Assesment

Your learning during the course will be assessed (usually at the end of each term) in examinations which will determine whether you may progress to a next stage of the course, and which count towards the award of the degrees of MB BS. This is termed ‘summative’ assessment.

‘Formative’ assessment is for your and your teachers’ information about how you are doing, and does not count towards decisions about your progress or towards the degrees. It gives you a chance to test how you are progressing, and also to get used to the various types of assessments used before you take them in a summative context.

A variety of examination types are used during the course. Some are:

• Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) where, in response to a short question or statement, you select an answer from a range of given possible responses.
• Short Answer Questions (SAQs) where you give a short written response to a question.
• Extended Matching Items (EMIs) where, after reading a short scenario, you respond to questions or statements by selecting one or more items from a long list.
• Modified Essay Questions (MEQs) where you work through a clinical case, writing answers to questions at various stages of the unfolding case.
• Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs), where you perform a series of structured tasks, which can include practical clinical procedures, interviewing skills, or interpretation of clinical data.
• Objective Structured Practical Examinations (OSPEs) where you undertake a series of practical tasks such as identifying anatomical features or laboratory specimens.
• Essay questions, where you write a short piece intended to test your understanding of an issue and your ability to analyse a problem and synthesise parts of the course.
• Clinical cases, where you are observed interacting with patients and asked questions by an examiner.
• Oral examinations, where you answer questions from a panel of examiners.

Overview of MB BS degree examination

The degrees of MB BS are awarded on satisfactory completion of Parts One to Five examinations. These are associated with the following phases or areas of the course:

Part One (Year 1 core) and Part Two (Year 2 core)

This consists of three term assessments and an end-of-year synoptic assessment.

Each term assessment consists of an end-of-term examination of no more than 3 hours which covers that term’s modular and non-modular teaching. Work during the term may be prescribed as ‘in-course assessment’ and contribute to the term assessment.

In the ‘synoptic’ assessment at the end of the year, you will be expected to show your ability to integrate and apply the knowledge you have acquired. It consists of a written paper and practical tests and totals no more than six hours.

The marks from all these component examinations combine towards one overall mark. There are 100 marks available for Part One. To pass the Part and proceed to the second year of the course you must get 60 marks or more. A mark of 75 or more will be deemed to be ‘Excellent’.

Oral examinations will be given to borderline fail students (58 or 59) at the end of the year to determine whether they should pass the Part.

A resit assessment is held in August/September, consisting of the synoptic assessment and an examination which covers the contents of all three terms. Any in-course assessment marks are carried forward to the resit. If a student fails this, a panel will decide whether a second and final resit may be allowed.

Part Three (Special Study Modules)

This covers all the SSMs taken in years 2 to 5. Each SSM is assessed individually and this is, unlike the individual core assessments, on a pass/fail basis rather than individual assessments contributing to an overall mark for the Part.

Each SSM has, within its term, an individual assessment of your achievement of the objectives for that module. No specific form of assessment is prescribed, since the appropriateness of this will vary. However, as a general principle, some objective documentary evidence of your learning, such as a report, exam answer, presentation, computer program, would be produced and assessed

A Pass will be required in four whole SSMs (or their equivalent) to be deemed to have completed satisfactorily Part Three, and to be able to proceed to Final Assessment (Part Five) (final clinical examinations). A student who has not passed four SSMs by the beginning of Year 5 will not be permitted to undertake an elective SSM but will be required to undertake remedial work on the outstanding SSM(s) instead.

Part Four (Years 3 and 4 core)

This consists of five term/phase assessments and a synoptic assessment at the beginning of Year 5.

Each term/phase assessment consists of an end-of-term/phase examination of no more than 4 hours which covers all the modular and non-modular teaching in that term/phase (in terms that include an SSM period in the last five weeks this occurs before the SSM). Work undertaken during the term/phase may be prescribed as ‘in-course assessment’, and may contribute to the term assessment. Details will be given in the Phase or term handbooks.

In the ‘synoptic’ assessment at the beginning of Year 5, you will be expected to show your ability to integrate and apply the knowledge you have acquired. It consists of two written papers (Modified Essay Questions; Extended Matching Items and Short Answer Questions) and an OSCE.

The marks from all these component examinations combine towards one overall mark for the Part (see table). There are 100 marks available for Part Four. To pass the Part you must get 60 marks or more. A mark of 75 or more will be deemed to be ‘Excellent’.

Final Assessment (Part Five) (final clinical examinations)

The Final Assessment (Part Five) is the final qualifying examination for the MB,BS degrees and is an assessment of a candidate's competence for clinical practice. A candidate may only enter Final Assessment if he or she has (for the 5-yr programme) previously passed Parts One, Two, Three and Four, and has satisfactorily completed all required clinical attachments in years 3-5 of the course, including satisfactory completion of long case presentations in both of the final year Assistant House Officer attachments.

Final Assessment consists of three sections. All candidates take all three sections:

This section lasts 40 minutes for each candidate and is a practical test of basic clinical competence (including clinical management) using several medical and surgical short cases.

This section lasts for 60 minutes in total for each candidate and is a practical test of basic clinical skills (including history-taking, clinical diagnosis and management) of cases in Obstetrics and Gynaecology (section B1), Paediatrics (section B2) and Psychiatry (section B3).

This section lasts 42 minutes for each candidate and tests some of the personal and professional skills required by Pre-Registration House Officers (PRHOs). The examination uses an OSCE format. The stations use simulated patients, clinical data and practical equipment. Each station covers a domain of personal or professional skills, eg giving information to patients, interpreting data, ethical and legal aspects of clinical practice. The material for these domains will be drawn predominantly from general practice, clinical pharmacology and public health medicine.

Candidates will either pass Final Assessment as a whole or fail it as a whole.

Students failing Final Assessment are required to resit all three sections after undertaking three months’ additional study.

Merits, Distinctions and prizes

Candidates who pass Final Assessment and therefore are awarded the MB,BS degrees may be awarded a School Mark of Merit or a University Distinction in any of three disciplines. This is done (for the 5-year programme) on the basis of performance in Parts One to Four and in Final Assessment of the MB,BS, and not on any special distinction examinations:

In addition, there are special School prizes and awards for consistent high performance in particular areas of the course. Some of these are awarded on the basis of performance in the MBBS examinations themselves (eg there are prizes for the top ten students in each of Part One and Part Two) and some are awarded on the basis of special prize examinations.

Formative assessments, feedback and student progress

You will not normally be expected to undertake any type of summative assessment (eg MCQs, essays, OSCEs) without having had the chance to experience a purely formative test of a similar type. Such formative tests will be an integral part of teaching. You will also receive feedback on your performance in any in-course and in the end-of-term assessments.

A record of attainment in the summative assessments will form the basis of your student profile. Satisfactory progress will include not only a good performance in the various assessments, but also a good level of attendance, participation in group work and other such activities and compliance with the regulations of the School.