Firstly I wish you luck in your exam. The FRCR is no easy endeavour. After medical school exams, the MRCP, starting a new training post the last thing you want to think about is more exams! But it must be done and it can be - if I can do it you can too.
So what have I learnt? And what can I advise?
1. Start revising early, but not too early. I suggest getting started 6 moths before hand, but gettting serious 2 months before i.e. having no social life for 2 months.
2. Read the core texts on the FRCR reading list. Don't be tempted to solely rely on books not on the list, that are flasher and more interesting. The questions are sometimes taken directly out of the core texts.
3. Attend courses in all of the 4 modules as early as possible. I attended cancer pharmacology, cellular biology, physics and medical statistics at The Christie Hospital http://www.christie.nhs.uk/pro/education/events/. The Systemic Chemotherapy course in Sheffield was excellent http://onc-education.group.shef.ac.uk/. There is another Chemotherapy course in Leicester, but I did not attend this myself. http://www.le.ac.uk/cm/RPScourse.html. Take a look at the RCR website for a general overview of courses in UK http://www.rcr.ac.uk/externalmeetings.aspx?PageID=114.
4. Gather as many practice questions as possible. This as you may have realised is quite difficult as there are no dedicated FRCR question books out there for the part 1. The RCR publish a few questions which you are sent when you apply. There are a few books out there, but all for similar US exams. I will give details of these soon.
5. Enjoy what you are learning. If you have chosen oncology it is likely you will find it interesting and it does make the day job make more sense.
This might sound obvious, but remember the application deadline. Don't miss it!
This might sound obvious, but remember the application deadline. Don't miss it!
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