‘Qualifying standards cannot be diluted’: Government on screening test for foreign medical graduates

The National Board of Education in Medical Sciences (NBEMS), which administers the Foreign Medical Graduates (FMG) exam in India, has firmly stated that the qualifying standards for the screening test cannot be weakened. This comes amid protests from doctors who have been vocal about the challenging nature of the test, concerns over transparency, and issues with test center infrastructure.

Officials from NBEMS made it clear that no grace marks will be awarded to students who took the test in June, implying that only those who have adequately prepared will pass.

The rationale behind maintaining a stringent minimum qualifying standard is rooted in the critical responsibility doctors have when dealing with potentially life-threatening situations such as heart attacks, strokes, infections, complicated pregnancies, and pediatric emergencies. While the overall pass percentage for the test remains low, officials noted that first-time candidates, who are presumably more prepared, had a higher pass rate.

Specifically, first-timers achieved a pass percentage of 35.74%, compared to 21.45% for those who had taken the test multiple times, and a mere 3.29% among those who had attempted the exam five or more times.

Data from the FBG exam revealed a significant disparity in pass rates among candidates with multiple attempts, suggesting that the test does not unfairly disadvantage first-timers. Air Marshal (Dr.) Pawan Kapoor (Retd.), who heads the three-member expert panel investigating the matter, did not recommend any grace marks, as they found no compelling evidence that recent changes, such as video-based questions, had negatively impacted the test's outcome.

Instead, the panel suggested increasing the number of tests to three per year, which would provide more opportunities for Indian medical graduates who have completed their studies abroad.