Training on the whole is very good in ARI. Much friendlier than a lot of the larger hospitals and seniors generally will get to know you and treat you well. Hours can be very variable depending on specialty but a lot of places are now very good at having a break taking culture and leaving late is not the norm. Hospital is however very understaffed which can make for very busy and often stressful shifts - not sure how this compares to other more popular areas. Overall would definitely recommend Aberdeen as a place to train but would try and get at least one rotation out of ARI as it can be very samey for a full 2 years

Did my Foundation Training here. Continuing to work here as a middle grade. General: A friendly place to work. Big enough to have practically every speciality under one roof but small enough that you get to know people after a couple of years of working here. IT: The IT infrastructure is by no means ideal. Currently transitioning towards electronic notes which are faster / more efficient. Plans to move onto electronic prescribing once this is complete which will be great. Lots of slow computers but also lots of new computers being distributed. Overall, better IT infrastructure compared to most other hospitals. Buildings / Enviornment: -The newer buildings (ie Green Zone / Medical Block) usually have decent staff room facilities and are a pleasant environment to work in. Most of the patients get single rooms etc.. The older buildings (Pink Zone / Surgery) are unpleasant 1960's concrete buildings. You can't open any windows for ventilation. Most patients are in bays. Staff rooms are generally a lot smaller and always windowless. Outside, there are green spaces to sit and have your lunch in the Foresterhill site (if there is good weather, you somehow aren't incredibly busy and you are brave enough to face the wrath of the seagulls). Parking: Parking facilities have been excellent for the last 2 years because staff can use patient parking. Ample space available in a purpose built multi-storey car park. I understand that the parking situation wasn't too bad before this but have never used it myself. Food: -There are two staff canteens, 2 NHS run coffee shops an M&S and a WHSmith. You can get hot food for breakfast and lunch from the staff canteens. Not for dinner. However, the M&S and WHSmith are open late. There are plans to increase the availability of hot food in the staff canteen into the evenings so hopefully this will materialise soon. Housing: Lots of good quality affordable housing within walking distance of the hospital. Transport Links: Lots of buses / taxis available at the main entrance of the hospital. Living in Aberdeen: Aberdeen isn't the most interesting city in the world. With that said, it does have a decent art gallery, theatre and a couple of small museums. There's plenty of shopping and cinemas etc. There are lots of nice gyms in the city and a huge beachfront if you like running. Lots of outdoor activities in Aberdeenshire which you can easily avail if you have a car. Also within close driving distance of the cairngorms / highlands if you like mountaineering. After the oil crash, property has become cheap and Aberdeen has become a very affordable city. You can have a much higher standard of living here on an NHS salary compared to the London, South East of England etc.. Foundation Programme: Quality of training varies wildly between departments. Some are excellent, most are average and a few are terrible. The FP is almost universally underwhelming throughout the UK. ARI is nothing exceptional in this regard. If you get a rotation with the right jobs, you can get good training. The main appeal to me was that many rotations don't require you to move around a lot. There are even some based entirely in ARI - you can actually live in one place for 2 years. I don't think this is possible anywhere else in the UK without spending large amounts of time commuting.