WACP Primary

Medical graduates who intend to enter Fellowship training in one of the College's six faculties: Community Health, Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Laboratory Medicine, Paediatrics, or Psychiatry. It is normally taken early in postgraduate training, before the Faculty membership examinations, so it is aimed at candidates who have completed housemanship and are building specialist foundations.

Expect the basic medical sciences that underpin clinical practice: anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, pathology, microbiology, pharmacology, and behavioural science, applied to clinical scenarios. Because the College certifies specialists across six faculties, the examination is deliberately broad rather than faculty-specific. Confirm the current syllabus with the College before planning revision.

It is a postgraduate examination, so the standard is well above undergraduate finals. Questions typically require applying basic-science knowledge to clinical problems rather than recalling isolated facts. The main difficulty reported by candidates is breadth: covering several basic-science subjects to a consistent depth without letting one subject dominate revision time.

The College publishes the current format and any changes to it directly, and formats are revised periodically. Rather than relying on second-hand descriptions, obtain the current examination regulations from the College and practise with that structure in mind. This page does not state a format because the available source material does not specify one.

Most candidates allow several months of structured revision alongside clinical work. A realistic plan covers the whole syllabus once, then repeats weak areas with timed practice. Starting early matters more than total hours, because breadth is the limiting factor. Build in at least a few full mock examinations under timed conditions before the diet.

Begin with the subjects you know least well, since they need the longest runway. Integrate rather than block: study physiology with pathology and pharmacology where they overlap, and practise applying each topic to a clinical scenario as you go. Reserve the final weeks for consolidation and timed questions rather than new material.

The common patterns are uneven coverage, with one or two basic-science subjects neglected until too late; passive reading without practice questions; and poor time management in the examination itself. Candidates who work through the full syllabus and rehearse under timed conditions tend to be better prepared than those who concentrate only on familiar topics.

The College sets the rules on resitting, including any limits on attempts and the diets at which a candidate may re-enter. These are not stated in the source material used for this page, so check the current regulations directly with the College rather than assuming a policy from another institution.

Always confirm directly with the West African College of Physicians. The Nigeria Chapter publishes contact details, faculty information, and conference material on its website. Dates, fees, and examination regulations change, so treat any third-party summary, including this page, as study guidance only and verify the official details before applying.