Medical & Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) is a paper based test administered by multiple universities in Pakistan and overseas for admission into medical colleges in Pakistan.
However, there are two versions of the test.
MDCAT NUMS is conducted by the National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS) and it is only valid for the aspiring students willing to join NUMS constituent and affiliated medical and dental colleges.
A list of NUMS constituent and affiliated medical and dental colleges could be found on the NUMS website here.
The other version of the MDCAT test is held under Pakistan Medical and Dental Council which is the successor of Pakistan Medical Commission.
This is the more widely known test and all the medical and dental colleges in the country, barring those linked with NUMS, require aspiring doctors to pass this test.
In 2023, NUMS held its MDCAT on September 4 while the main MDCAT was held on September 10.
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The main MDCAT, as we may call it to differentiate it from the NUMS one, is conducted by multiple universities in different provinces and territories. However, syllabus comes from the same source, namely PMDC.
The test is valid for all provinces and students have the choice to select the location from where they want to appear.
Overseas candidates also take the same test at centers set up in different countries.
In Balochistan, MDCAT is administered by the Bolan University of Medical and Health Sciences in Quetta.
In Sindh, the Jinnah Sindh Medical University (JSMU) conducts the test at venues in Karachi, Hyderabad, Shaheed Benazirabad and Larkana.
In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Khyber Medical University conducts MDCAT in Peshawar, Mardan, Swat, Kohat, Bannu, DI Khan, Abbottabad, Swabi and Malakand.
In the federal capital of Islamabad, Shaheed Zulfiqar All Bhutto Medical University (SZABMU) Islamabad conducts the test.
In Azad Jammu and Kashmir, SZABMU conducts MDCAT in Muzaffarabad, Mirpur, Rawalakot.
In Gilgit Baltistan, SZABMU conducts the test in Gilgit. The university also conducts the test at international venues in Riyadh and Dubai.
In Punjab, the University of Health Sciences Lahore conducts MDCAT at venues in Lahore, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Faisalabad, Multan, Bahawalpur, DG Khan, Sahiwal, Rawalpindi, Sargodha, and Gujrat.
