MCCQE2 Study Tips
Study & exam day tips
Study tips
Become familiar with the exam format: A detailed orientation video of the MCCQE Part II examination day can be previewed on the MCC website. There are two types of stations in the Medical Council of Canada Qualifying examination Part II: five-minute couplet stations and ten-minute stations.
Couplet stations: The five-minute couplet stations involve a five-minute clinical encounter and a five-minute post-encounter probe. During a five-minute clinical encounter, the candidate may be instructed to obtain a focused relevant history or conduct a focused physical examination while being observed by a physician examiner who assesses the candidate's performance using standardized scoring instruments. During the post-encounter probe the candidate will be required to perform various tasks such as recording findings from the clinical encounter just completed, providing a differential diagnosis, Interpreting x-rays, CT images or laboratory results, and/or describing the initial investigation or management plan. The Medical Council of Canada website provides examples of a history-taking couplet station and an example of a physical examination couplet station. Both of these examples include the candidate’s instructions, the examiner’s checklist, and the post-encounter probe questions (with the correct answers).
Ten-minute stations: The ten-minute stations assess the candidate's ability to obtain a history and/or conduct a physical examination, to demonstrate interviewing and communication skills and/or to apply management skills. These stations are structured for the candidate to interact with the Standardized Patient for ten minutes. In some cases, the clinical encounter ends at nine minutes and is followed by a one-minute oral examination. The Physician Examiner will ask one to three pre-specified questions related to the patient problem. The MCC website provides an example of a ten-minute history-taking station. The example includes the candidate’s instructions and the Examiner’s checklist.
Some people find it helpful to review commercially available question banks. You should be aware that these “ghost banks” are not official MCC questions and there is no guarantee that it covers the breadth of content on the examination.
Become familiar with the exam scoring format: A description of how the MCCQE Part II is scored is available for review on the MCC website.
Focus on your weaknesses: Reviewing the MCC’s Objectives for the Qualifying Examination is a good place to start in trying to identify any areas of weakness. The MCCQE Part II is based on common or critical patient presentations related to the Objectives. Working from these, by yourself or with others, will align your studying with the format of the examination. For each patient presentation, identify key diagnoses, the critical information needed for diagnosis (and to rule out the differential diagnoses) and to treat, list key aspects of the physical examination, and consider what investigations might be needed, as well as summarizing key aspects of initial management of each problem.
Many candidates preparing for the exam have found it useful to quickly review sections of the current edition of their favourite textbook in each of the major clinical disciplines: obstetrics/gynecology, pediatrics, medicine, emergency medicine, surgery and psychiatry. The Medical Council of Canada has compiled a list of reference books that may be helpful to you in your studies.
Form a study group: Forming a study group may be very helpful at ensuring that you keep on track with your exam preparation. Identify the objectives that you most need to study and focus on common or critical patient presentations. Consider having each member generate common patient presentations that they understand well, keeping in mind differential diagnoses, key features that help confirm the diagnosis. Also create checklists, identify key investigation and management plans.
Exam day tips:
Read the instructions carefully: Read the instructions carefully and repeatedly. You can use the notebook provided at exam registration top jot down relevant information when reading the instructions. The instructions are also available in the station if you want to check the patient information again. Limit your actions to only what is being requested. For example:
* If the task is to conduct a focused history, then that is what you will get credit for; you will not get credit for educating the patient or advising them when the assigned task is to take a history.
* If the task is “assess and advise” OR “discuss” OR “counsel”, then you must elicit key information about the patient’s problem, understanding how the patient perceives the problem, AND provide relevant advice.
* If the task is “assess and manage”, then you will get credit for assessing the patient (relevant history and/or physical exam) AND for managing the problem, including ordering investigations and making immediate treatment decisions.
Consider the setting: You may be asked to assess and manage patients with and urgent problem (ie. a trauma patient). You must decide what information and actions are the most clinically relevant, given the patient information provided in the instructions and the time allowed. Do the most important things first, then go back and get more information, if you need it, or make further orders.
Listen to the patient: Use a natural conversational tone and an organised approach to taking a history. Establish what the problems are by using a thorough history starting with general questions before moving to more closed questions. Patients often report that candidates do not listen to them and therefore miss crucial information.
If you appear indifferent to their concerns, the patients are expected to react accordingly – you will get less information from them.
Make notes: Keeping notes during the interview may be helpful in organizing your thoughts may prevent you from forgetting to deal with any problems that you have identified in the course of the interview.
Verbalize what you are doing: Saying what you are doing when examining a patient will aid the examiner in scoring you. You do not need to justify what you are doing – just state it. Report positive findings – pain, loss of range of motion, difficulty with gait, shortness of breath, etc., so that the examiner knows that you observed the finding.
You cannot receive credit for genital, rectal or vaginal examinations unless you indicate to the examiner that you would do such an exam. In most cases, the examiner is given findings to report to you, but they can only do so after you state which examination you would do.
Ignore the examiner’s pencil: Some checklists are longer than others and some items (like the rating scales) can only be completed after you leave. How often the examiner’s pencil is moving is not a reliable indicator as to how well you are doing.
Be aware of your own timing: Time may feel very tight but there should be adequate time to complete the required tasks. If you complete the station early, take a moment to review and think of any information that you may not have already collected.
Keep on moving: Move on to the next station and forget the one you are leaving behind.
