AMC CAT MCQ passing score

What the AMC publishes about scoring

The AMC describes the CAT MCQ as scored on ability rather than on the number of correct answers. Its published description is short, and each point matters for how you read your own practice.

• Every candidate sits a unique, customised exam, and the first question is chosen at random from the pool.
• A correct answer is followed by a more difficult question and an incorrect answer by a less difficult one.
• The ability estimate is recalculated after every response and becomes more precise as the exam goes on.
• Results are reported on a scale of 0 to 500, with 250 as the pass, and one cut score applies whatever the cohort, question set or date.
• Two candidates with the same number of correct answers can receive different scores, because the questions they answered correctly differ in difficulty.
• There is no negative marking, and each question must be answered before the next appears, with no going back and no review at the end.

The 2026 change

In December 2025 the AMC announced a small increase to the pass standard for exams from 2026, following benchmarking against graduates of Australian medical schools. Results are still reported with 250 as the pass. The content, format and structure of the exam did not change, and results from 2025 were not reassessed. The AMC has not published the size of the increase, and no figure for it should be relied on.

What the model shows, and what it does not

The model above is a textbook adaptive test: synthetic questions of known difficulty, an estimate recalculated after each answer, and each new question chosen near the current estimate. Three things it shows hold for adaptive tests generally. The questions move towards the candidate's level. The uncertainty around the estimate narrows as questions are answered. And because the questions track the candidate, the share answered correctly says little about where the candidate sits.

It does not show the AMC's own method. The AMC does not publish its model, how it balances content across the patient groups, or how ability converts to the 0 to 500 scale, and the model's units are abstract for that reason. The band above the pass line illustrates a small rise in the standard; it is not drawn to any published size.

What this means for preparation

A practice percentage is still a useful measure of your own progress, read with care. Timed accuracy on fresh, mixed questions is the honest figure, and a patient group where you sit well below your average is the one to work on, because an adaptive exam samples every group in its published proportions. Repeating familiar questions raises the percentage without raising the ability it is meant to show.