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The Medical Schools Council would like to congratulate all upcoming newly graduated doctors who will soon begin their foundation training. From this week, you will be contacted by the General Medical Council (GMC) inviting you to apply for provisional registration and so setting you on your journey into clinical practice.

This is a unique moment to enter the medical profession. Over the last month you will have watched with pride and perhaps some trepidation as the health service prepared for the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. The health profession has adapted quickly – from enlisting the help of technology to deliver remote consultations, to entire hospitals being built from scratch within weeks. Also, thousands of doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers have returned to practice to help the NHS in these unprecedented times.

Feeling anxious is understandable, as no cohort has entered the profession in these circumstances within peacetime. However, although your formal studies are coming to an end, the transition from student to doctor will involve many opportunities for learning and you will receive a high level of continued training and support from your Foundation Programme, your NHS Trust, and your medical school.

Rest assured that your medical school has prepared you for this challenge. The degree, which you have received or will receive shortly, is proof of that. Some (we hope many) of you will choose to take up an interim F1 post (FiY1) post now, before moving to your substantive F1 post in August. It must be emphasised that the decision to do so is entirely personal. Deciding not to will not adversely impact your future progression or training.

As you enter this new phase in your career, medical schools wish to support you. Over the past month the Medical Schools Council has worked collaboratively with the GMC, the UK health funding bodies and the UK Foundation Programme Office to prepare you for the next steps. Just as medical schools have worked to make alternative arrangements for your exams, placements and graduation, they will provide a vital support network as you start your foundation training.

On behalf of all UK medical schools, we wish you the best of luck in this new chapter of your lives.