MDCAT No Longer Mandatory For Foreign Medical Study

Pakistani students planning to pursue medical or dental education abroad will no longer be required to pass the Medical and Dental College Admission Test before seeking admission in foreign institutions, the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council announced on Monday.

The decision was shared through a notice after a council meeting held on September 14. The notice said the mandatory requirement of passing the admission test as a prerequisite for Pakistani students seeking admission to foreign medical and dental institutions had been removed.

The council did not give detailed reasons in its public notice. However, its president Dr Rizwan Taj said the step followed a recommendation from a parliamentary committee, which had taken the view that students going abroad for medical education should not be forced to clear the local entry test.

The Senate Standing Committee on National Health Services had recently discussed the issue and raised questions about the policy. Members pointed to a discrepancy in requiring the test for students seeking admission abroad and recommended stronger regulation of substandard foreign medical institutions instead of a blanket testing condition.

The matter had also come under review in a June meeting of a Senate sub-committee, where members questioned the legality of the earlier directive. The committee expressed concern that the requirement appeared to lack clear statutory backing and said further deliberation was needed before such a condition could be imposed.

Officials had previously argued that the test requirement was meant to discourage students from taking admission in weak or substandard foreign medical colleges. Committee members, however, questioned how a local admission test would prevent students from enrolling in poor-quality institutions outside Pakistan.

The committee suggested that the regulator should instead prepare and publicly disclose a list of foreign medical colleges and universities that do not meet recognised standards. Such a list, it argued, would better guide students and parents while allowing them to make informed decisions before committing to overseas education.

An official clarified that the exemption applies to students pursuing education abroad, but those seeking transfer to a university in Pakistan midway through studies will still be required to clear the National Examination Board assessment. The exam is held twice a year to assess the knowledge, clinical skills and professional competence of students who studied medicine or dentistry abroad and want to continue or enter the system in Pakistan.

Foreign medical graduates who want to practise in Pakistan after completing their studies abroad will also still have to pass the required registration exam. That assessment remains necessary for obtaining a licence, starting house job and entering professional practice in the country.