FCPS Part 1 Mock Test: Paper 1 & Paper 2 Format Explained

The CPSP FCPS Part-I exam is 200 single-best-answer MCQs split across two separate papers, for a total exam duration of 4 hours: Paper I covers general/foundation (basic science) subjects — 100 MCQs in 2 hours — followed by a 30-minute break, then Paper II, specialty-specific to whichever group you're sitting — another 100 MCQs in 2 hours. There's no negative marking, so every question should be attempted, and both papers must be passed via CPSP's standardised aggregate scoring, typically requiring around 75% overall.

The Paper I / Paper II split is the single most distinctive feature of FCPS Part 1's format, and it's also the part that's hardest to rehearse with ordinary practice. Paper I — Anatomy, Biochemistry, Pathology, Pharmacology, Microbiology, Forensic Medicine — is genuinely shared across every specialty group. A candidate sitting Medicine and a candidate sitting Surgery answer the same Paper I content; only Paper II diverges into their chosen field. Most topic-wise revision naturally organises around a candidate's own specialty, which means Paper I's basic-science content often gets studied in isolated blocks rather than as one coherent, timed 100-question paper the way it's actually administered.

HighYield's FCPS Part 1 Mock Exams

Every FCPS Part 1 QBank on HighYield — Medicine, Surgery, Anaesthesia, Dental Surgery, ENT, Gynaecology & Obstetrics, Ophthalmology, Psychiatry, and Radiology — includes four mock tests: two full attempts, each split into a 100-question, 2-hour Paper 1 (basic sciences) and a 100-question, 2-hour Paper 2 (your specialty). Paper 1's content is identical across every specialty bank, since the real exam tests the same basic-science core regardless of your group; Paper 2 is drawn from that specific bank's own specialty question pool.

How to Use Two Full Attempts

• Take your first attempt — both papers, ideally with the real 30-minute break between them — once you've covered most of your syllabus, to see whether Paper 1's basic-science recall holds up as well as your specialty knowledge in Paper 2. It's common for candidates deep in specialty revision to have let basic sciences slip.
• Review by subject within each paper, not just an overall score — within Paper 1 specifically, Anatomy and Pathology tend to carry the heaviest weight, and a weak spot there is worth fixing before exam day, not after.
• Save your second attempt for the final couple of weeks, run both papers back to back under real timing, and treat the aggregate score (not either paper alone) as your best predictor of a pass.

Find your specialty's own QBank and mock tests on the FCPS Part 1 QBanks page.