PML-N raises concern of MDCAT 2020 students in Punjab assembly

The PML-N on Saturday raised the issue of the controversial results of the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) 2020 in the Punjab Assembly.

PML-N lawmaker Hina Parvez Butt submitted a resolution in the provincial assembly in which she demanded the government remove ambiguous questions from the MDCAT questionnaire.

“The MDCAT candidates are protesting the issue for the last many days. The government should make public the findings of the FIA investigation into the matter,” read the resolution.

The controversy surrounding the medical college entry test and its results is not eradicating despite many clarifications from the Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) regarding the paper checking and marking methodologies.

The candidates are alleging that the question paper was out of the syllabus which confused them and they could not answer correctly.

Earlier this week, PMC President Dr Arshad Taqi clarified that students who appeared in the MDCAT were graded on the basis of 186 questions after 14 questions were removed following students’ “feedback”.

“After doing a detailed review and taking students’ feedback, 14 questions were removed and grading was done on the basis of 186 questions,” he said.

The PMC president also highlighted a detailed breakdown of the MDCAT questions, saying 58 questions were done correctly by “almost” every student. He added that 105 questions were done correctly by almost 52% of students.

Dr Taqi described that 27 questions were made difficult by the PMC to “determine which students can go to which college,” adding that some students did well on it, while others struggled hard.

The top PMC official also conveyed in the media briefing on the paper-checking process and clarified there was “no human involvement” and emphasized that the exam was reliable as it had obtained a 0.96 score on the test.

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