ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) has started registering candidates for the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT).

Apart from Rs6,000 registration fee, the PMC will also charge from the candidates for practice tests.

However, an official of PMC said that the fee of the practice exam would be nominal and has been introduced to provide environment of exam to the candidates.

A candidate, requesting not to be quoted, said that on Saturday when he was registering himself through online portal he was shocked to see that one online practice test was free while rest could be attempted by paying fee for each test.

“It was not easy for me to arrange Rs6,000 registration fee but now I have no choice but to arrange more money for practice tests,” he said.

However an official of PMC said that the fee for practice test would be nominal and the aim was to provide environment of exam to the candidates.

“Candidates should not get panic over it as it is being done for their benefits and will be held through same software which will be used in the final exam. Similar practice exams are offered in Graduate Record Examinations (GRE). Moreover, practice tests will not guarantee that same questions will be included in the final exam,” he said.

However, a faculty member, wishing not to be quoted, said GRE was a business exam rather than medical exam. In the US, MCAT was held and it does not offer paid practice tests.

“Tests will be held topic wise and there can not be many questions in each topic such as genetics. So those who will solve a number of practice tests will more likely get good marks in MDCAT,” he said.

The PMC has already announced that candidates will not be able to challenge any question and they will not have right of rechecking.

Published in Dawn, July 18th, 2021