The MRCGP SCA exam: format, fee, dates and how to use your 12 minutes

The short version

• 12 cases, 12 minutes each, with 3 minutes' reading time at the start of each case (RCGP).
• Video and audio only: "In the majority of these you will be able to see the simulated patient. Others will be audio only." The RCGP pages we read don't give the exact split.
• Where: a local GP surgery via the Osler examination platform; "in most cases, this will be your own surgery."
• Who: GP trainees in ST3, with active MRCGP (AiT) membership. Fee: £1,207 (2026 diets); £1,238 for exams sat 1 January to end of July 2027.
• Marking: each case is marked by a different examiner in three domains: Data gathering and diagnosis, Clinical management and medical complexity, and Relating to others. Your result is the aggregate across all 12 cases.
• No physical examination: the RCGP says physical examination is not assessed in the SCA and is covered in WPBA.
• Dates: nine diets a year; the last 2026 diet is 3–6 November (results 8 December 2026, 17:00). The first 2027 diet is 12–15 January 2027; its final booking deadline is 6 November 2026.

What the SCA is

The SCA is one of the three parts of the MRCGP. The RCGP: "The MRCGP comprises three separate components – an Applied Knowledge Test (AKT), a Simulated Consultation Assessment (SCA) and Workplace-based Assessment (WPBA)" (see MRCGP exams explained). It tests whether you can run a GP consultation safely and in a patient-centered way, at the standard of a newly qualified, independent GP.

The RCGP's own words, from its "Introducing the SCA" page:

• "There will be twelve consultations with simulated patients, each lasting twelve minutes."
• "There is 3-minutes reading time at the start of each case."
• "In the majority of these you will be able to see the simulated patient. Others will be audio only."
• "Each of the twelve cases will be independently marked by a different examiner."
• "Physical examinations will not be assessed within the SCA, and instead will be covered within WPBA."

Format at a glance

Eligibility and booking

The RCGP's "Applying for the SCA" page says: "Candidates are eligible to sit the SCA examination from ST3 onwards." Its exam dates and booking page adds that your training record must show you are in your ST3 year, and that "MRCGP membership must be active. Resigned, lapsed or suspended MRCGP membership will prevent booking."

You book in MyRCGP (the "My Exams" tab), up to 12 months ahead; the RCGP says "You no longer need to reserve a booking in FourteenFish." Each diet has two deadlines on the RCGP's exam dates page: a reasonable adjustments deadline and a final booking deadline, by which the fee must be paid in full. You can pay in stages (25%, 25%, then 50% by the final booking deadline), and you can cancel or transfer without charge until the final booking deadline.

You can't choose your day within the diet. The RCGP: "Your examination will be scheduled in either a morning or afternoon session during the examination diet. Confirmation of your examination date and time is emailed four weeks before your examination."

Fee

"The examination fee for the SCA is £1,207." (RCGP, Applying for the SCA.) The RCGP's exam admin page adds that for examinations sat from 1 January 2027 until the end of July 2027 the SCA fee is £1,238, while candidates already booked for September, October or November 2026 pay £1,207. "We review fees at the beginning of each academic year."

2026 SCA dates

The RCGP runs the SCA in nine diets a year. The 2026 diets:

The first 2027 diets (RCGP, SCA dates 2026–27):

The RCGP notes that dates can change. Reasonable adjustments deadlines, and what the results and feedback mean: SCA results and dates.

How it is marked (in brief)

Each of the 12 cases is marked in three domains, and each domain gets one grade: CP, P, F or CF. The RCGP says the Clinical management and medical complexity domain "is weighted in comparison to the other two domains". Examiners also give a global judgment (Pass, Bare Pass, Bare Fail, Fail), which sets each case's pass mark by borderline regression. Failing one case doesn't fail the exam: "it is the aggregated mark you have received for the 12 cases which give you your overall mark." Full detail: SCA marking scheme.

What the cases look like

The RCGP says "Cases will reflect real life general practice and are based on real patient consultations", drawn from "a bank of hundreds, all of which are mapped to the curriculum". It publishes a blueprint of 12 "Clinical Experience Groups" that keeps each exam spread across general practice, from "Patient less than 19 years old" and "Mental health, including addiction, smoking, alcohol, substance misuse" to "Prescribing", "Investigation / Results" and "Professional conversation / Professional dilemma", and says "candidates should prepare equally for all groups". The purpose of a consultation "may therefore not be apparent in advance". You get case notes to read first, and the RCGP's feedback page reminds you to use the information given in them. Our SCA cases guide walks through the kinds of consultation and one full example case, and telephone and video consultations covers the remote cases.

A 12-minute timing plan

The RCGP says "the SCA cases are designed to be possible in the twelve-minute time frame", and "Time management in the consultation was ineffective" is one of its feedback statements. Its SCA toolkit lists, as a global skill, "Finishes data gathering by 6-7 minutes". Everything else in the plan below is our suggestion, not an RCGP rule.

Timing plan written by Confetto for practice (a suggestion, not an RCGP requirement):

Three rules that make the plan work:

1. Check the clock at about 6 minutes. If you are still asking questions, summarize and move to explanation.
2. Don't save management for the last minute. CM&C is the weighted domain; a plan squeezed into 30 seconds can't show shared decisions, co-morbidity and safety-netting.
3. Use the case notes. Don't ask for what you were already given; build on it ("I can see your HbA1c was raised last month…").

Common timing mistakes (and fixes)

On the day: a checklist from the RCGP's own guidance

• Your session: morning (scheduled 08:45 to 13:25) or afternoon (13:20 to 18:05), including 45 minutes for reruns; the RCGP asks you to have access to your surgery from 08:30 to 18:30.
• Device check: the RCGP sends a device check and platform walkthrough link before the exam (its "Sitting the SCA" page says four weeks before; its candidate surgery guide says two weeks), so watch your email from a month out. Do it on the same computer and in the same room; if you skip it and then have IT problems, the RCGP says that "will not be considered grounds for mitigation".
• Equipment: a laptop or PC (not a tablet or phone), webcam, microphone and speaker or headphones, Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge, one monitor only; the RCGP recommends at least 10 Mbps download and 4 Mbps upload.
• Room: disconnect any landline; cover or remove clinical guidance documents and posters.
• Notes: "you will not be allowed to bring paper or a notepad"; the platform has a note-taking function, and a blank whiteboard and pen are optional.
• No BNF: "From September 2024, you will not be allowed to access the BNF during the SCA examination."
• Food and drink: water is allowed; "small discreet snacks and drinks in addition to water are permitted ... at the discretion of the Surgery/Practice", so check with your practice.
• Breaks and reruns: there is a comfort break during the exam; if a technical problem disrupts a case, reruns of up to three stations happen at the end.
• Between cases: one breath, forget the last case. Every case is marked by a different examiner, and the result is the aggregate of all 12.

Practice this case with an AI patient

Confetto isn't affiliated with the RCGP.