NEXT/National Exit Test
- NEXT or National Exit Test will be a common exit exam (FMGE + Exit for Indian graduates & NEET-PG) conducted for the medical students to both practice medicine across India and pursue higher education in India as per the NMC Bill 2019.
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- Mandatory for all FMGs & IMGs to qualify in this exit exam to gain their license to practice medicine in India
- PGMEE aspirants will be required to sit for this exam to acquire a PG seat.
- NEXT is expected to be implemented from 2022-2023.
- NEXT 1 will be held within 15 days or 1 month of completing their final year exams.
- NEXT-2 will be held after completing their internship.
- Triple purpose of the NEXT:
- Screening: The NEXT shall replace the FMGE
- Licensure: The NEXT will serve as the licensure exam for IMGs
- Entrance: The NEXT shall replace the NEET-PG
Significance of the NEXT in medical education & healthcare?
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Creating highly qualified and skilled doctors: NMC is on the path to standardize medical education in India & producing a more highly qualified and skilled batch through NEXT by implementing:
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- The conceptual + analytic questions can be solved only through a deeper understanding of the concepts & critical understanding (conceptual understanding and problem-solving skills).
- OSCE/OSPE/OSCLER like standard exams to enhancing clinical skills, instrumentation & communication skills.
- The licensure exam for Indian (Licensure) & foreign medical graduates (Screening): foreign medical graduates & Indian medical graduates will sit for the single common standard next exam in order to licensure the graduates before starting their internship.
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Common PGMEE exam (entrance): NEET-PG will be subsequently replaced by NEXT where Scores (ranks) will also be used for granting admissions to the PG/Masters medical courses (MD/ MS/ DNB/ Diploma in Government and private medical college) in India.
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Improve rural medical services; MBBS graduates who clear the exam will be required to work for 3 years in a rural or tribal area & PG(MD/MS) aspirants who secure PG seats will further be asked to work for another 3 years in similar difficult areas in their respective specialties in order to Improve rural medical services.
Pros & Cons of NEXT (NEXT exam)
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NEXT in a nutshell
- NEXT will be conducted in two parts.
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- NEXT Part -1: Online MCQ Based Exam (Still written exam is under consideration).
- Those who pass NEXT-1: shall proceed to the internship for the next 10 months.
- PG admissions: The score obtained in NEXT-1 determines the PG admission after the internship.
- The score of the NEXT-1 is valid for 2-3 years for the purpose of PGMEE ranking.
- Those who fail in NEXT-1: have to repeat the next academic year and retake NEXT-1 after that.
- NEXT Part -2: Practical Based Exam (expected to be OSCE type as per the CBME).
- NEXT Part -1: Online MCQ Based Exam (Still written exam is under consideration).
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- NEXT-2 is a pass/ fail type of exam.
- NEXT-2 has to be cleared separately at the end of the internship.
- NEXT-2 marks will not contribute to the PGMEE ranking/scores/admission.
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NEXT Part -1
- NEXT Format:
| Particulars | Details |
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| Type of questions |
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| Syllabus |
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- Subject distribution of NEXT:
| Day | Timings | Duration | Subjects | # of MCQs |
| 1 | Pre-lunch | 3 hrs | Medical & allied | 120 |
| Post-lunch | 1.5 hrs | Pediatrics | 60 | |
| 2 | Pre-lunch | 3 hrs | Surgery & allied | 120 |
| Post-lunch | 1.5 hrs | ENT | 60 | |
| 3 | Pre-lunch | 3 hrs | OBG | 120 |
| Post-lunch | 1.5 hrs | Ophthalmology | 60 |
- NB: Uneven distribution of the 19 subjects where the clinical subjects will carry disproportionately more marks than pre- & para-clinical subjects.
- 10% MCQs from each stream will be from basic applied sciences (anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, microbiology, pathology & pharmacology)
- 10% MCQs will be from Preventive & Social Medicine (PSM)
- MCQ pattern of NEXT:
- 10% simple recall questions
- 60% will be problem-solving questions
- 30% comprehension & analytic questions
- NB: The above-mentioned details are only tentative & the official announcement about the exact NEXT question paper pattern is yet to come from NMC (National Medical Commission), NBE (National Board of Examination) or NTA (National Testing Agency).
