AMC MCQ topics: the six exam domains and how they are weighted
The AMC CAT MCQ samples six patient groups in fixed proportions. Our 3,000 questions follow the same weighting, so your practice time matches the marks available.
Adult Health – Medicine
Cardiology, respiratory, gastroenterology, endocrinology, renal, neurology, haematology, infectious diseases, emergency medicine and dermatology.
Revision guide and samplesAdult Health – Surgery
Acute abdomen, colorectal, breast and endocrine surgery, trauma, perioperative care, orthopaedics, urology, vascular, ENT and ophthalmology.
Revision guide and samplesWomen's Health – Obstetrics & Gynaecology
Antenatal care, labour and postpartum, gynaecology, early pregnancy, cervical screening and gynaecological cancers.
Revision guide and samplesChild Health (Paediatrics)
Neonatology, growth and development, immunisation, paediatric emergencies, infections and specialty conditions.
Revision guide and samplesMental Health (Psychiatry)
Mood and anxiety disorders, psychosis, substance use, lifespan psychiatry, risk assessment and the Mental Health Acts.
Revision guide and samplesPopulation Health & Ethics
Epidemiology and biostatistics, screening and prevention, medical ethics and law, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and the health system.
Revision guide and samplesHow the AMC MCQ blueprint works
The AMC builds every CAT MCQ to a blueprint by patient group: adult health medicine 30%, adult health surgery 20%, and 12.5% each for women's health, child health, mental health, and population health and ethics. In a 150-question paper that is roughly 45 medicine questions, 30 surgery questions and about 19 from each of the other four domains.
Within each domain, questions test three clinician tasks: data gathering, data interpretation and synthesis, and management. A single stem might ask for the most likely diagnosis, the next investigation, the first-line treatment or the most important piece of advice. Management questions are where Australian guidance matters most.
Why the smaller domains decide many results
The four 12.5% domains add up to half the paper. Doctors who have worked mainly in adult medicine often under-prepare paediatrics, obstetrics and population health, and biostatistics and ethics questions are reliable marks once you know the rules. Spread your study time by weighting, not by comfort.
How to use these topic pages
Each domain page is a revision hub: what is examined, the high-yield subtopics with key Australian facts, common traps for IMGs, worked practice questions and three free sample questions from our bank. Read the hub, then practise that domain in tutor mode and check your accuracy on the dashboard.
For a cross-domain shortlist, read the high-yield AMC MCQ topics, and plan your weeks with the AMC MCQ study plan.