Meet the Team
Exams
How are we examined?
In phase I, written exams are taken at the end of each semester (known as End of Semester Assessments (ESAs). These are weighted towards the previous semester's work, however remember that they are cumulative, so from ESA 2 onwards,you can be assessed on anything you've learned. At the end of semester 2 and phase I (semester 5 for undergrads, 3 for grads) you will have to sit an OSCE (Objective Structured Clinical Examination).
Each of the ESA's consists of two papers, the first paper will have 12 short answer questions (SAQs) and the second paper will have single best answer questions (SBAs). Each SAQ questions has 10 marks - each of which are divided into smaller sub-questions of between 1-4 marks. There is a mark a minute, so the paper lasts two hours. The pass mark for each question varies, but is usually around 7/10, you have to pass a certain percentage of these questions to acheive satisfactory. SBAs are very similar to multiple choice questions and there are 50 on the second paper.
The PPE OSCE is at the end of December and the written exams at the end of January. There are two papers with 12 SAQs and 100 SBA's, and will last two hours.
Grades range from distinction, merit, pass to unsatisfactory. If over the year your total score is unsatisfactory then you will have to sit the End of Year Exam.
End of Year Exam
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The end of year exam is basically the exam you have to pass to get into the next year of medical school. Some people gain exemption from sitting this exam by achieving satisfactory grades in the ESAs and OSCEs, however, having to sit this exam is not a failure.

The exams are in the same format as the ESAs, except they will have a more even mix of questions from each semester.
However unlike the ESA papers there are more questions in the end of year exam. In paper 1 there are 15 SAQs and for paper 2 there are 100 SBAs.
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The number of people sitting the qualifier varies from year to year, but it is usually about a third of the year group. This equates to around 60 undergrads and 20 grads.

HELP! I'm sitting the End of year exam!

Many people feel overwhelmed when they find themselves in the end of year exam, particularly after semester 2 or 4 results. Just keep in mind that you are only human and can only do so much. Think honestly about the reasons you didn't pass the ESAs and that will help you to plan a strategy for study. You may not be able to cover everything - but everyone else will be in the same boat.
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Try not to panic - just do what you can, whilst making sure you take the time to look after yourself as well. If it all seems really depressing, try to hold on to the thought that any extra work you do now will give you a head start when it comes to revising for the Phase 1 exam later on - therefore nothing is "wasted".
I've never had to resit before. How do I explain this to my parents?
Get them to have a look at this website! The first thing is that the 1st and 2nd end of year exams are not technically resits - they are the official end-of-year exams for years 1 and 2, although you can be exempted from them if you do well enough in the ESAs.If you haven't done well enough to be exempted from the end of year exam, it doesn't mean you are a failing student. People end up sitting the end of year exam for all sorts of reasons. Some people simply haven't worked hard enough; others may have worked really hard, but not covered the material in the right way, or misunderstood things. Some people may have been ill or had personal problems during term time, revision time or exam time. Others may just have been unlucky with the particular questions that came up in the end-of-semester assessments.
What happens next?

If you pass the end of year exam:​
You will continue into the next year of medical school as normal.

If you fail the end of year exam:
Unfortunately, you have then failed the year and are not allowed to progress to the next academic year. Some people who have mitigating circumstances go through the appeals process, and are allowed to resit the year. If you choose not to appeal, or your appeal fails, you will not be allowed to resit the year. The appeals process can be complex - seek specialist advice from the university. Visit our appeals page for more information.

How many people pass/fail at the different stages?

We are currently trying to get hold of the latest figures.
How can Medics' Welfare help me?
We are able to put you in touch with people who have sat the end of year exam in previous years, if you want to find out how they coped and what it was like. You can contact us to get details of our QualiHelp scheme that is run in conjunction with LUSUMA and Insight.
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Come and find us on results day, send an email or facebook message. If you have any particular academic difficulties, we should be able to set you up with a student tutor. We are also, of course, available just to talk to and help get things in perspective.