Important MRCOG test centre information

Please read all of the following carefully as failure to comply may result in you being refused entry to the exam.

Please check your local guidelines regarding COVID and the use of face masks.

ID Requirements

Two forms of original (no photocopies), valid (unexpired) IDs in English - one must have a signature

The first and last name that you used to register with the RCOG (as captured in your account on the Exam Candidate Portal) must match exactly the first and last name on the ID that is presented on test day. The only exceptions are name changes as a result of marriage/civil partnerships, or you have been provided with a statement from the RCOG to approve a change of your registered name. In this instance, the following supplementary evidence will need to be provided as proof of name change: Marriage certificate, civil partnership certificate, decree absolute certificate or supporting statement from the RCOG. Please refer to Pearson VUE’s accepted name matching guidelines below.
One form as a primary ID - government issued with name, photo and signature. We recommend passports are used as your primary ID as they contain your name, photo and signature
Plus a secondary form of ID which needs to have your name and signature or name and a recent recognisable photo. Examples are: Bank, credit, or debit card or driving licence. To view Pearson VUE’s full ID policy, including any additional allowances to this policy, please visit: http://www.pearsonvue.com/policies/1S.pdf

Sitting an exam in a different country from where your ID was issued

If you do not have a qualifying primary ID issued from the country you are testing in, an International Travel Passport from your country of citizenship is required, along with a secondary ID. Your ID must meet the requirements in points 1, 2 & 3.

What to expect at Pearson VUE test centres

Please ensure you arrive at the test centre 30 minutes before your scheduled appointment time. This will give you adequate time to complete the necessary sign-in procedures. If you arrive more than 15 minutes late for your appointment, you may be refused admission and the exam fees will be forfeited.

Further information on the exam experience is available on our website here: https://www.rcog.org.uk/en/careers-training/mrcog-exams/new-exams-it-system/

Incidents at Pearson VUE test centres

If you experience any issues before and/or during the exam, including technical problems, noise disturbances or have any other concerns about your testing experience, you must raise your hand as soon as possible and speak to the invigilator. Pearson VUE will log all incidents a candidate raises and in turn will provide you with a case number.

This case number must be quoted on all subsequent correspondence to the RCOG regarding the incident. Please note that any incident that you feel needs to be raised to the RCOG, must be done so within five days of the examination.

Managing Disruption And Incidents Experienced At Pearson VUE Test Centres Policy Updated PDF 131kb

What to expect following the completion of the exam

You will receive a candidate survey from the RCOG shortly after the examination date. Please do take the time to complete the survey as this will provide us with valuable information to improve the future candidate experience.

If you have any queries, or outstanding concerns following your exam, please contact exams@rcog.org.uk.

Results will be made available via the Exam Candidate Portal within six weeks following the exam. You will receive notification once the results have been released.

Pearson VUE Name-Matching Guidelines

Test administrators must check that the candidate's name on both forms of ID matches the candidate's name on the test centre schedule. The following rules provide guidelines on whether the names are considered matches. If there is a discrepancy between the name on the schedule and the name on the ID, ask the candidate to explain the reason for the discrepancy.

