FCPS Part 2 Plastic Surgery Exam Format: Written, Clinical & Viva

FCPS Part 2 – Plastic Surgery is nothing like the MCQ-only format of Part 1. It's a comprehensive assessment of clinical competence, and candidates who prepare for it the same way they prepared for Part 1 are usually caught off guard. Here's the actual structure.

Three Components, All Assessed

• Written paper. Modified essay questions (MEQs) or structured written papers, typically 2-3 hours, testing applied clinical and surgical reasoning rather than isolated recall.
• Clinical examination. Long case, short cases, and/or OSCE-style stations, conducted at a CPSP-designated examination hospital. You're expected to take a history, examine a patient, formulate a differential, order investigations rationally, and present a management plan — under direct observation.
• Viva voce. An oral examination where examiners assess depth of specialty knowledge, clinical judgement, and professional readiness to practise independently as a Plastic Surgery consultant.

All three are assessed at the standard of a competent, newly independent consultant — not a trainee.

How the Exam Is Scheduled

CPSP holds FCPS Part 2 twice a year — typically March/April and October/November. Because the clinical component requires staggered scheduling across specialties and centres, the process takes longer than Part 1's written-only format. See our full FCPS Part 2 schedule guide for the current session pattern.

What Makes Plastic Surgery's Clinical Component Distinct

Plastic Surgery's clinical cases and vivas draw on reconstructive and aesthetic principles alongside general surgical competence — wound management, flap and graft planning, burns management, and hand/soft-tissue trauma are common territory. Examiners are assessing whether you can reason through a real reconstructive problem under pressure, not just recite a classification system.

What Happens If You Don't Pass

FCPS Part 2 can be re-attempted. There is a mandatory waiting period between attempts — typically one year for the clinical examination component. Use that time to systematically address the specific area that let you down (written paper, clinical stations, or viva), rather than restarting your entire preparation from scratch.

How to Prepare for All Three Components

• Consistent clinical exposure throughout training — taking histories, examining patients, presenting cases, attending grand rounds — builds the reflexes the clinical exam actually tests. This can't be crammed in the final weeks.
• Practise MEQ-style written answers under timed conditions well before your exam date.
• Run mock long cases and vivas with a supervisor or senior colleague in your final 3-6 months.
• Keep your underlying knowledge base current with regular MCQ practice throughout training — it's what the written paper and viva both draw on, even though neither is MCQ-format itself.

Maintain and sharpen that knowledge base with HighYield's FCPS Part 2 Plastic Surgery QBank — clinical vignette MCQs covering the surgical and reconstructive principles your written paper and viva will test, with detailed explanations for every question. Start with 20 free questions.