The Medical Licensing Assessment

What Is The Medical Licensing Assessment?

As part of your degree, all UK Medicine graduates, as well as international applicants, will have to sit a new exam called the Medical Licensing Assessment.

The Medical Licensing Assessment (MLA) will have two parts: an applied knowledge test that is computer-based, and a clinical and professional skills assessment.

The aim of the MLA is to provide a standardised means of assessing all UK Doctors, which in turn will help to ensure patient safety.

It’s Pass/Fail

The Medical Licensing Assessment is a pass/fail assessment. It isn’t designed to rank Medicine graduates and scores won’t be used in the Foundation Training selection process.

When Does It Come Into Effect?

The Medical Licensing Assessment will affect anyone graduating in the year 2024-25 onwards.

UK medical students graduating in the academic year 2024-25 will need to pass the MLA before joining the medical register.

How Is This Different?

Currently, medical graduates sit their final written and clinical exams at their Medical School – and if they pass, they can apply for provisional registration on the GMC Medical Register. This then allows them to apply for Foundation Training.

Does This Impact Foundation Training Selection?

Changes to the Medical Licensing Assessment don’t have any impact on Foundation Training selection. It’s simply a pass/fail test, and selection for Foundation Training remains the same.

Foundation Training Applications

When you apply for Foundation Training, you are assessed on your Education Performance Measure and your Situational Judgement Test. You can score up to 50 points on each. Find out more about EPM and SJT.

You also need to have passed the Prescribing Safety Assessment by the completion of your FY1 induction programme.

Revalidation

Every five years, licensed Doctors must demonstrate that they are up to date with medical procedures and fit to practice. This is known as ‘revalidation’ and ensures that the Doctor can continue to hold their license to practice. They need to use supporting information to demonstrate that they are continuing to meet the principles and values set out in Good Medical Practice.

Good Medical Practice by the General Medical Council (GMC) is the core ethical guidance for Doctors. It sets out the principles and professional values on which good practice is founded.

All NHS staff, including Doctors, are expected to have annual appraisals as part of their revalidation. Each Doctor needs to maintain a portfolio of supporting information which demonstrates that they are continuing to meet the attributes set out in the framework. The main purpose of revalidation for doctors is to check that their practices, skills and behaviour are in line with the GMC’s standards, as well as to reflect on their performance, using this to improve their skills or develop their practice.

Medical Licensing Assessment Questions

You may get asked in your Med School interview about your understanding of how you become a Doctor. Mentioning the MLA is a good way to show that you’re familiar with the recent update to licensing. Some example questions could include:

• What do you understand about the path to becoming a Doctor?
• Do you know what happens once you finish Medical School?
• Medical School lasts five to six years. What will you do after this?

You can also practise for interviews with over 100 free questions and answer guides in our Interview Question Bank.