ICBSE and the four Surgical Royal Colleges of the United Kingdom and in Ireland were made aware that a candidate was suspected of serious misconduct during the April 2021 MRCS Part A pertaining to the copying of questions from the exam.
This was immediately investigated and the candidate responsible identified. In line with the process in the intercollegiate document Suspected Candidate Misconduct for MRCS and DO-HNS, the College to whom the candidate had applied for the exam contacted the individual to make them aware that this incident had been identified, and asked that an intercollegiate misconduct panel hearing be arranged to investigate the case.
That hearing has now been held and the candidate has been found guilty of misconduct.
The candidate did not receive a result for the April 2021 MRCS Part A and has been banned from all future sittings of any MRCS or DO-HNS examination. As a result, the candidate responsible will not be accepted as a member of any of the four Surgical Royal Colleges of the United Kingdom and in Ireland.
Candidates are reminded that removing or attempting to remove confidential information (such as exam questions) from an MRCS or DO-HNS examination is expressly forbidden in the exam regulations, as is passing confidential information on the content of an exam to a third party. Candidates found guilty of such offences in an MRCS or DO-HNS exam could additionally be reported to their regulatory body and/or employer.