JCAT vs PGET: Which Punjab Postgraduate Entry Test Do You Need?

Doctors applying for postgraduate training in Punjab meet two acronyms that are often confused: JCAT, the Joint Centralized Admission Test run by King Edward Medical University (KEMU), and PGET, the Postgraduate Entrance Test run by the University of Health Sciences (UHS). Both lead to MS, MD, MDS and FCPS training slots, but they serve different institutions and run on different calendars. This guide puts them side by side.

Who runs what

• JCAT (KEMU) is the Joint Centralized Admission Test for induction into the MD/MS/MDS programmes offered in various institutions of Punjab under the Punjab Residency Program, run by King Edward Medical University on behalf of the Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department. The March 2026 notice took applications on the JCAT portal from 21 January to 6 February 2026, with the test tentatively on 29 March 2026 in Lahore and Multan. The specialty-specific JCAT is valid from the July 2026 induction, and a pass remains valid for three years from the test date.
• PGET (UHS) admits candidates to Level III residency programmes in the teaching hospitals and institutions under the Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department (SHC&MED), Government of the Punjab, under the Central Induction Policy. The 2026 test is on Sunday 25 October for the January 2027 intake, and UHS has said it will run twice a year, in March/April and September/October.

Side by side

• Papers. Both tests have two papers of 100 MCQs each. PGET runs basic sciences in the morning and a specialty-group paper after lunch, two hours apiece. JCAT's Paper-I is applied basic sciences, common to all MD/MS specialties (separate for MDS), and Paper-II is specialty-specific for nine groups: Medicine and Allied, Surgery and Allied, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Anaesthesiology, Ophthalmology, Diagnostic Radiology, Psychiatry, ENT and Dentistry.
• Pass rule. PGET's minimum passing score is the 75th percentile, and PGET marks carry 75 per cent of admission merit. JCAT's passing mark is 60 per cent in aggregate; candidates holding a valid pass in the older common JCAT (October 2023 onwards) sit only Paper-II and need 60 per cent in it.
• Eligibility. Both require an MBBS or BDS from a recognised institution, a completed one-year house job in a recognised hospital and valid PM&DC registration; PGET additionally specifies Punjab domicile for open-merit seats and an age limit under 40. Read the notice for the cycle you are entering.
• Cities. PGET 2026 is held in Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan and Rawalpindi. JCAT (March 2026) was held in Lahore and Multan.
• Fees and validity. JCAT's fee in the March 2026 notice was Rs 10,000 (Rs 6,000 for Paper-II only), and a pass stays valid for three years. PGET's processing fee was Rs 10,000; its notice does not state a validity period, and the test is now held twice a year.
• Portals. PGET: admissions.uhs.edu.pk/pget. JCAT: jcat.kemu.edu.pk.

Which one do you need?

1. Decide the programme first. JCAT is the test named in KEMU's notice for the MD/MS/MDS induction of the Punjab Residency Program; PGET is UHS's test for Level III residency (MD, MS, MDS and FCPS) in SHC&MED teaching hospitals under the Central Induction Policy. The induction notice for the seat you want names the test it accepts; read it rather than assuming.
2. Many candidates sit both. The calendars are different and the preparation overlaps heavily: basic sciences plus a specialty paper. Sitting both widens your options in the same induction season, and a JCAT pass keeps its value for three years.
3. Watch the specialty groups. Both tests make you choose a group at registration, and neither allows a change afterwards (KEMU's notice says so in italics). The group should match the FCPS-I subject you passed and the training you want.

Preparation that serves both

Because both tests pair a basic-sciences component with a specialty component, one preparation serves two exams: system-wise revision of the basic sciences with question practice, then specialty-level questions for your group, then timed 100-question papers. Where they differ is in the published Table of Specifications, so read each one and adjust the last month accordingly.

What this means for you

Write down which programmes you are targeting, match each to its test, and put the application windows in your diary; JCAT's March 2026 window closed seven weeks before the test and PGET's closed on 22 September for the October sitting. FAME's JCAT and PGET packages share the basic-sciences core and add group-specific question sets for the specialty paper.

Sources and references

• KEMU / SHC&MED: Admission notice regarding JCAT for admission in MS/MD/MDS, March 2026 (eligibility, papers, 60% pass, fee, validity)
• KEMU: JCAT admission notice page (March 2026) with Table of Specifications link
• KEMU: Online JCAT admission system
• UHS: PGET 2026 admission notice
• UHS: PGET online portal