AMC Clinical vs. Workplace Based Assessment

Need help understanding your pathway?

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Date Updated: 2026-01-28

If you’re an International Medical Graduate coming to Australia via the standard pathway, you will have to either pass the AMC Clinical Exam or complete a Workplace Based Assessment before you are able to apply for General Registration.

AMC Clinical Exam

The AMC Clinical Examination is a structured clinical assessment that consists of 16 assessed stations with 10 minutes duration for each station (2 mins reading time and 8 minutes assessment time).

It assesses your clinical skills in medical, surgical, women’s health, paediatrics, and mental health in both hospital and community settings. Each station focuses on one of the following assessment areas: 

• history taking 
• examination 
• diagnostic formulation 
• management/counselling/education. 

How do I apply?

You can apply for this exam at this link: https://www.amc.org.au/assessment/clinical-examination/ 

How much does it cost?

The exam costs depend on where you will take it:

• Online Clinical Exam: AUD $3,400 (3,000 + 400 levy)
• In-person Clinical Exam: AUD $3,000

Workplace Based Assessment 

Another way to achieve General Registration is to undertake a Workplace Based Assessment, which is a 6-12 months supervised program. It assesses your performance in everyday clinical practice in the Australian healthcare setting based on your clinical knowledge and skills. It also assesses how well you deal with patients and whether you work productively in a team of healthcare professionals. 

Clinical areas:

• Adult Health – Medicine
• Adult Health – Surgery
• Child Health
• Emergency Medicine
• Mental Health
• Women’s Health

Domains:

• clinical skills (history taking, physical examination, investigations and diagnosis, prescribing and management, counselling/patient education, clinical procedures)
• clinical judgment
• communication skills
• ability to work as an effective member of the healthcare team
• ability to apply aspects of public health relevant to clinical settings
• Indigenous health and cultural competence
• professionalism
• patient safety.

Assessment methods:

• Mini-clinical evaluation exercise (Mini-CEX)
• Case-based discussion (CBD)
• Multi-source feedback (MSF) and
• Observed in the clinical setting over time, with multiple observations by multiple assessors.

How do I apply?

You can check the AMC accredited WBA providers here with their contact details, which means if you are considering this option you will need to apply to work at one of their hospitals.

How much does it cost?

The cost of completing the workplace based assessment varies for the different hospitals. Please check with your employing hospital to determine the cost of the assessment.

We Can Help You

Here at People Medical Consulting, we have a passion for guiding medical practitioners through their career pathways to Australia. We have extensive experience in assisting medical facilities in recruiting doctors from local and overseas who will best suit their requirements.

We provide Document Assistance for those requiring support for their PESCI with IME, ACRRM or RACGP, registration and all other mandatory AHPRA requirements, fellowship program related forms and letters, application for Medicare provider and prescriber numbers, application for 19AB or 19AA exemptions and preparation of employment documents.

If you want to talk to someone about your pathway or practice management—book a consultation with us below, or if you need Recruitment or Document Assistance, contact us at help@peoplemedical.com.au or click the buttons below. We’d be glad to help you!

Information from this blog has been taken directly from:

• Accredited WBA programs – 28 January 2026
• Clinical Examination – 28 January 2026
• Fees and charges – 28 January 2026
• Eligibility and How to Apply for Workplace based assessment – 28 January 2026

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