MFPH exams - overview

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Introduction

Public Health, in common with most other medical specialties, has its own specialty examinations.  Passing these exams, the Member of the Faculty of Public Health (MFPH) exams, is required before you are granted your Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT) and are eligible to be a consultant.

The structure of the exams has recently been overhauled, and they now consist of  Part A and Part B (the OSPHE).  These are roughly equivalent to the former Part I and Part II.

Part A

The Part A is designed to test theoretical knowledge of public health, and is normally sat in the first couple of years of the training programme.  Many MPH/MSc programmes - which most Trainees will do anyway as part of their Specialist training - tend to cover a reasonable amount of the Part A subject matter, and are thus helpful in preparation for the exam. 

For help with revising and taking the Part A exam see the Part A tips page.

Part B

Part B, or the Objective Structured Public Health Examination (OSPHE), is a hands-on 'steeplechase' type of exam, with practical stations where you are set various tasks which should mirror day-to-day life as a consultant.  This is usually sat 6-12 months after passing Part A.

Advice on preparing for the OSPHE can be found on the new Part B tips page.

Further information on the exams

The Faculty of Public Health website contains detailed information on the examinations, fees, dates, syllabuses and past papers.

FPH - exams | Part A | Part B | Past papers

Revision

Although it is excellent that the Faculty provide past papers free of charge on the web, there is generally a dearth of decent revision material for the MFPH part A exam in particular, in contrast to the (admittedly far more sat) MRCP (Member of the Royal College of Physician) exams.

For tips on revision please see the Part A tips and Part B tips pages.