Thursday the 17th of September felt like a lifetime away from the moment the exam finished. And then I woke up and it was the day I dreaded. I am not a big fan of Results Day as I’ve been disappointed many times before. The 17th of September was not any different.
The day before, I had been practising how I would react when I saw my results, how I would feel if I passed and how I would feel if I failed. I also planned that I would get through the day and not open emails/results page until I get home. Results came out at 2 pm.
If I passed, then amazing, push through to Part 2B and if I passed that one, then the year in Australia would be very focused on the fellowship and when I come back the last 2 years of Registrar training would be easier as I will be exam-free. If I failed, then I will have to do some revision in Australia. When I get back to Registrar training in January 2028, I will ease in first and not sit the Spring exams but would sit the Autumn exams.
The Results. Failed.
I couldn’t wait til home. I opened it and found out. 240 questions, the pass mark was 137 (57%). I got 111 (46%).
I was disappointed of course, but not as disappointed as in previous exams, maybe because I pre-grieved, maybe because I knew I signed up for the exam way too early in my training and that I wasn’t ready. For context, trainees take a bit of a break after passing FRCR Part 1, normally a year, sensibly wait until the end of ST5. People also take this exam once they have completed the ICR Part B course (which is very helpful as it covers pretty much the curriculum for the exam). We need to have passed the FRCR Part 2 by the end of ST6, before we get to ST7.
Me? The impulsive me who felt like the little engine that could, signed up for this exam 5 minutes after finding out I finally passed Part 1, whilst sitting on the first day of the ICR Part B course! I wasn’t even officially ST5 then.
Everyone around me thought it was a bad idea but I convinced myself that I could do it – again, because I wanted to see if I could make my next 3 years easier. I was dead wrong. There were 8 of us this year who signed up to sit the exam, everyone but me had met the criteria above. And they all passed, which in itself is telling that I just was not ready for it.
Reflections and Lessons.
I am not superhuman. It would be insane to think I could pass 3 exams in one year! I’m good but I’m not that good.
I have finally hit the wall and am completely burnt out.
I am too old for impulsive decisions. Clearly, I still have a self-discipline problem. I just went in too hard and too fast.
By going through this, I had compromised a few things – especially my current rotation (Gynae), which I’ve not really done a good job in.
My body – knee injury had already told me to slow down, to stop and take a break, I should have listened. I should have taken a break from exam revision, it has all I’ve been doing for 2 years straight – trying to pass the Physics exam.
I should have just let David focus on his exams rather than the 2 of us trying to revise for exams at the same time – he sat his 2 weeks after mine.
I have time – I have until the end of ST6. And if I need more time, I will have more.
Expensive mock exam. But luckily, because of new junior doctor conditions, I can get my money back.
Equally, there is some reprieve in that with being where I am in training at the moment, I was only 11% away from passing.
I am very grateful for the people who put up with me.
The revised plan.
- Jun 1-5 2026 Leeds Course for FRCR Part 2A. DONE.
Jun 26-27 2026 ESDO- Jul 3 2026 Acute Oncology Teaching Day. DONE.
- Aug 27 2026 FRCR Part 2A. DONE.
- Sep 17 2026 FRCR Part 2A Results. DONE.
- Sep 24 2024 ICR Part B starts.
Sep 28-Oct 2 2026 Cardiff Course for FRCR Part 2B- Oct 18 2026 Great South Run (Questionable – need to take mum to airport, knee still weak)
- Oct 22 – Nov 2 2026 Disney World
- Nov 4 2026 – Back to QAH for the next rotation
Nov 14-17 2026 FRCR Part 2BDec 3 2026 FRCR Part 2B Results- Dec 20 2026 Portsmouth Coastal Marathon (Questionable – only 13 weeks away, knee still revcovering)
- Jan 18 2027 MIA Fellowship Start
So the immediate plan is…
- Tidy up all revision material, it will all change anyway in 2 years’ time (Hello TNM 9)
- I manage to cancel the Cardiff Course and got some of my money back.
- Focus on the Gynae rotation and gain as much knowledge in the last 4 weeks of the rotation.
- Enjoy Disney!
- I will be going back to the QAH in Portsmouth in November!
- Get ready and focus on Melanoma and Australia!
Oh Monica, I’m so sorry! After six months of preparation, this must be a bit of a gut punch.
But it looks like the pre-grieving protected you from an emotional free fall! That was a smart move!
And, in hindsight, there WAS a chance that your plan could have worked! You might have pulled off the whole “too early, too much, but somehow make it happen” thing, and then you’d have had a very different blog post to write. I’m a big believer that it’s better to try and fail than not try at all and spend years wondering how it might have turned out. It was good to at least try!
And now you know. You pushed too hard and too fast, but you also learned a huge amount from the experience. You haven’t lost the bigger picture, and you still have plenty of time to get there. That’s a pretty valuable lesson from a mock exam!
So for now: Gynae, Disney, Australia planning and some actual breathing space. Enjoy every minute of it!
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