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Eligibility

To be eligible to sit the exam, you must:

• be registered with the College (for training or interruption)
• have 24 months FTE certified Basic Training (PREP Basic Training program) or completed the Consolidation phase of training (new Basic Training Program) before:
• the beginning of the clinical year for the February exam
• 31 August for the October exam
• have completed all necessary training requirements as specified in the handbook
• have not exceeded the exam attempt limits and comply with all other requirements in the Progression Through Training Policy
• comply with the relevant Divisional Written Examination application closing date
• be fully current with all College training fees

If you have outstanding training fees, you’re ineligible to sit the exam. See College Fees Terms and Conditions.

Overseas Trained Physicians: Check eligibility requirements with your Overseas Trained Physicians Case Officer before applying.

Application process

Refer to the key dates for more information.

Submit your application

Log in to MyRACP and click the 'Apply Now' button on the DWE exam tile. You must pay the exam fee when you apply.

Application confirmation

After applying, you will receive an email confirmation. If you do not receive this, check your junk/spam folders and contact us if you cannot find it.

Your exam venue

Approximately 4 weeks before exam day, we will email you a final confirmation letter with your allocated venue details. You must bring this allocation letter with you on exam day.

Attempts

Transitional arrangements

The transitional arrangements provide additional time to complete exam attempts and don't extend the time limit to complete other Basic Training requirements as set out in the Progression Through Training Policy (see Item 4). They are in place to ensure current Basic Trainees are not disadvantaged.  

According to the Progression Through Training Policy all training programs must be completed within the time limit for the length of the program. In March 2020, the College Education Committee approved a 12-month extension to the time limit to complete training for all trainees who started training in 2020 or earlier, in recognition of the exceptional circumstances due to COVID-19. This extension applies to the training program(s) that the trainee was registered in for the 2020 training year.

Note: Training program requirements include, but are not limited to, satisfactory completion of clinical experience requirements, examinations, work-based assessments, projects, and modules.

Withdrawal

Withdrawals are not counted as exam attempts. To withdraw up until the start of the exam, contact us.

If you withdraw, you can re-apply to sit the exam the following year if you meet the eligibility criteria. Application fees are not rolled over from one year to another.

See College Fees Terms and Conditions.

Special consideration

Submit your special consideration request by the closing date using the Special Consideration for Assessment application form and guide.

We consider these circumstances before the exam:

• permanent and longstanding impairment
• temporary impairment with medical grounds
• non-medical compassionate grounds or serious disruption
• essential commitments (religious, cultural, societal or legal obligations)

Once you start, only technical or other issues occurring during the exam will be considered.

Your mark or result will not be adjusted due to any special circumstances. For more information on application requirements and the possible outcomes, see the Special Consideration for Assessment Policy.

Prepare

The purpose of the exam is to:

• assess the depth and breadth of your understanding of basic science and clinical knowledge
• allow you to demonstrate the standard of clinical knowledge needed to complete Basic Training and progress to the Divisional Clinical Examination

The exam consists of a combination of new and previously used questions. Previously used questions are included for examination difficulty equating purposes. These questions will count towards your total score for the exam.

The exam covers a broad sample of medical specialties following the Knowledge Guides, as outlined in the relevant examination blueprint.

Current issues necessary for physician practice will be addressed, including how you demonstrate an understanding of:

• impacts of patients’ comorbidities on their overall health
• specifics of disease and treatment interactions

The examination process determines if you’re eligible to complete Basic Training and progress to the Divisional Clinical Examination.

Exam format

The exam will be paper-based.

The exam for both Adult Medicine and Paediatrics & Child Health is made up of 2 sections:

• Clinical Applications examines your understanding of the practice of medicine and therapeutics.
• Medical Sciences examines your understanding of the principles of medicine and the basic sciences applicable to clinical medicine.

Each section consists of a combination of multiple-choice questions (MCQs) and extended matching questions (EMQs):

Quality assurance

All our exams are designed and developed by senior Fellows and educational experts in line with the curriculum. Robust quality assurance processes are in place to ensure the exam and results processes are in line with international best practice.

All results undergo detailed analysis to ensure they accurately reflect your performance and that trainees have been given the opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge and ability in the exam process.

Visual material

Some questions require you to interpret visual material, such as:

Other visual materials may be included in the exam sections, but you won’t be required to interpret them to answer the question. Generally, they’ll be accompanied by the type of report you would see from the laboratory:

Multiple-choice questions

Multiple choice questions (MCQs) cover a range of sub-specialties. Each question has 4 options. You must choose only 1 option as your response.

Extended matching questions

The exam includes a small number of extended matching questions (EMQs). They have a similar reliability and validity to single-best-answer MCQs but are more effective at assessing problem solving and clinical reasoning.

Choose the most appropriate option for each stem/clinical scenario.

Resources

The exam is based on the Basic Training and Professional Qualities Curricula.

