Has anyone passed the qualifying exam for physios in Singapore held in Nanyang Poly?

Took the MOH qualifying exam last January 2008 at Nanyang Poly. Unfortunately, I didn't pass.

It was quite difficult because the evaluation method for the exam was highly subjective, most of the listed reading materials weren't utilized and the students used as dummy patients were poor actors and were unfamiliar with the case.

I've also heard that the exams were conducted by the Singapore Physiotherapy Association (SPA) before responsibility was transferred to Nanyang and I've known of physios who passed the exam conducted by the SPA but I have yet to find someone who emerged victorious from the Nanyang exam.

Am deliberating if it's worth it to try the exam for the 2nd and last (according to the rules) time.

So, has anyone out there passed the Nanyang qualifying exam for physios?

hi boadicea, how does the practical exam goes? I do understand you are given 20 minutes to prepare for the practicals, but did they ask you to make a SOAP ? Is it like role playing with another patient? I do hope you can enlighten me regarding this. Thanks!

The written exam is basically like this. Your patient's case is like this (then they give the medical diagnosis plus some symptoms and observations).... The follow up questions are: explain what evaluation procedures you are going to do for the patient. What treatment procedures are you going to do?

For the musculoskeletal question it was like what is the likely cause of the patient's symptoms? Why? Plus what evaluation and treatment procedures will you do?

Basically you have to prepare for the exam by memorizing what evaluation and treatment procedures you have to do for each case. You have to be prepared with hypothetical cases that you can recall on the spot before you take the exam as the time is VERY limited.

The cases for the written part were Parkinson's, cervical disc herniation, COPD, and any of the following: weakness of pelvic floor muscles after pregnancy, OR some knee injury.

For the practical exam you have 5 minutes to read and remember the symptoms and observations of the patient and then you perform your evaluation on a student (who is not familliar with the case, do not believe what the student says as that was my mistake) The expected results of evaluations must be clear in your mind as you proceed. After that you will be asked what treatment you will give and asked to demonstrate a treatment procedure. I'm not sure if the alloted time for all the demos was 20 or 15 minutes but it was pretty short for me.

The cases for the practical exam were stroke (they provided a video of the gait pattern and you had to base your assessment and treatment on that). Other cases were Asthma, and some lower cervical/upper thoracic musculoskeletal problem the patient got from playing tug of war.

Other tips:
You don't have to read the electrotherapy and pediatric reference book.

The stroke rehab book by carr and shepherd was nice but i wasn't able to use the techniques listed there.

I think you still have to read the vertebral and peripheral mobilization books although the latest editions are better.

Please do not expect that the cases for this exam will be the same ones in the next as I have ehard that in previous exams they had different cases and some were even asked to perform suctioning in the cardiopulmo practicals.

I don't think the examiners based the exam on the books listed on the nanyang poly website so if i were you I'd go for general PT books like the one by Sullivan and Siegelman for studying for the US boards. Outlines of assessment and treatment programs are there.

There were ten of us who took the exam. I got in touch with most after taking the exam, including an Indian who already had a master's degree. None of us passed. But the Indian is now practicing because he got married to a PR.

This should give you some edge in taking the exam. Please tell me if you made it or not and share some tips.

Good luck.

Hi user,

I also had the same question regarding working here, i am currently working but have not given any qualifying exam.
Although i am a SPA member.

do i also need to give the qualifying exam if i am a Singapore PR?

hi,
i have seen all ur quotes.i am expecting some suggestions from u.iam in big confusion.mine is big story.sorry if i am giving any trouble.please give me any suggestions. i am trying for job in singapore.basically i am an indian.i have finished my bachelors in physiotherapy in india,2006.i am a member of indian association of physiotherapists.i have worked for 2yrs as a physiotherapist in rehabilitation centre,india.i have finished postgraduation diploma in geriatric care too.then i have joined in masters in publichealth in UK university.i have joined in that course with out knowing anything.its entirely diiferent from our physiotherapy. even education system in UK also entirely different from indian education system.so i have not complete the course.i got only postgraduation certificate in publichealth.i have applied for singapore physiotherapy association.they evaluated my certificate and result is i have to give for health and safety test.i am applying everyday so many jobs.i am not getting any response.i have seen diploma courses in singapore general hospital.if we take that course they are assuring 95%pass result in QE.but this course is very expensive.i heard that from 2010 they are going to change the rules that singapore and non singaporeans should give the QE to practice there.i cant go back to my home country and i cant stay in UK.my visa is going to expire by 2010july.i am trying for assistant physiotherapy jobs.please give me suggestions like how to approach and is it better to come over there to search for a job on social visit pass.please help me.sorry for this big letter. thank you my mail id is [email protected]

Hi,

Just came across this thread.

