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Career path · Medicine

Becoming a PU-PH in medicine

From residency to PU-PH: clinical fellowship, master's and PhD, HDR, mobility, competitive examination. And at each step, what AI can take on.

Read this first. This page summarises the national framework (decree no. 2021-1645 of 13 December 2021, as amended). The concrete expectations (number of publications, content of the mobility period, PhD before MCU-PH) vary by CNU subsection and by faculty (UFR). Always check the texts in force on Légifrance and your subsection’s recommendations. Points marked (to be verified) could not be checked against the full text.

Timeline of the academic hospital career path

Figure. The eight steps and what AI contributes to each.

The triple mission

Teaching and hospital staff in CHUs (university hospitals) jointly perform university and hospital duties (Code de l’éducation, art. L952-21), full-time, and devote all of their professional activity to patient care, teaching and research (decree 2021-1645). This triple role is what the triptych on this site is organised around.

The steps

  1. Residency (DES)

    The DES (specialty training diploma, residency) is the time to choose a research theme and a mentor early. The DES dissertation and the MD thesis are the first publishable works.

    With AI: literature watch, literature review, organising your files from the outset.

  2. Master 2 (research)

    Often completed during residency (research year) or the clinical fellowship. It is the minimum level required for the type 1 MCU-PH competitive examination.

    With AI: research question, protocol, analysis plan, database.

  3. Academic hospital fellowship (CCU-AH or AHU)

    CCU-AH (academic clinical fellow, in clinical disciplines) or AHU (academic hospital assistant, in biological and mixed disciplines). Appointment for 2 years, renewable twice for one year (4 years maximum). First teaching and supervision responsibilities.

    With AI: staff meeting talk, clinical cases, lectures and MCQs, triaging your email.

  4. PhD (doctorate in science)

    A requirement for the type 2 MCU-PH competitive examination, and in practice expected by most subsections before MCU-PH (practice varies by subsection).

    With AI: manuscript review, conference presentation, career file kept up to date from now on.

  5. MCU-PH

    MCU-PH (associate professor and hospital practitioner). National competitive examination by discipline, for posts published in the Journal officiel (vacancy notices; applications via the Galaxie platform). Type 1: at least one year as an academic hospital fellow (or equivalent) and a master’s degree (article to be verified). Appointed as a probationer for one year, then tenured.

    With AI: career file, supervising a thesis, Reactor so you never miss a deadline.

  6. HDR

    HDR (habilitation to supervise research; order of 23 November 1988): open to holders of a doctorate, or of a medical doctor’s degree together with a research master’s or equivalent. Local requirements (publications, co-supervisions) depend on the university.

    With AI: summary of your work, list of supervisions, review of the dissertation.

  7. Mobility

    Mandatory for PU-PH: at least one year, full-time, outside the home CHU, in France or abroad, which can be split into periods of at least three months (order of 29 December 2021 as amended). Scientific expectations vary by subsection.

    With AI: remote organisation, routines that keep up the follow-up of students and manuscripts during your absence.

  8. PU-PH

    PU-PH (full professor and hospital practitioner, the French full academic-clinical professor). Type 1 competitive examination: at least two years in post (MCU-PH, CCU-AH, AHU, PHU…), HDR and mobility (articles to be verified). The post must first be created through the revision of academic hospital staffing, prepared locally (dean, CHU management, CME – medical committee of the institution) several years in advance.

    With AI: skills and hats to keep up all three roles, activity report, organising a DIU.

Evaluation throughout the career

  • Health CNU (National Council of Universities, health sections): gives its opinion on recruitment and career progression (decree no. 87-31 of 20 January 1987). Medicine covers sections 42 to 55.
  • PEDR (doctoral supervision and research bonus): awarded after evaluation by the CNU.
  • HCERES (the French High Council for the Evaluation of Research and Higher Education): five-yearly evaluation of research units, programmes and institutions.
  • SIGAPS / SIGREC (publication and clinical trial tracking systems): record publications and trials, which feeds into the research funding of institutions.

Sources

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