Post by Deborah Udy Okusaga Akanne (@deborah_udy_okusaga)

You Got The Job Offer. Now Every Decision You Make In The Next 72 Hours Defines The Next Five Years Of Your NHS Career.

Most overseas healthcare professionals spend months preparing for the NHS interview.

Very few spend any time preparing for what happens after the offer.

And in those first 72 hours — between "we'd like to offer you the post" and "I accept" — are decisions that will shape your NHS career for the next five years.

Here is what you need to do in those 72 hours — and what most people do not.

Do not accept verbally without written confirmation. An offer is not an offer until it is in writing. Confirm that the written offer will include the band, the starting salary, the contract type (substantive, fixed-term, or locum), the site, the start date, and the sponsorship confirmation if you require a CoS.

Clarify your banding before you sign. Ask your line manager or the HR lead: "Has my overseas post-qualification experience been assessed for AfC pay point?" If the answer is no — or they do not know — ask them to put this in writing and request the process before you sign the contract.

Clarify your educational supervision arrangement. If you are pursuing CESR or you need to complete Return to Practice requirements, or if you need specific CPD support for your registration, confirm in writing who your named supervisor will be before your start date. Not after.

Ask the visa question explicitly. "Has a Certificate of Sponsorship been allocated for this post?" The offer may be conditional on visa checks. The CoS assignment can take days or weeks depending on the Trust's HR infrastructure. Understanding the timeline affects when you can realistically start — and what your visa application timeline looks like.

Do not resign from your current position until the CoS reference number is in your hand. This is the single most important piece of timing advice I can give any overseas healthcare professional. The CoS is the trigger for your visa application. Until you have it, you have a verbal offer — not a confirmed position.

These are not complicated steps. They are the steps that the candidates who build strong NHS careers from day one take — and that the candidates who spend their first year renegotiating take later, from a weaker position.

DM me "OFFER" and I will send you the full NHS job offer checklist specific to your profession and your visa route.

Tomorrow is Day 4 — and we go into the territory no other coach covers. The thing that is deciding your interview score in the room before you walk in.

#NHSJobOffer #healthandcarevisa #CertificateOfSponsorship #NHSNurse #IMGDoctor #PhysiotherapistUK #AHPsUK #HCAs #NHSRecruitment2026 #AgendaForChange #NHSBand5 #NHSBand6 #NHSJobs2026 #CESR #GMCRegistered #NMCRegistration #HCPCRegistered #SovereignHealthcareAdvisoryGroup #InternationalHealthcareWorkers #UKHealthcareJobs

You Got The Job Offer. Now Every Decision You Make In The Next 72 Hours Defines The Next Five Years...

0 likes · 0 comments · 0 shares