Pass Rates for the MRCPsych Exam
Pass rates for MRCPsych Part I (2004-2007)
Click on image for larger version (GIF, 1211x942 pixels, 53Kb).
Interestingly, over the last 6 years the overall pass rate for the clinical exam/ OSCE shows a slow decline whilst the pass rate for the written exam is increasing. The significance of this is unclear.
As most people will be aware, the format of the clinical exam changed significantly with the introduction of the OSCE exam in Autumn 2003. The College have always denied that a normative approach to marking applied with the OSCE. This may be the case, but the overall pass rate for the clinical exam did not change appreciably with the move from normative-based assessment to criterion-based assessment. Details of how this was achieved are not available.
MRCPsych Part I Exam Pass Rates (1999-2007)
| Session | Part I Clinical Exam (%) | Part I Written Exam (%) | Overall Pass Rate (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 Spring | - |
- |
45.2% |
| 1999 Autumn | - |
- |
39.8% |
| 2000 Spring | 72.1% |
60.9% |
44.0% |
| 2000 Autumn | 75.0% |
57.5% |
43.1% |
| 2001 Spring | 73.3% |
57.9% |
42.5% |
| 2001 Autumn | 81.8% |
55.9% |
43.2% |
| 2002 Spring | 76.4% |
57.2% |
43.6% |
| 2002 Autumn | 72.5% |
57.4% |
41.6% |
| 2003 Spring | 75.3% |
57.3% |
42.0% |
| 2003 Autumn | 77.6% |
57.8% |
45.8% |
| 2004 Spring | 76.2% |
60.1% |
45.8% |
| 2004 Autumn | 77.3% |
63.4% |
49.0% |
| 2005 Spring | 70.5% |
64.0% |
44.8% |
| 2005 Autumn | 74.4% |
61.2% |
45.3% |
| 2006 Spring | 72.5% |
61.9% |
44.4% |
| 2006 Autumn | 70.2% |
62.6% |
43.7% |
| 2007 Spring | 70.5% |
63.4% |
44.3% |
| 2007 Autumn | 65.4% |
64.6% |
41.9% |
Detailed breakdown of pass rates for clinical exams (Part I and Part II)
Autumn 2005 |
Spring
2006 |
Autumn
2006 |
Spring 2007 |
Autumn 2007 |
||||||
N |
% |
N |
% |
N |
% |
N |
% |
N |
% |
|
| Part I OSCE | ||||||||||
| Sitting | 503 |
495 |
517 |
457 |
347 |
|||||
| Pass | 374 |
74.35% |
359 |
72.53% |
363 |
70.21% |
322 |
70.46% |
227 |
65.42% |
| 1st Attempt | 304 |
81.28% |
288 |
80.22% |
200 |
55.10% |
142 |
44.10% |
168 |
52.17% |
| 2nd Attempt | 59 |
15.78% |
51 |
14.21% |
85 |
23.42% |
89 |
27.64% |
27 |
8.39% |
| 3rd Attempt | 7 |
1.87% |
12 |
3.34% |
45 |
12.40% |
41 |
12.73% |
16 |
4.97% |
| More than 3rd Attempt | 4 |
1.07% |
8 |
2.23% |
33 |
9.09% |
50 |
15.53% |
16 |
4.97% |
| Part II Clinical | ||||||||||
| Sitting | 546 |
605 |
582 |
575 |
516 |
|||||
| Pass | 301 |
55.13% |
377 |
62.31% |
335 |
57.56% |
371 |
64.52% |
276 |
53.49% |
| 1st Attempt | 143 |
47.51% |
214 |
56.76% |
188 |
56.12% |
203 |
54.72% |
122 |
32.88% |
| 2nd Attempt | 91 |
30.23% |
76 |
20.16% |
84 |
25.07% |
72 |
19.41% |
72 |
19.41% |
| 3rd Attempt | 35 |
11.63% |
54 |
14.32% |
36 |
10.75% |
43 |
11.59% |
38 |
10.24% |
| 4th Attempt | 13 |
4.32% |
13 |
3.45% |
14 |
4.18% |
20 |
5.39% |
20 |
5.39% |
| More than 4th Attempt | 19 |
6.31% |
20 |
5.31% |
13 |
3.88% |
33 |
8.89% |
24 |
6.47% |
Sources
- Royal College of Psychiatrists Annual Reviews 1999-2005 (not available online).
- Royal College of Psychiatrists Annual Review 2006.
- Royal College of Psychiatrists Annual Review 2007.
- Sauer, J., Hodges, B., Santhouse, A., et
al (2005) The OSCE Has Landed:
One Small Step for British Psychiatry? Academic
Psychiatry, 29, 310-315.
