ROYAL COLLEGE OF
OBSTETRICIANS AND GYNAECOLOGISTS
DIPLOMA (DRCOG) EXAMINATION – APRIL 2016
INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES
This information must be read carefully. Failure to follow the
instructions may result in failure in the examination.
Your candidate entrance slip will be e-mailed to the address
provided. Please check your slip very carefully and note where and
at what time you are to attend the examination. Please advise the
Examination Department if the spelling of your name has been
misinterpreted. Your ENTRANCE SLIP and EVIDENCE OF
IDENTIFICATION must be taken to the examination.
When registering for examination you must present:
1. Entrance slip.
2. Evidence of identification which must include your name and
photograph (e.g. passport, hospital identification badge).
Candidates who fail to produce evidence of identification (which
must include name and photograph) to the satisfaction of the
invigilators / examiners at the beginning of any section of the
examination will have their entry withdrawn.
The invigilator will read out certain instructions which, for your
assistance, are given below:
1. No text-books, papers, calculators, mobile telephones, pocket
computers, “i-watches” or similar articles are allowed into the
examination hall.
2. Any form of communication between candidates during the
examination is strictly forbidden.
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3. Candidates are not permitted to copy any part of the
examination papers, and on no account may the question
books be removed from the examination hall.
4. Candidates must not start the examination until instructed by
the invigilator and must not continue to write after the
invigilator has announced that the examination has ended.
5. Where there is any infringement of instructions 1, 2, 3 or 4,
candidates will be disqualified and may not be allowed to sit
any subsequent examination.
6. Candidates will not be allowed to enter the examination hall
after 30 minutes have elapsed or to leave the examination hall
until 45 minutes after the commencement of each paper.
Candidates will not be allowed to leave the hall during the final
10 minutes of each paper and must remain seated whilst the
answer booklets/answer sheets are being collected.
7. Two time warnings will be given, the first 30 minutes and the
second 10 minutes before the end of each paper. Candidates
must stop writing immediately when instructed by the
invigilator.
8. Invigilators have been instructed by the Examination Committee
that they may not discuss questions.
9. Any candidate wishing to attract the invigilator’s attention
should raise his/her hand.
10. Any candidate leaving the examination hall during the
examination will only be allowed to return if s/he has been
escorted whilst outside the hall.
11. Your four-digit CANDIDATE NUMBER (not desk number) should
be written on the answer booklets and answer sheets.
12. On all occasions you must show your name as stated on your
entrance slip.
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13. Question papers, answer sheets and all examination materials
remain the property of the college at all times.
14. Candidates are discouraged from bringing to the Centres large
amounts of luggage as there may be limited space for storage.
Luggage and items of clothing are left at the owner’s risk. Do
not bring valuables or large amounts of cash with you.
15. Candidates require only their entrance slips and photo ID.
Pencils and erasers and all examination materials will be
provided.
Candidates who are late for any part of the examination may not
be admitted.
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
Answer sheets: All three question formats are marked by a
computerised document reading machine. You must only use
the HB grade pencil provided for completing all parts of the
answer sheets. Pens must not be used for any part of the
examination. Bold, dark marks that completely fill each lozenge
are required. Faint lines will not be read by the document
reading machine. You may erase any pencil mark by using the
eraser provided. The answer sheet must not be folded, creased
or torn. Please print your name as stated on your entry slip at
the top of the answer sheet and write your candidate number
(not your desk number) in the boxes provided. Then black-out
the lozenges corresponding to your candidate number. See
example below:
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At the end of the examination, insert the completed answer
sheet inside the front cover of the question book.
Front cover: On the front cover of each question book please
print your name in the boxes provided and then sign your
name in the space marked ‘signature’. Your candidate number
must be written in the four squares provided.
The examination format and timetable will be:
Paper 1
Format
Paper length
Time to be spent on section
(recommendation)
EMQs
1½ hours
60 minutes
1 from 5s
30 minutes
15 minute break
Paper 2
MCQs
1½ hours
90 minutes
SUMMARY OF MARKING
Marking of the papers will operate like this:
Paper 1
Paper 2
Format
No. of
individual
question
items
Mark
Total
awarded for mark
each correct s
answer
% of exam
EMQs
30
3.5
105
30.0%
SBAs
18
2.5
45
12.9%
MCQs
200
1
200
57.1%
(40 5-part
questions)
A cumulative pass mark applies.
