Information For Doctors Sitting the AMC Exams & Planning to Migrate to Australia
Dr LP Cheah has had the chance to teach in several AMC Bridging Courses. In addition, he often meets and works with international medical graduates(IMG) in the course of his hospital work. He understands some of the difficulties and challenges faced by the IMGs. He has also been referee and mentor to many overseas-trained doctors.
The doctors he has taught have passed on to him the material below to share with others through the web. (Dr LP Cheah is often impressed by how much collaborative work is performed by all the AMC candidates! In particular, how those who have passed unselfishly give their time to provide notes to their friends who are about to sit the exams. Usually within a week or two of any AMC exams - he finds the IMGs that he teaches/work with in Melbourne and Echuca already have copies of someone else's recalls(or more accurately.. exam experience blogs))
( To download, right click the link and then choose Save Target As... )
1. Sydney 2005 (74kb)
2. OSCE 2004 & 2006 (27kb)
3. OSCE Answers Melb2005 Group (600kb)
4. Tute Shally (31kb)
5. Tute M1 (68kb)
6. Tute M4 (199kb)
7. Tute M20June (38kb)
8. Tute Mlasttute (39kb)
9. Obsterics and Gynaecology (122kb)
10. O&G with Laura (54kb)
11. Obstetrics2 (65kb)
12. Paediatrics (104kb)
13. OSCEPerth28Oct06 (30kb)
14. OSCE Melb11Nov06 (58kb)
15. BrisbandMay2010
17. SydneyJuly2010
29.Recall 99
30.Recall 99b
31.Recall 98
32.Recall 72
32.Recall 121
33.2011 Nov Recalls (MCQ Med Psyc Paed O&G)
VERY IMPORTANT:
Most of the materials / answers here have not been edited by Dr LP Cheah and are exactly what they are –"Exam experience blogs" - recalls of the candidates' experience sitting the OSCEs and practice sample answers under time pressure(ie not a perfect answer) from the doctors sitting the AMC exams and their tutors (including Dr LP Cheah).
Also, more importantly - READ THE QUESTIONS IN THE CLINICALS THAT YOU ARE SITTING CAREFULLY - THE QUESTIONS MAY NOT BE EXACTLY THE SAME.
One CEO of AMC has mentioned that on the detailed analysis of the performances at each AMC Clinicals, sometimes one can find that good candidates who normally score well has failed a certain station and one possible reason for that is that they have MEMORISED incorrect recall answers.
The most important things to do to get through the clinicals would be to participate in a Bridging Course and to have a study group.
If you have any comments on how the answers could be better, please email us.
FOOTNOTE 2015 - With the current situation in the public hospitals, where there are increasing number of local medical graduates looking for a fixed number of positions, it will be increasingly hard for fresh AMC graduates to find resident jobs in the cities or regional centres. There will be much more competition for training posts for GP and specialist programs in the coming years.
Useful links - updated 2018:
This page shows how one can get specialist recognition to be a general practitioner here:
https://www.racgp.org.au/becomingagp/imgaus/specialist-pathway/
Getting FRACGP qualifications allow ones to claim a higher rebate from Medicare
The Medicare rates are on this website - http://www.mbsonline.gov.au/internet/mbsonline/publishing.nsf/Content/Home
This page shows how many specialists from overseas apply and have their specialist qualifications recognized by the respective colleges:
http://www.medicalboard.gov.au/Registration/International-Medical-Graduates/Specialist-Pathway/Guides-and-reports.aspx
Medical-Board---Report---Report-on-specialist-medical-colleges%E2%80%99-specialist-pathway-data---1-January-2017-31-December-2017--.PDF
