New Delhi: The Ministry of Health convened a meeting with the National Medical Commission (NMC) to address issues pertaining to the final year licensure examination known as the ‘National Exit Test’ (NEXT). It has been indicated that a revised notification will be issued, rescheduling the examination originally slated for 2024 to now take place in 2025.
In 2019, the NMC announced that the batch would be eligible for the inaugural NEXT in 2024, as initially reported. In response, students and educators initiated a social media campaign advocating for a boycott of the NEXT. Additionally, students wrote a letter to Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandavya and the NMC, requesting a review of the qualifying percentage for NEXT and the timing of the two-phase examination. Subsequently, the NMC postponed the examination to July 13.
The implementation of the NEXT for obtaining a license to practice modern medicine in India, as well as for admission to medical postgraduate programs and for foreign medical graduates with an MBBS from abroad, was decided upon. It has been communicated that the NEXT will serve as an alternative to the Foreign Medical Graduates Examination for such students.
