The Dermatology SCE exam format explained

Exactly how the Dermatology SCE is structured: how many questions, the best-of-five format, the two-paper timed day, how the pass mark is set, eligibility, attempts and how the exam is delivered.

Understanding the format is the easiest mark you will ever earn. Walk in knowing how the day runs and how the marking works, and you will pace yourself properly and waste no nervous energy on surprises. Here is how the exam is put together.

The shape of the exam

questions in total

200

single-best-answer MCQs

best of five

3 hours each, one day

2 papers

The SCE is two hundred best-of-five multiple-choice questions, split across two three-hour papers on the same day with a break in between. Every question gives you a clinical scenario and five options, A to E, and asks for the single best answer. Often more than one option is defensible, and your job is to pick the most appropriate.

What the questions are like

Questions are built around realistic scenarios and frequently include images, such as clinical photographs, dermoscopy and histopathology, as well as investigation results. So the paper tests how well you read a picture and interpret data, not just what you can recall.

• Single best answer. Five options, one best choice. Read the final sentence to see exactly what is being asked.
• Lots of images. Dermoscopy, histology and clinical photos appear in every paper.
• Data to interpret. Laboratory, immunology and genetics results woven into the scenarios.
• No negative marking. A wrong answer costs no more than a blank, so never leave one empty.

How the pass mark is decided

There is no fixed percentage. The standard is set by a method called equating, which keeps the difficulty bar steady from one year to the next. In practice the mark you need usually lands somewhere between 60% and 70%, moving with how hard that year's paper turned out to be.

Who sits it, and when

• When. Once a year, usually in October, with registration opening months ahead.
• Who. Dermatology trainees, normally in the penultimate year of higher specialty training, plus eligible international candidates.
• Attempts. Capped at five.
• Entry requirements. The Federation states that there are no entry requirements for the Dermatology SCE. Full MRCP(UK) is not a prerequisite.

How it is delivered

For years the exam was sat in person at Pearson VUE test centres in the UK and abroad. More recently it has been delivered by remote online proctoring, taken at home and supervised by webcam. The method has changed before, so always check how the current sitting will run when you register.

Sources & further reading

• Specialty Certificate Examinations in Dermatology - Federation of Royal Colleges of Physicians
• SCE Dermatology 2024 Results Report (Federation of Royal Colleges of Physicians)
• The Dermatology SCE - British Dermatology Education Group (BDEG)

For educational use only. Check current official guidance.