PMC (aka Pakistan Medical Council) has brought about many changes to its MDCAT/Entry Test/MCAT testing system, and curriculum.
As of now, there are no updates on how these changes will impact PTAP, but my assumption is that they will no longer accept SAT II scores. However, I believe the program will still remain, because it serves dual nationals (e.g. Pakistani Canadians), and not any overseas Pakistani (e.g. Pakistanis living in Saudi who obviously don’t have Saudi nationality). This is what makes PTAP extremely unique, in that it caters to a smaller audience, in comparison to the broader category of ‘Overseas Pakistanis’. Now that being said, PTAP also has seats available for friendly countries, and this is something I have very limited knowledge on. The terms foreign national, and overseas Pakistani are very confusing because they’re used interchangeably, so it’s difficult to determine whether foreign refers to ‘dual nationals’ or a person with no Pakistani origin. Notwithstanding these changes, all we can do is wait for the PTAP admission poster for 2021. So what do you do now? Best suggestion is to prepare for the MDCAT/Entry Test/MCAT (all the same thing), which is now being called the NMDCAT (National Medical and Dental College Admissions Test – I guessed that lol).
So, let’s get this straight; before, each province would have its own exam for medical school admissions, and not it has centralized to become one BIG FAT EXAM (NMDCAT). That’s right, this year is going to be different, and you’ll be doing the NMDCAT if you’re wanting to get admission into a medical school in Pakistan.
So here are a couple changes:
1. One centralized exam: NMDCAT for EVERYONE.
2. THE NMDCAT IS A COMPUTERIZED EXAM WHICH WILL BE AVAILABLE INTERNATIONALLY.
Read those two points three times. Just kidding. Yes, so you heard it. However, because it is Pakistan, I cannot really expect how they will handle this since it is a first attempt, and whether or not the NMDCAT will be administered in your city. Who knows you may have to take a flight to another city to do this exam? Nothing yet on the available locations.
Applications for NMDCAT Registration are out, and last date to apply is 15th July 2021. Mark it down on your calendar. The fee is $110 USD (for foreign students). Exam will most likely be around August-September timeframe.
Registration Link: https://mdcat.pmc.gov.pk/Account/Signup
PMC Official Website: https://www.pmc.gov.pk/
Check the above syllabus to see what comes up on the exam, and the general structure of it.
Brief Overview of Structure
- 210 Multiple Choice Questions with 3.5 Hours Allocated Time
- 68 Questions Biology, 56 Questions Chemistry, 56 Questions Physics, 20 Questions English, 10 Questions Logical Reasoning (I guess they want to know your IQ lol)
- Passing Mark: 65%
- Most of this test is memory based, and application is minimal.
Test Preparation:
- Do your research. I am going to try and provide some resources from my end as well.
- Hamara Mustaqbil (an NGO at Dow) offers MCAT Counselling Workshops. So, follow them on Instagram for more updates on this. I don’t know if they will provide sessions to students outside of Pakistan. https://www.instagram.com/hamaramustaqbil/
- RandomandMore: They usually update any news that’s about MDCAT super-fast, and provide loads of help 😊https://www.instagram.com/randomandmore_/
- MedAngle Pre-Med Membership: They have many practice questions to help you prep and track your progress.
Stay humble,
Until next time
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