Putting an end to months of anticipation, the Health Ministry made an official announcement on Thursday regarding the commencement of the National Exit Test (NExT) from the year 2024.
According to official sources, the responsibility of conducting the National Exit Test (NExT) next year is likely to be assigned to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). As per the National Medical Commission (NMC) Act, the NExT will serve as a common qualifying exam for final year MBBS students, a licensure exam for medical practice, a merit-based admission exam for postgraduate programs, and a screening exam for foreign medical graduates seeking to practice in India.
The government utilized the provisions of the NMC Act to extend the deadline for conducting the NExT exam for the final year of MBBS until September 2024, as announced last year.
The NExT, which is a unified exam for undergraduate students in their final year, must be conducted by the Commission within three years of the implementation of the NMC Act. The Act came into effect in September 2020, and the deadline was extended last year, as per the authorities.
While no decision has been made yet, officials have mentioned that AIIMS, New Delhi, may be entrusted with conducting the test instead of the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS). It is crucial to provide students with sufficient time for preparation, according to the officials.
The preparations involve finalizing the details, including the syllabus, type and format of the exam (whether analytical or multiple-choice), the number of tests, and the necessary regulations. Practice exams would be conducted prior to the main test.