Exam Details - MFDS Part 1

The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow collaborate on this examination and have produced a single set of regulations for the two Colleges. Candidates may enter through only one College for any particular diet. The MFDS (from 2007) examination is a different examination to those offered by the Royal College of Surgeons of England or the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

There are two parts to the MFDS examination – Part 1 and Part 2. Part 1 consists of a single written paper containing 180 multiple choice questions (single best answer type). The Part 1 examination stands alone, candidates being awarded either a pass or a fail. Part 2 consists of an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) of approximately two hours’ duration. Candidates will be awarded either a pass or a fail. Candidate guidance is available here.

For Part 1 you must be in possession of a primary dental qualification acceptable to the Councils of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow. For Part 2 you must have written confirmation of a pass at Part 1 or must qualify for an exemption from Part 1. Candidates must also provide evidence of completion of 12 months’ experience in clinical dentistry before the closing date for entry to the Part 2 examination they wish to sit.

Part 1 is currently delivered online twice a year, usually in April and October.

Part 2 is currently held in the UK and Internationally. The UK locations where the exam would be held by RCSEd include Edinburgh, Leeds, London and Sheffield.  International centres include Cairo, Dubai and Kuala Lumpur.

Please refer to the Examination Directory on the college website. This provides full and current information on the examination centres, dates and fees.

Yes. Full information on the exemptions which are available from Part 1 of the MFDS Examination can be found on the MFDS Exempting Qualifications document.

Candidates must provide evidence of having passed Part 1 MFDS at the time of applying for Part 2 MFDS and also provide evidence of completion of a minimum of 12 months full-time postgraduate experience in clinical dentistry. Candidates are not permitted to apply for Part 2 at the same time they apply for Part 1.

No. You must receive written confirmation of a pass at Part 1 before applying to sit Part 2. For example, if you sit and pass Part 1 in an October diet, then the earliest you can sit Part 2 would be in the next diet in February/March of the following year.

No, postgraduate experience offered for entry to Part 2 MFDS is not required to be in recognised training posts.

12 months. The requirement was previously 24 months however the Regulations were amended in September 2010 and the requirement is now only 12 months of postgraduate experience in dentistry. This is the same amount of experience as is required for entry to Part 2 and therefore candidates can apply for election and award of their diploma after passing Part 2 of the Examination.

Yes, but only if your internship took place after graduation and only if you have completed the required 12 months’ postgraduate experience by the closing date for applications.

No, however acquisition of the MFDS meets the GDC stipulation that trainees must demonstrate that they have the required broad-based knowledge to enter specialist training. We hope that successful candidates will consider the diploma to be a ‘badge of excellence’ which is stimulating and truly represents a measure of their clinical practice and expertise.

A reading list is available on our website. Preparatory courses are run within the College at various times subject to demand. Details are available through the Education area of the College website.

Details of the syllabus are available as part of the Regulations document.

Yes. Candidates must pass Part 2 within five calendar years of having passed Part 1 or the exempting qualification. Candidates who do not pass Part 2 within five years will be required to sit Part 1 again.

Yes, a restriction to the number of attempts permitted for each part of the examination has now been put in place, allowing a maximum limit of 6 attempts at Part 1 and a maximum limit of 4 attempts at Part 2 with effect from April 2017.