Specialist recognition outcomes: Outcome of interim assessment: By country of highest specialist qualification – all colleges Country Not comparable Partially comparable Substantially comparable Argentina 1 1 0 Armenia 1 0 0 Austria 0 1 0 Bangladesh 0 2 0 Belgium 1 1 1 Brazil 11 11 2 Canada 2 1 14 China 0 2 0 Colombia 1 0 0 Denmark 0 1 0 Egypt 8 10 4 Finland 1 0 0 France 2 1 0 Germany 2 4 3 Hong Kong 0 1 4 India 44 59 7 Indonesia 0 1 0 Iran 2 6 1 Iraq 1 2 0 Ireland 1 5 10 Country Not comparable Partially comparable Substantially comparable Israel 1 2 2 Italy 1 4 2 Japan 1 2 0 Jordan 2 0 0 Kenya 1 2 0 Malaysia 1 5 4 Mexico 0 1 1 Nepal 1 0 0 Netherlands 1 9 5 New Zealand 0 0 13 Nigeria 2 1 0 North Korea 1 0 0 Norway 0 1 1 Pakistan 4 8 0 Papua New Guinea 0 0 1 Peru 0 1 0 Philippines 0 1 1 Poland 2 1 0 Qatar 0 2 0 Russia 2 0 0 Country Not comparable Partially comparable Substantially comparable Rwanda 1 0 0 Saudi Arabia 1 1 1 Serbia 1 1 0 Singapore 1 4 3 South Africa 1 24 10 South Korea 1 2 1 Spain 1 1 4 Sri Lanka 0 7 7 Sweden 0 2 1 Switzerland 0 1 1 Syria 1 2 0 Taiwan 0 3 1 Turkey 1 4 1 United Arab Emirates 2 0 0 United Kingdom 6 36 367 United States of America 3 12 8 Zimbabwe 1 0 0
This looks at the number of doctors in Australia including the numbers in various specialties :
http://hwd.health.gov.au/publications.html
http://hwd.health.gov.au/webapi/customer/documents/factsheets/2016/Medical%20workforce%20factsheet%202016.pdf
In 2016 - about 30% of the doctors in Australia are international medical graduates(around 30,000) (Australia has traditionally been very welcoming to overseas doctors - but now the problem is that there are too many local medical graduates and not enough specialists training positions nor enough consultant jobs)
Page 9 has a good summary of the pathway one becomes a consultant in Australia
Page 10 would explain why it is so hard to get an internship position in Australia - there are so many local graduates already!
The Doctor Life Cycle provides a good overview of how to become a consultant in Australia :
https://ama.com.au/careers/becoming-a-doctor
These are the requirements to be able to apply for Advanced Surgical Training here in Australia:
https://www.surgeons.org/becoming-a-surgeon/surgery-as-a-career/selection-requirements/
Some press releases from 2018 :
• Australia has one of the highest ratios of medical schools per capita in the developed world, with 22 schools including Macquarie Medical School which opened this year and Curtin University which opened in 2017.
• While medical student numbers have more than doubled since 2006, post-graduate training positions have not increased proportionally.
• By 2030 there are projected to be 1000 more applicants than available advanced vocational training positions (source).
http://msja.anu.edu.au/archive/issue/03/the-medical-student-tsunami.php
https://www.medicalobserver.com.au/views/views-top-medical-student-tsunami
"Government modelling suggests that Emergency Medicine Doctors will outnumber workforce need by at least 1000 by 2030. Doctors will have spent five years or more of their lives studying for a job that doesn’t exist, and left with a qualification that isn’t transferrable."
"Many junior doctors live their lives buried in night shifts and study, or languishing in unaccredited jobs, waiting for the time ‘after training’ when finally, as a consultant, their job will allow them a semblance of work-life balance. What do they do if that time doesn’t come?"
https://www.amc.org.au/files/68562f634332373ab0200e0a7a15d85d76e0e08e_original.pdf
597 doctors passed the Clinical exam (technically AMC produces more doctors for Australia than any local medical school) - this is out of 2165 who sat
New Clinical Scoring Model The Clinical Examination Research Group developed a new scoring model for the Clinical examinations. This model involves a 14 scored items + 2 pilot items policy and took into account considerations of the removal of the compulsory stations and the replacement of a poor performing station. A policy paper was developed and approved through the Assessment Committee and recently by the AMC Directors. A timeline was initiated to develop and implement the 14 + 2 policy which includes communication to both AMC Candidates via the AMC website, email and in the Clinical Examination Specifications booklet and the Medical Board of Australia advising of the change in Clinical examination scoring. The new scoring model will be implemented from the February 2018 Clinical examinations.
