Candidate FAQs

• July 2026– June 2027: Final year of current (legacy) formats.
• July 2027– June 2028: Transition year – some legacy exams will remain available for Primary FRCA OSCE and SOE / FFICM OSCE and SOE where candidates have previously secured a partial pass in the existing format. All first-time candidates will sit exams in the new format from this date.
• From July 2028: All candidates will sit the new exam formats from this date forward.

During 2027–2028, legacy OSCE/SOE components will continue to be delivered but will be available only to candidates with a valid partial pass. 

Candidates who currently hold a valid partial pass in OSCE or SOE:

• May complete the outstanding legacy component
• Must pass by the final transition sittings in June 2028
• After July 2028, partial passes will not carry forward

Example:
A candidate who has passed the SOE but failed the OSCE (and therefore failed overall) will be eligible to complete the remaining component during the 2027–2028 academic year. 

All other candidates will sit the new exam formats from July 2027 onward.

Only if you have a valid partial pass in a legacy Primary OSCE or SOE component. No new entries into legacy formats will be accepted. 

All other candidates will sit the new examination formats from July 2027. 

• Primary FRCA OSCE/SOE becomes Primary FRCA Clinical Anaesthetic Sciences Examination (CASE)
• Final FRCA SOE becomes Final FRCA Clinical Performance Examination (FCPE)
• Written MCQ exams become Applied Knowledge Test (AKT).

Your next steps depend on your result and the exam you're sitting. We've created decision trees to help you understand your options:

• Primary FRCA OSCE/SOE Decision Tree (PDF)
• Final FRCA SOE Decision Tree (PDF)

These diagrams show whether you’ll follow a legacy route, resit components, or transition to the new exam formats in 2027–2028.

From July 2027, you will need to sit the new clinical oral exam formats if you: 

• Hold a valid pass in the relevant MCQ component, and
  • have not yet sat a clinical oral component, or
  • have failed all parts of the relevant clinical oral component(s).

If you hold a valid pass in the Primary FRCA OSCE or SOE and would like to sit the clinical components during academic year 2027 - 2028 you will be able to choose to sit either the legacy or new exam format.

Exam formats and combinations are considered equivalent.

Candidates will not be disadvantaged because of format change. 

Yes. If you hold a partial pass in a legacy Primary OSCE or SOE component and would like to sit the remaining clinical component during the transition year (2027/28), you can choose either the legacy or new format.

You will need to sit the new format. Legacy exams will no longer be available after 30 June 2028.

Moving from three to two Primary FRCA written diets per year supports consistent exam quality, robust question development and appropriate spacing between sittings, helping candidates prepare effectively rather than feeling pressured into rapid resits.

This change sits alongside a revised examination calendar, which has been designed to make clear which clinical examination diets are available following each written sitting. Candidates who pass the written component will continue to have 3 opportunities to sit the clinical component, within the academic year (eligibility criteria still apply).

While fewer written diets historically raised concerns about progression, this risk is mitigated by the current three-year Core Training structure and by clearer alignment between written and clinical sittings. Together, these changes are intended to support candidate planning, progression and a positive examination experience without creating bottlenecks.

Written components are valid for 3 years from the point of passing. Candidates who wish to wait to sit the new examination format should contact us if the validity of their written exam expires during this time. We will extend the validity by one year on request.

Introductory videos from our Exam Development Leads on the new formats. 

Mapped options and eligibility to support decision-making

A new Resources Hub containing:

• AKT sample questions and explanations
• Question format example videos
• Marking domain descriptors
• Performance expectations

Throughout 2026-27 there will also be webinars and Q&A sessions provided on the changes to the new exams.

Yes. The new formats are considered as valid and reliable as the legacy exams. Neither the standard of the assessments nor their purpose within the training programme has changed. There is no change to the curriculum or the range of what is being assessed across the entire FRCA examination.

Attempts at the new exam will be classed as your first attempt regardless of previous sittings. 

For example, if you failed the Primary OSCE SOE on your fifth attempt in AY 26-27, taking Primary FRCA CASE will be classed as your first attempt, not your sixth. 

