KARACHI: The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PM&DC) has officially announced the schedule for the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) 2026 for admissions to MBBS and BDS programmes across Pakistan.
According to a public notice issued by PM&DC, the MDCAT 2026 examination will be conducted on Sunday, August 16, 2026, at 10:00 AM (PST) through designated admitting universities in all provinces and regions of the country.
The University of Health Sciences (UHS), Lahore, will conduct the test in Punjab, while Sukkur IBA University has been designated as the admitting university for Sindh. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the examination will be organized by Khyber Medical University (KMU), Peshawar, whereas Bolan University of Medical and Health Sciences (BUMHS), Quetta, will conduct the test in Balochistan.
For candidates from Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Gilgit-Baltistan, and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the test will be administered by Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University (SZABMU), Islamabad.
PM&DC has announced that online registration for MDCAT 2026 will commence on June 22, 2026, while the last date for submission of applications with normal fee is July 8, 2026. Candidates will be allowed to register with a late fee until July 13, 2026.
The registration fee for test centres in Pakistan has been fixed at Rs9,000, while candidates applying after the deadline will have to pay a late registration fee of Rs13,000. For international test centres, including Riyadh, the registration fee has been set at Rs45,000, while the late registration fee will be Rs55,000. PM&DC clarified that all fees will be non-refundable and non-transferable.
According to the MDCAT pattern, the paper-based examination will be conducted in English and will consist of 180 multiple-choice questions (MCQs) with no negative marking. The paper will include 81 MCQs from Biology, 45 from Chemistry, 36 from Physics, nine from English, and nine from Logical Reasoning.
The council further stated that candidates must select their examination centre during registration and that the selected centre cannot be changed later. Candidates will generally be required to appear in the province or region of their domicile, although Sindh domicile holders may also opt for Islamabad through the respective university.
PM&DC advised candidates to complete their online registration through the official MDCAT portal and review the approved syllabus available on the council’s website. The council also reserved the right to revise the schedule if required.
