Trinidad and Tobago: no named doctor exam, but a regional test for nurses

Medical and health education in Trinidad and Tobago

The University of the West Indies (UWI) St Augustine Faculty of Medical Sciences, based at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mount Hope, trains most of the country's doctors, dentists, pharmacists and veterinarians. The MBBS is a five-year programme taught in English. UWI also runs nursing programmes, and the College of Science, Technology and Applied Arts of Trinidad and Tobago (COSTAATT) trains nurses at associate and bachelor level. Unlike Barbados, Guyana or Dominica, T&T does not host an offshore medical school.

After the MBBS, graduates complete an internship in public hospitals before registration. Accreditation of the programmes is carried out by the Caribbean Accreditation Authority for Education in Medicine and other Health Professions (CAAM-HP), an accreditor and not an exam board.

That produces a clear link between graduation and registration for locals: a UWI graduate completes the internship and registers, with no separate national exam in our data. For graduates of other schools, the Medical Board's recognition list decides the next step.

Doctors: a registration system without a named exam

This is a distinctive feature of the country. Where other markets in this group describe a council exam for foreign graduates, the Medical Board's registration page does not name one. Its requirements are about paper: a degree from a recognised school, proof of language ability if English is not your first language or medium of instruction, and documentation. The board does not accept an osteopathic degree.

That is not the same as saying nothing is tested. A hospital employer will ask for evidence of competence, and the board retains discretion over what it asks of an individual applicant. Read the board's page for the current list and write to the registrar if your school is not obviously recognised.

1. Check your school against the board's list of recognised institutions.
2. Prepare language evidence: IELTS if English was not your first language or the language of your degree.
3. Submit certified documents and your degree verification.
4. Complete any internship the board requires.
5. Apply for full registration and keep your annual practising certificate current.

Nurses and the RENR

The Nursing Council of Trinidad and Tobago registers nurses and uses the Regional Examination for Nurse Registration. It is a multiple-choice exam made of two papers of 100 to 120 items each, about 200 questions in total, each paper lasting two and a half hours. It is held in April and October and is set in partnership with CXC. The blueprint weights nursing practice at 30%, clinical decision-making at 20%, leadership and management at 15%, and professional conduct, health promotion and communication at 10% each, with professional development at 5%.

Participation varies by country, so confirm with the Nursing Council that the RENR is the route for your category. If you trained outside the region, ask whether additional documentation or a competency assessment applies. For a nurse intending to emigrate, the RENR does not replace NCLEX-RN for the United States.

Pharmacists and other professions

The Pharmacy Board of Trinidad and Tobago registers pharmacists. Our data suggests a local examination for foreign graduates but is unverified, so ask. Midwives, dentists and physiotherapists are not covered by a confirmed exam; registration is by recognised qualification, with possible local assessment for foreign graduates. UWI graduates in these fields register with the relevant board after completing their programmes.

Studying RENR content for a Caribbean case-mix

The Caribbean disease pattern drives the clinical content: hypertension, type 2 diabetes, sickle cell disease, stroke, trauma, HIV, dengue and other arboviral infections, and mental health. Practise priority-setting and delegation scenarios as well as knowledge recall, since leadership and decision-making carry 35% of the blueprint between them.

Thinking beyond Trinidad and Tobago

A large share of the people reading a page like this are not planning to stay. Caribbean-trained clinicians move across CARICOM, to the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States, and the choice of exam changes with the destination.

• Nurses to the United States: NCLEX-RN, not the RENR.
• Doctors to the United States: ECFMG certification and USMLE Steps 1, 2 CK and 3.
• Doctors to the United Kingdom: the GMC accepts some qualifications through recognised routes, and PLAB for others. See our UK pages.
• Nurses to other CARICOM states: the RENR is the common credential, plus registration with each territory's council.

Passing the right exam first saves a year. If you are unsure, tell us the destination, and we will point to the page that fits.

Exam comparison

Language and recognition

English is the official language, with Trinidadian English creole and Tobagonian speech heard in clinics. Recognition runs through the councils, with CAAM-HP accreditation easing the way for Caribbean graduates. The RENR gives nurses a shared credential across participating territories, but each territory registers you separately. Medical graduates of UWI who wish to practise in the US sit USMLE with ECFMG certification, a separate process described on our United States page.

Last reviewed October 2026