MDCAT Physics Test Online Chapter Wise

For many pre-medical students, Physics is the most challenging section of the MDCAT. While Biology requires memory, Physics requires application. This guide covers the syllabus, paper pattern, and specific strategies to ace the physics section without a calculator.

MDCAT Physics Paper Pattern (PMDC)

Total Physics MCQs: Usually 54 MCQs (out of 200). Note: Check the latest year’s specific breakdown as it changes slightly.

Time Management: You have roughly 40-50 seconds per MCQ.
Calculator: NOT ALLOWED.
Difficulty:
30% Easy (Direct book lines/definitions).
50% Moderate (Formula application).
20% Hard (Tricky concepts or multi-step logic).

Key Syllabus Areas (High Yield Topics)

The MDCAT syllabus is strictly defined by the PMDC (Pakistan Medical & Dental Council). You must stick to the “Common Syllabus” across all provinces.

Force and Motion

Distance/Displacement & Velocity/Speed: Focus on Voltage-Time (V-t) and Displacement-Time (d-t) graphs.

Projectile Motion: Understand how angle affects range and height.

Torque: Conditions of equilibrium.

Work and Energy

Work: Work done by constant vs. variable force.

Power: Instantaneous power ($P = F \cdot v$).

Energy: Interconversion of PE and KE.

Waves and Oscillations

SHM: Simple Pendulum and Mass-Spring system (dependence on length/mass).

Sound: Doppler Effect is the most critical topic here.

Light: Interference and Young’s Double Slit Experiment.

Electrostatics & Current Electricity

Coulomb’s Law: Dependency on medium ($\epsilon_r$).

Capacitors & Resistors: Series and Parallel combinations. You must know how to calculate equivalent resistance mentally.

Ohm’s Law & Power: $P=VI$, $P=I^2R$, $P=V^2/R$.

Modern & Nuclear Physics

Radiation: Black Body Radiation, Photoelectric effect.

Spectra: Hydrogen spectrum series (Lyman, Balmer, Paschen).

Nuclear: Half-life calculations (mental math only) and Radioactivity.

The “No-Calculator” Strategy

Since you cannot use a calculator, you must master these mathematical shortcuts:

Approximations:

$\pi \approx 3$ (or $22/7$)

$g \approx 10$ (instead of $9.8$)

$\sqrt{2} \approx 1.4$

$\sqrt{3} \approx 1.7$

Powers of 10:

Master operations like $(4 \times 10^{-6}) / (2 \times 10^{-4})$. Most electrostatics questions rely on this.

Proportionalities:

Don’t calculate full values. If $F = k(q_1q_2)/r^2$, and $r$ is doubled, just know that $F$ becomes $1/4$. Do not plug in all the values unless asked for a final number.

Recommended Preparation Resources

Textbooks:

Primary: Your own provincial board book (PTB, Sindh Board, etc.).

Secondary: Federal Board (FBISE) books are highly recommended for clearing concepts that are vague in provincial books.

Past Papers:

UHS (University of Health Sciences) Past Papers: The gold standard.

NUMS Past Papers: Excellent for conceptual practice.

Online Quizzes: Use gotest.com.pk for chapter-wise tests.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Unit Conversion: Failing to convert centimeters to meters or grams to kilograms before solving.

ignoring Graphs: MDCAT loves graphical questions (e.g., finding work done from the area under a F-d graph).

Over-Calculation: If the calculation seems too hard (e.g., $345.6 / 12.9$), you are likely doing it the wrong way or need to approximate. The test setters know you don’t have a calculator.