National Exit Test: How and when NeXT will be Implemented?

National Exit Test is also known as NEXT. The exam was introduced for the last year MBBS students to avail the postgraduate programs as per the National Commission Medical Bill (NMC) in 2019. This is a national level exam conducted by the Medical Council of India once a year. Health Ministry has drafted the National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill with the proposal to scrap the NEET PG FOR MD/MS Admission. According to NMC Bill, admission into the PG medical programmes will be done on the basis of National Exit Test. Candidates can go through the following article for the detailed information regarding NEXT exam. NeXT will be a common test for multiple purposes that is meant to be implemented across the board. 

National Exit Test for medical (NEET Exam) students likely from 2023. If NeXT is introduced in the medical education system then it will discontinued  NEET-PG (national eligibility-cum-entrance examination).

National Exit Test (NExT) Latest Update

• The National Exit Test (NExT) is scheduled to be held in 2024 and is likely to be conducted by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi, according to official sources.
• The NExT will serve as a common qualifying final year MBBS exam, a licentiate exam for practicing modern medicine, a screening exam for foreign medical graduates seeking to practice in India, and a merit-based admission test for postgraduate courses.
• The NMC Act, which governs the NExT, allows for the extension of the time limit for conducting the exam, and it was extended until September 2024.
• The NMC Act mandates that the Commission conducts a common final year undergraduate medical examination, NExT, within three years of the Act coming into force, which happened in September 2020.
• The decision on whether AIIMS or the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) will conduct the NExT has not been finalized yet.
• The preparation for conducting the NExT exam involves determining the modalities, syllabus, type and pattern of the examination (analytical or multiple-choice questions), the number of tests, and necessary regulations. Sufficient time will be given to students to prepare, including conducting mock tests.
• The NExT exam holds significance as it will be the same for all candidates, regardless of their training location, addressing the issue of foreign medical graduates (FMGs) and mutual recognition.
• Currently, final year MBBS exams are conducted by individual colleges, while NEET-PG and FMGE exams are conducted by the National Board of Examinations (NBE).

What is NEXT?

All the medical students in their final year of MBBS should know about National Exit Test. It is the exit examination to enhance the quality intake of Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery graduates willing to pursue their medical career in postgraduate courses.

NEXT is more commonly known as National Exit Examination for MBBS. The exam is conducted through online mode and contains Multiple choice questions.

Purpose of NEXT: An Overview

The detailed information regarding the NEXT examination is given below.

• NEXT might become a mandatory examination to be undertaken by all those Foreign Medical Graduate Exam (FMGE). FMGE will be merged in with National Exit Test for the Foreign Graduate Degree holders so as to provide them with the license to practice medicine in India post the completion of their MBBS equivalent graduate-level degree.

• This exit exam will implement the conceptual understanding and skills pertaining to problem-solving of final year Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) students in a more practical aspect.
• National Exit Test is a common test which shortlisted students for higher studies in the field of medical sciences in India.
• National Exit Test is proposed to become an examination equivalent to NEET for postgraduate medical courses across India.
• Medical Council of India will conduct common counselling for admission into MBBS UG level and PG level medical courses.
• 50% of the seats in the postgraduate under All India Quota seats will fall under the NEXT exam. This certain reservation will be made for the government medical officers.

Merits of NEXT

The detailed information regarding the advantages of NEXT is given below.

• Increasing the Number of Qualified MBBS graduates:

Through this exit exam, medical colleges in India will be able to produce skilled and qualified MBBS graduates. India produces nearly 60,000 MBBS graduates every year, the doctor to patient ratio still remains high. Moreover, there is a lack in the number of qualified and skilled doctors who do make a difference in society. By this common exit exam for all Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery graduates, the government will be able to regulate the quality of MBBS graduates.

• Uniformity through One Exam:

This screening exam will allow only those graduates with the practical and theoretical skill to operate in day to conditions of India. However, the process of bringing in uniformity among MBBS graduates will take time.

• Quality Enhancement of Medical Facilities

Each MBBS candidate will be required to have worked for 3 years in rural and tribal areas. Currently, the medical facilities available in rural and more remote areas of the country lack the necessary medical facilities. Through NEXT, it is possible to improve the conditions of the remote areas and enhance the health care facilities for each citizen of the country.

• Removal of Unnecessary Paperwork for Foreign Students

Any foreign MBBS graduate who wished to pursue his/her career in India was required to sit for an MCI screening test, also known as FMGE.

• Build an International Recognition

India follows the medical regulations and medical development as seen in international countries, once the exit exam is operational. One of the major objectives of NEXT and NMC Bill 2019, in general, is to enhance the overall medical industry in India. 

Demerit of NEXT

The vital information regarding the disadvantages of National Exit Test is given below.

• Rise of Expensive Coaching Centres:

As there are various national-level exams, especially in the field of Medicine and Engineering, a rise in innumerable coaching centres. There are thousands of coaching centres for JEE Mains. While on one hand, it offers students the opportunity to crack the difficult examinations. On the other hand, coaching centres are able to charge impractical and unfair coaching fees, which those who are interested in crack such exams.

• Overall Increased Duration of Medical Education:

MBBS and PG medical graduates will have to work 3 years in rural/tribal areas, thus increasing the overall duration of education in medicine. However, the bright side is that the decision has not been made final and changes to the same can be made before implementing the NMC Bill 2019.

• Rushed Implementation:

The proposal of implementing NEXT three years after the NMC Bill 2019 is approved, can still lead numerous loop-holes and faults in the implementation process which can negatively affect the objectives of the exam.

Is NEXT Justified?

Being a standardised test, which will be conducted in medical colleges across India, it will be a task for the conducting body to regulate and ensure that the exam is conducted properly. As per sources, the National Exit test will prove as nothing but an additional burden on the MBBS final year students. NEXT for Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) in the month of December 2017 brought more than 6 colleges in Malabar together protesting against it. 

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