ISLAMABAD: After receiving complaints from students who sat the Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test (MDCAT) on Sunday, the Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) on Tuesday directed all public sector universities to recheck their question papers and in case of any discrepancy compensate the students at the earliest.

The directions were issued by PMC President Prof Dr Noushad Ahmed Sheikh at a post-MDCAT meeting. Representatives of all stakeholders and the examination department of the PMC attended the meeting.

The PMC president directed the vice chancellors of all public universities to recheck their question papers.

It was learnt that 8 per cent of the students remained absent from the test without intimation; therefore, the commission decided that their fee shall not be refunded.

It may be noted that for the first time in the history of Pakistan, the medical colleges’ entry test was held in one day at national and international venues. The result of the exam will be uploaded on PMC website after a week so students can apply for admission.

On Monday, Federal Minister for Health Abdul Qadir Patel said that it was one of the biggest achievements of the health ministry and the PMC that MDCAT was held in a single day and over 200,000 candidates appeared in it.

“I would say that the new govt has ensured that the exam would be held transparently and no one would be able to pinpoint any flaw or use of unfair means in it,” he said.

The three-and-a-half-hour test was held on November 13 and consisted of 200 multiple choice questions (MCQs) from five subjects - Biology, Chemistry, Physics, English and logical reasoning. This year, the pass mark is 55pc for medical colleges (MBBS degree) and 45pc for dental colleges (BDS degree).

A key to the answers was uploaded on the PMC’s website the same day to help candidates compare their answers with the correct ones and get an idea about what lies ahead. The results will remain valid for two years, though a candidate can appear next year and the better result will be considered for admission.

The military-run National University of Medical Sciences (Nums) had already conducted its entry test last month in which around 74,000 students participated.

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2022