Search Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. We are constantly identifying new topics that are being tested in the exams, as identified by candidates taking the exams, and ensure that our course material is updated accordingly. It is important to point out that The Birmingham Course does not have access to the questions that appear in the college exams, and they are the copyright of the Royal College of Psychiatrists. The themes identified by candidates taking the exams are provided under “Themes from previous exams” under each papers.
No. All of the scenarios in the course are original and where possible have been based around previous candidates anecdotal recollection of scenarios they faced in the exam.
No. All examiners correctly respect college copyright and examination regulations. They provided guidance on approaching these original scenarios based on their specialised clinical and academic experience whilst also clarifying their own expectations of a candidate facing these original scenarios. No exact details of previous questions or constructs were sought or required. Our driving philosophy is for you to pass the CASC by improving your clinical acumen with presence, compassion and adaptability. Not by question learning!
Stripe is one of the new and safe ways to make payment online. All payments are processed by Stripe, and The Birmingham Course does not have access to your financial information (credit / debit card details etc).
Please use the Free Trial. If you are able to view the videos and tutorials smoothly you won’t have any problems viewing the rest of the course as long as you’re using a similar internet speed.
A minimum connection speed of at least 1.5Mbps is advised and you must ensure to use the latest version of your browser.
It is recommended that before subscribing you have suitable seniors to provide you with individualised feedback on your performances during your revision. Additionally, you must find a positive and enthusiastic study group with which to practice.
Decide how long you wish to revise for and plan to cover all of the modules during this period. We usually recommend starting with the specialties you have not yet covered or find the most difficult followed by the more familiar modules later in your revision to reduce stress and improve confidence as the exam approaches.
Each video is accompanied by a relevant tutorial which you can view as many times you wish until you feel familiar with their content. Practice the scenarios with your seniors, study group and where possible in clinical situations.
Our Paper A & B courses have been designed to help you revise smartly based on Evidence based revision principles with feedback at the heart of the course. There are three main ways of revision.
1. Under the Topics section, we provide notes for each topic, BOFs and EMIs, along with provision to test yourself on each topic using a 20-20 test (20 questions in 20 minutes).
2. There are timed tests you can choose to take, with your selection of number of questions and the time limit. You can select whether to take all questions in the particular paper, or questions you are yet to answer or the questions that you have previously answered incorrectly.
3. The question themes from previous exams are available for you to test your exam preparedness.
Mock exams for Papers A & B will be provided to test your exam readiness, and also to help you identify your strengths and weakness on the topics in each paper.
We suggest that you start with topic-wise revision, first with reading of the notes, followed by the questions (BOFs and EMIs), and then testing yourself on the the particular topic by taking a 20:20 test on that topic. Use the timed tests during times when your concentration is flagging and after you have completed revision of all the topics. The themes from previous exams and Mock exams are helpful during later stages of revision. Of course, you are free to choose any order that you may find helpful.
The CASC course is an exhaustive resource with videos and tutorials on any station that you can think of. The coverage of the stations and topics is exhaustive with videos of a Senior Psychiatrist doing the station with a role-player followed by a video of detailed tutorials of how to approach that station and what are the key skills and competencies that need to be displayed to get a pass in the actual exam.
Select Courses at the top of the webpage and then pick the course that you would like to subscribe to. You will then be taken through the purchase process. We have simplified the purchase process to make it a three click, hassle free process.
All of the lecture notes used in the audio-visual tutorials are available for download in their relevant section.
You can then print out the relevant ones you wish to go through personally or in your study group. Please download the lecture notes for the relevant free-trial videos in the Free Trial section for examples.
Tutorials can last anywhere from 8 minutes to 1 hour. The tutorials follow a standard structure going through suggested structure, potential phrases, relevant core clinical material and possible alternate scenarios. Each tutorial is also accompanied with a contents listing to enable you to access relevant parts of the tutorial quickly. Please take a look at the Free Trial section for examples
We have fixed subscription plans. The longer the subscription plan, the better the value.
Station videos last around 7 minutes reflecting the exact time candidates receive in the MRCPsych CASC exam. Each of the videos also display a countdown timer to guide on interview pace with additional visual commentary to demonstrate suggested interview structure. Please take a look at the Free Trial section for examples.
Go to our homepage and click on ‘Sign Up’ on the left hand side of the screen.
