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MRCS Part B OSCE is the second, final, and practical part of the Intercollegiate Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons. It is a performance-based exam, which evaluates the clinical competence of candidates across a wide range of surgical scenarios. Successfully completing this exam indicates that you have the necessary knowledge and clinical skills to complete the core training and move towards specialty training.

What to expect in MRCS Part B

 It is an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) which consists of 17 stations. You will get 9 minutes to complete each station, and there will be a one-minute reading time before entering the stations. The total duration of the exam is approximately 3 hours and 30 minutes.

These stations are grouped under Broad Content Areas (BCAs) and evaluated based on two main domains.

Applied Knowledge (8 stations | 160 marks total)

• Anatomy and Surgical Pathology – 5 stations
• Applied Surgical Science and Critical Care – 3 stations

This section tests your foundational understanding of surgical principles, anatomy, pathology, and critical care management.

Applied Skills (9 stations | 180 marks total)

• Clinical and Procedural Skills – 5 stations
• Communication Skills – 4 stations

Here, you will be evaluated on how well you perform surgical procedures, demonstrate safe clinical judgment, and communicate effectively with patients, relatives, and colleagues.

Apart from all these content areas, the exam also evaluates four other key domains, such as

• Knowledge
• Skills
• Competence
• Professional characteristics

These four domains are assessed through all 17 stations.

So, overall, the MRCS Part B OSCE is designed in a form to evaluate whether you possess the standard expected of a day-one ST3 surgical trainee. A thorough, well-structured, expert-guided preparation is very important to clear the exam in one go.

If you are an MRCS Part B aspirant aiming to appear for the upcoming exam, you can consider joining the expert-led courses offered by StudyMRCS. We offer proven MRCS Part B OSCE online courses that hold an impressive pass rate of 93%. In addition, we offer two-day live circuit courses at various locations, replicating real exam scenarios with expert examiners and role players.

Want to know more? Connect with the StudyMRCS team today.

Authored By: Sarath