Study tips
Become familiar with the exam format: A detailed orientation video of the MCCQE Part II examination day can be previewed on the MCC website. There are two types of stations in the Medical Council of Canada Qualifying examination Part II: five-minute couplet stations and ten-minute stations.
Couplet stations: The five-minute couplet stations involve a five-minute clinical encounter and a five-minute post-encounter probe. During a five-minute clinical encounter, the candidate may be instructed to obtain a focused relevant history or conduct a focused physical examination while being observed by a physician examiner who assesses the candidate's performance using standardized scoring instruments. During the post-encounter probe the candidate will be required to perform various tasks such as recording findings from the clinical encounter just completed, providing a differential diagnosis, Interpreting x-rays, CT images or laboratory results, and/or describing the initial investigation or management plan. The Medical Council of Canada website provides examples of a history-taking couplet station and an example of a physical examination couplet station. Both of these examples include the candidate’s instructions, the examiner’s checklist, and the post-encounter probe questions (with the correct answers).
Ten-minute stations: The ten-minute stations assess the candidate's ability to obtain a history and/or conduct a physical examination, to demonstrate interviewing and communication skills and/or to apply management skills. These stations are structured for the candidate to interact with the Standardized Patient for ten minutes. In some cases, the clinical encounter ends at nine minutes and is followed by a one-minute oral examination. The Physician Examiner will ask one to three pre-specified questions related to the patient problem. The MCC website provides an example of a ten-minute history-taking station. The example includes the candidate’s instructions and the Examiner’s checklist.
Some people find it helpful to review commercially available question banks. You should be aware that these “ghost banks” are not official MCC questions and there is no guarantee that it covers the breadth of content on the examination.
Become familiar with the exam scoring format: A description of how the MCCQE Part II is scored is available for review on the MCC website.
Focus on your weaknesses: Reviewing the MCC’s Objectives for the Qualifying Examination is a good place to start in trying to identify any areas of weakness. The MCCQE Part II is based on common or critical patient presentations related to the Objectives. Working from these, by yourself or with others, will align your studying with the format of the examination. For each patient presentation, identify key diagnoses, the critical information needed for diagnosis (and to rule out the differential diagnoses) and to treat, list key aspects of the physical examination, and consider what investigations might be needed, as well as summarizing key aspects of initial management of each problem.
Many candidates preparing for the exam have found it useful to quickly review sections of the current edition of their favourite textbook in each of the major clinical disciplines: obstetrics/gynecology, pediatrics, medicine, emergency medicine, surgery and psychiatry. The Medical Council of Canada has compiled a list of reference books that may be helpful to you in your studies.
Form a study group: Forming a study group may be very helpful at ensuring that you keep on track with your exam preparation. Identify the objectives that you most need to study and focus on common or critical patient presentations. Consider having each member generate common patient presentations that they understand well, keeping in mind differential diagnoses, key features that help confirm the diagnosis. Also create checklists, identify key investigation and management plans.
Exam day tips:
Read the instructions carefully: Read the instructions carefully and repeatedly. You can use the notebook provided at exam registration top jot down relevant information when reading the instructions. The instructions are also available in the station if you want to check the patient information again. Limit your actions to only what is being requested. For example:
* If the task is to conduct a focused history, then that is what you will get credit for; you will not get credit for educating the patient or advising them when the assigned task is to take a history.
* If the task is “assess and advise” OR “discuss” OR “counsel”, then you must elicit key information about the patient’s problem, understanding how the patient perceives the problem, AND provide relevant advice.
* If the task is “assess and manage”, then you will get credit for assessing the patient (relevant history and/or physical exam) AND for managing the problem, including ordering investigations and making immediate treatment decisions.
Consider the setting: You may be asked to assess and manage patients with and urgent problem (ie. a trauma patient). You must decide what information and actions are the most clinically relevant, given the patient information provided in the instructions and the time allowed. Do the most important things first, then go back and get more information, if you need it, or make further orders.
Listen to the patient: Use a natural conversational tone and an organised approach to taking a history. Establish what the problems are by using a thorough history starting with general questions before moving to more closed questions. Patients often report that candidates do not listen to them and therefore miss crucial information.
If you appear indifferent to their concerns, the patients are expected to react accordingly – you will get less information from them.
Make notes: Keeping notes during the interview may be helpful in organizing your thoughts may prevent you from forgetting to deal with any problems that you have identified in the course of the interview.
Verbalize what you are doing: Saying what you are doing when examining a patient will aid the examiner in scoring you. You do not need to justify what you are doing – just state it. Report positive findings – pain, loss of range of motion, difficulty with gait, shortness of breath, etc., so that the examiner knows that you observed the finding.
You cannot receive credit for genital, rectal or vaginal examinations unless you indicate to the examiner that you would do such an exam. In most cases, the examiner is given findings to report to you, but they can only do so after you state which examination you would do.
Ignore the examiner’s pencil: Some checklists are longer than others and some items (like the rating scales) can only be completed after you leave. How often the examiner’s pencil is moving is not a reliable indicator as to how well you are doing.
Be aware of your own timing: Time may feel very tight but there should be adequate time to complete the required tasks. If you complete the station early, take a moment to review and think of any information that you may not have already collected.
Keep on moving: Move on to the next station and forget the one you are leaving behind.