Curriculum redesign

The RANZCP is undertaking a landmark revision of its curriculum framework — the first major overhaul in approximately 15 years. This comprehensive redevelopment will future-proof psychiatric training in Australia and New Zealand, ensuring that psychiatrists are well-prepared to meet the evolving challenges of mental health care. It forms a vital part of a suite of educational reforms that are essential to maintaining high standards of psychiatric training, ensuring alignment with contemporary mental health needs, and meeting accreditation requirements set by the Australian Medical Council.

Why is the curriculum being updated?

The current curriculum framework, while comprehensive, has faced challenges in usability, duplication of information, and gaps in key competency areas. In response, the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) was engaged to work with the RANZCP to conduct a review of the curriculum in 2023 and 2024, identifying key areas for improvement.  

The new framework is designed to: 

• Improve clarity and cohesion by consolidating curriculum documents into a single, structured format. 
• Ensure relevance to modern psychiatric practice, incorporating emerging best practices, addressing the needs of those with lived experience, and aligning with competency-based medical education principles.
• Address accreditation conditions related to curriculum structure, cultural safety, and assessment methods. 
• Enhance accessibility for trainees and supervisors, making it easier to navigate and implement in clinical training. 

Curriculum framework redesign overview - video

In the following video, Dr Anthony Llewellyn, RANZCP's Medical Education Specialist explains the need for the curriculum redesign, what's taken place so far and next steps.

Have your say

Both members of the College as well as the community are now invited to have their say on the draft curriculum framework.

• Complete RANZCP member survey
• Complete external community survey

The Education Team will also be directly contacting several community organisations to request their feedback.

Consultation period will end 31 July 2025.

Refining the framework: a collaborative approach 

Since mid-2024, ACER has worked closely with the RANZCP, engaging College Fellows and key stakeholders to refine the curriculum framework. 

This work has focused on: 

• Revising graduate outcomes – ensuring they align with the CanMEDS 2015 Physician Competency Framework while adapting them to psychiatry.
• Redesigning the syllabus structure – streamlining content and removing duplication.
• Enhancing cultural safety training – introducing a new Cultural Safety role to strengthen the College’s commitment to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and Māori mental health.

The redevelopment has drawn on best practices from other medical colleges, including the Royal College of Psychiatrists (UK), the Australasian College of Dermatologists, and the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine, ensuring that the new framework meets international and national standards.

• Read ACER's summary of the RANZCP curriculum redevelopment process [PDF; 217KB]

Key innovations

Key innovations in the new curriculum framework will include: 

Next steps

Next steps include: 

• Gathering and collating feedback from members and the community about new draft program and graduate outcomes.