Examinations

Candidates must submit the Withdrawal Request form below (or a letter or email will be accepted) to their administrative office as soon as possible, providing their name, RCP code number and date of birth.  A withdrawal will not be counted as an attempt.

Candidates can request to withdraw prior to the examination. The proportion of the fee they receive as a refund will vary depending on when they submit the request as a percentage will be retained to cover administrative costs: 

1. During the application period: 90% 

2. After the application period closes and more than 28 days before the examination: 60% 

3. Candidates who request to withdraw within 28 days of an examination will not receive a refund (unless they provide evidence of exceptional circumstances. All requests will be reviewed individually by MRCP(UK) or college management, whose decision on whether any refund should be offered is final). 

Applications cannot be reinstated after they have been withdrawn. 

Requests to withdraw after the examination, along with any supporting documents, must be received within two weeks of the date of the examination. Where possible, candidates should contact MRCP(UK) or the relevant college administrative office before the examination

For further information please refer to section 3.10 of the SCE Regulations for full details on our withdrawal process.

The examinations have been merged in an aim to harmonise and improve the standards of practice and patient care across Europe. Harmonising the SCE in Gastroenterology and the EBGHE is a practical way of working towards that aim.

You can find more information about the fees here

The examination will be available to sit at Pearson VUE centres in over 160 countries.

Applications for the examination will be received through this website. Information about how to apply can be found here.

The application period opening dates can be found here.

There are no changes to the content of the examination, its place in training, or the process by which the examination is developed and delivered.  

No. The examination still consists of 200 “best of five” questions, in two papers of 100 questions each, taken on the same day.  It is delivered by computer based testing. 

The style of questions in the examination will not change from the SCE in Gastroenterology and the European Board of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Examination (EBGHE).

The European Specialty Examination in Gastroenterology and Hepatology (ESEGH) replaces the Specialty Certificate Examination (SCE) in Gastroenterology and will continue to test competency of UK trainees against The Specialty Training Curriculum for Gastroenterology and Sub-specialty Training Curriculum for Hepatology is published by the Joint Royal Colleges of Physicians Training Board (JRCPTB).

With the entry of UK trainees, the ESBGH Examination has been renamed as The European Specialty Examination in Gastroenterology and Hepatology (ESEGH) and is a fully validated assessment of knowledge of gastroenterology and hepatology as laid down in the European Curriculum for Gastroenterology and Hepatology Specialty Training programmes known as the "The Blue Book". The Blue Book produced by the ESBGH is in its 2017 edition and is revised every 3 to 5 years. It is available at www.eubog.org.

There is no change in the status of the Examination.

The examination is offered in English only. Candidates are advised that in order to be sufficiently prepared to sit the ESEGH, their English language ability should be equivalent to IELTS (International English Language Testing System) Level 7 in each module. However, candidates do not need to have taken IELTS or any other language examination, to sit the ESEGH.