EMREE pass mark: what 60 percent means for 120 questions, and why it does not secure a place

What is the EMREE passing score?

For the 2025 to 2026 cycle the organiser’s home page lists 60 percent for EMREE, 65 percent for the dental exam and 55 percent for the pharmacy exam. The page also says the minimum passing mark will be set periodically by scientifically sound standard-setting processes. So 60 is the current official figure, not a permanent one. Meddex is independent and is not connected to the EMREE organiser, UAE University or the National Institute of Health Specialities.

What does 60 percent mean on 120 questions?

If all 120 questions counted, 60 percent would be 72 correct answers. That is our arithmetic, not the organiser’s statement. It is only a rough guide, because the organiser says that some unscored trial questions are added, so a sitting can have more than 120 items, and that poorly performing questions are removed and the result recalculated after the sitting. The number of questions that count can therefore differ from 120. Read EMREE scoring: unscored questions and negative marking for how that works.

Is there a minimum in each discipline?

We found no statement of one. The FAQ says the total is marks over the total number of questions, and that discipline percentages cannot be averaged to the total because questions differ in number per discipline and some link to more than one discipline. That suggests a single overall figure, but the pages do not say so in terms, so treat it as our reading. The discipline weights are in EMREE discipline weights.

Does passing mean a residency place?

No. The organiser describes the exam as qualifying, and gives a score and ranking. How a programme uses them is up to the programme. See how EMREE scores are used and results, ranking and validity. A news snippet that appeared in a search result claimed a score of 85 percent or more qualifies candidates for interviews. We could not open it and the organiser says nothing of the kind, so treat that as reported and ask each programme.

How should you use the number in practice?

As a floor, not a target. Meddex’s own mock benchmark and your own mock scores are planning tools, since the organiser publishes no sample paper of the current exam. Aim for a margin above 60 across all disciplines, as in the 12-week plan, and keep the first attempt serious, because every attempt goes on your transcript.

How do you aim above the pass mark?

Use the discipline weights. The blueprint gives Internal Medicine 20 out of 100, and Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Paediatrics, Surgery and Family Medicine 15 each, with Psychiatry and Public Health at 10 each. A weak discipline with a high weight costs more than a weak one with a low weight, so repair the large ones first. As a rule of thumb that is ours, a plan that scores comfortably above 60 in every discipline is safer than one that is strong in two and weak in four, because the overall figure is marks over all questions and nobody can tell you which questions will be removed or unscored.

The discipline weights guide turns the weights into hours.

Frequently asked questions