Update from the MCC on upcoming activities

As the Medical Council of Canada (MCC) welcomes the new year, we would like to provide an update on the Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examination (MCCQE) Part I and our services.

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New MCCQE Part I format and preparatory products

As announced in June 2023, the MCC has defined a new assessment model for the MCCQE Part I that will be in effect as of April 2025. With a focus on improving the exam delivery and the candidate experience, work is underway to modernize and optimize the MCCQE Part I. As part of the key adjustments, the clinical decision-making (CDM) component will be removed and the current 9-hour exam appointment will be shortened to a 6.5-hour exam appointment. The new exam will consist of 230 multiple-choice questions (MCQ), a portion of which will be pilot questions; the MCQs will be presented in two sections of 160 minutes each with a scheduled 45-minute optional break between each section. The changes will also allow candidates to spend more time on each question. The integrity, validity, and reliability of the MCCQE Part I remain the same, with MCQs continuing to assess critical knowledge and clinical decision-making.

To facilitate the transition and ensure a seamless delivery of the exam in April 2025, the January session will not be offered in 2025. As such, the October 2024 session will be the last session of the MCCQE Part I in the current 9-hour format. The total number of testing days over the 2024 sessions will remain the same, as we have extended the October 2024 session by 14 days, with the results expected to be released in mid-December 2024. We also included additional dates to the April 2025 session to allow more flexibility for candidates to take the exam. The dates for the April, August, and October 2025 exam sessions are published on the MCCQE Part I scheduling page.

The MCC’s current offering of preparatory products will expire following the October 2024 exam session. A new Preparatory Examination (PE) and a new PE-Lite will be available in December 2024 for organization bulk purchases and individual purchases, and those new products will align with the shortened MCCQE Part I. The MCC will be developing additional preparatory product offerings for future release based on valuable feedback from candidates obtained through a recent market research study.

Upcoming changes to the physiciansapply.ca account fee for Canadian medical students and graduates

On April 1, 2024, the MCC will change the physiciansapply.ca account fee payment model for Canadian medical students and graduates (CMGs). Since 2018, CMGs have paid the account fee in two instalments: the first instalment when applying to the MCCQE Part I and the second one at the time of their MCCQE Part II application. This changed in 2021, and the second instalment is currently applied when candidates request their Licentiate of the Medical Council of Canada (LMCC) or apply for medical registration. To ensure fairness for all candidates, as of April 1, 2024, CMGs will pay the complete account setup fee when applying to the MCCQE Part I. This fee is used to cover the cost of administering physiciansapply.ca accounts, as well as to make ongoing system improvements to the user experience and features offered.