Do anyone know if a New Zealand trained physiotherapist need to sit for this exam?

Thanks in advance

I know this is really late...but 1 of my colleagues just passed the exams..

hi there..

could you provide details as to what your friend did? studying wise?

I am also in Singapore for a vacation and hoping to apply as PT. Can anyone be so kind to help?

hai..anyone suggest me how to prepare for singapore QE ..plz help me...thank uuu...

Can u plz ask your colleague as to what he read for the exam. I am appearing for the exam next month.

Hi Shweta it seems like you must have gone through the qualifying exam....I was curious to know what is the procedure to go through before you sit for the qualifying exam. As I am an indian physiotherapist holding master's degree from USA, I have been trying to apply for the jobs so that I can find some employer to sit for the exam. So far I did not receive any interview calls. I was wondering if you can guide me for the same.

I would really apperciate your help.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by muktikd

Hi Shweta it seems like you must have gone through the qualifying exam....I was curious to know what is the procedure to go through before you sit for the qualifying exam. As I am an indian physiotherapist holding master's degree from USA, I have been trying to apply for the jobs so that I can find some employer to sit for the exam. So far I did not receive any interview calls. I was wondering if you can guide me for the same.

I would really apperciate your help.

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Hi,
Yes I have just taken the exam and passed. Basically what I had done is gone online and applied to all the private physiotherapy clinics and a lot of chiropractitioners and gyms which employ physiotherapists. I got 3 interview calls and still getting calls. Ofcourse I accepted one of the offers and that is how I got to sit for the exam.There are also a lot of places which do not need you to clear the licensing exam to work for them. And considering that you have done your PG from US you might not have to sit for the exam at all.Confirm that with NYP.I ofcourse did have an advantage that I was on a dependent's pass which allows you to have a job in Singapore, but I had to clear the exam coz I had studied in India.The exam is not a very easy one.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Shweta1980

Hi,
Yes I have just taken the exam and passed. Basically what I had done is gone online and applied to all the private physiotherapy clinics and a lot of chiropractitioners and gyms which employ physiotherapists. I got 3 interview calls and still getting calls. Ofcourse I accepted one of the offers and that is how I got to sit for the exam.There are also a lot of places which do not need you to clear the licensing exam to work for them. And considering that you have done your PG from US you might not have to sit for the exam at all.Confirm that with NYP.I ofcourse did have an advantage that I was on a dependent's pass which allows you to have a job in Singapore, but I had to clear the exam coz I had studied in India.The exam is not a very easy one.

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Hello,
thanks a lot shweta and congratulations for clearing the exams also. I think I did not mention that I am already in singapore on a dependent's pass and unfortunately i have checked with NYP people and they did not have my university in their listing. Therefore I need to find an employer to sponsore me to sit for the exam. I have tried applying many hospitals online. I still keep applying but I was curious to know is it possible to work as a physiotherapist without clearing the qualifying exam? and also were you working as a therapist or as an assistant before you passed your exam. And also any job boards that you could suggest me to apply online.

I appreciate your reply and it will be a great help to me.

I was not working before I passed the QE. But yes there r clinics which employ without the QE but they r mainly chiro clinics I think, who need a physio. I am not sure, but it is a good idea to clear the exam.Hospitals generally do not reply.Go online and apply to all the private clinics.R u Pilates certified coz that helps.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Shweta1980

I was not working before I passed the QE. But yes there r clinics which employ without the QE but they r mainly chiro clinics I think, who need a physio. I am not sure, but it is a good idea to clear the exam.Hospitals generally do not reply.Go online and apply to all the private clinics.R u Pilates certified coz that helps.

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thank you so much , i still need your help to go forward with it as i could find an employer, if you can reply me on my email [email protected] regarding study material and some tips on practicals too. thanks a lot, it indeed is a great help to me already.

Hi Shweta,

Congratulations for passing the QE. I am also a physiotherapist from India. I am going to appear for QE in January. As I heard that It is not an easy exam and you have passed. I want some information regarding study materials to use for exam. Did you use any specific books and study materials or the list of books the have given on website is enough? And also about the system of the examination they use..

I will really appreciate your help. Thank you. Or you can reply on my email [email protected].. Waiting for your reply..Thanks

Hi Shweta,

Congratulations for passing the QE. I am also a physiotherapist from India. I am going to appear for QE in January. AS I heard that it is not an easy exam and you have passed. I want some information regarding the study materials and books you have used for the exam. Is there any specific books or materials you have used or the list of books on the website is enough?