The maximum of six attempts at a component remains unchanged. If you've failed an exam six times, you are no longer eligible to sit further exams. 

If you’re unable to sit exams due to health, maternity, or other personal reasons, you’ll transition to the new format when you return. The transition period has a fixed cut-off date of June 2028. There will be no extensions beyond this date to ensure fairness and consistency for all candidates as the new exam formats are introduced.

Examinations fees will change in line with the new formats and the usual processes to review fees for each academic year. No profit is made from examinations, and further information can be found in our Cost of Training guide.

Candidates will be prioritised according to published application prioritisation policies.

There is no change to the refund policy which is a full refund (minus £45 admin fee) if withdrawing ≥ 7 working days before the exam.

As long as the pass in the old Primary is still valid (within 7 years of passing), candidates will be able to sit the new Final exam. There is no change to the validity rule with the launch of the new exam. This means that a pass in Primary is still valid for 7 years and a pass in the Primary and Final written exams (MCQ, CRQ, AKT) is still valid for 3 years. 

Candidates who would prefer to wait to sit the new examination but require the validity of their pass component to be extended, should contact exams@rcoa.ac.uk.  

Borderline Regression Method will be used to derive the pass mark for the clinical performance exams. 

This is a candidate‑centred approach to setting the pass mark. It involves plotting candidates’ key feature and domain scores against global rating scale scores and applying a regression line. The pass mark is then determined at the point where the regression line intersects with the “borderline” global rating.

The global rating scale does not contribute to a candidate’s score for the station; rather, it serves as a standard‑setting tool that draws on examiner judgement. Examiners use their experience to assess how a candidate’s overall performance aligns with what would be expected to pass or fail the station. To support this judgement, examiners are encouraged to consider the global rating in the context of workplace performance. Where relevant to the station, this can be framed in terms of safety, with a borderline pass representing a candidate who is ‘just safe’.

As this is a new exam, a secondary standard setting method (modified Angoff) will be used as a sense check.

Pass marks for the written exams will continue to be derived via the standard setting method, Angoff. 

The standard of the exam (assessed against the stage 1 and stage 2 syllabi) is the same. What has changed is the format of assessment.  

A key recommendation from the Independent Review was to address assessment burden. In the changes now being introduced, this is reflected through a clearer focus for each exam component and a more explicit articulation of what each stage is designed to assess. This includes providing more directed preparation for candidates and shifting direct knowledge testing primarily to the written components. Large elements of basic medical sciences will be removed from the Final FRCA as these have already been examined in Primary.  This will reduce the need to revise the same material twice.  We believe this will significantly reduce the assessment burden.

In addition, the creation of an exam structure for the clinical components that more closely mirrors clinical practice helps reduce the burden on candidates, as they are no longer required to develop exam‑specific skills that do not directly translate to their day‑to‑day clinical roles.

The summative, clinical performance examinations are part of a programme of assessments and establish a clear and consistent standard for knowledge, judgement, and decision-making, which is essential for patient safety. They have a higher level of standardisation and quality assurance which assures patients and the public that practitioners have met the required standard, informing levels of practice and capability.

The reviews highlighted the need for the examinations to remain valid, reliable, and fit for purpose, and they identified the subjectivity of the SOE formats used across all four exams (FRCA Primary and Final, FFICM, and FFPM) as a key concern. While the viva component is valued by some, it is also the element most susceptible to variability. By moving to assessment methods with stronger evidence for fairness, consistency, and reproducibility, we can ensure that all candidates are assessed against the same standard.

We do not anticipate the use of “rest” stations in the new exam. “Rest” stations are a misnomer; they are not designed specifically for candidates to rest in but to increase exam capacity by enabling more candidates to sit within an exam circuit.  There is also a degree of inequity as for some candidates, a “rest” will be their starting (first) station or last station.

In the new exam environment at Jubilee House, we will be able to deliver three circuits of exams simultaneously, which greatly increases daily capacity, therefore we do not anticipate a need to continue with the use of “rests” on moving to our new College.   

All candidates who have passed the current format of the Primary FRCA by June 2027, will sit the new Final FRCA examination in academic year 2027-28.