5 Pro Tips to Solve MCQs in the FMGE

You need 5 skills to correctly answer MCQs in the FMG exam. 

When you sit for the FMG exam, you must be skilled in using: 

• Your comprehension of the question.
• Your analysis of the question. 
• Your ability to recall information within a set time.
• Your reasoning while selecting an option. 
• Your time management skills. 

The FMGE consists of 300 questions, and you must score 150 marks to qualify. Scoring 149 marks is the same as scoring 0 because it won’t help you qualify. 

But scoring 149 + 1 can change your career. And in this blog, we’ll help you do just that. 

Let’s find out the 5 critical skills you need to correctly answer MCQs in the FMGE. Read all the tips carefully. 

5 Pro Tips to Solve FMGE MCQs Correctly 

Comprehension of the question 

Let’s start with the most important part; comprehending the question. 

By comprehension, we mean that you need to understand exactly what the question is asking of you. To do that, you need to understand the structure of an MCQ. 

Here is how an FMGE MCQ is structured. 

The body of the FMGE MCQ contains statements and directions, with or without images, data or qualifying words. MCQ types include simple recall or fact-based MCQs, problem-solving or conceptual MCQs and IBQs. 

Within the question itself, you will find directions. These refer to the part of the question body that identifies the question or problem to be answered. Qualifying words such as ‘except’, ‘most’, and ‘common’, among others, will help you to narrow down the choices. 

The questions in the FMGE will try to confuse you with distracting or plausible-sounding choices. Sometimes you will find a fancy-sounding but false choice whose purpose is to confuse you further. 

Your first job is to read the question only and try to understand what it is that you need to answer. Avoid looking through the choices before understanding the question because the distracters given in the choices might throw you in the wrong direction. 

If you are hasty or in a rush to answer all the questions, it is very likely that you will fall prey to the test writers’ traps. To avoid them, you must:

• Read every aspect of the question thoroughly. 
• Read the directions carefully.
• Pay special attention to the qualifying keywords. These will help you narrow down your choices. 
• Isolate complicated statements and examine them one by one. 

Next, two types of questions are asked. The first one is a positive MCQ, where you are required to answer for a positive outcome. And the second is a negative MCQ, where you need to identify the option that will lead to a negative outcome. 

For positive MCQs, the process is easy. More than one choice will be correct or most appropriate. Therefore, you just need to eliminate those less appropriate or wrong choices. It is what you are trained to do generally. 

On the other hand, for negative MCQs, you need to switch from a positive to a negative direction of thinking. If you find such MCQs confusing, try to solve as if the question is a positive MCQ and search for the 3 most appropriate choices instead. That will automatically lead you to the answer you need. 

Bonus tip: MCQ-solving skills aside, you need a few other things to succeed in the FMG exam. Check out these 5 essential ingredients for FMGE success. 

Before you move on to the next point, listen to what FMGE toppers Dr. Balvinder, Dr. Puneet, and Dr. Amulaya have to say about clearing the FMGE July ‘23 exam.

Analyzing the question

Question analysis is an important part of answering MCQs correctly. Let’s find out how to analyze and solve the different types of questions asked in the FMGE.

For questions that are simple recall or fact-based.

These are fairly direct, and little analysis is required to answer these questions. You simply need to recall the correct answer. 

Problem-solving or conceptual MCQs. 

These can be statement or task-based, compare and contrast or case-based questions. 

Here you must analyze every part of the question. First, you have to define the problem. After that, you have to identify the goal you are trying to achieve. If there are complicated statements in the question, analyze each of them individually. 

Image Based Questions.

Understand the question before looking at the image. This will help you avoid any risks of confusion.

Directions are key while answering IBQs. Whether it is gross photos, photomicrographs, or graphs and processes, observe first, recall the structures that are needed to be analyzed and finally compare and contrast based on the directions given in the question. 

Recalling information within a set time.

There is no strategy or shortcut around this. The skill of recalling information quickly can only be developed through practice. Go through the QBank 5.0 and FMGE Edition Test Series to practice using the latest FMGE pattern. Attempt to reach the target of 100 MCQs every day. 

In fact, practising MCQs every day is one of the 3 tips to dominate FMGE shared by FMGE Jan ‘23 topper Dr. Faizan Gulzar Dar (Score: 250)

Remember, your goal is to score 150 or more marks in the FMG exam. Even without negative marking, there are 300 questions that you will face. You cannot afford to waste time. For every question, you must spare 40 to 50 seconds at max. 

If you take too long to answer a question, you will risk running out of time to answer the other questions. 

FMGE January 2024 result has been released today by the NBE. Check now

Reasoning while selecting an option.

You need sharp reasoning skills to identify the correct answer from the given options. 

First, always read the question before going through the choices because the choices will contain distracters. 

Understand what the question emphasises and try to visualize the answer in your mind. Only then search for a similar answer from among the given choices. Without this, you risk being convinced by a wrong answer or convincing yourself that it is the wrong answer is the right one because you did not think what the ideal answer should be. 

Even if you feel like the first or second choice is correct, go through the rest of the options before deciding. Avoid jumping to conclusions. 

Also Read: How to Utilize the Final 45 Days Before FMGE?

Time management skills 

Finally, none of the above strategies will help if you cannot complete them within the given time. 

This will require consistent effort towards practising MCQs and reviewing those questions that you find especially difficult. 

Give yourself 40-50 seconds to complete every MCQ. Time yourself strictly, and within a few days, you will see results. One of the benefits of being good at time management is that it gives you confidence and keeps you stress-free. 

And with that, we have reached the end of this post. Follow the strategies given above, and you will surely perform to your full potential in the FMG exam. 

With your hard work and the right resources to back your preparation, soon you will be happily searching for the best colleges for your FMG Internship in India and well on your way to becoming a top doctor in your field.

With the PrepLadder app, the right resources are in the palm of your hand. So boost your last-mile preparation with PrepLadder if you haven’t already. Download the FMGE online Preparation APP for Android or the Online preparation FMGE APP for iOS. Take the first step towards joining the league of FMGE toppers.

PrepLadder is a leader in creating innovative study material that boosts your exam preparation. Resources like Rapid Revision, QBank FMGE Edition, Treasures and Notes are some of the best-in-class study resources that lakhs of students use daily to boost their FMGE preparation.

All the best!