Checked 1 November 2026. Stage descriptions are the NHS GMTS wording for the 2027-entry round (applications closed 28 October 2026). The NHS may change the assessment for 2028 entry; follow the instructions and deadlines the Scheme gives you. Read on 1 Nov 2026.
The NHS GMTS Future Potential Assessment is Stage 1 of the NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme selection process: an online assessment that takes about 45 minutes but is not time-limited, with a chance to practise each question type before you start, and a feedback report for every candidate at the end. It comes straight after the registration and application form, and if you are successful you are invited to Stage 2, the NHS GMTS Alignment Assessment.
The NHS says its process is built to assess your strengths, not your degree subject, university or work experience, and that the Future Potential Assessment will help you learn more about the work you would do on the Scheme. This guide sets out everything the NHS has published about Stage 1, what it has not published, how the feedback report fits in, how to prepare around the NHS values, and four free practice questions you can try now.
ProSyllabus is an independent study site. It is not part of the NHS, NHS England or the NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme, and our practice questions are independent practice, not made or endorsed by the NHS.
NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme: Apply, About and home pages.
Key facts: the Future Potential Assessment
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Official name | Stage 1 Future Potential Assessment (online) |
| Scheme | NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme (GMTS), part of the NHS College of Leadership and Management |
| When | After the registration and application form; the earlier you apply, the more time you have for your assessments |
| Length | Approximately 45 minutes, but not time-limited |
| Before you start | A chance to practise each question type |
| Purpose (NHS wording) | To help you learn more about the work you would be doing on the Scheme; the process assesses your strengths and potential |
| Result | Successful candidates are invited to Stage 2; every candidate receives a feedback report |
| Preparation from the NHS | Hints and tips videos and practice tests similar to the real assessments, in your candidate account |
| 2027-entry round | Applications closed at 11.30am on 28 October 2026 |
| Official site | graduates.nhs.uk (Apply page) |
Where Stage 1 sits in the whole process
The NHS lists the 2027-entry process in this order. The Future Potential Assessment is Stage 1, straight after registration and the application form, and every later stage depends on passing it.
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| Registration and application form | You register, apply and choose your specialism and location preferences |
| Stage 1 Future Potential Assessment | Online, about 45 minutes, not time-limited, practice first, feedback report for all |
| Stage 2 NHS GMTS Alignment Assessment | Online, about 60 minutes, includes video responses; only the video questions are timed; the team reviews all video responses manually, without artificial intelligence |
| Stage 3 Virtual Assessment Centre (VAC) | Half a day of exercises with the NHS team and other candidates; for 2027 entry, January to February 2027 |
| VAC outcome | An immediate offer, the reserve list, or unsuccessful |
| Allocation, offer and onboarding | Matching to placements using assessment scores and preferences; pre-employment checks; start on the first Monday of September |
Stage 2 can be taken as soon as you are told you passed Stage 1. Our NHS GMTS video interview guide covers the Alignment Assessment, and our Virtual Assessment Centre guide covers Stage 3.
What the NHS has published about the format, and what it has not
Many pages online print a detailed breakdown of the GMTS online tests. The official site does not. As of 1 November 2026, the NHS GMTS Apply page describes Stage 1 only in the terms below. The public NHS pages give no more detailed breakdown: the official practice materials in your candidate account are where you see the question types, and the format can change from one round to the next.
| Published by the NHS | Not published by the NHS |
|---|---|
| About 45 minutes; not time-limited | The number of questions or sections |
| You can practise each question type before you start | Which question types are used |
| It helps you learn about the work on the Scheme | How answers are scored |
| Every candidate gets a feedback report | A pass mark or the share of candidates who pass |
| Practice tests and hints and tips videos are in your account | Whether the format is the same for 2028 entry |
Two things follow. First, the practice questions the NHS puts in your account are the closest guide to the real question types, so do them. Second, because the Scheme emphasises strengths, values, motivation and potential (not your degree subject, university or work experience), we suggest preparing by learning the NHS values and the work trainees do.
