MCCQE - Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Exam

Before subscribing, check that you meet the exam board's eligibility criteria:

• Recognised medical school: A medical degree from a school listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools with a Canada Sponsor Note.
• Final-year students: You can apply up to 15 months before your expected graduation date.
• Source verification: You apply through physiciansapply.ca and request source verification of your medical degree.
• Attempts: A maximum of four attempts, with a one-year wait after a third failure before the fourth. See our Medical Council of Canada exam guide for details.

1. Open a physiciansapply.ca account.
2. Request source verification of your medical degree.
3. Apply for an MCCQE session and pay the exam fee.
4. Once your application is accepted, schedule your exam date at a Prometric test centre (seats are first come, first served).
5. Sit the exam: 230 multiple-choice questions in two sections of 115, with two hours and 40 minutes for each section.
6. If you plan to apply for residency through CaRMS, also take the NAC Examination.

The MCCQE (called the MCCQE Part I until 1 April 2026) is based on the MCC Examination Objectives, organised by the seven CanMEDS roles, and a blueprint balanced across dimensions of care (health promotion and illness prevention, acute, chronic, and psychosocial aspects, about 25% each) and physician activities (assessment and diagnosis 20%, management 35%, communication 25%, professional behaviours 20%). Questions are tagged by topic so you can target weak areas directly.