As part of our mission to maintain standards of pharmacy education and training in Australia, we offer several examinations. Our exams include the:
These exams assess the knowledge and competencies of pharmacists who want to register to practise in Australia.
On this page
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we've rescheduled upcoming exams. We've scheduled the next IWE for October 2020. We will provide details on the exam's delivery format as soon as we can.
Our exam provider, Pearson VUE, has closed its exam centres across Australia due to the COVID-19 pandemic's social distancing measures, which are in place to protect the health and safety of everyone. This means it's unable to host the scores of interns who are scheduled to sit the exams.
No. These changes will not affect your pathway to registration. You will still need to complete the Intern Written and Oral exams. However, now you will have a little more time to practice and study.
The next IWE session will be in October 2020. We have cancelled the IWE June and July 2020 sessions. We will notify you as soon as we confirm the dates for the October 2020 session. Keep an eye on this page for updates.
We have increased the expected capacity for the IWE October 2020 session to accommodate as many candidates as possible.
No. You booking will not be automatically rescheduled. If you want to sit the October 2020 session, you need to book a place when registrations open. The April 2020 session was cancelled. We provided refunds to all candidates.
The registration dates will be announced when the exam dates are confirmed. Keep an eye on this page for updates.
The Pharmacy Board of Australia (PharmBA) has temporarily reduced the number of supervised practice hours required for general registration from 1824 hours to 1575 hours. See Internships.
IWE candidates must complete 40% of 1575 hours to be eligible to register for the exam in October 2020.
The PharmBA has made temporary changes to the requirements to sit the Oral Exam.
A pass in the IWE will not be required to sit the Oral Exam.
If you complete both the oral and written exams in October but only pass 1 exam – your pass result will be valid for 18 months.
No. We will work with PharmBA to ensure you have the opportunity to sit both exams without a clash. When we confirm the dates, we will update this page.
Please see:
Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, we've cancelled the June 2020 KAPS exam.
We'll let you know as soon as we can provide more information. In the meantime, see our:
If you're in Australia, you can sit our exams in:
You can also sit the IWE in Townsville if numbers allow.
If you're outside of Australia, check the specific exam details below for exam centre locations.
Different exam centres will have different dates for exam sessions. Please finish registering before you arrange your travel.
The IWE assesses your ability to practise pharmacy in Australia. You can sit it if you:
| Registrations Open | Registrations Close | Exam Date - Australia | Exam Date - Overseas |
|---|---|---|---|
| TBC | TBC | TBC | TBC |
Scheduled dates may vary due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
If you're in Australia, see our list of Australian exam centres.
If you're outside of Australia, you'll need to travel to an Australian exam centre, as you cannot currently sit the IWE in other countries.
The KAPS exam tests your knowledge of basic pharmaceutical sciences as they relate to practising in Australia. You can sit this exam if you've:
| Registrations Open | Registrations Close | Exam Date - Australia | Exam Date - Overseas |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 September 2020 | 14 September 2020 | 18 - 20 October 2020 | 18 - 20 October 2020 |
The KAPS exam includes 2 papers. If you're registering for both papers, you'll need to sit them on the same date.
For details, see the Knowledge Stream (Stream A) step-by-step guide.
Scheduled dates may vary due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
If you're in Australia, see our list of Australian exam centres.
If you're outside of Australia, you can sit your KAPS exam in the following cities:
|
Country |
City |
|
Argentina |
Buenos Aires |
|
Egypt |
Cairo and surrounding areas |
|
Greece |
Athens |
|
Hong Kong SAR |
Hong Kong |
|
India |
Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, New Delhi and Mumbai |
|
Kenya |
Nairobi |
|
New Zealand |
Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington |
|
Oman |
Muscat |
|
Pakistan |
Islamabad |
|
Peru |
Lima |
|
Philippines |
Manila |
|
Qatar |
Doha |
|
Saudi Arabia |
Riyadh |
|
Singapore |
Singapore |
|
South Africa |
Johannesburg |
|
United Arab Emirates |
Dubai and surrounding areas |
|
United Kingdom |
London |
|
Zimbabwe |
Harare |
The CAOP exam assesses your ability to apply pharmaceutical knowledge and your competence to practise in Australia. You can sit this exam if you:
| Registrations Open | Registrations Close | Exam Date - Australia | Exam Date - Overseas |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23 June 2020 | 7 July 2020 | 26 July 2020 | 24 - 26 July 2020 |
| 27 October 2020 | 9 November 2020 | 6 December 2020 | 6 December 2020 |
Scheduled dates may vary due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
If you're in Australia, see our list of Australian exam centres.
If you're outside of Australia, you can sit your CAOP exam in the following cities:
|
Country |
City |
|
New Zealand |
Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington |
|
United Kingdom |
London |
Registrations open at 9am and close at 5pm AEDT/AEST. Check these times in your local time zone with a time zone converter.
We reserve exam seats on a first-come first-served basis. When an exam schedule is full, we close registration for that session. We cannot accept any late registrations.
Some locations fill up fast, so we suggest booking your exam as soon as possible after registration opens.
You can choose a different exam centre if it's available. However, you cannot make any changes after registration closes.
If you have any trouble booking your exam, email us on exams@pharmacycouncil.org.au for help.
You'll receive a confirmation email from our exam provider, Pearson VUE, once you've finished selecting your exam session. Read this email carefully because it will contain details on the exam venue, date and time. Ensure that you:
If you arrive at the venue after the exam starts, you will not be able to enter the room.
If you have a disability or health-related needs, you may ask for extra support or an adjustment to complete the exam. We call this type of support 'special accommodation'.
Examples of special accommodation requests might include:
You'll need to provide evidence to justify your request.
For details, see our Special Accommodation policy.
You'll need to show 2 forms of identity (ID) to enter the exam room and sit the exam. At least one form must be an acceptable form of primary ID from the list below.
Usually, both documents would be issued by the country where you're sitting the exam.
If you do not have an acceptable primary ID from that country, use an international travel passport from your country of citizenship as your primary ID.
Primary ID
This ID document must be issued by your government and contain:
Types of acceptable primary ID include:
Secondary ID
This ID document must either contain:
Types of acceptable secondary ID include:
Other items that you can and cannot bring into the exam room with you will vary between exams. For details, see the step-by-step page guide for your specific exam:
If you need to withdraw from an exam, see our APC Refund of Fees for Examination Cancellation Guidelines policy.
This policy also applies if you're ill, or if personal circumstances prevent you from sitting the exam on the day.