FMGE vs NEET-PG vs NEXT
| FMGE | NEET-PG | NEXT | |
| Eligibility | After passing the final year exam with or without the internship | After graduation & internship | After completing the final year before the internship |
| Attempts | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Syllabus | Old MCI syllabus | New CBC (2019) | |
| Subjects to be tested | All 19 | All 19 | All 19 subjects but clinical subjects will carry disproportionately more marks than pre- & para-clinical subjects. |
| Distribution of subjects (Blueprint) | FMGE blueprint | NEET-PG blueprint | Find the distribution given above |
| Parts | 1 (theory only) | 1 (theory only) | Next Part-1: 3 days long theory
NEXT Part-2: Practical |
| Sessions | 2 | 3 | Next Part-1: 2 sessions X 3 days
NEXT Part-2: Not specified |
| Mode of exam | Computer-based objective exam (online-MCQs) | Next 1: Computer-based objective exam (online-MCQs)
NEXT 2: OSCE based practical exam |
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| Number of questions | 300 | 300 | 540 |
| Pattern/type of MCQs (Tentative @ 2020-2021) | Simple recall: 15% + CBQs: 55% & IBQs: 30 % | Simple recall: 10% + Problem-solving: 60% & Analytic: 30% | |
| Duration | 5 hrs | 3.5 hrs | Next 1: 13.5 hrs
NEXT 2: Not specified |
| Negative marks | No | yes | Not specified |
| Language | English | English | English |
| Pass marks | > 50% | Ranking per scores | Not specified |
NEXT vs USMLE
| NEXT | USMLE | |
| Syllabus | New CBC (2019). | The syllabus prescribed by NBME. |
| Subjects to be tested | All 19 subjects but clinical subjects carry more weight (80%). | All 19 subjects but the distribution differs as peer the parts of the exam (details are given below). |
| Parts & Pattern | Next Part-1: Objective theoretical exam to asses concepts, problem solving, analytics & recall skills (Simple recall: 10%, Problem-solving: 60% & Analytic: 30% MCQs).
NEXT Part-2: Practical exam to assess clinical skills, instrumentation, communication skills & ethics. |
Step 1: emphasizes basic science principles (Preclinical subjects).
Step 2 CK: designed to determine whether the examinee possesses the medical knowledge for the provision of patient care under supervision (Clinical subjects). Step 2 CS: designed to assess Communication and Interpersonal Skills (CIS), Integrated Clinical Encounter (ICE), and Spoken English Proficiency (SEP). Step 3: assesses the ability to applied medical knowledge for the unsupervised practice of medicine (Clinical subjects) consisting of foundations of independent practice (FIP) session & advanced clinical medicine (ACM) session. |
| Eligibility | Next Part-1: Indian citizens, NRI & OCI officially graduated from the universities Listed in MCI/NMC & WHO directory.
NEXT Part-2: Pass Next Part-1 & complete Internship. |
Step 1, Step 2 CK, and Step 2 CS: Medical student officially enrolled in, or a graduate of, a medical school that is, listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools as meeting ECFMG eligibility requirements, and that meet other eligibility criteria of the ECFMG.
Step 3: pass Step 1, Step 2 CK, and Step 2 CS, and obtain the equivalent of the MD degree. |
Sequence of Steps |
First, Next Part-1 should be given then NEXT Part-2. | You may take Step 1, Step 2 CK, and Step 2 CS in any sequence If you meet the eligibility requirements.
You may take Step 3 only after passing Step 1, Step 2 CK, and Step 2 CS. |
| Sessions & durations | Next Part-1: 2 sessions X 3 days covering 13.5 hrs
NEXT Part-2: Not specified. |
Step 1: 1-day test session & Approximately eight hours.
Step 2 CK: 1-day test session & Approximately nine hours. Step 2 CS: 1-day test session & Approximately eight hours. Step 3 FIP: 1-day test session & Approximately seven hours. Step 3 ACM: 1-day test session & Approximately nine hours. |
| Mode of exam | Next 1: Computer-based online objective exam with 540 MCQs.
NEXT 2: OSCE based practical exam. |
Step 1: Computer-based online objective exam with 280 MCQs (7 X 60-minute blocks).
Step 2 CK: Computer-based online objective exam with 318 MCQs (8 X 60-minute blocks). Step 2 CS: 12 patient cases to assess CIS), ICE, and SEP). Step 3 FIP: Computer-based online objective exam with 232 MCQs (6 X 60-minute blocks). Step 3 ACM: Thirteen computer-based case simulations (CCS) with 180 MCQs (6 X 45-minute blocks). |
| Recommended duration of prepare | No information so far as the NEXT is expected to be implemented by 2022-23. | Step 1: 6 to 9 months
Step 2 CK: 4 to 6 months Step 2 CS: 6 weeks Step 3: varies deeding on your knowledge & experience. |
| Exam dates | Expected to be in every March as specified in the last press release. | Step 1: administered by appointment on a year-round basis.
Step 2 CK: administered by appointment on a year-round basis. Step 2 CS: Administered at six test centers in the US & exam shall be scheduled through the USMLE web as per the availability Step 3: administered by appointment on a year-round basis. |
| Language | English. | English. |
# of Attempts |
Unlimited as specified in the last press release. | An examinee may not take the same Step or Step Component more than six times, including incomplete attempts. |
Retakes |
Once a year in March as specified in the last press release. | Retaking Failed Examinations: You may not take the same Step or Step Component more than three times within a 12-month period. |
Approximate fees |
Not specified | 5-6000 $ for all steps |
Also Watch :
- NEXT Exam from the youtube channel “Ranjan Kumar Patel”
Also read:
- All you need to know about FMGE
- All you need to know about USMLE
- All you need to know about PLAB
- All you need to know about AMC
