Everything You Need to Know About NExT Exam

National Medical Commission (NMC) has deferred the NExT National Exit Test (NExT) on the advice of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, till further notice.

NExT will replace all the existing medical entrance examinations like NEET-PG, INI-CET (AIIMS, PGI, JIPMER, NIMHANS) and FMGE.

We will keep you posted with all the latest developments regarding the NExT exam once they are available, through this blog.

NExT Exam Pattern

The NExT exam pattern is totally different from traditional NEET PG/FMGE exams. It will comprise two separate exams, which will be called “Steps”

NExT Step 1 Details

NExT Step 1 will be a theoretical examination which will have one or more than one type of multiple choice questions. The exam will be a computer-based test (Online Mode). This will be a centralized common All India Examination conducted by AIIMS Delhi. 

The examination shall consist of six papers covering subjects of III MBBS /Final MBBS, both Part 1 and Part 2:

1. Medicine and allied disciplines 

2. Surgery and allied disciplines 

3. Obstetrics and Gynaecology 

4. Pediatrics

5. Otorhinolaryngology 

6. Ophthalmology

• Applied aspects of all subjects covered under I MBBS and II MBBS 
• Applied aspects of all subjects covered under III MBBS /Final MBBS Part l

Important Points

• 2019 will be the first batch to appear for NExT.

• There shall be regular NExT Step 1 Examinations held twice a year in May and November.

• There is no restriction to the number of attempts to appear in NExT Step 1 provided the candidate has passed both NExT Step 1 and NExT Step 2 Examination within 10 years of joining the MBBS Course.

• There is no restriction to the number of attempts to appear in the NExT Step 1 Regular Examination to improve scores provided these examinations for improvement of scores are taken at least after one year of completion of NExT Step 2 

• The NExT Step 1 shall replace the conventional university/institutional Theory Examinations of III MBBS/Final MBBS Part II. III MBBS /Final MBBS Part 1 and III MBBS/ Final MBBS Part II Practical/ clinical examinations shall continue to be held conventionally unless otherwise notified by the Commission.

Division and Types of Questions in NExT

The NExT MCQs of all subjects shall be distributed approximately as follow:

However, you can expect variations in the distribution.

The level of Knowledge related to the acquisition of competencies shall be approximate:

NExT Step 2 Details

Unlike Step 1, NExT Step 2 will be a Practical/Clinical and Viva Voce examination. It will cover the below-mentioned seven subjects/disciplines:

1. Medicine and allied disciplines 

2. Surgery and allied disciplines 

3. Obstetrics and Gynaecology 

4. Paediatrics 

5. Otorhinolaryngology 

6. Ophthalmology 

7. Orthopaedics and PMR (Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation)

NExT Step 2 - Evaluation Method

Each exam will consist of the following-

There shall be only two grading levels "competent" or "pass" and "non-competent" or "Fail".

Important Points

• The examination shall be Objective, Structured, Clinical Case Based, Simulated Cases/Patients aimed at evaluating Practical /Clinical skills, clinical decision-making and communication skills expected of an Indian Medical Graduate.

• The examination shall be held in person /live and shall be conducted by the respective state Health Universities / Institutions following the standards and guidelines provided by the Commission. Where state Health Universities do not exist the Commission shall decide on the University/ Institution authorized to conduct NExT Step 2 for respective colleges. 

• There shall be a Regular NExT Step 2 Examination once a year.

• A NExT Step 2 Supplementary Examination shall be held once a year and is restricted to only those candidates who have failed in one or more (upto 3 Subjects) of the seven subjects and are required to repeat particular subjects. 

• Those who do not pass both the NExT Step 2 Regular and the Supplementary Examination of a particular year shall be able to appear for the NExT Step 2 Regular Examination only in the following year.

• There is no restriction to the number of attempts to appear in NExT Step 2 provided the candidate has passed both NExT Step 1 and NExT Step 2 Examination within 10 years of joining the MBBS Course.

This is all about the NExT exam pattern. Now let's move on to the types of questions that will be asked in the NExT exam.

