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The AMC Standard Pathway, explained

If you trained in India, the usual route to practising medicine in Australia is the Australian Medical Council's Standard Pathway: two exams, then registration. Here's how it works, what the MCQ exam is like, and the steps in order.

Three steps

  1. 1

    Part 1: the AMC MCQ exam

    A computer-adaptive test of one-best-answer questions covering adult medicine and surgery, women's health, child health, mental health, and population health and ethics. It is taken at a test centre, including in India, and checks whether your medical knowledge matches that of an Australian graduate starting as an intern.

  2. 2

    Part 2: the AMC Clinical Exam, or Workplace Based Assessment

    The Clinical Exam is a circuit of short stations with role-play patients: taking a history, examining, explaining, counselling and managing. Each station gives you a couple of minutes of reading time, then a few minutes with the patient. Workplace Based Assessment is an alternative for doctors already working under supervision in an accredited Australian hospital.

  3. 3

    AMC Certificate, then registration

    Pass both and you receive the AMC Certificate. With it, plus the English language standard, you apply to the Medical Board of Australia through Ahpra. General registration usually follows a period of supervised practice.

The AMC calls the two exams the MCQ examination and the Clinical examination. Most candidates call them Part 1 and Part 2.

What the MCQ exam is like

Format
One best answer from five options (A to E), computer-adaptive. No marks are taken off for wrong answers, so never leave one blank.
Length
150 questions in 3.5 hours, about 84 seconds each. Some are new questions being trialled that don't count, and you can't tell which.
No going back
You must answer each question before the next appears, and you can't return to change an answer. Practise with the real exam conditions setting on mock exams.
Blueprint
Adult medicine 30%, adult surgery 20%, and 12.5% each for women's health, child health, mental health, and population health and ethics.
Standard
What an Australian graduate knows on day one of internship. Most questions are about common conditions in the Australian community, plus anything life-threatening or critical to safe practice.
What they test
For each condition: pathogenesis, clinical features, investigations, differential diagnosis and management. Expect ECGs, X-rays, scans and clinical photos.
Scoring
A score from 0 to 500. The pass was 250; from 2026 the AMC raised it slightly and hasn't published the new number.
Where
Pearson VUE test centres worldwide, including several Indian cities.
Free practice
Once you buy your MCQ authorisation, the AMC gives you 12 months of access to its official practice app (with eMedici): 210 questions written by AMC examiners.

How to plan your prep

Split the time you have until your MCQ date into four phases.

  1. Foundations

    25% of your time

    Learn how the AMC works and how Australian medicine thinks. Keep up with your MBBS postings, and use each posting's subject for your daily questions.

  2. Building the bank

    35% of your time

    Go through every discipline properly, one block at a time. This is where most of your knowledge gets built, so steady daily work beats big weekend sessions.

  3. Exam mode

    30% of your time

    Build exam stamina and fix weak spots. Mixed timed questions, full mocks every two weeks, and targeted lessons on whatever the results show.

  4. Final stretch

    10% of your time

    Consolidate, don't cram. Keep your flashcards going, take one last full mock, and rest well before exam day.

Every step, in order

  1. 1

    Understand the Standard Pathway

    Now

    Read the pathway overview above and the AMC's own candidate guide. Knowing the steps early stops surprises later.

  2. 2

    Check your medical school is eligible

    Now

    Your school needs to be listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools with a note that makes it acceptable to the AMC. Search your college on wdoms.org.

  3. 3

    Build a daily study habit

    First month

    The single best predictor of passing is steady daily practice over many months. Even 20 minutes counts.

  4. 4

    Collect your documents

    When your degree is awarded

    Degree certificate, internship completion, passport and name-change documents if any. Keep certified copies and scans in one place.

  5. 5

    Open your AMC portfolio and start primary source verification

    After graduation

    You create an AMC candidate account, then your degree is verified directly with your university through EPIC (run by ECFMG/Intealth). Verification can take weeks, so start as soon as you are eligible.

  6. 6

    Book Part 1, the AMC MCQ exam

    About 3 months before your target

    The MCQ is taken at Pearson VUE test centres, including in India. Popular dates fill quickly.

  7. 7

    Pass Part 1, the AMC MCQ exam

    Your target date

    A computer-adaptive exam of one-best-answer questions across all disciplines. See the format details above.

  8. 8

    Meet the English language standard

    Plan for close to registration

    The Medical Board of Australia needs an accepted English test (for example OET, IELTS Academic, PTE Academic or TOEFL iBT) at the required scores. Results have a validity window, so time the test near when you'll apply for registration.

  9. 9

    Pass Part 2, the AMC Clinical Exam, or complete Workplace Based Assessment

    After the MCQ

    The Clinical Exam is an OSCE-style circuit of stations with real role-players. The alternative is a Workplace Based Assessment program while working under supervision in an accredited Australian hospital.

  10. 10

    Receive the AMC Certificate

    After both exams

    With the certificate you can apply to the Medical Board of Australia (via Ahpra) for general registration, usually after a period of supervised practice.

Fees, eligibility rules and exam formats change. Before you act on anything, check the current details at amc.org.au and medicalboard.gov.au.