ISLAMABAD — 1.38Lac medical aspirants appeared in Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) 2026 today across Pakistan and at an international examination centre in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The examination is being conducted simultaneously across 34 cities and towns in Pakistan, with an additional centre in Riyadh for Pakistani candidates based in Saudi Arabia.
For the candidates sitting in examination halls today, the three-hour test represents a major step toward their ambitions of entering Pakistan’s medical and dental colleges. Punjab has the largest share of candidates, with 49,199 registrations. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa follows with 38,841, while Sindh has 34,233 registered candidates.
MDCAT Delay
MDCAT 2026 was initially scheduled for August 16, but it was postponed and rescheduled for September 20 following directions from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Authorities subsequently worked on revised arrangements intended to strengthen the organisation and transparency of the examination.
MDCAT 2026 scheduled for August 16; Registration starts June 22
The delay also resulted in an additional registration phase, with more than 2,000 candidates reportedly registering after the original examination was postponed.
One of the major features of MDCAT 2026 is the use of separate provincial question papers. PMDC says each province has been provided with at least two different examination papers, with every paper containing 180 questions. The arrangement is part of measures designed to strengthen examination security.
The council has also developed a question bank containing approximately 8,000 questions. Around 80 subject experts were involved in preparing the material, with reports stating that the experts worked under controlled security arrangements for approximately two months.
Federal Health Minister has said that responsibility for the printing, storage, transportation and operational conduct of the examination rests with the designated universities and provincial authorities.
MDCAT 2026 is a paper-based, English-language examination consisting of 180 multiple-choice questions.
According to PMDC’s published examination pattern, the paper contains:
- 81 Biology questions
- 45 Chemistry questions
- 36 Physics questions
- 9 English questions
- 9 Logical Reasoning questions
There is no negative marking, according to the PMDC’s published MDCAT 2026 pattern. The test carries a total of 180 marks and is scheduled to run for three hours.
The actual examination is being administered by designated universities and authorities rather than by PMDC alone.
The institutions assigned to conduct the test include University of Health Sciences (UHS), Lahore, for Punjab; Sukkur IBA University for Sindh; Khyber Medical University (KMU), Peshawar, for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa; Bolan University of Medical & Health Sciences for Balochistan; and Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University (SZABMU), Islamabad, for Islamabad and other designated regions including the Riyadh centre.
PMDC’s role includes establishing the examination framework, standards, syllabus and question-bank arrangements, while the nominated institutions are responsible for the operational side of the test.
News Desk
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