MCCQE Exam 2026: 230 Questions, Prometric Sessions, 439 to Pass

Key facts

At a glance

Run by: The Medical Council of Canada (MCC), founded in 1912 and based in Ottawa
Level tested: A medical student completing their degree in Canada
Where you take it: Prometric test centres in Canada and over 70 other countries, in person only
Sessions: Four a year, each lasting several weeks
Old name: MCCQE Part I, renamed the MCCQE on April 1, 2026
What a pass leads to: The LMCC, which provincial and territorial regulators may require for a licence

How it works

How the MCCQE exam works, from application to result

MCCQE total score

300 to 438: fail439 to 600: pass

439 is a point on the MCC’s 300 to 600 scale, set by a panel of physicians in July 2025. It isn’t a percentage, and your result doesn’t depend on how other candidates do.

You apply in your physiciansapply.ca account, the Medical Council of Canada’s (MCC’s) online portal, and pay the application fee. International medical graduates first submit a source verification request (SVR) for their medical degree.
Once the MCC accepts your application, you book your own seat at a Prometric test centre in Canada or abroad, on a first-come, first-served basis. The exam dates page has the 2027 sessions and the booking steps.
On the day, the exam has two sections of 115 multiple-choice questions (MCQs), with up to 2 hours and 40 minutes for each. Between them there’s an optional 45-minute break.
Each question has three to five options and one best answer. Wrong answers cost nothing, and you can flag questions and go back to them within a section.
Once you submit a section, you can’t go back to it. Questions you left blank are marked wrong.
Your result goes to your physiciansapply.ca account after the session ends, with your total score and the score you needed to pass.

Topics

What’s on the test

Medicine

The discipline with the longest list of MCC Examination Objectives, from chest pain and anemia to hyponatremia and stroke.

Key points (4)

The MCC’s study guide says the six disciplines are represented more or less equally, so Medicine is about one sixth of the exam even though it has far more objectives than obstetrics and gynecology (Study smarter, April 1, 2026).
Medicine objectives include cardiac arrest, shock, poisoning, acid-base abnormalities and upper gastrointestinal bleeding (Study smarter, Medicine list).
Each objective has a Legacy ID you can search on mcc.ca/objectives, such as Hyperglycemia, 130 and Chest pain, 14 (Study smarter).
If a lab value matters to a question, the MCCQE shows the normal values in the question itself (MCC, Multiple-choice questions page).

Surgery

Trauma, the acute abdomen and other surgical problems, assessed at the level of a student finishing medical school.

Key points (4)

Surgery is one of the six disciplines the MCC’s study guide treats as roughly equal shares of the exam (Study smarter).
Surgery objectives in the guide include trauma, vascular injury, nerve injury, mediastinal mass and anorectal pain (Study smarter, Surgery list).
Some objectives appear under several disciplines: acute abdominal pain is listed under both Medicine and Surgery (Study smarter).
Questions can include photographs, diagrams, radiographs and electrocardiograms (MCC, Multiple-choice questions page).

Pediatrics

Newborns, children and adolescents, from neonatal jaundice and immunization to limp and seizures.

Key points (4)

Pediatrics objectives in the MCC study guide include failure to thrive, crying or fussing child, limp in children and seizures or epilepsy (Study smarter, Pediatrics list).
Immunization and the periodic health encounter appear under both Pediatrics and PHELO (Study smarter).
The guide’s sample study plan gives Pediatrics the same share of time as each of the other five disciplines (Study smarter, sample study plan).
The MCC recommends going through each clinical presentation and carefully reading its related objectives (MCC, Resources to help with exam preparation).

Obstetrics and gynecology

Pregnancy care, labour and gynecology, about one sixth of the exam despite a shorter list of objectives.

Key points (4)

The MCC study guide says about one sixth of the exam is obstetrics and gynecology, the same share as Medicine (Study smarter).
Obstetrics and gynecology objectives include prenatal care, contraception, menopause and uterine prolapse (Study smarter, OBGYN list).
Hypertension and shock are listed under obstetrics and gynecology as well as Medicine (Study smarter).
Every MCCQE question has one best answer among three to five options (MCC, Multiple-choice questions page).

