MRCP PACES

The MRCP Part 2 Clinical Examination (Practical Assessment of Clinical Examination Skills – PACES) is designed to test the clinical knowledge and skills of trainee doctors who hope to enter higher specialist training (ST3).
You must have passed the Part 1 written exam within the last 7 years before taking PACES.
The exam sets rigorous standards to ensure your competence across a range of skills and you are ready to provide a high standard of care to patients.
For details about dates, fees and where you can take the exam see:
- Dates and fees
- PACES centres

What’s involved in MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES?

You are assessed on your ability to carry out essential clinical skills. There are five clinical stations where there are either patients with a given condition, or trained stand-ins (surrogates).
At each station, there are two independent examiners who will observe and evaluate the candidates’ performance.

MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES at a glance

half-day examination
takes place in a clinical setting (hospital or clinical skills centre)
assesses seven core skills
five stations (see carousel diagram)
eight patient encounters

MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES Exam dates and fees

As a consequence of the ongoing global COVID-19 situation, the Federation of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the UK has taken the extremely difficult but necessary decision to cancel all MRCP examinations in the UK and internationally until September 2020 (Please click here for more information).
- The details below are correct at the time of publication, we reserve the right to change these at any time. The exam dates can fall on any day during the assessment period, including Saturdays and Sundays.
- Admission documents, containing your allocated examination date, time and location will be sent a minimum six weeks in advance of your examination date.

MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES International centres

We working hard to increase the number of spaces for the exam, however, it is not always possible to meet demand and offer places to all candidates who apply.
- Since 2012 we have increased the number of international places by 23%, through providing more examination days in existing centres, and by opening new centres in India, Myanmar and Sri Lanka.
- We are committed to continuing to increase opportunities for international candidates over the next few years.
We will try to prioritise those candidates who are near the end of their stage 2 eligibility periods, however, we cannot guarantee that every candidate will get a space on this basis.

How to apply for MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES?

You can apply online through your My MRCP(UK) online account.
To see how to apply for an international centre please watch this video:
The process for applying to a UK centre is similar, however, UK trainees will be asked to pay for the place on the application.
If you are unable to make an application online, please contact the relevant College of Entry and request a paper application form.
- You must contact the relevant College of Entry for the most recent version for each application. Guidance for paper applications can be found here.
If you are applying to sit the examination in Hong Kong, further details of how to make an application can be found here.

MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES application process

Before applying for MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES

To speed up your application make sure you have details of your training and work history available for the last 12 months: hospital names and addresses; dates of courses and dates of previous PACES attempts.
Check that you have the correct login details for your My MRCP(UK) online account.
- If you cannot remember your login details, contact your college of entry or Central Office to reset these.

Eligibility for MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES

You must have passed the Part 1 written examination within the last 7 years before taking PACES.
We would advise that you have at least 2 years’ clinical experience working in hospitals following receiving your primary medical qualification.
To find out when the best time to attempt PACES is please read our guidance.
Applications will not be accepted if your Stage 2 eligibility period has expired.
- If you need to submit an additional attempt form, make sure this is submitted to your college of entry 1 week prior to the application period opening.
- Find out if the additional policy applies to you here.

Provisional applications for MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES

If you have not yet sat or received your results for your current exam attempt you can still provisionally apply for the next diet.
- If you then pass your current PACES attempt, your provisional application will be automatically removed and you will receive a 100% refund of fees paid for the unused attempt.
Provisional applications can be submitted online via My MRCP.
- Candidates must still apply during the application period and late applications will not be accepted.

Applying for an MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES international centre

The international application period opens before the UK application period, therefore if you are not allocated an international space you then have an opportunity to apply to take PACES in the UK.
The application period is open for 2 weeks, it does not matter when you apply – there is no first come first served rule.
We advise candidates to only apply to centres where they are able to obtain an entry visa as refunds will not be permitted for candidates withdrawing from an examination due to visa-related issues.

How to apply online for MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES

Main steps to applying online:

1. Log into your My MRCP(UK) account
2. Check your personal details are up-to-date
3. Indicate whether you are training in the UK or not
4. Choose where you would like to take PACES – you can choose up to four locations but you do not need to choose all four (please check centre details for local prioritisation rules)
5. Complete any special arrangements where applicable (see details below)
6. Fill in details of the past 12 months of hospital work history including where you have taken PACES or attended a PACES course
7. Submit your application.
8. You do not pay until it has been confirmed you have a place. An incomplete item will be automatically placed on your account, no further actions are required until your place has been confirmed.
9. You will find out within 2 weeks of the closing date of the application period whether you have a place.

Next steps for successful applications to international centres:

1. You will receive a successful application email which will include a link for online payments which must be made within 2 weeks.
2. Your place is now confirmed.
3. Once payment is accepted you will receive admission details of your exam centre and date within 6 weeks of the date of the assessment.
4. Visa support letters can be sent out to successful candidates if required.

Next steps if your international application has been rejected

Apply online for a UK place.
Follow the same procedure as before but you can request a preferred area and timeframe.
You will be emailed within 1 week of the application period closing if you are succesful.
Non-UK trainees are only required to pay after their application has been accepted
If you do not pay your application will be rejected
You will only be informed of your exam venue and date after payment has been completed. Admission documents are sent out a minimum of 6 weeks prior to examination date
Visa support letters can be sent out to successful candidates if required.

Processing of MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES applications

Non-UK trainees are must pay once their place is confirmed.
If any of the three colleges have an oversubscription of applications; candidates may be transferred to other colleges.
Admission documents are sent out a minimum of 6 weeks prior to the examination date.

Problems paying for MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES?

If you are experiencing problems paying contact your college of entry or Central Office.
If you choose to pay by cash or cheque/ bank draft when submitting your application you cannot change to pay online at a later date. Post any cheques to your college of entry or Central Office. You must include the following on the back of the cheque:
- RCP Code Number
- full name
- date of birth
- examination diet
- examination centre.

MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES Application status – what does it mean?

Application Received – your application is currently being processed
Application Accepted – your examination space is confirmed
Application Not Accepted – your application has been rejected due to oversubscription
Incomplete status:
- Your online credit card transaction was unsuccessful – please contact us with your credit card details to pay the examination fee – this incomplete item is automatically placed on all applications that haven’t been confirmed and candidates should not be alarmed.

MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES Marksheets

To help you understand how PACES is marked here are some examples of full marksheet samples

How to complete MRCP Part 2/MRCP PACES marksheets

Each candidate receives 16 marksheets at the examination centre.
Before the examination starts you should enter the following details:
- name
- examination number (found on your admission document)
- centre number (provided by the Colleges)

1. Using the 2B pencil provided enter your examination number and centre number correctly:

2. Number boxes should be scored individually and not scored across columns for double digits:

3. Examination/centre numbers of less than four digits must be scored using prefixed zero/s:

Keep the mark sheets with you throughout the assessment. Hand the appropriate marksheets to the examiners when you arrive at each station: one sheet to each examiner at Stations 2 and 4, and two sheets to each examiner at Stations 1, 3 and 5.
If you do not follow these instructions there may be a delay in the processing of your results.