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More than 2,600 people sat the registration assessments held on 17 and 18 March 2021, the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) has said.
In a statement published on 19 March 2021, the regulator said 2,670 candidates sat the assessment over the two days. This is more than 200 fewer than the 2,900 candidates who had booked a place for the March assessments as of 5 March 2020. Candidates were allowed to withdraw from a sitting at any time up until the assessment began, and to notify the GPhC of this up to five days after the assessment date.
The regulator said that the “vast majority” of candidates sat the exam in Pearson VUE test centres, with 83 candidates sitting remotely, both in Great Britain and overseas. The GPhC said that “several candidates” sitting remotely had been unable to sit the assessment online, with initial analysis indicating this was owing to internet connection issues. It added that a “small number” of candidates sitting the assessment in test centres experienced some technical issues, “which were largely resolved by the test centre staff”.
Duncan Rudkin, chief executive of the GPhC, said that the regulator would contact affected candidates on an individual basis “to explain their options”.
In its statement, the GPhC also said that “different papers were used for each sitting”.
Rudkin thanked candidates for their “patience and professionalism” before and during the assessment, noting that many candidates “have faced significant difficulties during a very stressful year”.
The assessment results will be issued on 29 April 2021.
