Medicine · Specialist training

General surgery — specialist training

Specialist training in general surgery (Facharzt für Allgemeinchirurgie) is 6 years (72 months) of paid hospital work after the state examination and the Approbation; it ends with an examination at the medical chamber of the Land.

Checked by StudyInFocus, october 2026

About the speciality

Specialist training in general surgery follows the medical degree. It is not university study but work on a surgical ward under experienced surgeons — from emergency care to planned operations.

It usually takes at least six years and ends with the specialist examination.

Facts

German nameFacharzt/-ärztin - Allgemeinchirurgie

LevelSpecialist training

What is studied

Common part of the surgical specialties

wound healing and scarring
local anaesthesia and pain therapy
emergency and intensive care medicine

General surgery

diagnostics: ultrasound, endoscopy, reading images
emergency interventions and acute surgery
wounds, burns, soft-tissue injuries
conservative treatment of dislocations, fractures, sprains
injuries and diseases of the hand
operations on abdominal organs and vessels — open, endoscopic, interventional
injuries and diseases of the head and neck
operations on limbs, spine, pelvis and chest
radiation protection

Common to all specialist training

ethical, scientific and legal foundations of medical practice
talking to patients, informed consent and records
life-saving measures in emergencies
laboratory diagnostics in the specialty

How it works

This is not classroom study but work as a doctor on a surgical ward: operations first under supervision, then independently, following a catalogue of procedures to be performed.

By country

What is particular about studying it in each country.

Germany

Specialist (Facharzt)72 months

Where: in hospitals authorised to train (Weiterbildungsbefugnis), university hospitals included
Status: doctor in training (Assistenzarzt) paid by the collective agreement

Checked by StudyInFocus, october 2026