Eligibility

Licensure

All candidates taking the GS ABMS-S MCQ Examination must be registered with the Singapore Medical Council (SMC) ↗ (opens in new tab) and hold a valid Practising Certificate issued by the SMC.

Accredited training

Both GS ABMS-S MCQ Examination and GS Examination (Clinical) are required for exit certification.

• For appeals on exam eligibility, please refer to the section on Appeals.

The full-time residency training must fulfil all accredited training requirements set forth by ACGME-I and those specified under Singapore’s Country Addendum.

Residents are expected to be competent in the six (6) ACGME-I General Competencies.

• Patient care and procedural skills,

• Medical knowledge,

• Practice-based learning and improvement,

• Interpersonal and communication skills,

• Professionalism and

• Systems-based practice.

Verification of the fulfilment of these requirements will be provided by the Programme Directors.

GS ABMS-S MCQ Examination

Administered for General Surgery residents who:

1. have successfully completed and passed the MRCS or Primary MMed (Surgery) by end of R3

2. have successfully completed and passed the final MMed (Surgery) by end of R4

3. are at least in their R5 year and must be certified by their residency programme director to have satisfactorily completed at least 54 months of residency training at the time of the examination; or have completed residency training, provided they have not exceeded the overall eligible time window from the onset of residency training, as allowed by JCST, to successfully complete their exit examinations.

All candidates must have good standing in an ACGME-I ↗ (opens in new tab)-accredited graduate medical education programme or an approved alternative.

For information on the eligibility criteria for the GS Joint Speicalty Fellowship (JSF)(Written) examination, residents are to check with the Joint Committee on Specialist Training (JCST) secretariat or their respective Programme Directors and Coordinators.

GS Examination (Clinical)

Administered for General Surgery residents who:

1. have successfully completed and passed the MRCS or Primary MMed (Surgery) by end of R3

2. have successfully completed and passed the final MMed (Surgery) by end of R4

3. are not earlier than 3 months from the end of successful completion of residency training as certified by their residency programme director; or have completed residency training, provided they have not exceeded the overall eligible time window from the onset of residency training, as allowed by JCST, to successfully complete their exit examinations.

Attestation of good standing and clinical performance

The Programme Director will assess competence and performance in the six (6) ACGME-I General Competencies. As part of the evaluations, attestation of a candidate’s good standing and clinical performance by the relevant Programme Director is required. Such attestation can be in the form of the Programme Director’s endorsement of the candidate’s performance.

The responsibility of evaluating a candidate’s clinical competence and moral and ethical behaviour rests with the Programme Director or the RAC, and not with MOH. MOH is not in a position to re-examine the facts and circumstances of an individual's performance. As required by ACGME-I in its Institutional Requirements, Section (II)(D)(4)(e), the Sponsoring Institution must provide appropriate due process for its decisions regarding a trainee's performance. Details can be obtained from the ACGME-I's ↗ (opens in new tab) website.

Change in eligibility status

If a candidate’s eligibility for the examination changes between the date of submission of the application and the scheduled examination date, the candidate must notify MOH promptly.