Page 48-52 has some statistics of those who sat the AMC exams (the diversity of the doctors who sat is like the United Nations! )
MCQ EXAMINATION COUNTRY OF TRAINING STATISTICS 1 JULY 2016 TO 30 JUNE 2017 CTY TRAINED NO OF CANDIDATE SAT 1 SAT 2 SAT 3 SAT 4 SAT TOTAL PASS 1 PASS 2 PASS 3 PASS 4 PASS TOTAL AFGHANISTAN 10 7 3 1 1 12 1 1 0 1 3 ALGERIA 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 ARGENTINA 5 4 1 0 0 5 2 1 0 0 3 ARMENIA 4 2 2 1 0 5 1 0 1 0 2 ARUBA 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 AUSTRIA 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 BAHRAIN 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 BANGLADESH 157 122 31 7 11 171 83 17 4 6 110 BELARUS 8 4 3 0 1 8 1 2 0 0 3 BOLIVIA 2 2 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 1 BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 BRAZIL 30 29 4 0 1 34 15 2 0 1 18 BURUNDI 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 CAMBODIA 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 CHILE 2 2 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 2 CHINA 144 102 37 19 15 173 39 13 7 3 62 COLOMBIA 19 16 3 1 0 20 8 0 1 0 9 CUBA 4 2 2 1 0 5 1 1 0 0 2 CURACAO 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 CZECH REPUBLIC 1 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO 1 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 DENMARK 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 EGYPT 255 221 31 5 9 266 177 18 3 2 200 EL SALVADOR 2 0 2 1 0 3 0 0 1 0 1 ETHIOPIA 5 5 0 0 0 5 3 0 0 0 3 FIJI 13 11 1 1 0 13 5 0 0 0 5 FINLAND 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 FRANCE 2 2 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 2 GEORGIA 4 3 2 0 0 5 1 2 0 0 3 GERMANY 11 11 0 0 0 11 10 0 0 0 10 GHANA 3 3 1 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 GRENADA 3 2 1 0 0 3 1 1 0 0 2 GUYANA 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 HONG KONG 2 2 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 2 CTY TRAINED NO OF CANDIDATE SAT 1 SAT 2 SAT 3 SAT 4 SAT TOTAL PASS 1 PASS 2 PASS 3 PASS 4 PASS TOTAL HUNGARY 3 1 2 0 0 3 1 1 0 0 2 INDIA 288 217 62 24 23 326 135 30 9 7 181 INDONESIA 21 16 5 2 3 26 5 3 1 0 9 IRAN 138 112 24 9 4 149 84 16 5 2 107 IRAQ 101 89 11 4 2 106 71 9 3 2 85 IRELAND 10 8 0 0 2 10 6 0 0 0 6 ITALY 4 4 0 0 0 4 3 0 0 0 3 JAMAICA 2 2 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 2 JAPAN 4 4 0 0 0 4 4 0 0 0 4 JORDAN 6 5 1 0 0 6 5 1 0 0 6 KAZAKHSTAN 1 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 KENYA 11 8 2 1 0 11 3 1 1 0 5 KUWAIT 2 2 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 2 KYRGYZSTAN 4 3 1 0 0 4 1 1 0 0 2 LATVIA 4 3 0 0 1 4 2 0 0 1 3 LEBANON 4 4 0 0 0 4 2 0 0 0 2 LIBYA 7 4 1 1 2 8 3 0 1 0 4 MACEDONIA 2 0 1 1 0 2 0 1 0 0 1 MALAYSIA 66 58 9 3 2 72 37 3 0 1 41 MALTA 2 2 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 2 MAURITIUS 3 2 0 0 2 4 0 0 0 1 1 MEXICO 2 2 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 1 MONTSERRAT 1 1 1 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 1 MOZAMBIQUE 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 MYANMAR 81 68 15 5 3 91 50 7 3 1 61 NEPAL 30 19 10 3 3 35 11 3 2 1 17 NETHERLANDS 8 5 1 2 1 9 4 0 2 1 7 NIGERIA 60 46 19 6 4 75 22 5 2 3 32 OMAN 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 PAKISTAN 244 193 41 21 11 266 134 23 7 3 167 PAPUA NEW GUINEA 5 1 2 2 0 5 0 1 0 0 1 PERU 3 3 0 0 0 3 1 0 0 0 1 PHILIPPINES 123 92 23 13 11 139 47 8 7 3 65 POLAND 9 7 1 2 0 10 3 1 1 0 5 ROMANIA 10 5 2 2 3 12 3 0 0 1 4 RUSSIA 59 36 16 7 12 71 8 5 4 0 17 RWANDA 2 2 1 0 0 3 1 1 0 0 2 SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS 5 2 2 1 0 5 2 0 0 