Around 65,000 candidates including 41,000 females and 24,000 males will appear in Punjab Medical & Dental Colleges' Admission Test (MDCAT) on Sunday. The Punjab government has finalized the arrangements for the test and has deputed senior bureaucrats as monitoring officers whereas medical professors will conduct the test. Divisional Commissioners and Deputy Commissioners of respective districts will act as 'focal persons' to look after the arrangements of the test.
The UHS has deputed around 5500 invigilators and around 1000 superintendents and deputy superintendents for the conduct of the test. The test shall be held simultaneously at 28 centres established in 13 cities of Punjab including Lahore, Faisalabad, Sahiwal, Multan, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, Sargodha, Gujrat, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Sialkot, DG Khan, and Hassan Abdal. The test shall start at 09:00 am. The candidates, however, must reach their respective centres at least one hour before the commencement of the test as all the centres would be sealed at 08:15 am and nobody would be allowed to enter after the scheduled time.
In Lahore, there are eight centres established at the Examination Halls of Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Lawrence Road; Examination Halls of Punjab University, Wahdat Road; Government Comprehensive Girls High School, Wahdat Road; University of Education, Township; Lahore College for Women University, Jail Road; Govt Postgraduate College for Women Samanabad; Divisional Public School Model Town and Government College of Science, Wahdat Road where around 19,000 candidates will sit in the test.
The test shall comprise 220 multiple choice questions (MCQs), divided into four sections namely Biology (88 MCQs), Chemistry (58 MCQs), Physics (44 MCQs) and English (30 MCQs). Briefing on the arrangement of the test, UHS Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Junaid Sarfraz Khan said that the Chief Secretary Punjab had directed all concerned departments to make immaculate arrangements for smooth and flawless conduct of the admission test. The district administration, under the supervision of concerned divisional commissioners and deputy commissioners, had finalized the security and logistic plans at their respective centres, Professor Junaid told. He said that district police officers would be responsible for security and deployment of police personnel at the test centres. Police would ensure extensive patrolling and technical sweeping of the area before the commencement of the test.
According to the regulations of Pakistan Medical and Dental Council, it is mandatory for a candidate to appear in the provincial entry test for admission to any public or private medical / dental college of the province. This year the candidates shall compete for 3405 MBBS seats in 17 public sector medical colleges and 216 BDS seats in three public dental colleges of the province. Besides, there are 2590 MBBS seats available in 21 private medical colleges and 555 BDS seats in nine private dental colleges affiliated with the university.