Dermatologists are specialist physicians who diagnose and treat diseases of the skin, hair and nails. All dermatologists are medically qualified, and undertake the same undergraduate training as other doctors.

You’ll treat common conditions such as:  

• skin cancer 

• eczema 

• psoriasis 

• acne 

• severe drug rashes

Your first step is medical school. Typically, you’ll need excellent GCSEs and three A or A* passes at A level including chemistry for a five-year undergraduate degree in medicine. Many medical schools also ask for biology and others may require maths or physics.   

If you already have a degree, you could study for a four-year postgraduate degree in medicine.  

You’ll need to pass an interview and admissions test. You’ll be asked to show how you demonstrate the NHS values such as compassion and respect.  

Some medical schools look to recruit a mix of students from different backgrounds and geographical areas, so your educational and economic background and family circumstances could be considered as part of your application. 

After medical school, you’ll join the paid two-year foundation programme where you’ll work in six placements in different settings.

After your foundation programme, you can apply for paid specialty training to become a dermatologist, which will take a minimum of six or seven years. 

You may be able to train part time, for example for health reasons or if you have family or caring responsibilities. 

For more information on post graduate study : https://www.prospects.ac.uk/postgraduate-courses/dermatology?featuredCourses=&page=0

Taken from NHS 2024

After completing your training, you’ll have the opportunity to specialise in: 

• advanced skin surgery and Mohs’ micrographic surgery 

• paediatric dermatology 

• cutaneous allergy and immunology 

• advanced medical dermatology 

• photodermatoses and photobiology 

• oral and genital dermatoses 

• hair and nails 

• cosmetic/aesthetic dermatology 

Taken from NHS careers 2024