The second exam in the MRCP series is MRCP part 2. To know more about what is MRCP and to successfully clear MRCP part 1 exam read here. MRCP 2 is one of the most challenging exam which was conducted over the period of 2 days until recently when it's been reduced to a single day exam. Read on the find out how you can conquer this bad boy.
Exam initially used to have 3 papers each of 100 "best of five questions". 2 papers on one day and 1 on the next day. But now is a single day exam with 2 papers each of 100 questions. Completely clinical based. There are also clinical images included with scenarios e.g. ECG, X rays, CT scan, U/S, MRI, Echo, MRCP, spirometry, Endoscopic views, fundoscopic views and others. Anything and everything you see in your clinics and wards can be shown in your exam. The time is 3 hrs per paper.
The criteria here is to have as much clinical experience as you possibly can have to make this exam slightly easier. Although the requirement to be in a training program or minimum level of clinical experience has long been abolished, takers of this exam still recommend good hands on clinical experience preferably one year in a training/Residency programs in Medicine.
This is a serious exam thus will require longer preparation time than part 1 and some serious commitment. If you are in working in a clinical area then use it to your advantage. Try to go over your patients diagnostics, interpret them discuss them with your seniors. This will make you feel more confident in your the exam.
In terms of resources the most comprehensive and challenging book is Rapid Review of Clinical Medicine by Sanjay Sharma
It has loads of scenarios, pictures and diagnostic tools to help you prepare for your exam. It's quite challenging and difficult but a must do. If you have some clinical experience then this can be the only book that you will need for the exam. The books that you further require will depend on your knowledge and interpretation. If you have trouble reading X-rays then you will need a book for that. If ECG is not your forte then you will need an extra resource for that. My recommended resources have bee listed at end of the this post. Do go through them hopefully they will be of help.
But what about questions, how to practice them? So of course you need a Qbank and hands down recommendation is Pastest. The online Qbank is a must no offline books or PDF. The high quality images, exam like scenario based questions with feedback on your performance are the features of this Qbank that will carve a path for you to get closer to achieving your MRCP. You need to complete the Qbank no matter what. Another important buddy of yours is going to be "The Only MRCP notes that you will ever need". Yes this is same one you used in your MRCP 1 because you will be needing your part 1 knowledge as well so if you had followed my technique in part 1 (here) you will already have all your notes in that book. Now you are going to add notes from Pastest into it as well so in the end you are going to have a wealth of knowledge in that book for your revision. I made my own notes from Pastest as well, they are bullet points so they are easy to remember and recall. And trust me multiple times in the exams I answered correctly just because of these notes. So they are a must before going in on your big day
Applying this time is quite straight forward as all the paperwork have already been done when you applied for part 1. When the applications open apply for part 2 by going to mymrcp.mrcpuk.org and pay the fees
As before, rest the day before exam just go over your notes. And the most important thing is to do the sample questions on the MRCP website they are extremely similar to what comes on the exam a few of them also repeat if you are lucky. The exam itself can be stressful the questions are quite long the options are very tricky. And because of that time can be quite critical, many people weren't able to complete their exam. So you need to be efficient the best way to tackle these questions are to read the last line of the questions and the options before reading the question itself. This will give you an idea of what the question is about. The images are of high resolution and printed on a full A4 paper so you don't have to worry regarding that. Do not leave your answer sheet empty till the end because you may run out of time. So always start filling your answers at least 40 min before the end time. Make sure you have some energy drinks and protein bars so you are full on energy
Results usually take almost a month and they show up on your myMRCP account if there are no issues with your fees, verification of Primary Medical Qualification.
Congratulations on clearing your MRCP part 2, its a big achievement, you are now only a step away from getting MRCP diploma. Remember download and save your results as it gets removed after a month and you will have no record of it unless you request a copy of your results which of course will cost you.
There you go a detailed run down on getting your MRCP part 2 cleared. For further guidance please keep following this blog and like and share this page
www.facebook.com/mtiviacpsp
Format of MRCP part 2
Preparation for MRCP part 2
This is a serious exam thus will require longer preparation time than part 1 and some serious commitment. If you are in working in a clinical area then use it to your advantage. Try to go over your patients diagnostics, interpret them discuss them with your seniors. This will make you feel more confident in your the exam.
In terms of resources the most comprehensive and challenging book is Rapid Review of Clinical Medicine by Sanjay Sharma
It has loads of scenarios, pictures and diagnostic tools to help you prepare for your exam. It's quite challenging and difficult but a must do. If you have some clinical experience then this can be the only book that you will need for the exam. The books that you further require will depend on your knowledge and interpretation. If you have trouble reading X-rays then you will need a book for that. If ECG is not your forte then you will need an extra resource for that. My recommended resources have bee listed at end of the this post. Do go through them hopefully they will be of help.
But what about questions, how to practice them? So of course you need a Qbank and hands down recommendation is Pastest. The online Qbank is a must no offline books or PDF. The high quality images, exam like scenario based questions with feedback on your performance are the features of this Qbank that will carve a path for you to get closer to achieving your MRCP. You need to complete the Qbank no matter what. Another important buddy of yours is going to be "The Only MRCP notes that you will ever need". Yes this is same one you used in your MRCP 1 because you will be needing your part 1 knowledge as well so if you had followed my technique in part 1 (here) you will already have all your notes in that book. Now you are going to add notes from Pastest into it as well so in the end you are going to have a wealth of knowledge in that book for your revision. I made my own notes from Pastest as well, they are bullet points so they are easy to remember and recall. And trust me multiple times in the exams I answered correctly just because of these notes. So they are a must before going in on your big day
Applying for MRCP part 2
Exam Day, MRCP part 2
Results, MRCP part 2
Congratulations on clearing your MRCP part 2, its a big achievement, you are now only a step away from getting MRCP diploma. Remember download and save your results as it gets removed after a month and you will have no record of it unless you request a copy of your results which of course will cost you.
Resources for MRCP part 2 (GOOGLE DRIVE Link)
- My MRCP Notes (These are my own notes)
- MRCP part 2 Recalls (2014 - 2017)
- MRCP Passmedicine 2017
- Data Interpretation (Good book for interpreting data)
- ECG Made Easy 8th Edition
- Sanjay Sharma - Rapid Review of Clinical Medicine
- Get Through Radiology MRCP Part 2 (for all your Radiology questions)
- https://www.dermnetnz.org/ for dermatology pics
- https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance for disease specific guidelines
There you go a detailed run down on getting your MRCP part 2 cleared. For further guidance please keep following this blog and like and share this page
www.facebook.com/mtiviacpsp
MRCP Exam Books
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