NEXT Likely to Replace NEET PG from 2023: Reports
NExT or National Exit Test can be introduced from the next year 2023 to standardize medical education across the country and will most likely replace NEET PG 2023. Continue reading for more information.
National Exit Exam: As per the speculations running in the media, it is expected that the postgraduate medical entrance examination NEET PG 2023 will be replaced by the National Exit Test (NExT). The indication to it was given by a senior central government official who said that NExT will be carried out for the MBBS batch who are to graduate in 2023. If NExT is implemented from 2023, it will not only replace NEET PG as the entrance test to postgraduate colleges but it will also act as a licentiate exam to allow qualifiers to practice modern medicine in the nation.
“National Exit Test is likely to commence from the batch that will graduate in 2023. The modalities are currently being worked out,” the senior official said. “If NExT is introduced, it will do away with the requirement to hold NEET PG. NExT will act as a common test for various purposes that are meant to be implemented across the board.”
Although NExT, like NEET PG, will be conducted by the National Board of Examinations (NBE), there are chances that NExT will be outsourced to a third-party. If implemented, NExT will also be applicable for Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs) and AIIMS exams in order to standardize medical education across India.
Also Read: NEET PG 2023 Exam Date
“The importance of NExT is to bring uniformity in the medical education throughout the nation, whether trained in India or outside. It will solve the problem of FMGs,” Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Health Minister of India, said in a meeting regarding NExT in July last year. “A mock test will first be carried out before the implementation of the examination.”
At the beginning of 2022, the possibility of implementation of NExT was discussed when a plea in Delhi High Court sought a reduction in NEET PG cut-off. Responding to it, the Central Government said that an Exit Exam will possibly be introduced from 2023 onwards for medical students which is similar to AIBE to lawyers.
“This may be the last year NEET PG is conducted,” reads the counsel submitted by the government, “Just like AIBE for lawyers, a National Exit Test will be developed for doctors. All MBBS passouts will have to qualify this exam to be registered as practitioners, and the same merit will be taken for PG admissions.”
However, despite the speculations, no confirmation has been given by the National Medical Council yet. In fact, more recent reports suggest that no change or cancellation for NEET PG 2023 are in talks.
Also Read: NEET PG 2022 Counselling Likely in July
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