Medical Internship Placement and KMPDC Licensing in Kenya

KMPDC's role in internship placement

The Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) oversees internship placement for every medical and dental graduate who wants to practice in Kenya, whether you trained locally or in another East African country. Completing this internship year is not optional, it is the step between graduating with your MBChB and becoming a fully registered doctor able to practice on your own. KMPDC works with the Ministry of Health and county governments to allocate a fixed number of internship slots across national and county hospitals each cycle.

How the balloting process works

KMPDC assigns interns through an online balloting exercise rather than letting graduates choose their preferred hospital directly. You register on the council's system, confirm your eligibility, and the balloting process then matches you to an accredited hospital, which can be anywhere in the country depending on where slots open up that cycle. For the 2025/2026 internship cohort, the Ministry of Health posted 6,484 healthcare interns in total, of which 1,147 were medical officer interns, alongside dental, pharmacy, nursing, and other clinical cadres balloted in the same exercise, according to Ministry of Health figures reported by Kenyans.co.ke . Because posting locations are assigned rather than chosen, be ready to relocate for your internship year, and confirm your reporting hospital and date as soon as results are released.

What you earn as an intern

Medical interns in Kenya are placed on job group L under the pay structure agreed between the Ministry of Health, county governments, and the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU). The basic salary is about KSh 46,120 a month, but total take-home pay rises substantially once allowances are added: housing, hardship, a universal commuter allowance, emergency call allowance, and overtime. Combined, these bring total monthly pay to approximately KSh 208,000, according to the Ministry of Health's July 2025 clarification on intern posting letters, though the exact amount varies with allowances such as hardship that depend on your posting. Payment delays have caused disputes between KMPDU and county or national government employers in past cycles, so budget for possible gaps between your posting date and your first full payment, and keep records of your posting letter and pay structure documentation.

From internship to full registration

During your internship year you rotate through core clinical departments at your assigned hospital under supervision, building the practical experience KMPDC requires before granting full registration. Once you complete the year and your hospital confirms your rotations and performance, you apply to KMPDC for full registration as a medical practitioner. Full registration removes the internship-level restrictions and lets you practice independently, apply for permanent hospital positions, or pursue postgraduate specialty training. Keep your internship completion certificate and all supervisor assessments, KMPDC requires this documentation as part of your registration file.

Preparing before the balloting exercise opens

Register your details with KMPDC as soon as you graduate and receive your provisional registration, rather than waiting for the balloting window to open. Keep your degree certificate, transcripts, provisional registration certificate, national identification, and passport photographs ready in the format KMPDC's portal requests, since incomplete files can hold up your entry into that cycle's balloting pool. Graduates from recognized East African medical schools outside Kenya go through the same registration and balloting steps as local graduates, so confirm your school's recognition status with KMPDC well before you plan to apply.

If your posting takes you far from home

Balloting can post you to a county far from where you studied or grew up, and you should plan for relocation costs, housing, and transport as part of your internship budget rather than assuming a convenient posting. Reach out to the hospital's human resources or medical superintendent's office as soon as you receive your posting letter to confirm reporting dates, accommodation availability, and any onboarding requirements. Interns keep logbooks of procedures and rotations through the year, and your hospital's medical superintendent signs off on these records, so keep them updated throughout rather than reconstructing them near the end of your internship.

What the internship year covers

Like most internship structures, your year rotates through core clinical departments, typically internal medicine, surgery, paediatrics, and obstetrics and gynaecology, with each rotation assessed separately by your supervising consultants at the hospital. You work as part of a clinical team, clerk patients, assist in procedures and deliveries, and take calls, building the hands-on competence KMPDC expects before it grants full registration. National and county referral hospitals carry heavier patient loads and broader case exposure than smaller county hospitals, so ask about caseload and supervision levels if you get a choice of preference within the balloting system.