How to Prepare for FCPS-2, MCPS, MS & FRCA Theory

Build Your Foundation — System-wise Question Bank

Start with one system at a time. Do not jump between systems. Finish all the questions in that system before you move to the next one.

1. Choose one system, for example Respiratory & Airway.
2. Answer every question in that system in the Question Bank.
3. When you finish, open Personal Study Centre. It will show you the questions you got wrong from that system.
4. Practice those wrong questions again, using the practice builder inside Personal Study Centre.
5. Move to the next system and repeat.

Tip: while you practice, you can save a difficult question and add your own note to it. Do this often — these saved questions become very useful later.

Consolidate — Personal Study Centre

Once you have completed all systems in the Question Bank, your focus changes. Now you practice across every system together, based on where you are weak.

1. Check your exam date in Personal Study Centre (you already set this in the note above).
2. Set a daily target, for example 100 MCQs per day. Choose a number you can really do every day — a smaller daily habit is better than a big number you give up on.
3. Personal Study Centre will automatically choose questions from your weak areas for you to practice.
4. Keep saving difficult questions and writing notes on them as you go.

Do this every day until you reach the "1 month before exam" stage below.

Understanding Your Numbers

Personal Study Centre shows you four numbers. Here is what each one means, in simple words.

One Month Before the Exam — Past Papers

About one month before your exam, add Past Papers into your daily routine alongside your Personal Study Centre practice.

1. Go to Past Papers & Recalls and work through them steadily, a few at a time.
2. Read through any quick revision notes you have made, or notes shared by your teachers or colleagues.
3. Keep your daily Personal Study Centre practice going at the same time — do not stop it.

Clinical Stations — TOACS Practice

In the same period, start your clinical station practice. This is separate from MCQ practice and needs its own time.

1. Go to TOACS Preparation and work through the stations one by one.
2. If possible, practice a few stations out loud with a colleague. Speaking your answer is different from just reading it — practice both.

Viva Preparation

Viva needs a different kind of practice. Reading is not enough — you must practice speaking.

1. Study from your notes and go through short and long cases.
2. Practice long cases in person with other trainees whenever you can.
3. Practice speaking your answers out loud on your own, for both short and long cases. Do not only think the answer in your head — say it, as if the examiner is in front of you.
4. Also practice with others — take turns being the examiner and the candidate.
5. Use the Viva Simulator in the Viva Revision section for extra practice.

A full, separate Viva Guide is also available: Open the Viva Guide

Final Practice — Mock Exams

In your last few weeks, practice full mock exams to build your speed, confidence, and control under pressure.

1. Go to Mock Exams. Each mock pulls around 200 questions from the Question Bank, matched to the same weightage as your real exam.
2. Do at least 10 mock sessions before your exam.
3. Time yourself properly, the same way you will be timed in the real exam. This trains you to handle exam pressure, not just to know the answers.
4. After each mock, review your wrong answers the same day, while you still remember why you chose them.