RCVS launches new Stat Exam

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Education Committee and Primary Qualifications Subcommittee have agreed a new format to the Statutory Membership Examination, which will be delivered from 2019.

This examination must be undertaken and passed by all individuals educated outside of the UK whose veterinary qualification is not recognised by the College. Passing this examination allows them to join the UK Register, and therefore practice as a veterinary surgeon in the UK.

The exam has existed in its current format for over 30 years, and the review was implemented to ensure the examination remains fit for purpose, and sits in line with international best-practice and our current Day-one Competences. The Day-one Competences were revised in 2014 and set out the minimum knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviours which veterinary surgeons should possess on joining the Register. The review was also brought about to ensure the we are utilising the most appropriate means of assessment methods, to best prepare candidates for success, and to ensure candidates can work in the UK to the very best of their ability.

The review process was undertaken by the Statutory Examination Board, in consultation with veterinary and medical educationalists, and used various methods to come to its conclusions, including focus groups, and analysis of similar examinations conducted by other professional regulators.

“The review of the Statutory Membership Examination has provided us with the opportunity to ensure that we continue to test the skills and knowledge needed to work effectively in a veterinary practice in the UK in a robust manner, and bring it in line with the final year examinations delivered at UK vet schools. In designing the examination, the RCVS has considered international best practice, in addition to approaches to regulatory examinations within both the veterinary and medical sectors.”

The written examination will now consist of two parts; a clinical Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) paper (in a single best answer clinical vignette format) and an open book examination, which will be used to ascertain the candidate’s knowledge of the RCVS Code of Professional Conduct.  

The Clinical, Practical Examination will now exist in the form of a multi-dimensional Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). This examination is set to measure a range of clinical, technical and professional skills including clinical reasoning, communication, professionalism, and ethical awareness. Following a tender process, Glasgow Veterinary School has been awarded the contract to host the OSCE examination for five years from 2019 to 2023.

RCVS Examinations Manager, Victoria Hedges, says: “The review of the Statutory Membership Examination has provided us with the opportunity to ensure that we continue to test the skills and knowledge needed to work effectively in a veterinary practice in the UK in a robust manner, and bring it in line with the final year examinations delivered at UK vet schools. In designing the examination, the RCVS has considered international best practice, in addition to approaches to regulatory examinations within both the veterinary and medical sectors.”

A comprehensive handbook regarding this new examination will be available on the Statutory Membership Examination section of our website shortly.

If you have any questions, please get in contact with our Examinations Manager, Victoria Hedges on [email protected]