Retention rates of first time HCPC international registrants 2013 to 2018

How long do new international route registrants stay registered for? An analysis of first-time HCPC registrations: 2013 to 2018

This report examines the retention rate for HCPC registrants who joined our Register via the international registration route.

The international registration route is for professionals who trained and qualified outside of the UK. It sits alongside the 2023 HCPC report on the retention rates for HCPC registrants who joined the HCPC Register via the UK registration route (those who completed HCPC approved education programmes in the UK).

The analyses are based on data for all international route registrants (inclusive of European Mutual Recognition (EMR) registration route) joining the HCPC Register for the first time between 2013 and 2018. These individuals were followed up until the end of 2022 to allow for a four year retention rate to be estimated for all 15 profession that the HCPC regulates. This is the same time period used in the UK registration route report.

The time spent on the HCPC Register was analysed by profession, with subgroup analyses by country income group alone and a combination of age, sex and country income group.

Country income groups were as per World Bank classification in 2015 and enabled a logical grouping of countries which exhibited broadly similar retention rates. This report contains some profession level details. The profession and modality specific factsheets should be consulted for more detailed insights for each profession.

The findings of this work have particularly important implications for workforce planners, in particular:

34.2% (equivalent to just over 1 in 3) of all new international registrants left the HCPC Register within four years of joining.
Retention rates varied considerably between professions.
Retention rates varied considerably within professions, depending on the age, sex and country income group of registrants.
Registrants from low and middle income countries (LMIC) had the highest retention rates. Registrants from high income countries (HIC) outside of Europe had the lowest retention rates. Registrants from HIC within Europe had medium to high retention rates.
Younger registrants had lower retention rates than older registrants.
Female registrants had lower retention rates than male registrants.
The biggest single group of international route registrants were younger females, and almost half of the total were aged under 30. Our analysis has shown that females and younger registrants had lower retention rates.

These findings may be of particular interest to workforce planners, seeking to fill shortfalls in the UK workforce with people who trained and qualified outside of the UK.