0 2 SAINT LUCIA 2 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 SAMOA 3 2 1 1 0 4 2 0 1 0 3 SAUDI ARABIA 5 5 0 0 0 5 2 0 0 0 2 SERBIA 6 2 1 0 5 8 1 0 0 1 2 SEYCHELLES 3 0 1 2 1 4 0 0 1 0 1 SINGAPORE 3 3 0 0 0 3 3 0 0 0 3 SINT MAARTEN 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 SOUTH AFRICA 41 35 7 3 0 45 27 2 1 0 30 SOUTH KOREA 10 8 3 0 0 11 6 1 0 0 7 SRI LANKA 126 111 20 5 3 139 88 14 2 2 106 SUDAN 50 41 8 2 0 51 27 4 1 0 32 SWITZERLAND 2 2 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 2 SYRIA 21 17 4 1 0 22 11 4 1 0 16 TAIWAN 3 3 0 0 0 3 3 0 0 0 3 TAJIKISTAN 2 0 1 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 CTY TRAINED NO OF CANDIDATE SAT 1 SAT 2 SAT 3 SAT 4 SAT TOTAL PASS 1 PASS 2 PASS 3 PASS 4 PASS TOTAL TANZANIA 2 2 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 1 THAILAND 5 3 2 0 0 5 2 2 0 0 4 TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO 2 2 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 1 TURKEY 4 4 0 0 0 4 3 0 0 0 3 UGANDA 3 3 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 UKRAINE 40 29 10 0 3 42 8 5 0 0 13 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 9 7 2 1 0 10 6 1 1 0 8 UNITED KINGDOM 2 2 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 1 URUGUAY 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 USA 3 3 0 0 0 3 3 0 0 0 3 UZBEKISTAN 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 VENEZUELA 10 7 3 2 1 13 1 1 0 1 3 VIET NAM 10 8 2 0 1 11 4 2 0 0 6 YEMEN 2 2 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 1 ZAMBIA 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 ZIMBABWE 11 8 3 1 0 12 4 3 0 0 7 Total 2409 1903 452 166 142 2663 1223 219 73 44 1559
CLINICAL RETEST STATISTICS 1 JULY 2016 TO 30 JUNE 2017 EXAM DATE CITY NUMBER OF CANDIDATES WHO SAT CANDIDATES WHO PASSED CANDIDATES WHO FAILED NUMBER RATE NUMBER RATE 16-08-19MR 19/08/2016 MELBOURNE-NTC 54 21 38.89% 33 61.11% 16-08-25MR 25/08/2016 MELBOURNE-NTC 53 33 62.26% 20 37.74% 16-09-02MR 02/09/2016 MELBOURNE-NTC 52 24 46.15% 28 53.85% 16-11-23MI 23/11/2016 MELBOURNE-NTC 1 1 100.00% 0 0.00% 16-11-24MR 24/11/2016 MELBOURNE-NTC 54 22 40.74% 32 59.26% 17-02-11MR 11/02/2017 MELBOURNE-NTC 54 16 29.63% 38 70.37% 17-03-03MR 03/03/2017 MELBOURNE-NTC 53 23 43.40% 30 56.60% 17-04-29MR 29/04/2017 MELBOURNE-NTC 50 18 36.00% 32 64.00% 17-06-09MR 09/06/2017 MELBOURNE-NTC 54 19 35.19% 35 64.81% Total 425 177 41.65% 248 58.35%
2017:
https://lifeinthefastlane.com/the-intern-crisis/
- This year 3326 students will graduate from medical schools in Australia. In order for these students to become doctors, they must complete a compulsory registration year – an internship.
- Due to a shortfall, 182 students have currently not received jobs.
- Local students are prioritised, so those missing out are international students who have spent the past 4-6 years in Australia and received the same training as their domestic colleagues.
- There is plenty of work for these graduates but the state and federal governments need to commit money to fund these jobs.
- Without internships, these 182 medical students will be forced overseas or into other professions, which is not ideal as Australia currently has a shortage of consultant doctors.
2015:
https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/2473138
2014 :
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/record-numbers-cause-headaches-as-medical-interns-battle-for-spots-20140129-31mvt.html
Suggested reading material for AMC examination preparation
https://www.amc.org.au/publications
https://www.medicalboard.gov.au/Registration/International-Medical-Graduates/Specialist-Pathway/Guides-and-reports.aspx
