NEW DELHI: In a move that will bring relief to thousands of anxious medical students, the National Medical Commission (NMC) on Thursday deferred the National Exit Test (NExT) exam till further notice. NExT will replace the National Eligibility Entrance Test for Postgraduate (NEET PG) for admission to postgraduate medical programmes and license to practice medicine in the country.
“All the stakeholders are hereby informed that the National Exit Test examination is deferred till further directions from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare,” the NMC said in a brief public notice. However, it is unclear if the mock NExT, scheduled for July 28, will still be held.
The announcement comes after protests from several medical colleges, and medical and student bodies including the Indian Medical Association (IMA), which demanded that the new examination be repealed immediately.
The announcement has also ended medical students’ confusions on whether or not the examination will be conducted for the 2019 batch. The confusion started after Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya announced last week that NExT will not be implemented for the 2019 MBBS batch. This led to demands from the medical fraternity for an official notification for further clarification.
The medical fraternity has welcomed the move. The Federation of All India Medical Association took to Twitter, stating that “NExT (is) deferred till further order. We once again thank Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya for this. We need to make many changes in the proposed NExT exam.”
The Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association also tweeted, “... hoping the upcoming draft would be much more student-friendly and rational.” The NMC issued NExT regulations 2023 recently, stating that the exam will be conducted in two phases, with the NExT Step 1 and Step 2 exams being held twice a year – in May and November.
The exam, aimed at ensuring practical training and uniform education for all medical students in the country, was to be conducted by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences. However, the currently graduating students had demanded that the examination be postponed as they did not have enough time to prepare for a new examination format.
The NMC had said the NExT should form the basis of certifying the eligibility of a medical graduate to register to practice the modern system of medicine in India and therefore serve as a licentiate test.
It will also form the basis for determining the eligibility and ranking for admission of those desirous of pursuing further postgraduate medical education in the country in broad medical specialities and therefore serve as an entrance examination for admission to courses of PG medical education.
After clearing the NExT Step 1, students will do an internship for one year, and the same score of NExT Step 1 will be considered for admission into postgraduate courses. After the internship, the medical students must clear NExT Step 2 to become eligible for obtaining a licence and registration to practice modern medicine in India. Foreign medical graduates who want to practice in India will have to appear in NExT Step 1, do the internship and then clear NExT Step 2 to become eligible to practice.
Whay is NExT?
NExT is conceived as a licentiate examination, to certify eligibility of a medical graduate to register to practice the modern medicine in India
It is also formulated as an entrance examination for admission to postgraduate medical education
AIIMS will conduct the test
NExT will be held in two phases, NExT Step 1 and Step 2, twice a year, in May and November
After clearing NExT Step 1, students will do an internship for one year. The NExT Step 1 score will be considered for PG admission
After the internship, the medical students must clear NExT Step 2 to become eligible for licence to practice
Foreign medical graduates who want to practice in India will have to appear in NExT Step 1, do the internship and then clear NExT Step 2, to become eligible to practice