Sindh announces lowering of passing criteria for MDCAT 2021

KARACHI:   Sindh recently announced to lower the minimum passing grade from 65% to 40% for the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) 2021 orchestrated by the Pakistan Medical Council (PMC).

At a meeting headed by Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho, Health Minister, Sindh, and attended by vice-chancellors and principals of various medical and dental institutes in the region, she initiated personnel to collect data from all the MDCAT candidates that applied in order to formulate a new admission policy for Sindh. She also discussed possibly creating a ‘Sindh Medical and Dental Council’ next year if all talks with PMC fail.

The minister instructed the vice-chancellor of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical University, Larkana (SMBBMUL), to establish a web portal in order to gather MDCAT details from those students who have secured either secured 40 per cent, for Bachelors of Dental Surgery (BDS) admission or 50 per cent, for Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) admission.

Once this data is organized, the government can then start formulating a policy in light of the seats available. Though in some cases, the candidate’s domicile could also be considered, said Dr Azra, stressing about creating equal opportunities for candidates coming from rural areas.

Meanwhile, many students laud the step by the provincial government amidst criticism by experts regarding the legality of the decision. 

According to sources, many experts pointed out the efficacy of such a policy, as admission preference will still end up going to those that had secured the initial 65 per cent passing grade set up by the PMC. 

The total number of seats in medical and dental colleges of Sindh is 5,490. Of the 68,680 students who appeared in MDCAT from Sindh, a total of 7,797 passed the test.