On the next screen, select the subscription that you would like to purchase and then select ‘Register Now’.
You will then be required to complete your details to create your account before being taken to the payment screen.
Once you have completed your purchase, you will be able to login and access your material.
You can also make additional purchases in the future using this account if you wish.
Yes. We believe that preparing to pass the MRCPsych CASC actually starts at the beginning of core Psychiatry training.
Candidates who are already ‘unconsciously competent’ in their interview skill always stand a much higher chance of passing the CASC in their first attempt as their skills are already adaptable to the pressure situations that commonly occur in the CASC.
It can be more challenging to ‘un-learn’ poor interview technique as you progress later in your training. Additionally, doing this whilst also learning the clinical content for the CASC inevitably makes preparation and performance much more stressful. As a study tool this course provides a varied exposure to the baseline standards of psychiatric interviewing and clinical knowledge expected in the MRCPsych CASC. It will allow you to accelerate the development of your own interview style so it is already natural and adaptable before you prepare for the exam.
Please contact us using the Contact page or email us at admin@birminghamcourse.co.uk, We aim to respond within 1 working day, but we usually respond sooner than that.
If you have lost or forgotten your password or username, click on ‘Login’ at the top of the browser. On the login screen, click on the ‘Forgot Password?’ link and enter the email address associated with your account. An email containing your password will be sent to you within a short time if that email is registered to the site.
This course is specifically geared for the MRCPsych CASC. However, as other international exams do use a similar OSCE format you will find the content relevant. Please take a look at the Free Trial videos and tutorials to ensure the content meets with your own training curriculum.
We have built a reputation for being friendly, flexible and accommodating and we are quite proud of this. Please feel free to contact us through the course administrators if you have any concerns/complaints/suggestions. We will address any issue you may have as soon as possible. We understand the considerable anxiety that exams cause and we will do everything we can to help. Just Ask!
In the past students from our course have won the College’s Laughlin Prize and they have been invited back to teach. You don’t have to win a prize though - if you have the time and would like to contribute to psychiatric education please contact using our email: admin@birminghamcourse.co.uk. From time to time vacancies in our teaching and writing group come up and we will contact people who have shown interest.
We take data protection seriously and operate fully in line with GDPR guidance. We ensure that your personal details will not be misused by us and will not be provided to anyone else. If you have registered for a course we may send emails about that course via email. Sometimes we send out emails from our online courses to inform you about any changes or to answer your queries. When you register for the online course, you can opt-out of receiving those emails.
The Birmingham Course websites (www.birminghamcourseonline.co.uk & www.birminghamcourse.co.uk) are owned by The Birmingham Course Limited. Please read the following Terms and conditions, which relate to information regarding the general use of our websites, including relating to purchase of subscriptions. By using our website, you are agreeing to these terms and conditions whether as a registered user or not. From time to time we may change these Terms and Conditions, and will post revisions on this website. We recommend that you read these Terms and Conditions prior to using our sites and regularly review any changes thereafter. It is your responsibility to do so. These Terms and Conditions shall be governed and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales.
For Online Courses: A full refund will be provided for up to 7 days after subscribing to the course provided the subscriber has not accessed the course material. In case of technical problems, every effort will be made to correct these within 24 hours. We do promise to be as helpful as possible and resolve any technical glitches as quickly as possible. If a candidate contravenes the terms and conditions of use of the website, then we reserve the right to cancel their access to the current course and to future courses. No refunds will be made in such circumstances. We're very flexible, so if there are extraordinary personal circumstances that prevent you from using the course please do drop us an email and, at our discretion, you may be entitled to a refund or the subscription may be carried forward.
For Weekend Courses and Mock Exams (Online or In Person): A full refund will be provided if you cancel more than 8 weeks prior to the course start date. A refund of 50% of the course fee will be provided if you cancel between 4 and 8 weeks prior to the course start date. No refunds will be offered in the 4 weeks up to the course start date. This policy is to ensure that we can cover the costs associated with running these courses but please do still get in touch via email if there are extraordinary personal circumstances and we will consider the options.
As I’m sure you can understand, this is for copyright protection.
This is to secure user privacy. Please ensure to read our Terms and Conditions before you subscribe.
Yes. The website is completely responsive so all videos, tutorials and simulators work perfectly on your smartphone or tablet.