Build an MSRA revision plan around your rota
Start with the time you can actually use. This is an adaptable planning framework, not a prescribed number of weeks or a promise of a particular score.
Exam guidance checked against the linked NHS sources on 20 October 2026. Check the official guidance and your booking information for changes.
1. Set your starting point
Write down your assessment date, available study sessions, shifts, leave and other commitments. Leave some sessions unallocated so a difficult week does not make the whole plan unusable.
Read the exam format guide before choosing resources. Use some of the official practice paper to understand the question types and instructions. A small practice score is a starting observation, not a prediction of your exam result.
2. Give every clinical topic a place
Make a simple list using the 12 official CPS topic areas. For each area, record what you have studied, what you found difficult and the next question or topic to revisit. Our clinical topic directory links to existing notes to help you get started.
Give unfamiliar areas an initial session, then use errors and uncertainty to decide where the next session belongs. Avoid letting one comfortable specialty occupy all your available time. A topic being present in the textbook does not mean every part of its MSRA blueprint has been covered.
3. Use a repeatable study session
- Choose a focused task. Pick one topic or a small group of questions rather than an open-ended reading target.
- Attempt before checking. Commit to an answer and note what made the decision difficult.
- Read the explanation. Identify the distinction you missed, not just the correct option. Use the accompanying source when you need to check a claim.
- Record a useful next step. For example: revisit a topic, compare two explanations, or repeat a question later without the answer visible.
- Return to an earlier difficulty. Include something from a previous session as well as new material.
On a short day, complete one small task and its review. When you have longer, combine practice with the related notes. Question totals alone do not tell you whether an explanation has made sense.
4. Plan Professional Dilemmas separately
Make explicit space for PD alongside your clinical work. Read the official PD instructions and use the official practice rationales to examine why responses differ.
Keep notes on errors in reading the task: ranking independent actions is different from choosing three actions to work together. Clinical SBA practice does not replace this part of your preparation.
5. Review and adjust the plan
At a regular checkpoint, look at what you actually completed. Move unfinished work deliberately, choose the next weak area, and keep time for both papers. If your plan repeatedly exceeds the time available, reduce each session's scope.
An example cycle to adapt
- A clinical topic session, followed by review of its questions.
- A separate PD session with time to read the rationales.
- A mixed clinical session that revisits earlier difficulties.
- A short checkpoint to update the topic list and plan the next cycle.
Spread these sessions across whatever period fits your rota. Their order and duration are adjustable; this is not a validated study prescription.
6. Include practice in the formats you will face
Leave time to work with the official paper and its instructions, including EMQs. When you practise under time limits, use the official paper timings and any adjustments confirmed for you. Review the reasoning afterwards.
PassFinals currently provides five-option clinical SBAs and separate ranking and choose-three SJT practice. It does not provide clinical EMQs or a complete MSRA mock. Keep that distinction in mind when choosing the rest of your preparation.