From July 2027, the UK FCICM clinical examination changes to ACRE, while the written examination becomes the AKT with revised scoring. Your route depends on your existing valid passes, not simply the year you entered training. Candidates with a valid legacy OSCE or SOE pass have specific transition options; everyone else must plan around the new clinical format.
This guide was checked on 27 September 2026 against the College's approval announcement, format overview and candidate FAQs. It concerns the UK examination, not the Australian and New Zealand CICM examinations.
What the September 2026 approval confirms
The College announced GMC approval on 18 September 2026. That approval date is different from implementation in July 2027. The institutional move from Faculty to College and the use of FCICM terminology are also separate from the change in examination format.
An older launch paragraph still says that implementation is subject to approval. Read that alongside the later, explicit approval announcement rather than concluding that approval remains unresolved. For planning, use the dated announcement for approval status and the current candidate material for your route.
The practical consequence is straightforward: do not change a booking merely because a page now uses FCICM rather than FFICM. First establish which assessment format the booking actually represents. Name, format, eligibility and pass validity are four different questions.
Translate the old and new examination names
As published in the format overview and checked on 27 September 2026, the Final MCQ becomes the Applied Knowledge Test, or AKT. The published change is to dichotomous scoring, with a maximum of 130 marks. The overview states that the written assessment's purpose, format, duration, blueprint, standard setting and delivery method are otherwise unchanged.
The Applied Clinical Reasoning Examination, or ACRE, replaces the separate clinical OSCE and SOE components. The published structure comprises two circuits of seven stations, with nine minutes in a station and three minutes for reading, giving a stated total of two hours and 48 minutes. Those are the College's published examination arrangements, not suggested timings for every revision exercise.
The distinction matters when choosing preparation. A new name for the written assessment does not justify discarding relevant physiology or pharmacology knowledge. A different clinical structure does justify checking how you practise using information, explaining decisions and communicating within an encounter.
Find your route from your existing results
The following table summarises the published transition pathways as checked on 27 September 2026. Individual eligibility remains a matter for the College, particularly where a pass is close to expiry or an attempt limit may apply.
| Position before a clinical sitting in the transition year | Planning implication |
|---|---|
| Valid written pass, no clinical component attempted | Prepare for ACRE from July 2027 |
| Valid written pass, neither legacy clinical component passed | Prepare for the new clinical examination |
| Valid legacy OSCE or SOE partial pass | Check eligibility to complete the outstanding legacy component during the transition year, or choose the new format |
| Written pass nearing expiry | Obtain a written decision about validity before relying on a later clinical sitting |
| Uncertain attempt history or exhausted eligibility | Ask the College to assess the record; do not infer entitlement from the simplified table |
The FAQs describe a possible one-year written-pass extension for candidates waiting for the new format. Their wording varies between sections, so treat this as something to request and confirm, not an automatic extension already attached to your record. Written-pass validity and permission to progress in training are not interchangeable.
Use the transition timeline without inventing sitting dates
The published framework distinguishes confirmed boundary dates from expected examination sittings. That difference should remain visible in a study calendar.
| Date or period | What it means in the published transition material |
|---|---|
| 18 September 2026 | Announcement of GMC approval |
| July 2026 to June 2027 | Final academic year of the full legacy clinical formats |
| March 2027 | Expected final full OSCE/SOE sitting, subject to the published booking schedule |
| July 2027 to June 2028 | Transition year, with legacy completion restricted to eligible partial-pass candidates |
| October 2027 and March 2028 | Expected outstanding-component sittings, not a substitute for checking live applications |
| 30 June 2028 | End of legacy examination availability |
| From July 2028 | New formats apply to all candidates |
Do not interpret the June endpoint as a promise of an additional June sitting. A route may end administratively after its final scheduled assessment opportunity. Check application windows separately from examination dates and discuss any training consequences with your training programme director.
Three fictional candidate decisions
These examples are original planning exercises created in September 2026, not decisions issued by the College.
A trainee has a valid written pass but has not attempted either clinical component. Their preferred examination date is in the autumn of 2027. The useful next action is to organise ACRE preparation and confirm written-pass validity, rather than buy a course solely because it advertises the old OSCE timetable.
A second trainee has passed the SOE but not the OSCE. They should establish whether their partial pass remains valid for the proposed transition sitting. Their choice concerns completion of the outstanding legacy assessment versus the new clinical examination. It is not simply a choice between two differently branded revision products.
A third trainee has a written pass approaching expiry and wants to postpone until the new format begins. They need two conversations: one with the examinations team about validity and one with their training programme about progression. A favourable answer to the first does not settle the second.
In each case, record the relevant result dates and the exact question requiring confirmation. A short, specific enquiry is more likely to resolve uncertainty than asking whether the new examination will be easier.
Adapt revision tasks to the assessment
Retain knowledge work that helps you understand critical illness. Change the output you require from yourself. Instead of stopping after selecting a diagnosis, explain what supports it, what competes with it, what you would check next and how the next result could change management.
Use an original case with information released in stages. Begin with a ward referral, add a blood gas, then reveal a change in haemodynamics. Ask a colleague to interrupt with a reasonable alternative. The aim is not speed of recitation but the ability to defend and, when appropriate, revise your reasoning.
Separate discussion from physical performance. Talking about examining a patient is not evidence that you can demonstrate the examination. Familiarity with a ventilator diagram is not evidence of competent equipment use. Build supervised practice into the plan where the skill requires observation.
The College's candidate FAQs, checked on 27 September 2026, describe continuity in curriculum and expected standard, rather than a new body of intensive care knowledge. Use the official preparation resources as they become available; do not treat third-party predictions about station content as a blueprint.
Make your personal decision record useful
Create a short record with your examination component, result date, validity end date, outstanding requirement, intended sitting and unresolved eligibility question. Add the date on which you checked the official source. Keep the College's reply with the record when your situation needs an individual ruling.
For revision, use a separate record: the task attempted, the uncertainty exposed, the source checked and the next practice task. This prevents administrative uncertainty from becoming an endless search for more question banks.
Per iatroX product information for September 2026, its question banks and question-linked Socratic Tutor support knowledge and reasoning practice. That is different from claiming a dedicated FFICM or FCICM simulation track, or predicting an official result. Use a resource for the specific gap it can address and retain supervised clinical practice for the rest.
Frequently asked questions
Does FCICM mean the Australian CICM examination?
Not in this article: FCICM refers to the UK Fellowship examination described by the College of Intensive Care Medicine. Check the examining organisation rather than relying on similar abbreviations.
Can a valid partial OSCE or SOE pass still be used?
The published transition arrangements allow eligible partial-pass candidates to complete the outstanding legacy component during the transition year. Confirm validity and the actual available sitting with the College.
Does waiting for ACRE automatically extend my training deadline?
No. Written-pass validity, examination eligibility and training progression are separate matters requiring the appropriate College and training-programme decisions.