Sitting the SCA

This guide provides a comprehensive overview of your SCA examination day. It covers all the key aspects of the examination, including: 

• logging in
• candidate registration with your invigilator
• navigating each station from reading time to consultation
• breaks and logging off
• key platform functionality
• how to seek support

Read the SCA examination day guide (PDF file, 1.2 MB).

We have created a comprehensive surgery preparation guide as a resource for candidates and their GP trainers to help them prepare their surgery and IT set-up to be SCA-ready. Candidates must meet the requirements outlined in the guide before they are able to sit your examination.

As part of preparing for the SCA examination, all candidates will be sent a link to complete a device check and platform walkthrough four weeks prior to sitting their examination.   

Device check 

It is important that you complete your device check on the same computer you will be using on your examination day, and in the room in your GP surgery that you have selected to sit the examination. It will only take you a few minutes to complete.     

Your computer will require either an internal or external webcam and a built-in microphone and speaker. You may also use external headphones and a microphone instead. Further guidance on the IT requirements can be found in the candidate surgery guide. When you have successfully completed the device check you will be asked to confirm the name of the GP surgery where you intend to sit the SCA examination and your contact phone number for the day of the examination.  

Walkthrough 

The purpose of the Osler Online walkthrough is to familiarise yourself with the platform functionality, so you are fully prepared ahead of your examination. As you will discover from the walkthrough, the examination platform is very straightforward and user friendly.    

You will be prompted to take the walkthrough after completing the device check, click the yellow 'yes please' button on the bottom of your screen to begin. You may retake the walkthrough as many times as you like before your examination day to refresh yourself on platform functionality. Please note that the two looping videos in the walkthrough do not have sound.    

A rerun is a repeat of one of your 12 scheduled stations within your SCA examination, made necessary by a disruption to your original station.  

Reruns are an important component of your SCA examination. They exist to ensure that you are not disadvantaged due to circumstances outside your control. They provide a consistent approach to handling any issues that are experienced during the examination, ensuring all candidates are treated equally, and a fair examination for everyone sitting the SCA. Without reruns, you might have to abandon the examination if an issue occurred, which would disrupt your training. 

When reruns take place 

Reruns take place at the end of the examination session. After the twelfth station finishes, time is allocated for a short break (approximately five minutes) before the rerun begins.  

If a rerun is required, the examination platform will automatically take you to that station. When the rerun starts you will begin your reading time. The case information will be the same as it was in your original station, and the reading and consultation time allocated will be the same.  

At the end of the rerun the platform will automatically return you to the waiting room, where you will remain in examination conditions until advised by the invigilator that you can log out of the examination platform. If you are required to complete more than one rerun, there will be a short break (about one minute) between your first rerun ending and your next one starting.   

Requesting or being offered a rerun

The full duration of your examination is monitored by an invigilator and the RCGP exams team, who oversee the smooth running of your examination.  

In most circumstances the Invigilator or the exams team will identify if a candidate's consultation has been disrupted through these monitoring processes and will offer a candidate a rerun if the qualifying criteria are met (see below). Additionally, candidates may raise a concern directly to the Invigilator by flagging the case. 

Where concerns are raised by candidates, it is important that this is done in a timely manner, so that there is sufficient time to investigate: 

• If an issue occurs during one of your first six consultations, you must inform your invigilator during the comfort break that you would like to have your consultation reviewed for a rerun.
• If an issue occurs during the second half of your examination, you must inform your invigilator within five minutes following your 12th and final station 

How the rerun decision is made

Some rerun decisions are straightforward, and can be made by the invigilator without further consultation. In cases of uncertainty, the invigilator will ask for the recording of the consultation to be reviewed by senior members of the examinations team and, where necessary, one of the lead examiners. This will help determine the time lost to the candidate and the impact that any disruption has had on the consultation. It is then their role to ensure that consistency is applied to all decisions, against the criteria described below. 

The criteria for determining a rerun are as follows:  

• A technical issue that impacts a candidate’s reading time leading to a reduction in reading time of more than 30 seconds;
• Delay of 30 seconds or more in participants connecting to the station leading to the consultation not being completed in time;
• Drops in signal of more than 30 seconds either as a single incident or cumulatively for the candidate and/or role player;
• The quality of the audio feed is deemed not to be at an acceptable standard to mark the case;
• The quality of the audio feed makes it difficult for candidate and/or role player to hear each other and significantly disrupts the flow of the consultation;
• External noise arising from the role player environment, exams team, or invigilator which is observed to significantly disrupt the flow of the consultation;
• Interruption to role-player physical or online environment which is observed to significantly disrupt the flow of the consultation
• The role player experiences an unexpected health-related issue during the consultation.

The following circumstances would not meet the criteria for a rerun: 

• Case interruption relating to candidate factors. This includes a request for additional comfort breaks or timeout, interruptions related to the candidate's local environment, e.g. practice staff or telephone call;
• Candidate perception of role player inconsistency or performance;
• Candidate upset, anxiety or distress unless caused by demonstrable failure of assessment delivery ;

We ask that you only flag an issue with your invigilator if it adheres to the above criteria. Minor disruptions will not be reviewed.

Rerun notification and procedure

When it has been confirmed that a rerun is required: 

1. Your invigilator will inform you that your consultation has met the criteria for a rerun.
2. They will inform you during your break, or after the end of your 12th station, that you have the option for a rerun.
3. You decide whether you would like to rerun the station or not. (Occasionally, if there has been a significant disruption and it is not possible to mark your original consultation, you will be asked to rerun a station).
4. If you accept the offer for a rerun, your original consultation will no longer be available for marking, and your rerun will become the marked consultation.
5. The rerun station will appear as an ad hoc station at the bottom of your examination schedule, located on the left-hand side of the platform.
6. Time is allocated at the end of the examination for candidates to rerun up to three stations.