.
Whilst not an exhaustive list this category includes:

  • embryologists
  • assistant practitioners and peri-operative care workers
  • ultrasonographers
  • members of specialist societies (e.g. BFS, BMS etc)
  • scientists and research academics
  • midwives
  • nurses

This category does not apply to those holding a medical degree.

For more information on how to apply and the benefits, please click here.

Junior Affiliate

Medical students, Foundation Doctors, and current junior doctors who are seeking to pursue a career in obstetrics and gynaecology but who are yet to be appointed to a Specialty Training programme, and who have not yet passed their Part 1 examination, are encouraged to register for free as a junior affiliate, (just click the 'I am a medical student' check box on the registration form) in order to enable communications between the RCOG and those who may be interested in entering the specialty.

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