The NHS values: the lens for Stage 1 preparation
The Scheme's About page asks applicants to consider the principles and values that will become core to their role as a trainee, and points to the NHS Constitution for England. The Constitution sets out six NHS values. A practice scenario built on these values asks what a good trainee would do; it is the reasoning we use in our own questions.
| Value | In the Constitution's words (summary) |
|---|---|
| Working together for patients | Patients come first; involve patients, staff, families and carers; put needs before organisational boundaries; speak up when things go wrong |
| Respect and dignity | Value every person as an individual; take what others say seriously; be honest and open about what you can and cannot do |
| Commitment to quality of care | Get the basics of quality (safety, effectiveness, patient experience) right every time; welcome feedback and use it to improve |
| Compassion | Respond with humanity and kindness; do the things, however small, that give comfort; do not wait to be asked |
| Improving lives | Improve health, wellbeing and people's experience of the NHS; value excellence in everyday things as well as innovation |
| Everyone counts | Use resources for the whole community; nobody excluded or left behind; accept that difficult decisions have to be taken and that waste costs others |
The values pull against each other in real management work: "everyone counts" says waste costs other people, while "compassion" says do not wait to be asked. Good scenario answers usually respect more than one value at once, for example raising a safety concern quickly (quality of care, speaking up) while keeping the people involved informed (respect and dignity).
Try four practice questions free
These four questions play in our test player. They are our own NHS-values scenario questions, written for practice, not NHS questions. Press Start, answer them, and the result page shows each answer with its reason.
FreeTests: Working together for patients · Respect and dignity · Commitment to quality of care · Compassion
NHS GMTS Future Potential Assessment Practice: free sample
Answer 4 questions against the clock, like the real exam. You then see the right answer, the reason and your time on each. About 5 minutes · free · no sign-in.
4 questions to answer
Start nowThis one is free · no sign-in needed
Your result shows how long each question took you.
The Stage 1 feedback report
The NHS says all candidates receive a feedback report when they complete Stage 1, whether or not they go through, and it gives feedback reports after Stage 2 and the VAC too. The Scheme does not publish what the Stage 1 report contains, so read your own report closely when it arrives. Read it closely and use any development feedback in it to guide your preparation, either for Stage 2 or for a future application.
Three worked examples
Example 1: planning your Stage 1 time when you apply late
- The NHS says the earlier you apply, the more time you have to complete your assessments, and in the round whose VACs ran in January and February 2025 it set firm deadlines: Stage 1 by 10 November at 23:59 and Stage 2 by 20 November at 23:59.
- With deadlines like those, a candidate who applies close to the closing date may have only days for Stage 1, then needs to wait for the result before starting Stage 2.
- Plan for about 45 minutes of focused time for Stage 1, plus time first for the practice questions and the equipment and connection check. We suggest booking one quiet slot, and following the assessment's own instructions about breaks.
Deadlines from the earlier round's official Apply page; follow the deadlines the Scheme gives for your round.
Example 2: turning one experience into evidence of the NHS values
- Pick a real experience: say, a part-time job where a customer complaint showed a process was confusing.
- Ask which values it shows. Listening to the complaint and taking it seriously is respect and dignity. Telling your manager and suggesting a clearer process is commitment to quality of care, because feedback was used to improve.
- Write it down in two lines. Doing this for five or six experiences before Stage 1 means you already think in the language the Scheme uses, and the same notes serve you again in the Stage 2 video answers.
Values from the NHS Constitution for England; the method is our suggestion.
Example 3: what to do with your feedback report
- Suppose your report says you are strong at planning but less so at weighing the needs of different groups.
- If you passed: use it before Stage 2. Prepare video examples that show you balancing patients, staff and cost, which links to the "everyone counts" value.
- If you did not pass: keep the report. The next round opens with a new application, so the report becomes your practice plan for the months before then.
An illustration of using a report; the NHS does not publish the Stage 1 report's headings.
Who can take the Future Potential Assessment
You reach Stage 1 by applying, and to apply you must meet the entry requirements. For General Management, Human Resources, Finance and Digital - Health Informatics that is a 2:2 degree in any subject, a postgraduate qualification, or an accepted health or management equivalent. Engineering & Estates Management needs a 2:2 in mechanical, electrical or building services engineering accredited by the Engineering Council, and an MEng holder is not eligible for that pathway. Everyone needs the right to work in the UK for the whole Scheme, and there is no age limit.
Final-year students can apply if they will have their confirmed degree classification (minimum 2:2) by mid-August of the entry year. NHS employees apply through the same process at every stage, with the same entry requirements. For pay, specialisms and how competitive the Scheme is, see our NHS graduate scheme salary guide.
If you need reasonable adjustments, tell the Scheme when you apply. It says you only need to give enough information to confirm the adjustments, and that all assessors are trained to recognise and avoid unconscious bias.
