ABSTRACT
This chapter proposes an application of the assessment centre method at a higher level of analysis. In order to define and illustrate the complexity of an industry-wide collaborative assessment centres (AC) programme, foreshadow a case involving the placement of medical doctors into specialty training positions in England and Wales. In England and Wales, hospitals are state-owned and regulated by the National Health Service (NHS). However, the training and licensing of doctors is governed by the General Medical Council (GMC), a state-mandated independent professional body charged with the development and enforcement of professional standards. In defining industry-wide collaborative AC programmes, the chapter provides the example of England and Wales' process for placing medical school graduates into specialty training programmes. To maintain the integrity and security of the programme over time, the chapter recommend that large-scale, industry-wide assessment programmes place systematic effort into creating multiple, parallel versions of all assessments used in the programme.
