NEXT (National Exit Test) will be another milestone in the history of medical education. This will become a reality in 2024 (speculation). Its apex, the National Medical Council (NMC), will implement the scheme for final-year MBBS students to enable them to validate their degrees for practice in India. It introduced this bill in 2019 aimed at replacing NEET PGs and university professorships. Later, in 2020, the Department of Health and Family Welfare also submitted a draft. In the current scenario, there will be a single exam for both Indian medical graduates and foreign medical graduates.
NEXT replaces the existing FMGE and NEET PG exams and is considered the final qualifying exam for MBBS students. This is an entrance exam for medical students in India and a gateway to graduate school. The first National Exit Examination (NExT), a joint qualification examination to replace the National Eligibility and Entrance Examination PG (NEET-PG), the final university-level MBBS examination, and the FMGE, will be administered. It is scheduled to be held in May 2024.
According to the Ministry of Health, the main purpose of the NEXT trial is to improve the country's health insurance system and produce more qualified doctors, as mentioned above. This is also a first step towards the government's goal of ensuring that every student in the country has an exam plan.
It ensures an equitable and standardized education system across the country. This is due to the fact that it is a central exam that all states, including those with comparable medical school curricula, are required to take. Rather, we also need to ensure equal and uniform educational standards. Medical colleges in Karnataka, Punjab, and Delhi are currently considered the best, but thanks to the NEXT exams, other states will be on par.
The candidate must submit the NExT application form. The application process begins with registering and providing basic candidate information, generating an Exam Unique Code (EUC), and completing an application form.
To be eligible for the NEXT exam, candidates must have a Bachelor of Medicine degree from an accredited university.
They must have completed at least 50% of the MBBS course.
Additionally, it should be noted that students are required to complete a 12-month clinical internship after passing NEXT Paper 1.
Please note that only students who meet this criteria will be admitted to Paper 2.
The NMC NExT exam template includes exam mode, average total number of questions, question types, and other details. NExT 1 (theoretical exam) will be held in online mode, while NExT 2 (practise or exam exam) will be held in offline mode. NExT 1 provides 540 MCQs. Those who pass the National Exit Test 1 are eligible to participate in the internship programme. Candidates must achieve 50% marks to qualify in NeXT Paper 1. Candidates must pass both NExT 1 and NExT 2 to be admitted to the PG course.
The exam consists of two parts, NExT 1 and NExT 2.
Theory-based NExT 1 will be held in online mode.
NExT 1 presents a total of 540 MCQ-based questions across 19 subjects.
NExT 2 only after completion of internship
NExT 2, or Paper 2, is a practical exam administered by the respective state university.
Exam Part 1 scores are valid for two years to qualify for the Exam 2 practical exam.
Candidates must achieve a minimum score to be eligible for the exam. NExT 1 grades are calculated as integers that act as raw scores with appropriate decimal places. If desired, the corresponding percentages (grades out of a maximum of 100 points) can be calculated using the appropriate decimal places. NExT 2 exam results are declared pass or fail only based on the achievement of the relevant competencies being assessed.
The NExT 1 paper is divided into three parts. The theory test lasts 3 days and includes 6 test tasks. Of the 540 MCQ-based questions for NExT 1, 65% are based on problem-solving and analytical skills, 25% are based on understanding types, and the remaining 10% are based on recall. The table below contains the schedule for NExT 1. Please note that the schedule below is provisional and subject to feasibility and logistics.
Medicine and allied disciplines
Surgery and allied disciplines
Obstetrics and Gynaecology
Paediatrics
Otorhinolaryngology
Ophthalmology
The NExT will be conducted for the first time in 2024. However, there will be a practise exam on July 28, for which registration is open from June 28 to July 10, 2023. The exam is scheduled to be computer-based in May 2024. It will be held twice, in May and November. The National Exit Test (NExT) is most likely administered by the AIIMS in New Delhi. The exam is conducted in two steps: Step 1 and Step 2.
Ans. Additional NMC NExT Step 1 exams are held once a year, and candidates who fail one or more of the six subjects are eligible to take these exams. There is no limit to the number of times you can take the NExT exam. The only requirement is that the candidate has passed the NExT 1 exam within 10 years of attending the MBBS.
As mentioned above, without a NEXT qualification, you are not eligible to be a doctor or an intern in India.
NEXT will tend to narrow down the shortcuts many aspirants have taken in recent years to get their desired seats. Conceptual learning replaces memorization and students need to focus more on clinical and application-based learning.
There are some significant advantages of NExt exams which are give below. Uniformity through individual testing Abolition of unnecessary documents for international students Many illegal activities by unlicensed doctors will be restricted Clinical and application-based exams make the MBBS graduates more qualified
NEXT is a pattern that aims to produce more competent doctors with a more practical, applied and clinical approach, so it has no major drawbacks compared to NEET PG. However, the NEXT exam pattern overall lengthens the overall duration of medical education.
Apart from not being eligible for the desired seat on the PG medical course. You can take the exam next year, but you cannot complete your internship until you pass the exam. It is similar to the fourth grade MBBS exam.
The format of NEXT is more comprehensive than the existing NEET PG, and clinical skills are thoroughly tested. The first part of this exam (NEXT 1) consists of an objective MCQ-based paper whose rank determines the placement in PG medical courses and the eligibility for post-MBBS internships. The second part of NEXT (NEXT 2) is practice-oriented and tests students' practical performance. If a student fails to master any part of it, that student will not be given a PG seat and a license to practice in India.
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