Resources for exam preparation

This page is designed to help candidates preparing for the College Membership and Fellowship examinations. A number of documents are available. The College regrets that there are no other past papers available from the College.

NEW

Critical Appraisal Course for FCEM: http://www.criticalappraisalforfcem.co.uk/

Previous updates

Feedback and guidance about the new critical appraisal format of the FCEM is available on the FCEM page (Aug 2010).

The College believes the On-Line Dissection Guide (here) published by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland is a useful resource. If candidates wish to take advantage please contact the RCSI (http://www.rcsi.ie/)

Copies of practice SAQs relating to critical appraisal are now available in the documents section at the top of the page.

A document designed to support trainees in designing surveys which may be suitable for their CTR is now available on the Research pages - techinical guidance pages.

A list of past papers used in the critical appraisal viva together with the critiques can now be downloaded here.

A list of previous CTRs is posted in the documents section at the top of the page. This is for information only to candidates who may be looking for inspiration. It also indicates how frequently a topic has been covered recently and therefore whether there is potential for "examiner fatigue".

A document describing the findings of a small group reviewing CTRs is available to download. Within it are recommendations for trainees preparing CTRs and candidates are advised to read it before final submission.

Three OSCE stations are shown as well as the global score for marking in an OSCE. A paper discussing the content and structure of two short answer questions is also available.

In addition, a list of "behaviours"  for candidates to review. This describes what the examiners are looking for in the exams and how a candidate can behave to best demonstrate their competence. Candidates are reminded that the marks in a viva or OSCE are all obtained by the examiner carefully listening and/or watching what the candidate does. Careful attention to ensuring the examiner can see and hear the relevant skills and behaviours is  essential in achieving a successful outcome.

The College recommends that the best preparation for the exams is to work with your consultant and clinical peers, requesting direct feedback on your clinical skills and decision making as well as reviewing data and revising from books.

For OSCE stations, the documentation that is given to the Examiner and role player is included to give candidates an idea of the level of detail scripting that the role player is given.