How to prepare for Stage 1: a checklist
Stage 1 readiness checklist
Tick each step as you do it. This checklist combines the official NHS preparation guidance with our own suggestions.
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Common mistakes
- Trusting a breakdown of "the GMTS online tests" from a site that is not the NHS. The NHS does not publish the Stage 1 question types.
- Skipping the practice questions at the start, which the NHS offers for each question type.
- Leaving the application until the last days of the window, which leaves little time for Stage 1 and Stage 2.
- Not planning the time. The assessment is not time-limited, but we suggest one uninterrupted sitting of about 45 minutes plus a margin; follow the assessment's own instructions about breaks.
- Answering as you think an ideal candidate would, rather than as yourself. The Scheme encourages candidates to be themselves.
- Ignoring the feedback report. Every candidate gets one, and its development feedback is worth using.
2028 entry: when to come back
Applications for 2027 entry closed at 11.30am on 28 October 2026. The NHS has not yet announced dates for 2028 entry. In earlier rounds applications opened in the autumn: the Scheme's interest form said applications for September 2026 entry would open towards the end of September 2025. For an alert when the next round opens, check the Scheme's site for its register your interest form: for September 2026 entry it promised to get in touch when it was time to apply. Meanwhile, start practising NHS-values scenarios so Stage 1 is not the first time you think in those terms.
Practise NHS-values scenarios before the 2028 window opens
The four free questions above are the start of our NHS GMTS Future Potential Assessment Practice: scenario sets built around the six NHS values in the NHS Constitution, every answer explained, and one full run of about 45 minutes that ends in a feedback-style report, so you can see your strengths and gaps before the real Stage 1.
See the NHS GMTS Future Potential Assessment Practice. Independent practice, written by us; not made or endorsed by the NHS.
Frequently asked questions
What is the NHS GMTS Future Potential Assessment?
It is Stage 1 of the NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme selection process: an online assessment of about 45 minutes, not time-limited, taken after the application form. You can practise each question type before you start, and every candidate gets a feedback report.
How long is the NHS Future Potential Assessment?
The NHS says it takes approximately 45 minutes but is not time-limited.
What questions are in the Future Potential Assessment?
The NHS does not publish the question types, number of questions or scoring. It says you can practise each question type before you start, and that practice tests similar to the real assessments appear in your candidate account.
Is the NHS GMTS online assessment timed?
Stage 1, the Future Potential Assessment, is not time-limited. In Stage 2, the Alignment Assessment, only the video-based questions are timed.
What is the pass mark for the NHS GMTS Stage 1?
The NHS does not publish a pass mark. Successful candidates are invited to Stage 2, and all candidates receive a feedback report.
Do I get feedback if I fail the Future Potential Assessment?
Yes. The NHS says all candidates receive a feedback report on completing Stage 1.
How can I practise for the NHS GMTS Future Potential Assessment?
Use the NHS practice tests and hints and tips videos in your candidate account, learn the six NHS values in the NHS Constitution, and practise reasoning through workplace scenarios with explanations, such as the four free questions on this page.
What comes after the Future Potential Assessment?
Stage 2, the NHS GMTS Alignment Assessment: about 60 minutes online with video responses, where only the video questions are timed. Then Stage 3, a half-day Virtual Assessment Centre.
When do NHS GMTS applications open for 2028 entry?
The NHS had not announced 2028 dates as of 1 November 2026. Applications for 2027 entry closed on 28 October 2026. For earlier rounds the Scheme ran a register-your-interest form that promised to get in touch when applications opened; check its site for the 2028 version.
Sources
- official — NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme: Apply, recruitment process for 2027 entry (Stage 1 Future Potential Assessment, Stage 2, VAC, outcomes, preparation materials; read 1 Nov 2026)
- official — NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme: Entry requirements (2:2 or equivalent, EEM degrees, right to work, eligibility FAQs)
- official — NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme: home page (specialisms, pay and benefits)
- official — NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme: About (NHS values, around 250 trainees for September 2027)
- official — NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme: NHS employees (same process at every stage)
- official — NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme: Register your interest (official form, emails when applications open)
- official — NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme: Apply page for the earlier round with VACs in January to February 2025 (Wayback Machine capture, 19 May 2025): Stage 1 and Stage 2 deadlines
- official — GOV.UK: The NHS Constitution for England, section "NHS values" (updated 17 August 2023)
official = a document published by the conducting body. reported = a news or coaching site we could not check against an original. Where sources disagree this page says so rather than picking one.
