PACES: Organising candidates

While all the centres, hosts and examiners are being confirmed, the candidates are applying. The telephone system in the Examinations Office becomes ‘red hot’ with calls from anxious doctors wondering if their application has been received and processed. As the closing date approaches, candidate tension rises and frequently time has to be taken to allay concerns.

When the candidate numbers have been agreed and those on the overflow list have either been transferred to the other Colleges, if space allows, or rejected if there are not enough places the allocation process to the specific centres can begin.

As soon as the candidate admission documents have been posted our attention turns to dispatching and editing scenarios for Stations 2, 4 and 5 and preparing the individual examination boxes for each day of the exam (these contain examiner and candidate information, badges, mark sheets and so on).

At the same time it is important to ensure that each centre has enough administrative equipment and support and deal with last-minute changes to examiners, candidates and unforeseen problems.

When the exam in each centre is complete all the mark sheets (16 per candidate) are returned to the College for collating and checking before being sent to MRCP(UK) Central Office for computer mark reading. Results are prepared and released after the Clinical Exam Board meets and confirms the pass mark.

Candidates who have performed particularly poorly or who make a specific request are given counselling during the period between exams. Centre and examiner expenses are paid and the diet is wrapped up. For a brief moment everyone breathes a sigh of relief and then the whole process starts again!

I have worked in Examinations Department of the RCPE for nearly 23 years. During this time I have been made aware of how important it is that the staff in the examinations department are able to ‘think on their feet’, have excellent communication skills and are proactive about introducing improvements to the way each of the exams is delivered.

Any frustrations are outweighed by the feeling of achievement when the exams have gone well. I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience and the wide diversity of people with whom I have had the pleasure of working.