The Knowledge Guides detail the topics and concepts you need to understand to pass your assessments and progress your training.

Use the Workplace Learning Planner tool to create a customised study resource to familiarise yourself with the Knowledge Guides.

Readings

You’re expected to be familiar with:

• current textbooks
• relevant aspects of basic science in your division (Adult Medicine or Paediatrics & Child Health)
• topics covered during in-service training programs
• general coverage of review articles, annotations and editorial comment in medical journals
• diseases relevant to medical practice in our region (South West Pacific region)
• advances in physiology and biochemistry applicable to adult medicine/paediatrics & child health
• general coverage of review articles, annotations and editorial comment in medical journals
• diseases relevant to medical practice in our region (South West Pacific region)
• advances in physiology and biochemistry applicable to Adult Medicine/Paediatrics & Child Health

Texts on the major subspecialties may be useful but not essential.

In line with changes made to the names of medicine ingredients by the Therapeutic Drugs Administration (TGA) from 2016, drug names on the Exam reflect the new name followed by the old name enclosed in parentheses, such as:

Exam day

Timetable

Items on the day

Personal items

• printed or digital copy of your allocation letter confirming your name, number and venue
• current photo ID with your full name and signature, for example your passport or driver licence — digital IDs are not accepted
• blue or black ballpoint pens (no pencils, gel or felt-tipped pens)
• 1 x ruler (optional)
• 1 x highlighter (optional)
• face masks (optional)
• basic analogue watch (optional)
• still water in water bottles (optional)

Tip: Wear additional clothing layers to adjust to the room temperature.

Not permitted

• electronic devices, including tablets, scanners, dictionaries, smart pens or watches (which function in a way which is similar to a tablet)
• pagers
• laptop computers
• personal communication aids
• calculators
• ear plugs (unless special permission has been granted by RACP)
• headphones
• food and beverages (other than still water) unless special permission has been granted by RACP
• dictionaries
• pencils
• friction (erasable) pens, gel pens or felt tip pens

Tip: Recording devices on your person, including mobile phones, lead to automatic disqualification. Unauthorised materials may also lead to disqualification.

All mobile phones, digital watches, sport watches, smart watches (including but not limited to Apple watch, Garmin, Fitbit, Samsung), pagers and electronic communication devices must be switched off, placed on the floor under your desk and visible to the invigilators.

Devices that sound during the exam will be subject to an incident report.

Seating arrangements

Seating lists showing your allocated seat number will be displayed near the venue entrance.

Discuss any seating enquiries with the Chief Invigilator as early as possible on exam day.

Completing the exam

You will have 10 minutes Reading Time at the commencement of each paper. You must not write on, or otherwise mark the paper during this time

When the exam begins, please ensure you complete your details on the cover of the exam booklet and the answer sheet.

Leaving the exam room

Don’t leave the exam room without the invigilator’s approval. If you need the toilet, the invigilator will escort you.

If you want to leave before the end of the exam, stay seated and raise your hand. An invigilator will check your materials and release you.

When you finish the exam, any paper you have used during the exam will be collected. You can leave after the first 30  minutes of the exam, but not in the last 10 minutes.

Issues on exam day

If you experience issues leading up to the exam or on exam day that prevent you from attending, contact us. This may include illness, natural disasters or personal/family issues.

Results

To be successful, you must demonstrate the standard expected of a doctor who’s completed all generalist physician training.

Marking

The exam consists of 170 questions. Correct answers are worth one mark. You will be marked out of 170 questions. Marks are not deducted for incorrect answers. 

Your examination score is the sum of the scores for each paper. You do not need to pass each paper separately. 

The multiple-choice answer sheets are scanned twice by 2 independent scanning companies to ensure accuracy. Papers are reviewed by a human marker if ambiguities in electronic marking are found.

The exam consists of a combination of new and previously used questions. Previously used questions are included for examination difficulty equating purposes. These questions will count towards your total score for the exam.

The exam is ‘criterion referenced’. This means there’s a standard set to determine passing and failing candidates. There is no set pass rate and candidate scores are not compared to each other. There is no set quota to the number of candidates that can pass. Bell curves are not used.

Receiving results

You’ll receive your results by email from 3pm AEDT/3pm NZDT Thursday, 14 March 2024. Results will also be available on the Basic Training Portal.

Directors of Physician/Paediatric Education (DPE) at each hospital receive emails on the same day with candidates’ names and whether they've passed the exam or not.

Within 4 weeks of receiving your results, you'll receive an email with detailed feedback including:

• the pass mark for the exam
• your overall mark
• your mark for each paper

When detailed feedback is provided, DPEs will receive a report showing aggregated performance of their hospital against national averages. No report is supplied where there are insufficient candidate numbers at the hospital to provide de-identified scores.

The Reconsideration Review and Appeals By-Law does not apply to examination results.

Divisional Clinical Examination

Once you satisfy the requirements of the Divisional Written Examination, you can apply for the Divisional Clinical Examination.