The Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) has released the official schedule for the October 2025 Internship Qualifying and Pre-Registration Examinations.
In a notice issued by KMPDC Chief Executive Officer Dr David G. Kariuki on Thursday, September 4, it was announced that the assessments will begin on Tuesday, October 21, with a briefing for candidates.
This will be followed by written examinations, scheduled for Monday, October 27.
Clinical examinations will take place over two days, from Tuesday, October 28, to Wednesday, October 29. In addition to sitting the exams, candidates must have completed a four-month clinical rotation at any of the recognised Internship Training Centres.
The KMPDC also announced that, before registration for the exams, evidence of successful completion of clinical rotations must be submitted.
The deadline for exam registration has been set for Monday, September 29, at 5:00 pm, with the KMPDC reiterating that no applications will be accepted after this date.
Further, all prospective candidates have been urged to adhere to the stated timelines and requirements, with the KMPDC emphasising that the qualifying and pre-registration process is a crucial step in upholding professional standards in Kenya's medical workforce.
Qualifying exams are important for several reasons. Firstly, they act as a verification exercise to ensure that medical and dental graduates possess the clinical knowledge, practical skills, and ethical grounding necessary to provide safe and effective care.
The assessments also play a critical role in standardising the quality of training across various medical schools, as curricula may differ between institutions. The KMPDC assessments provide a uniform benchmark for entry into internship and eventual full registration.
Since passing the exams is a legal requirement for internship and registration under Kenyan law, the assessments help ensure legal and regulatory compliance, leading to a stronger and more accountable healthcare system.
As recently as July 2025, the government, through the Ministry of Health, cracked down on unqualified interns by revoking internship offers for 306 pre-interns following an investigation into the Nursing Internship Placement for the 2025/2026 cohort.
In a statement signed by Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale, the ministry confirmed that further discrepancies were identified in the initial placement list after 42 interns were earlier found to have been listed unlawfully in July.
"The Ministry of Health (MoH) has uncovered a serious breach of regulations involving the Nursing Council of Kenya (NCK) and ten public and private universities, which unlawfully submitted 42 Bachelor of Science (BSc) Nursing students for internship before the completion of their academic programmes," the statement read in part.
According to the Ministry of Health, the actions violated provisions of the Nursing Council Act and the guidelines set out by the Public Service Commission Act.
