Preparations for the MDCAT 2026 have been completed across the country, with the medical entrance examination scheduled to be held tomorrow, Sunday. The MDCAT will be conducted in 34 cities across Pakistan, along with one international centre in Riyadh. A total of 138,160 candidates are registered to appear in the examination nationwide.
According to the registration data, 49,199 candidates are registered in Punjab, 38,841 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 34,233 in Sindh, 9,923 in Balochistan, 2,761 in Azad Kashmir, 1,721 in Gilgit-Baltistan and 1,245 in Islamabad. A total of 237 candidates are registered to take the MDCAT in Riyadh.
According to the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), a question bank containing around 8,000 questions was prepared with the involvement of subject-matter experts from approximately 80 disciplines. The PMDC said separate question papers were prepared for each province, with at least two different sets developed for each province.
Each question paper contains 180 questions. It further stated that the question papers may be retained by the respective universities after the examination. The actual conduct of the MDCAT is the responsibility of the relevant provincial authorities and designated universities. The PMDC has a statutory role in establishing the examination framework, procedures and standards for the MDCAT.
Important instructions have been issued for students aspiring to gain admission to medical colleges as the Sindh Testing Service has released pre-exam guidelines for candidates appearing in the MDCAT 2026.
According to the Sindh Testing Service, the MDCAT 2026 examination will be held on September 20 and will last for three hours. Candidates have been directed to strictly follow all examination rules and regulations.
Once the examination begins, candidates must remain in their assigned seats until the test concludes. No candidate will be allowed to leave the examination centre or their seat before the allotted time ends.