Type of discrepancy	Name on registration or ID	Names that match	Names that do not match
Typos, truncations, or special characters
There is a single-letter or two-letter difference due to a typo. These differences could be due to the wrong letters, transposed letters, extra letters, or missing letters. If there is a total difference of three or more letters between the names on the registration and ID, the names do not match. Also, the single-letter difference rule does not apply if the initial on an ID and an initial in the system do not match. For more information, see the rows for initials and abbreviations.	Alexander Johnson	Alexander Johmson Alixander Johmson Alixonder Johnson Alexandre Johnson Alixander Johnsons Alexande Johnson Alexande Johnso	Alixonder Johmson Alixonder Johnsons Alexande Johmsons Alexandre Johmson
A long name is truncated (shortened) to fit into the name field. This is acceptable.	Ranjith Venkata Pagdalapalepu Kakulavaram	Ranjith Venkata Pagdalapalepu Kakula	Ranjith Venkata Pagdalapalepu Kakuva
A hyphen or other special character (for example Ø, Ö, Ñ) is used in one place but not in the other.	Sarah Johnson-Wells	Sarah Johnson Wells Sarah Wells	Sarah Johnson (acceptable if accompanied by marriage certificate)
	Jose Garcia	José Garcia	Felipé Garcia
	Erik Mussig	Erik Mußig (for this special character, ss is equivalent to ß)
First name variations
Formal first name is used in one place, but a typical variation is used in the other. Note that "Ma." is not an approved abbreviation for the name Maria.	Sandra Herman Billy Pickins	Sandy Herman William Pickins	Sally Herman Buddy Pickins
Candidate registers his or her middle name as the first name because the first name listed on the ID is the candidate's "English" name.	Edith Ming Chan	Ming Chan Edith Chan	Anne Chan
There is no space between the first name and the middle name on the ID.	ID: GabriellaAnne Smalls	Registration: Gabriella Anne Smalls	Registration: Gabriella Anne
Candidate has just one name, rather than a conventional first and last name. In this case, the single name must be the only name used on both IDs and on the test center schedule. The Pearson VUE system requires a first and last name, so a period/full stop (.) or underscore (_) may appear in place of one of the names. The period/full stop or underscore does not need to appear on the IDs in order for the names to match.	Chandra . Chandra _	Chandra	Syahda Chandra Syahda C
Initials or abbreviations (For these discrepancies, the single-letter difference rule does not apply if the initial on an ID and an initial in the system do not match because the initials are not long enough to determine if the names are the same or different.)
Middle initial is included in one place, and the other is missing the middle initial. Middle initial is included in one place, and the entire middle name is shown in the other.	Mary R. Abernathy	Mary Abernathy Mary Rose Abernathy	Mary Martha Abernathy Mary M. Abernathy
If the first name has two or more initials, the initials in the registration name must be used on both IDs and on the test center schedule.	B.B. King	B.B. King	Bradley B. King B. King B.D. King
Some governments and organizations abbreviate names on IDs because of length. If the registration name spells out the candidate’s full name but the name is abbreviated on the ID, the ID is still acceptable. If the ID spells out the candidate's full name but the name in the registration is abbreviated, the ID is not acceptable. If the ID and registration use multiple initials for abbreviated names, it is acceptable to allow spaces between the initials in one place even if there are no spaces in the other.	Registration: Elizabeth Smith ID: John C. SJV Sharma	ID: E. Smith Registration: John Czajkowski S J V Sharma S.J.V. Sharma	F. Smith _ Smith . Smith John R. John _ John . SJB Sharma
Maiden names
Maiden name is used as the middle name in one place, while the candidate's given middle name is used in the other. (In this example, "Jones" is the maiden name, "Elizabeth" is the given middle name, and "Smith" is the married last name.)	Mary Jones Smith	Mary Elizabeth Smith Mary Elizabeth Jones Smith Mary E. Jones Smith	Elizabeth Jones Smith Mary E. Smith Jones Mary Smith Jones
Last name is the maiden name in one place, while the married name appears in the other. (In this example, "Gates" is the maiden name, and "Stevens" is the married name.) To be admitted, the candidate must present original marriage license or divorce decree to supplement the ID.	Alexis Gates Alexis Stevens	Alexis Stevens Alexis Gates	Alexis Jones
Maiden name is included in one place in addition to the married last name. (Maiden names are sometimes indicated by "née" on IDs.)	Ellen Clark née Carter Ellen Carter Clark Mary Smith née Brown	Ellen Clark Mary Brown Smith	Ellen Carter (acceptable if accompanied by marriage certificate) Ellen Clark Carter Mary Brown (acceptable if accompanied by marriage certificate) Mary Smith Brown
Last names are repeated because the maiden name and last name are the same.	Sarah Johnson	Sarah Johnson Johnson	Sarah Smith Johnson
Order of names
Western names: The candidate has a Western name and the ID has the last name first, followed by a comma, first name, and then middle name. On some official documents, such as driver's licenses, some Western governments place the last name first followed by a comma, and then the first and middle name.	John Michael Smith (first middle last)	Smith, John Michael (last, first middle)	Smith, Michael John (last, middle first)
Non-Western names: If a candidate's non-Western names do not appear in the correct field on the schedule, admit the candidate as long as the names on the schedule also appear on the ID. Usually, this occurs when a candidate does not understand Western naming conventions. There may be discrepancies if the candidate enters his or her name into incorrect fields during online registration.	Leelamruthay Veera Brahmamt Kurchatin Purnam Satyal Krishakanth Sidaparthy Mohammed Saeed	Brahmamt Kurchatin Leelamruthay Veera Krishnakanth Purnam Sidaparthy Satyal Saeed Mohammed	Dakshesh Brahmamt Kurchatin Dharma Satyal Disaparthy Al-Filatseeini Saeed Mohammed
Additional, multiple, or missing names
A title or suffix is used in one place but not in the other.	Anthony Santos Jr. Anthony Santos I Sarah Wells	Anthony Santos Dr. Sarah Wells	Anthony Santos Sr. Anthony Santos II Anthony Santos III Dr. Sarah Waltz
Names do not match, but the ID is amended. For example, the maiden name appears in the front of the passport, but the next page of the passport is amended with information detailing a name change. This is acceptable.	Elizabeth Smith	Elizabeth Jones	Elaine Smith
In some countries, last names are non-existent and children take on their father's name as their last name or as an initial. In these situations, if the ID does not match the registration exactly, only admit the candidate if you can check the last page of the candidate's passport to confirm that the father's last name or initial matches the name or initial on the ID and registration.	K. Radhika	Radhika K. Radhika Kirishva	B. Radhika
Multiple names appear due to a regional cultural tradition (candidate has a traditional first name or titles on the ID, or both father and mother’s last names are shown on the ID). At least one of the multiple names must appear both on the ID and on the schedule in order to admit the candidate, regardless of where the name(s) appear in the fields on the schedule.	David Aguilar Pena David Aguilar-Pena Jose Manuel Bermudez Garcıa	David Aguilar David Pena Jose Bermudez Jose Garcia Manuel Bermudez Manuel Garcia Manuel Bermudez Garcia	David Lopez Jose Manuel
In countries that do not use middle names, candidates sometimes misunderstand the field during registration and enter text in the middle name field even though they do not have a middle name. It is acceptable for the candidate to repeat the first or last name on the ID in the middle name field. It is acceptable for the candidate to enter a maiden name, title, prefix, or suffix in the middle name field. Other than these exceptions, any name that appears in the middle name field must also appear on the ID.	Ichiro Suzuki Yifan Li	Ichiro Suzuki Suzuki Ichiro Ichiro Suzuki Yifan Dr. Li	Hiroshi Suzuki Yi Fan