These notes apply to candidates who have a Notice of Eligibility (NOE) for one of the following three MCA Certificates of Competence Oral exams and are ready to progress to their MCA Part A Exam.
- Master 200 (code vessel) & OOW 500 (yacht) Limited (NOE issued from 22 April 2024)
- Master 200 (code vessel) & OOW 500 (yacht) Unlimited (NOE issued from 22 April 2024)
- OOW Unlimited (NOE issued from 1 May 2023 & NOE resits issued from 1 June 2023)
There are two parts to your CoC exam, Part A and Part B. Part A is an online proctored exam. Part B is the Oral Exam. you must complete Part A before progressing onto Part B. The intention of Part A is to filter out candidates who are not yet ready for their oral exam (part B). (Note the OOW pass rate was 50% and the M200 pass rate 54%).
MCA Part A Exam: Online proctored exam
When you receive your NOE by email it will include a link, username and password. This is personal to you and if it comes to the MCAs attention you have forwarded these details to anyone else they are likely to cancel your exam without refund and may refuse any further exam access.
The Part A Examination can be taken at any time. Assuming you pass, you are likely to be allocated a date for your Part B oral exam within 6 weeks so our advice is not to take the Part A exam if you do not have much availability over the forthcoming 6 weeks and/or you are not ready for the oral exam.
The Part A exam is recorded to allow checking/no cheating. You start by showing the whole room to the camera to prove you are alone, the door is closed and there are no notes in sight. During the exam you are expected to face the screen the entire time. You must not wear headphones.
You will need a laptop, desktop or tablet with a camera and reliable broadband connection (min 10mbps). You can not use a mobile phone.
The questions are Multiple Choice, True or False and sometimes Drag and Drop. Many candidiates assume these will be easy, they are not.
There are 15 questions, each containing 4 sub questions (4 marks).
| Questions | Subject | M200 Pass mark | OOW Pass mark |
| Q1, 2, 3 | IRPCS | 90% | 90% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q4, 5, 6 | IALA Bouyage | 90% | 90% |
| Q 7, 8, 9 | Navigational Procedures | 80% | 80% |
| Q 10-15 M200 | Drawn from Regulations, Emergency Procedures, Communications, Ship handling, Safety, Security, Meteorology | 50% | NA |
| Q 10-15 OOW | Drawn from Regulations, Emergency Procedures, Communications, Ship handling, Safety, Security, Meteorology & Cargo Work | NA | 50% |
Candidates should be aware that if they were to mis understand any one of the first 6 questions, the resulting loss of 4 marks would automatically dictate a fail.
The exam duration is 40 minutes. After submitting an answer, you cannot return to the previous question. The exam ends by clicking the “submit” button or automatically when the time is up. The result will be emailed to you within five working days. While the results email will tell you your marks for each section and your result, it will not tell you which questions you got correct or wrong.
Part A Resits
If you fail Part A you will receive an email detailing the procedure for retaking the examination, including the Resit Exam Fees. Part A resits may be taken at the following intervals:
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Second attempt – at least two weeks after the initial exam.
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Third attempt – at least two weeks after the second attempt and after submission of all mandatory documentary evidence confirming that the candidate has met all other applicable requirements for the issue of the required CoC, except for the oral examination result.
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Subsequent attempts – at least three months after the previous attempt and after submission of all mandatory documentary evidence confirming that the candidate has met all other applicable requirements for the issue of the required CoC, except for the oral examination result.
You cannot proceed to the Part B examination until the Part A examination has been passed.
MCA Part B Exam: Online face-to-face oral examination
Upon passing the Part A examination, the MCA will allocate the candidate a Part B examination slot that will, where possible, take place within six weeks of passing the Part A. If no Part B booking confirmation email is received, candidates should contact the Exams Team via email at exams@mcga.gov.uk.
The allocated Part B examination slot will only be amended in exceptional circumstances and, as such, candidates should only undertake the Part A examination when they are prepared to accept a Part B examination in the following six weeks. If the candidate does not accept an examination slot within these six weeks, they will have to go through the online oral examination booking service to pick an available date suitable for their personal circumstance and convenience.
The Part B examination is the oral examination and must be completed within 12 months of passing the Part A examination or you will have to re take Part A. Click MCA Oral Exams and Part B Exams for details.
Additional information is available from the MCA at MIN 690.