I will really appreciate your help. Waiting for your reply.Thanks

hi Shweta,
congrats for clearing the exams.I am a Physiotherapist from India wishing to work in Singapore.so I am taking the Qualifying exams this April and so preparing for the same.so please can u guide me regarding preparing for this exam and how is the practical part of exam.is the reading list shown on QE website enough or u did something extra.
hope to get your reply soon.
thanks

Hi Anamika..

R u coming to singapore in April? I graduated from govt. physio college a'bad in year of 2009. How about you? If you get any information about study materials please let me know as I am also appearing for exam.. Thanks

Dear All,

I am taking the MOH qualifying exam in April at Nanyang Poly, as you can probably expect as question, I would like to have some information regarding study materials to use for the exam. So far I have bod all the books listed on the Nanyang website and started studying those ! If someone can tell me if this is enough study material and give me detailed information how this exam is set up ?

Please let me know , any feedback is welcome !
kind regards
Stephanie

Hi Stephanie, I took the exam last October and passed. The reading material mentioned on their site is good enough to read although I did also read Kendall. But the fact is that if you have been working for some time and have a good working knowledge of clinical reasoning you do not even need to go through all the reading material.I did not have the cardio respi book so had not read it, and I have not practiced any cardio respi in quite some time as I have a post grad in MS but that did not really pose a problem.They r very particular about clinical reasoning.

---------- Post added at 05:48 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:46 AM ----------

Other than the reading list I also went through Kendall. The exam is not tough if you r someone who is very particular about clinical reasoning. The theory is like our final year exam in India.

How much do we need to pay inorder to sit for the exam? I'm back here in Singapore trying my luck again. No hospital will sponsor me for my exam though. Can someone be so kind to be of assistance?

I'm here as tourist though. Shweta, can you please advise me on how to go about the application?

Dear All,

I know this is a quite old post already but i still find that this is the best place to post my inquiries. I actually wanted to help my husband since he will be siting for QE by next year. He got his own readings based on the list of AHPC, some given by his colleagues at work but not all. majority need to even buy overseas and it take some time. Does anybody have these books on hand and are willing to lend, rent out or you might want to sell.

1. electrotherapy explained. principles and practice by Low J. & Reed A - 3rd edition
2. cardiopulmonary physical therapy: a guide to practice by Tecklin S.J. - 2004
3. Physiotherapy for respiratory and cardiac problems. adults and paediatrics by Pryor, J.A. and Prasad, S.A. - 2008
4. Peripheral Manipulation by Maitland G.D. - 3rd ed (1991)
5. vertebral manipulation by MAitland GD - 6th ed (2001)
6. physical therapy for children by Campbell S K., Palisano RJ, Vander WD 2005 - 3rd ed

Additional inputs/infos would be a great help also if you don't have these books in case. Maybe this is too much to ask but i wanted to try all options just to help my husband and that he would be able to cover everything before exam comes. hope to hear from you guys soon. Thank you so much and God Bless You All.

Regards,
Hana

Hello all,
I am new to this group and to this forum. I would like to have some insight regarding working as a Physio in Singapore as I am thinking to apply there for job as a PT this year. I did my bachelors degree from India in 2006-07 and after that I was practicing as a Physio in India till August 2013. Presently I am in HK for my masters degree in Sports Physiotherapy from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. I would like to know about the QE. Can anyone please tell me if I need to clear the QE if I have a masters degree from HK?

Best Regards,

Prafull Patil

I took the Qualifying Exam this year and passed.

The written exam is fair, with the questions being based around common presentations that you would encounter in each of the three major disciplines (cardio/musc/neuro). The paediatrics and electrotherapy multiple choice were what I found to be the most difficult, with the questions actually being quite particular. The long answer questions required justification, and clinical reasoning. Be sure to also think about exercise prescription; dosage, frequency, aims, monitoring, progression.

The practical exam was relatively straightforward. Each station required you to justify your choice of assessment and treatment through clinical reasoning with respect to anatomy, the patient, their history, pre-morbid mobility, the patient's goals. I found the examiners to be quite fair, and thorough in their questioning as to how you justify your assessment and treatment. Remember to cite evidence (not authors or studies) by saying things like 'Deep neck flexor retraining has been demonstrated to restore the cervical spine's natural lordotic curve and decrease upper cervical extension.... blah blah blah'

If you study well from books like Brukner and Kahn, Kisner and Colby, Pryor and Prassad, and the other listed texts you will be well prepared for the exam.

Best of luck to future candidates!