Watch Dr Deepak Marwah discuss the NExT exam as per the draft regulations and share his thoughts on the same:

Papers and Distribution of Subjects

The NExT Step 1 examination will have six subject papers with respective weightage in items and time allocation.

Applied aspects of all other subjects of MBBS including Forensic Medicine and Toxicology (FMT) and Community Medicine will be mainstreamed into the relevant clinical subjects. In each paper, 10% of items will pertain to applied aspects of Anatomy, Physiology, Biochemistry, Microbiology, Pathology, Pharmacology, and Forensic Medicine relevant to the subjects evaluated

In each paper, 10% of items will pertain to applied aspects of Public health / Community Medicine relevant to the subjects evaluated.

NExT Scores

The marks in NExT Step 1 shall be calculated as the whole number which shall serve as the Raw Scores with appropriate decimals and subsequently, corresponding Percentages [marks out of a maximum of 100] with appropriate decimals may be calculated if required

NExT 2 Examinations results shall be declared as only Pass / Fail based on the acquisition of appropriate competence that is being evaluated

Minimum Scores for Passing 

The minimum marks for passing shall be 50% [50 out of 100] OR half of the maximum possible Raw for NExT Step 1 

For the NExT Step 1, in each of the six papers, a minimum of 50% [ 50 out of 100] OR half of the maximum possible Raw Scores r should be scored to pass the examination

The criteria for passing NExT Step 2 shall be a satisfactory demonstration of having acquired the competencies that are evaluated that shall be declared as a Pass /Fail result

NExT Exam Schedule

The exam schedule will look like the following as per the draft regulations:

Important Note: The information in this article is as per the NMC's draft regulation and the recent webinar on NExT. We will update the article with the most recent and accurate information as soon as the official regulation is released.

Mock Practice Test for NExT 

In order to prepare students for the updated exam pattern and enable them to understand it better, a AIIMS NExT mock test will be conducted on 28th July 2023. Registration for the same will begin on 28th June 2023.

However, only final-year MBBS students are eligible for participating in the mock practice tests. 

The test will familiarize you with the CBT software interface and process flow in the examination centre. In addition to that, the sample questions in the Mock test will only mirror the exam pattern and format of the NEXT-Step 1 examination.

Learn more about the NExT exam updates discussed during the webinar from Dr Preeti Sharma

Be it NExT or any other Medical exam, we along with our Dream Team NExT edition, are ever ready to walk by your side to smoothen your preparation journey. Because we want you to Own Your Dream! 

Frequently Asked Questions for NExT Exam 

What is the NExT exam after MBBS and who has to attempt this?  

NExT or National Exit Exam is an exit cum licensing exam for all MBBS students in India. Moving forward, all medical graduates will be required to pass this exam to complete their MBBS degree and obtain a license in order to practice medicine independently. In addition to that, all admissions to postgraduate courses will be based on the merit list from the NExT exam. 

How is NExT different from NEET PG? 

NExT (National Exit Test) is a standardized exit cum licensing exam for MBBS students and it will be replacing the NEET-PG exam. NEET-PG is a national level exam that is currently used to determine eligibility for admission to postgraduate medical courses in India, such as the MD (Doctor of Medicine) and MS (Master of Surgery) programs. The format of the NExT exam is also broader as it will be thoroughly testing your clinical skills.

Is NExT exam MCQs based?

NExT exam will be conducted in two parts - Part 1 and Part 2. Part 1 exam will be computer based exam featuring multiple choice questions while in Part 2 students will have to give a practical/clinical and viva voce examination.  

What will happen if you fail the NExT exam ?

Upon failing the NExT exam, a candidate will not be able to pursue his/her internship or complete his MBBS degree. However, candidates are eligible to attempt the exam again next year. 

What is the number of NExT PG attempts allowed if we didn't get our desired branch in the first attempt?

There is no restriction on the number of attempts for NExT step 2. However, a candidate must pass the NExT Step 1 and Step examination within 10 years of joining the MBBS course. 

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