How to pass FRCOphth Part 1 on the first attempt

4 December 2024 | Kah Long Aw | EYE - Cataract, EYE - Cornea, EYE - Glaucoma, EYE - Imaging, EYE - Neuro-ophthalmology, EYE - Oculoplastic, EYE - Oncology, EYE - Paediatrics, EYE - Orbit, EYE - Pathology, EYE - Refractive, EYE - Strabismus, EYE - Vitreo-Retinal

Preparation duration

We all adopt different revision methods – some prefer last minute sprints whereas some thrive on short, consistent sessions. Generally, anywhere between 3–6 months is appropriate depending on your life commitments.

Question banks

Eyedocs: Bread and butter. Despite question style being different from the exam, pay close attention to their explanations, especially for topics such as statistics. They have a large question bank so start attempting the questions early.
Ophthobank closely mirrors the exam format. It’s a shame their question bank remains small. However, they have excellent diagrams for learning important topics. There were also quite a few questions from here which appeared in the actual exam.
400 SBAs and CRQs by Hall N, Peden R (2016): This book had excellent explanations and several questions from the book which appeared in the actual exam.

"The key to passing is mastering the non-negotiable topics well, allowing leeway for encountering harder and unexpected questions"

Predictable topics

Anatomy (~25/180 questions)

Snell, et al.’s Clinical Anatomy of the Eye – Understanding and remembering the information in this book is all you need for this topic. Anatomy is a topic which tends to have few curveballs, and this should be taken advantage of.

Optics (~40/180 questions)

Elkington, et al.’s Clinical Optics and/or Basic and Clinical Science Course, Section 03 by AAO – Elkington should be your primary focus as questions could come directly from the book. This book is great in that almost every word is important, so you will hardly waste time learning unnecessary information. The key to doing well in optics is to truly understand concepts rather than rote learning.

Statistics and epidemiology (~25/180 questions)

Ophthobank, Eyedocs and Ferris, et al.’s Basic Sciences in Ophthalmology – All are excellent choices for doing well in this topic. Most of the topics tested are covered in these study materials. Thankfully, only basic statistical concepts are tested in FRCOphth Part 1.

Investigations (~20/180 questions)

Investigations overlaps with many other topics, so maintaining focus on investigations when you come across them in optics, genetics, microbiology and pathology, etc. is crucial. Apart from the textbooks mentioned in this article, both Ophthobank and Eyedocs were very helpful.

Summary

It is often said that “excellence is achieved through the mastery of many small tasks.” Mastering the extensive syllabus tested in the FRCOphth Part 1 exam is undoubtedly challenging. However, success can be attained by approaching each subtopic methodically, utilising the above resources effectively, and employing proven study techniques like active recall and spaced repetition. Ultimately, have faith in the process, and remember that diligent effort is always rewarded. You have overcome many past hurdles to get to where you are, and this hurdle is no different.