The Membership of the Royal College of Physicians (MRCP) Part 1 examination is a postgraduate examination taken as part of specialty training in Internal Medicine. I took the MRCP(UK) Part 1 for the 1st time on 14 August 2024. I managed to pass it with a scaled score of 694, while the pass threshold was 540.
Here, I would like to share some tips for passing the MRCP Part 1. These tips are relevant for both MRCP(UK) and MRCPI General Medicine. I am writing the tips based on how I revised for the exam previously. However, different individuals may have different learning styles, so you should just take this as a guide.
The MRCP Part 1 is in the form of a Single Best Answer (SBA) examination. For each question, there are 5 options and you have to choose the most appropriate option. The questions in MRCP Part 1 do not include any images.
You have to start your revision no less than 3 months before taking the MRCP Part 1. I recommend spending at least 3 hours per day on the revision. If possible, you should revise every day. To pass the MRCP Part 1, you should aim for a score of at least 65%.
All of the following specialties will be tested in the MRCP Part 1:
- Cardiology
- Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics
- Clinical Sciences
- Dermatology
- Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolic Medicine
- Gastroenterology and Hepatology
- Geriatric Medicine
- Haematology
- Infectious diseases
- Neurology
- Oncology
- Ophthalmology
- Palliative Medicine and End of Life Care
- Psychiatry
- Renal Medicine
- Respiratory Medicine
- Rheumatology
These are the 3 important textbooks for the MRCP Part 1:
- Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine (11th Edition)
- Oxford Handbook of Clinical Specialties (11th Edition)
- Medicine for MRCP (by Rupa Bessant)
Start by revising Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine and Oxford Handbook of Clinical Specialties. You should cover all of the materials in both books. Of particular importance are the risk factors, pathophysiology, diagnosis, investigations, management and complications for each condition. Do not miss out on any condition, even if it's very rare.
After revising Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine and Oxford Handbook of Clinical Specialties, proceed with revising Medicine for MRCP. Medicine for MRCP only contains some of the conditions covered in the other textbooks, so it is not sufficient to be used on its own. However, Medicine for MRCP contains some important extra information at postgraduate level that are not found in the other books. Focus on revising the extra information for each condition, as well as the extra conditions and topics.
When revising the textbooks, I recommend going specialty by specialty. Finish all topics in a particular specialty before moving on to the next specialty. You should complete at least 3 full rounds of revision for all topics if possible.
You need to know the latest NICE guidelines. Important NICE guidelines are those covered in the textbooks, and you should look up the NICE website for the most up-to-date version of the guidelines. Take note of the publication date of each textbook and focus on NICE guidelines released or updated after the textbook's publication date.
It is very important to do practice questions for MRCP Part 1. Start doing practice questions after you have completed at least 1 full round of revision of the textbooks. Go through all practice questions on the MRCP(UK) website. Apart from that, you should subscribe to PassMedicine. It has a large number of practice questions, as well as revision materials. After finishing each practice question, check the correct answer and make sure you understand the reasoning behind every correct or wrong answer.
You should also revise the high-yield textbook in PassMedicine. It summarises the important information you need to know in a concise manner, and it also contains some extra information not found in the textbooks.
You should study for MRCP Part 1 mainly through understanding, not memorising. Basically, for every fact you come across in your revision, try to think "Why is this the case?" If there is an explanation, read it and make sure you understand what it says. If there is no explanation, try to come up with your own explanation based on your knowledge. You can also look up the internet for an explanation. The fact is that, when you actively seek an explanation for a fact, you will end up remembering the fact much better and your revision will also become more interesting. This is so much more effective than simply memorising the facts. However, do note that not everything can be studied this way. Certain facts have no possible explanation at all, so the only way to study them is by memorising.
You do not need to memorise the normal range of values for investigations as it will be provided in the questions during the MRCP Part 1. You are not allowed to use a calculator during the exam. All calculations that you need to perform will be simple calculations that do not require using a calculator.
You will have an average of 108 seconds to answer each question in the MRCP Part 1. Although that is quite a plenty amount of time, you should still be careful not to run out of time. Time yourself when doing the practice questions. As you are reading the question, you should already be thinking of the diagnosis so that you can get to the answer faster.
All the best in your revision! I hope you will do well in the MRCP Part 1 examination.
Tips for the UKMLA AKT and PLAB 1 can be found here:
https://daniellimjj.blogspot.com/2023/03/tips-for-ukmla-akt.html
Tips for the Prescribing Safety Assessment (PSA) can be found here:
https://daniellimjj.blogspot.com/2019/02/tips-for-prescribing-safety-assessment.html
