The Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) 2026 is being held across Pakistan today, with 138,158 candidates registered to appear for the entrance examination.
According to the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), the test started at 10am and will continue for three hours.
Examination centres have been established in 34 cities across the country, along with a centre in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Punjab has the highest number of registered candidates at 49,199, followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with 38,841 and Sindh with 34,233.
Balochistan has 9,923 registered candidates, while 2,761 candidates are from Azad Jammu and Kashmir, 1,721 from Gilgit-Baltistan and 1,245 from Islamabad. Another 237 candidates are eligible to appear at the Riyadh centre.
The PMDC said an 8,000-question bank was prepared for MDCAT 2026, with separate question papers developed for each province and at least two additional papers.
Each question paper contains 180 questions.
The examination is being conducted by provincial authorities and designated universities. The relevant universities may retain the question papers after the test.
Candidates are required to remain seated until the examination concludes and will not be allowed to leave the centre early. They must hand over their question papers to invigilating staff before leaving, with failure to return the paper potentially resulting in cancellation of the candidate’s result.
The use of mobile phones and other digital devices has also been prohibited at examination centres.
This year, the mandatory juvenile card requirement has been removed. Candidates without a juvenile card will still be allowed to sit the examination, with their identity to be verified through the original marks sheet at the examination centre.
Authorities have advised candidates to follow all identification and document requirements to avoid inconvenience.
