Failing the Prescribing Safety Assessment can feel disheartening. You’ve put in work, sat the exam and not received the results you were hoping for. Feeling worried about what comes next is completely understandable.
A significant number of students don’t pass the PSA on their first attempt. The great news is you’ll get another opportunity to sit the exam. How you approach your resit is important, focusing your efforts by working out what went wrong and using your first attempt as valuable experience can be a good place to start.
Work out what went wrong
Before jumping back into revision, you need to understand why you didn’t pass. Ask yourself, Which question types caused the most problems? Prescribing, calculations, adverse drug reactions, planning management? Did you run out of time? Which sections took longer than expected? Were you confident using the BNF, or did you waste time searching for information?
If your medical school provides feedback, go through it carefully. Understanding your weak spots is the first step to fixing them.
Build a revision plan
Making a clear revision plan will prevent you from repeating the same mistakes if you use a structured approach that targets your weak areas.
Set specific goals and rather than ‘revise prescribing’, aim for something concrete like ‘complete the Prescribing PSA Prep session and do 20 practice questions’.
Focus on your weaknesses, for example if calculations were the problem, spend more time there. If you struggled with adverse reactions, make that a priority.
Remember to learn from the practice questions. Don’t just check your answers. Understand why the right answer is right and why the wrong ones are wrong.
Use exam conditions to time yourself, use the BNF and practise the full two hours. The more familiar it feels, the better you’ll perform.
Time management
Running out of time is one of the main reasons students fail the PSA. Two hours goes quickly when you’re navigating the BNF and working through clinical scenarios. Practise under timed conditions and stick to it. If you’re spending ten minutes on a question that should take three, you’ll struggle in the real exam. Use the flag and return method. If a question is taking too long, flag it and come back later. Get quicker with calculations and BNF navigation. The faster you can find information and work through calculations, the more time you have for everything else.
Master the BNF
The BNF is your most important tool in the PSA. If you’re not confident using it, you’re at a disadvantage. Know where to find what you need: indications, contraindications, dosages, interactions, side effects. Make sure you practise using the BNF whilst doing questions so you get used to looking things up under pressure.
Use the right resources
Focus on resources that actually target what’s in the exam.
PSA Prep eLearning sessions cover all eight prescribing domains and break down each question style. They’re free and designed specifically for the PSA.
Prescribing Practice Papers give you 120 questions with detailed feedback, including a full two-hour exam simulation.
Free knowledge checks on polypharmacy, antimicrobial prescribing and the Yellow Card scheme are also available on the BPS Assessment portal.
Access everything at https://portal.bpsassessment.com/
Look after yourself
Try to get enough sleep, eat properly and drink plenty of fluids, take breaks and talk to people if you need some support. Now you have exam experience and know exactly what needs work, you can approach your resit with a clear plan and the right resources which puts you in a much stronger position.
Good luck!