UK · Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons · licensing
2354practice questions written to this syllabus
60subjects
Format
Written (online, remotely proctored, March): 367 single-best-answer vignettes with 5 options, about 2 hours per domain paper, no negative marking, no compensation between domains. Plus an open-book Code of Professional Conduct paper: 60 MCQs, 2 h 15 min. OSCE (September, in person, 5-7 days): 15-20 minute stations with two examiners each.
Sections
Companion animal 175 items
Production animal including VPH 105 items
Equine 87 items
Code of Professional Conduct paper (60 MCQs)
OSCE: handling, history, examination, diagnosis, technical skills, treatment planning, communication and professionalism; each of the 3 domains must be passed
Over the years
For graduates of non-RCVS-recognised degrees. Fees 2026: entry £1,400, OSCE £1,100, resit £500 per domain. English: IELTS 7.0 (one component may be 6.5) or OET B. From the 2025 diet, a candidate who fails the OSCE may sit it directly in the next diet.
Original questions written to this exam's published syllabus and pattern. Not past papers.
1. An adult cow is dehorned close to the skull and the wound opens into an air-filled cavity. Which cavity has been opened?
Frontal sinus
Maxillary sinus
Cranial cavity
Dorsal nasal meatus
Answer and working
A. Frontal sinus
In the adult ox the caudal part of the frontal sinus extends into the horn core (cornual diverticulum), so dehorning opens it and can lead to frontal sinusitis. The maxillary sinus lies in the face below the orbit, and the cranial cavity is protected by the inner table of the frontal bone.
Veterinary Gross Anatomy · Comparative osteology
2. A male cat with urethral obstruction has a plasma potassium well above the reference interval. What happens to the resting membrane potential of its cardiac muscle cells?
It reverses to a positive value at rest
It becomes more negative (hyperpolarised)
It does not change, because potassium is mainly intracellular
It becomes less negative (depolarised)
Answer and working
D. It becomes less negative (depolarised)
Resting potential lies near the potassium equilibrium potential. Raising outside potassium reduces the out/in gradient, so the potential moves towards zero. Early this raises excitability; later it inactivates sodium channels and slows conduction, giving bradycardia and ECG changes. Hyperpolarisation is what low potassium does.
Veterinary Physiology I: Body Fluids, Blood, Circulation, Respiration and Excretion · Cellular basis of physiology
3. A young adult German Shepherd dog has a ravenous appetite, weight loss and large volumes of pale, fatty faeces. Serum trypsin-like immunoreactivity is very low. Which physiological loss best explains the signs?
Loss of gastric parietal cell acid and intrinsic factor secretion (atrophic gastritis)
Loss of pancreatic acinar enzyme secretion (exocrine pancreatic insufficiency)
Loss of ileal bile acid reabsorption
Loss of colonic water absorption
Answer and working
B. Loss of pancreatic acinar enzyme secretion (exocrine pancreatic insufficiency)
Acinar atrophy removes lipase, proteases and amylase, so fat and protein are maldigested and the dog is hungry and thin. Low trypsin-like immunoreactivity reflects reduced acinar mass. Loss of gastric acid alone does not cause steatorrhoea of this degree, and colonic disease causes diarrhoea without maldigestion.
Veterinary Physiology II: Digestion, Muscle, Nerve, Endocrinology, Reproduction, Lactation, Growth and Climate · Digestion in monogastric animals
4. A dog's arterial blood has bicarbonate 24 mmol/L and pCO2 40 mmHg. Using pH = 6.1 + log10(HCO3- / (0.03 x pCO2)), what is the pH?
7.10
7.40
6.10
7.70
Answer and working
B. 7.40
0.03 x 40 = 1.2 mmol/L dissolved CO2; 24/1.2 = 20; log10(20) = 1.30; pH = 6.1 + 1.30 = 7.40. 7.10 would come from a ratio of 10; 6.10 ignores the ratio; 7.70 would need a ratio of 40.
Veterinary Biochemistry · Biomolecules and their interactions
5. Double muscling in the Belgian Blue breed is due to a mutation affecting which gene?
BMPR1B (Booroola)
Kappa-casein
Myostatin
Halothane (RYR1)
Answer and working
C. Myostatin
Belgian Blue double muscling results from a loss-of-function mutation in myostatin, a negative regulator of muscle growth. BMPR1B is the FecB prolificacy gene of sheep; the halothane RYR1 mutation causes porcine stress syndrome; kappa-casein variants affect cheese yield.
Livestock Production Management I: General Principles and Ruminants · Breeds and home tracts of cattle and buffalo
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