PLAB test blueprint

The Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board (PLAB) test is designed to assess the knowledge and skills of International Medical Graduates. The test focuses on common, important or acute conditions (common in emergency departments) seen by trainees entering the second year of the Foundation Programme, and the management of long term conditions seen in primary care. It excludes the advanced duties of a general practitioner.

The PLAB blueprint sets out the scope and content of the test in terms of the topics, skills and procedures that a doctor who passes the test would need to know and be able to do, and the professional qualities expected of a doctor working in the UK.

The blueprint is set within the broader context of the principles and values of Good Medical Practice.

We have updated the blueprint to provide a more interactive, user-friendly model, which we hope candidates and other interested parties, particularly those involved in medical assessment, will find useful.

Read our overarching statement.

See the PLAB blueprint (.mht). If you have difficulty viewing the PLAB blueprint, see our help with the PLAB blueprint page.

If you have Microsoft Excel 2003 or later, you can view a more functional version of the blueprint in .xls format.