MDCN assessment exam preparation for foreign-trained doctors

According to the MDCN's published notice for foreign-trained medical and dental graduates (the notice is reissued for each sitting, so read the latest one), the examination has these parts:

• A computer-based test of multiple-choice questions on basic medical and clinical sciences.
• Clinical examinations, using long and short cases or an OSCE.
• An English language paper for graduates who were not taught in English.
• Dental candidates also sit practical and clinical examinations in their own specialties.

The notice states eligibility conditions, which include a degree from a school listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools, a current licence to practise, and a Certificate of Good Standing from the regulator of the country where you trained. Check the latest notice for the full list, the application steps and the dates, because they change between sittings.

Reported results are sobering. For the July 2023 sitting in Ibadan, press coverage of the MDCN's report gave 704 medical graduates sitting and 189 passing, and quoted the Registrar describing the pass rate as poor. Pass rates vary from one sitting to the next, so read this as a reason to prepare early, not as a forecast.

1. Cover the basic and clinical sciences first. The computer-based test is the gateway to the clinical examinations, so build accuracy on multiple-choice questions across all the major disciplines before the sitting.
2. Practise questions in timed sets. Review every wrong answer and write down the reason, then redo it a week later.
3. Prepare the clinical part as its own skill. Rehearse structured history taking, focused examination and a clear case presentation, out loud, with a colleague. Our OSCE practice page describes a routine you can follow at every station.
4. Learn Nigerian practice. Revise the conditions that dominate local practice, such as malaria, sickle cell disease, hypertension, diabetes, tuberculosis, HIV and obstetric emergencies, against Nigerian national guidelines where the question asks about local management.
5. If English was not your language of instruction, set aside time for the English paper early. It is easy to neglect.

Start with the MDCN's own notices at mdcn.gov.ng for the format, eligibility and dates. For study material, MNEMOS lecture videos are free with an account, and several third-party providers sell MDCN-style question banks. Those are not produced or endorsed by the MDCN, so judge their quality yourself, and be cautious with unofficial past questions shared in groups.

MNEMOS was built first around Ghana. It does not have an MDCN-specific question bank, and we have not released a general question bank yet.