Remotely-Proctored MCCQE Part I hits its stride

In June 2020, the Medical Council of Canada (MCC) introduced the option of a Remotely-Proctored Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examination (MCCQE) Part I to ensure a timely and safe delivery model of the exam, allowing candidates to continue progressing along their route to licensure.

Following some initial challenges with the delivery mode, more than 12 months later, the hybrid model of offering candidates the choice of either a remotely-proctored or test centre experience has hit its stride. Between early June 2020 and the end of June 2021, four administrations of the MCCQE Part I have been offered and over 10,500 candidates completed the exam.

The MCC exam team has worked diligently, pushing for improvements to the remote proctoring offer and the exam experience, despite an ongoing global pandemic. The MCC is pleased to report that:

• Completion rate has increased from 96% in June 2020 to 99% in April-June 2021.
• 98% of candidates had one restart or less, 84% of candidates had zero restarts.
• Process improvements, including additional training, have led to optimal proctor responsiveness, from 58% in June 2020 to 96% in April-June 2021.
• Overall candidate satisfaction with the remotely-proctored experience has improved from 49.4% in June 2020 to 68.7% in April-June 2021.
• French candidates’ experience is now a seamless one offered through the French ProProctor user interface.
• Candidate support has been integrated into ProProctor and is available seven days a week, with a dedicated phone line for French support. Our chat support remains available 24/7 in English and from Tuesday to Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) in French.

Results

As remotely-proctored exam delivery was new, psychometricians at the MCC carefully studied the first part of the June to September 2020 session and confirmed that the overall pass rate for candidates who completed their exam between June 1 and July 19, 2020 was 93.9%; that first time Canadian medical graduates takers had a pass rate of 98.6% and that no differences were observed in pass rates between modalities, i.e., exams taken remotely versus in test centres.

Future sessions

The MCC believes that remote proctoring is the modality of choice in exam delivery for the future as it continues to benefit candidates by providing them with flexible options for completion of the MCCQE Part I.

Scheduling for the January 26 to February 23, 2022 session is now available through our vendor Prometric. The MCC team wishes candidates taking the MCCQE Part I in future sessions best of luck on their exams.