Psychiatry

Mood, anxiety, psychosis and substance use, plus abuse, sleep and neurocognitive disorders.

Key points (3)

Psychiatry objectives in the MCC study guide include psychosis, suicidal behaviour, substance withdrawal and sleep-wake disorders (Study smarter, Psychiatry list).
Prescribing practices, objective 125, is listed under both Psychiatry and PHELO (Study smarter).
The study guide notes that the non-medical expert roles (collaborator, communicator, health advocate, leader/manager, professional and scholar) map to all disciplines (Study smarter).

Population health, ethical, legal and organizational aspects of medicine (PHELO)

Public health, ethics and law: consent, negligence, outbreak management, Indigenous health and anti-oppressive care.

Key points (4)

PHELO is one of the six disciplines the MCC study guide splits the exam into, at roughly equal shares (Study smarter).
PHELO objectives include consent, truth telling, negligence and the legal system, all under objective 121 (Study smarter, PHELO list).
Indigenous health, health and the climate crisis, and outbreak management sit under objective 78 (Study smarter).
Under the medical expert role, the MCC Examination Objectives group population health and its determinants, and ethical, legal and organizational aspects of medicine, as their own headings (MCC Examination Objectives).

Test day

What to bring to your Prometric test centre

A valid government-issued identity document with your photo and signature, such as a passport or driver’s licence
The original document, not a photocopy, in the same name as your physiciansapply.ca account (a university student card isn’t accepted)
Water only if you want a drink in the room, in a clear container with a lid and every label removed
Nothing else at your desk: coats, keys, wallets, watches, phones and smart glasses go in a locker, and Prometric gives you earplugs, a noise-reducing headset and a whiteboard

Before you go

Check that the MCC accepts your medical school before you apply. The FAQ below lists the three kinds of school it accepts.
Get your identity documents certified the way the MCC asks, and read its guidelines on preparing documents before you upload them.
If you need a test accommodation, ask for it in your application. The MCC says these applications can take up to 9 weeks once it has everything.
Schedule early if you have a deadline for your result. The MCC says it can’t guarantee you a particular date.
Keep the 16-digit confirmation number Prometric emails you. You need it to reschedule, cancel or look up your test centre.
Arrive at least 30 minutes early. If you’re late, you may not be let in, and the MCC keeps your application fee.
If something goes wrong on exam day, tell the test centre staff right away and report it to the MCC in your account within 7 days.

MCC: How to schedule on the Prometric websiteYou apply to the MCC in physiciansapply.ca, then book your seat on Prometric’s website once the MCC accepts your application.

Study options

Where to study

The MCC publishes 55 free practice questions, a study guide called Study smarter and the MCC Examination Objectives the exam is written from. It also sells full-length and half-length preparatory exams, one of them for $1. The MCC says you don’t have to buy any particular material to prepare.

