Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology): the Practice Eligibility Route
Requirements as published by the Royal College. Last reviewed August 2026.
Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology) at a glance
- Required time in training
- 5 yearsSTR: Five (5) years of approved residency in General Pathology (a one (1) block rotation is four weeks)
- 2026 exam timing
- Written in the Spring; Applied in the Fall (same year)
- Apply for assessment of training
- by April 30 of the year before your exam
- Register for the exam
- September 1 – November 4 of the year before
- Exam attempts
- Maximum 4 attempts per component within a 5-year eligibility period
The Royal College reads your postgraduate training and practice record in Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology) against the published Specialty Training Requirements. Those requirements are set out in full below, so you can see how your own training compares before you apply.
What licence can I get, and when?
Certification is national. Licensure is provincial. You do not need Royal College certification (FRCPC) to be licensed. Several provinces license you at an earlier PER stage, and the earliest any province accepts is the eligibility letter alone. The table applies to every specialty that reached exam eligibility through the PER.
Full province table: MCCQE, job offer and licence type
| Province | MCCQE | RC written | RC applied | Licence issued | Job offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alberta | Required | Required | Required | Full | Not required |
| British Columbia | Not required | Required | Required | Provisional | Required |
| Saskatchewan | Required | Required | Required | Provisional | Required |
| Manitoba | Not required | Required | Required | Provisional | Required |
| Ontario | Not required | Required | Not required | Provisional, 3 years | Required |
| Nova Scotia (a) | Not required | Not required | Not required | Defined, 6 to 24 months | Required |
| Nova Scotia (b) | Not required | Required | Required | Full | Required |
| New Brunswick | Not required | Not required | Not required | Special, then Defined | Required |
| Newfoundland & Labrador, PEI | Required* | Not required | Not required | Provisional | Required |
* The MCCQE may be waived where the candidate has five or more years of independent practice abroad. Case by case, never guaranteed.
Educational only. Rules change, and each regulator decides on factors that may not be listed here; Filipe Santos MD does not make licensure decisions. Checked October 9, 2026 against each regulator's pages; Ontario confirmed with the CPSO in October 2026. Confirm with the regulator before you act.
Province notes (Alberta, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the MCCQE) are in the PER guide.
How training is structured
The Royal College sets out the training for Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology) in the blocks below. An internationally trained specialist is assessed on whether their own training and practice record is comparable in structure and content.
Requirements document: 2015, Version 2.0 (Revised Specialty Standards Review Committee (SSRC) 2012; editorial revisions September 2012; Revised Specialty Committee February 2014; Approved SSRC February 2015); applies to those who begin training on or after July 1st, 2015
Required experiences14
Specific experiences the Royal College names for this discipline.
- 1.1 Two (2) blocks, or longitudinal equivalent, in General Surgery or other surgical discipline(s) relevant to General Pathology
- 1.2 Two (2) blocks, or longitudinal equivalent, in Internal Medicine or a medical subspecialty relevant to General Pathology
- 1.3 One (1) block, or longitudinal equivalent, in Pediatrics or a pediatric subspecialty
- 1.4 One (1) block, or longitudinal equivalent, in Obstetrics and Gynecology relevant to General Pathology
- 1.5 One (1) block in either Medical Oncology or Radiation Oncology
- 1.6 Six (6) blocks in other training programs relevant to General Pathology with program director approval
- 2.1 Eighteen (18) blocks in surgical and autopsy pathology
- 2.2 Two (2) blocks of training in a formal, structured forensic autopsy program providing exposure to an appropriate mix of medico-legal autopsy cases in sufficient numbers
- 2.3 Four (4) blocks of training in cytopathology, with at least one (1) block or equivalent completed preferably in the final year
- 2.4 Two (2) blocks of further training in Anatomical Pathology as approved by the program director
- 3.1 Six (6) blocks of medical biochemistry
- 3.2 Six (6) blocks of hematological pathology, incorporating morphological hematology, flow cytometry, coagulation, and transfusion medicine
- 3.3 Six (6) blocks of medical microbiology, including bacteriology, mycology, parasitology, and virology
- 4. At least one (1) block or longitudinal equivalent in molecular pathology
Flexible or selective components1
Where the requirements allow a choice.
- 5. Up to seven (7) blocks of electives, as approved by the program director, chosen from: 5.1 up to seven (7) blocks of residency in a university-affiliated hospital, preferably community based, integrating the skills required of a General Pathologist in a practice setting; 5.2 up to seven (7) blocks of residency in one or more of anatomical pathology, medical biochemistry, hematological pathology, or medical microbiology; 5.3 up to seven (7) blocks of other approved residency or research, relevant to the objectives of General Pathology and acceptable to the director of the training program, at a hospital or university centre
Common questions
More questions about specialists trained abroad, each answered once with its official source, are in the IMG FAQ Center.
What is the Practice Eligibility Route in Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology)?
The Practice Eligibility Route (PER) is the Royal College process by which an internationally trained specialist can be assessed for eligibility to sit the certification examination in Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology) without repeating a Canadian residency. The Royal College reads your postgraduate training and practice record against the published Specialty Training Requirements for the discipline.
What training does the Royal College expect in Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology)?
The Specialty Training Requirements describe five (5) years of approved residency in General Pathology (a one (1) block rotation is four weeks). The full block-by-block structure is set out on this page, taken from the Royal College document for this discipline.
Does meeting the training requirements guarantee eligibility?
No. Eligibility is a committee decision made on your individual file, and other factors are considered. This page reproduces the published requirements so you can see how your own training compares before you apply; it is not an eligibility ruling.
Where do I start?
Read the seven steps in the PER guide, then have your training mapped against the Specialty Training Requirements before you pay any fees. The free PDF for this specialty carries the steps, the document checklist, and the Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology) requirements in one file.
The Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology) guide as one PDF
The seven PER steps, your document checklist, and the Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology) training requirements in a single file. Free. Not sure the PER is your route? The screener checks your file against every route in about two minutes.
Other specialties27
Canadian clinical fellowships in Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology) are in the Fellowship Finder.
Adapted from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada Specialty Training Requirements for Diagnostic & Clinical Pathology (General Pathology). Not affiliated with or endorsed by the Royal College; every application is reviewed individually and final decisions rest solely with the Royal College. Verify current requirements at royalcollege.ca.