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PAPER 1:
EXTENDED MATCHING QUESTION
(EMQ) SECTION
Answering the questions: The answer sheet is numbered 1-30
and against each number there are twenty lozenges labelled
from A to T. Each question in the question booklet will consist of
an option list (lettered to reflect the answer sheet), a lead-in
statement (which tells you clearly what to do), and then a list of
one to five questions (each numbered, again to match the answer
sheet). Indicate your judgment of each particular question by
boldly blacking out the letter that corresponds to the single
best answer in the option list. Candidates may mark their
responses in the question book and then transfer these to the
answer sheet. Please be aware that this will take longer, and all
transfers must be done fully within the time allowed for the
examination.
Although the answer sheet will provide 20 possible answers, the
option lists for questions may not use all of these. Most option lists
will provide 10 to 14 answer options. The option lists will nearly
always be in alphabetical or numerical order for ease of reference;
if not, they will be in the most appropriate order for quick
reference.
The most important element of the format is that you must select
the single answer that best fits. You may feel that there are several
possible answers, but you must choose only the most likely one
from the option list.
Specimen answer sheet:
A portion of a completed answer sheet may look like this:
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PAPER 1:
SBA (ONE FROM FIVE SECTION)
This operates similarly to the previous section, but with just five
options to choose the best single answer from.
Answering the questions: The answer sheet is numbered 31-48
and against each number there are five lozenges labelled from
A to E. Each question in the question booklet will consist of a leadin statement (which tells you clearly what to do), and then a list of
five options. Indicate your judgment of each particular question
by boldly blacking out the letter that corresponds to the single
best answer. The most frequently used stems will be variants on
‘One of the following statements is false’ or ‘One of the
following statements is true’. Please ensure that you read these
carefully and do not get the two mixed up.
Specimen answer sheet:
A portion of a completed answer sheet may look like this:
Marking: Incorrect answers are not penalised. It is in your best
interests to ensure for each of the answers, one lozenge is filled in
by the end of the examination. If you mark two or more boxes on
the same question, no mark will be awarded, even if one of the
answers you choose is the correct one. Please ensure that any
mistakes are clearly and fully erased.
Specimen questions are available on the RCOG website by
navigating from this web-page: http://www.rcog.org.uk/educationand-exams/examinations/drcog/drcog-format
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PAPER 2:
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS (MCQ)
Answering the questions: The answer sheet is numbered 1 to
40 and each question number has five components, lettered A
to E. Against each letter there are two lozenges labelled T (=
True) and F (= False). Indicate your judgement of each
particular question by boldly blacking out either the T or F
lozenge. Candidates may mark their responses in the question
book and then transfer these to the answer sheet. Please be
aware that this will take longer and all transfers must be done
fully within the time allowed for the examination.
Specimen answer sheet:
A portion of a completed answer sheet may look like this:
T means TRUE; F means FALSE
Marking: Each answer correctly answered (i.e. a true statement
indicated as T or a false statement indicated as F) is awarded one
mark (+1). For each incorrect answer no mark (0) is awarded. All
questions must be answered T or F. If both lozenges are marked or
if neither lozenge is marked, no mark (0) is awarded. Please ensure
that any mistakes are clearly and fully erased. Incorrect answers
are not penalised. It is in your best interests to ensure that for each
of the answers, one lozenge is filled in by the end of the
examination.
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STANDARD SETTING
Our standard setting procedure ensures that the difficulty of each
examination is taken into account and is not linked to a set pass
mark or rate. A different pass mark is used for each examination,
depending on the difficulty of that examination. It is therefore also
not possible to publish the pass mark for the examination in
advance. This is a complex process, which involves assessing the
questions individually for their difficulty. A modified Angoff method
is used.
The aim of standard setting is to improve the fairness and validity
of the examination process, and to set levels of competence for
success in the examination. The use of these methods bears no
relationship whatsoever to the percentage of candidates who will
succeed in the examination, or to any other external factors.
EXAMINATION RESULTS
Your examination result will be sent to the address stated on your
e-mail acknowledgement unless you have advised the Examination
Department prior to the examination date that it has changed.
Examination results will be posted by First Class mail on Friday 22
April and a Pass List will be displayed on a notice board at the
College at 1.00 pm on the same day. In addition, it is intended to
publish the Pass List from 3.00 pm [UK time] on the College website
address: www.rcog.org.uk
The Pass List will be displayed on the website for one month.
Please do not telephone the College about your results.
Examination results cannot be given or discussed on the telephone
at any time. Telephone requests for results, or information on
results, will be politely refused. The College will only entertain
written requests.
Dr Michael G Murphy
Director of Education
MGM/PC/03.16
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