Option	Price	Free to use	Links
Official
MCC free MCCQE practice questionsOfficial sample questions (online and PDF)55 MCC-style questions the Medical Council of Canada says are designed to reflect the MCCQE. For personal study and non-commercial use only. The layout isn’t the exam’s own.	Free	All 55 questions, with responses, rationales and references	MCC: Free practice questions ↗
MCC Preparatory Examination ($1 form)Official full-length practice exam230 multiple-choice questions, the same length as the MCCQE, with answers, rationales and references. Timed or self-paced, 6 months of access, and one attempt per form.	$1 per test form	No free version; the MCC says the $1 price isn’t time-limited	MCC: Preparatory products ↗
MCC Preparatory Examination (PE) and PE-LiteOfficial full-length and half-length practice examsThe PE has 230 questions; there are two PE-Lite forms of 115 questions each. No question repeats across the MCC’s four forms or its 55 free questions. Results are raw scores with no link to the MCCQE scale.	$400 for the PE; $250 a form for the PE-Lite	No free version	MCC: Preparatory products FAQs ↗
Study smarter: A study guide for the MCCQEOfficial study guide (PDF), published April 1, 2026Written by Dr. Filipe Nadir Caparica Santos with the MCC. It explains the blueprint and objectives, sorts the objectives into six disciplines and includes a sample plan of 180 study sessions.	No fee listed	Listed among the MCC’s free resources	MCC: Study smarter (PDF) ↗
MCC Examination ObjectivesOfficial exam objectives (web pages)What the MCCQE is written from, grouped by the seven CanMEDS roles. The MCC recommends reading the key and enabling objectives for each clinical presentation.	No fee listed	Read online on mcc.ca	MCC: Examination Objectives ↗
MCC Canadian cultural resourcesCurated list of Canadian practice resourcesChosen by the MCC from Canadian sources and searchable by 20 topic tags, for parts of Canadian practice that internationally trained physicians may find hard to prepare for.	Free	90+ freely available resources	MCC: Free resources ↗
Books
Toronto NotesMedical review book, print or eBookRevised every year by University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine students, staff and faculty. The U of T Bookstore calls it a review for the MCCQE. Bundles hold three volumes and the Clinical Handbook; eBooks are on Kortext, not PDF, and sales are final. It isn’t an MCC product.	$244.95 print bundle or $150.95 eBook bundle (2026-2027), U of T Bookstore prices	No free version listed	U of T Bookstore: Toronto Notes ↗

Prices and ratings checked October 2026.

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FAQ

Common questions

What is the MCCQE exam?

It’s the national exam the MCC uses to check that you have the medical knowledge and clinical decision-making expected at the end of a Canadian medical degree. Canadian students take it near the end of medical school. For international medical graduates, a pass is needed to apply for a Canadian residency, and some Practice-Ready Assessment (PRA) programs use it to pick candidates.

Is the MCCQE the same as the LMCC exam?

Not quite. The LMCC is a credential, not an exam. You qualify for it by passing the MCCQE and having your medical degree source-verified by the MCC, and then your name goes on the Canadian Medical Register. If you see “LMCC exam”, it means the MCCQE, because passing it is how you qualify.

Can you take the MCCQE online?

No. The MCC stopped offering remotely proctored appointments, so you must book an in-person seat at a Prometric test centre. Applying, seeing your result and sharing it all happen online, through physiciansapply.ca.

Who can apply for the MCCQE?

Students and graduates of three kinds of school can apply: a school accredited by the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS), a school in the World Directory of Medical Schools with a Canada Sponsor Note saying it’s acceptable, or a U.S. School of Osteopathic Medicine accredited by the American Osteopathic Association. Students can apply up to 15 months before their expected graduation date.

How many times can you take the MCCQE?

Four times in total, and starting the exam counts as an attempt. Attempts before 2018 don’t count, and neither does a No Standing, but a fail or a Denied Standing does. After a third attempt you wait 1 year from your result before you can reapply, and the MCC won’t shorten that wait. Once you pass, you can’t take it again.

Are there CDM questions on the MCCQE?

No. The MCC took out the short-menu and short-answer write-in questions, known as clinical decision-making (CDM) questions, when it changed the exam in April 2025. Clinical decision-making is tested through multiple-choice questions only, and each question gets more time than before. Scores from before 2025 aren’t directly comparable with scores from 2025 on.

Sources: MCC and 11 more. Checked October 2026.

Rules and fees can change, so check the official site before your test.

MCCQE exam: Canada’s medical qualifying exam

At a glance

How the MCCQE exam works, from application to result

What’s on the test

Medicine

Surgery

Pediatrics

Obstetrics and gynecology

Psychiatry

Population health, ethical, legal and organizational aspects of medicine (PHELO)

What to bring to your Prometric test centre

Before you go

Where to study

Everything else, in one place

Common questions

Related exams