User feedback used to bring about positive change to Stat Exam

A Statutory Instrument (SI) that brings about positive changes to the RCVS Stat Exam process, making it more accessible to candidates, has been approved by the Privy Council.

The Stat Exam has to be undertaken by veterinary surgeons holding a veterinary degree that is not recognised by the RCVS and must be passed in order for such an individual to be able to join the Register of Veterinary Surgeons and practise in the UK.

The main changes to the Stat Exam brought about by the SI, most of which were proposed as a direct result of candidate feedback, are:

• Candidates will now be able to take re-sits of the written exam papers for each of the 3 clinical subjects in the same year, meaning that they no longer have to wait a whole year until the next Stat Exam process.
• Candidates will now be able to pay for the written exam stage and the objective structured clinical exam (OSCE) stage separately, reducing the costs that candidates have to pay in one go.
• Candidates who pass the written exam but fail one or more clinical domains of the OSCE will be allowed to proceed directly to the individual failed clinical domains of the OSCE the following year, rather than having to sit all the written papers and all the clinical domains of the OSCE again.
• The RCVS will be able to keep the cost of the exam updated in-line with inflation.

The changes will come into effect from 1 January 2025, in time for the 2025 Stat Exam cohort.

Dr Linda Prescott-Clements (pictured), RCVS Director of Education, said: “We have been listening to the concerns of various stakeholders, including those who have undertaken the Stat Exam previously and veterinary employers, and we used this feedback to work with the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) to come up with a set of practical, deliverable changes that improve the experience of Stat Exam for all candidates, and hopefully alleviate some of the stress involved around timescales, opportunity and finance.

“These changes will make the exam more accessible, as it will allow candidates to have two attempts at the written papers within the same diet, which need to be passed before being allowed to proceed to the practical exam and it will also help improve accessibility to the exam from the perspective of candidate finances.

“We’re grateful to colleagues at Defra who have worked with us to take the proposed changes forward, and delighted that the time was found to get these changes through and for the approval by both ministers and the Privy Council.”

UK Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer Ele Brown said: “The work of vets is vital, and these changes will support those joining the profession in the UK. 

“Defra worked closely with the RCVS to deliver these changes, given that vets play a crucial role in safeguarding the health and welfare of animals, maintaining UK biosecurity, and supporting international trade.” 

Further information about the Stat Exam can be found on its dedicated webpage.