MBBS, BDS exam pass mark raised from 50pc to 70pc

The Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PMDC) has increased the pass mark of the annual MBBS and BDS examinations from 50 per cent to 70 per cent to raise the standard of medical education in the country. This was approved in the recent council meeting.

According to a formal notification announcing the decision, medical and dental colleges have been asked to increase the minimum attendance requirement from 75 per cent to 90 per cent to ensure adequate curricular exposure and practical experience pass mark.

The meeting also issued a policy regarding self-finance and foreign quota seats, according to which no candidate would be eligible for foreign quota seats in public and private medical and dental institutions under sub-regulation (a) unless they are a permanent foreign national or a Pakistani citizen residing abroad, a green card holder, an Iqama holder or a Maple Leaf Card holder, have passed the Higher Secondary School Certificate (HSSC) exam or its equivalent from outside Pakistan, are a resident of a foreign country at the time of applying for admission, and have a certificate to that effect from the institution they last attended.

The notification said that foreign candidates with HSSC or A-level qualification from within or outside Pakistan, along with equivalent certificates, with chemistry and biology as compulsory subjects, and physics or mathematics as optional subjects are eligible for admission to MBBS and BDS programmes on reserved seats.

The notification directed all public and private medical and dental colleges to ensure that admissions for the 2024-25 session are granted in strict compliance with the PMDC regulations.