PMC lowers eligibility criteria for MDCAT
PHOTO: FILE
In a major development, the Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) has decreased the eligibility criteria for the Medical and Dental Colleges Admissions Test (MDCAT) to accommodate more students.
According to the PMC, students who have scored 60 per cent marks in intermediate were eligible to sit for the MDCAT. It said that the new registration for MDCAT 2022 will resume from September 10 to September 25.
"The purpose of reopening the registration is to give an opportunity to all students who could not register themselves due to the eligibility criteria,” it said.
Meanwhile, the PMC also lowered the required passing percentage for the MDCAT-2022 from 65 per cent to 55 per cent for medical admissions and from 55 per cent to 45 per cent for dental admissions in the 2022-2023 session.
After the waiver, the students having passed the MDCAT exam with a minimum of 55 per cent and 45 per cent of marks and having obtained 60 in he FSC or equivalent exam shall be eligible for admission to medical or dental colleges and universities.
Earlier, the PMC postponed the MDCAT for an indefinite period in view of the evolving flood devastation in the country. The decision came a day after the newly-constituted council issued the revised schedule for the MDCAT across the country.
Announcing the decision at a press conference on Wednesday, Federal Minister for National Health Services Abdul Qadir Patel said electricity and internet connections remained severed in several parts of the country,
preventing a large number of students to register themselves on the relevant online portal for the test.
However, the students who could not apply for the test can now register themselves through the requisite portal and provinces will conduct the MDCAT examination under their domain. The portal will remain open for two weeks for such students.
“Currently, the country is badly affected due tofloods, provinces and the federation are busy helping their citizens as over 1,300 people have lost their lives and millions of people have been displaced,” the minister lamented.
Nearly, 16,000 students were studying in foreign medical colleges, draining out Rs50 billion annually, the minister added.The minister said this policy can also be reviewed if a seat remains unfilled. He said around 16,000 Pakistani students are studying abroad, draining out Rs50 billion rupees.
He said we are committed to facilitating our children. He said the council has also decided to review National Licensing Examination (NLE) for Pakistani
graduates.
However, this exam would continue for foreigners.Meanwhile, the PMC has reinstated the employees of the eartwhile PMDC on the recommendations of the investigation committee.
The PMC has issued a notification regarding the reinstatement of employees. Jawad Amin Khan and Shabbir Kasbati, who were part of the two-member committee, examined the matter on behalf of the commission.
The committee reviewed the matter in detail and recommended reinstating the employees who had retired under the golden hand shake.