The Royal College of General Practitioners
The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is the academic organisation in the UK for general practitioners. Its aim is to encourage and maintain the highest standards of general medical practice and act as the ‘voice’ of general practitioners on education, training and standards issues.
In 2006 the first training curriculum for general practice, developed by the College, was approved by the Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board. The College has now developed a new licensing qualification—the nMRCGP—based on that curriculum. The nMRCGP will replace Summative Assessment, the previous route to certification, and the College membership examination. It will therefore be a pre-requisite for a certificate of completion of training (CCT) allowing a doctor to enter independent general practice, and will also confer eligibility for membership of the College.
There are three components to the nMRCGP: workplace-based assessment (WPBA), a Clinical Skills Assessment (CSA), and an Applied Knowledge Test (AKT).
Exam & Scheduling Information
Applied Knowledge Test (AKT)
The AKT is a summative assessment of the knowledge base that underpins independent general practice within the United Kingdom, and takes the form of a three-hour 200-item multiple-choice test. Approximately 80% of items are on clinical medicine, 10% on critical appraisal and evidence based clinical practice and 10% on health informatics and administrative issues.
The test will be available three times a year (January/February, April/May and October/November) at any Pearson VUE test centre in the UK. Candidates must register for the nMRCGP through the RCGP website, then apply to take the AKT, paying the appropriate fee, before booking a test with Pearson VUE.
Schedule Exam
After you have registered and applied for the the AKT at RCGP website, you may schedule your exam through Pearson VUE over the phone.