End-of-Diet Round-Up: what now until September’s SCA?

Congratulations to everyone who sat the final June 2025 Simulated Consultation Assessment today! Whether you are celebrating or re-grouping, simply getting to exam day is an achievement that you should not underestimate. I am sure you have put many hours into practicing SCA case roleplays with your friends and revising those NICE guidelines and antibiotic guidelines!

If you are thinking of when to sit the SCA next, then here are some dates for you:

The autumn diet runs 2 – 5 September 2025; reservations open from 7 – 11 July and the booking window follows soon after, so pop those dates in your diary now.

Table of Contents

Take a breath (then make a plan)

Rest first – a short period of real downtime helps consolidate what you’ve learnt and protects against burnout. Evidence shows that performance improves after a genuine break and the summer time is perfect for this. Try not to stress about whether you’ve done well or not, or what could be coming next. You might be pleasantly surprised!
Reflect on your exam – jot quick notes while the experience is fresh: which consultation models felt natural, which domains were trickier, and any IT hiccups. These reflections will steer your revision later, should you need to re-do the exam.
If you are planning to sit the exam in September for the first time, still take it slow over the summer with your SCA Revision. A good time to really start revising for it I would say is 2-3 months before, and then increase the frequency in the 4 weeks leading to the exam. Practice roleplays either with your AI Roleplay Actors or with your colleagues at least once a week.
Micro-learning: browse one new NICE update or BNF change over your morning coffee – far easier than a last-minute cram. You can also use our AI Tutor to go into depth into NICE guidelines or other protocols

Stay exam ready without burning out

Keep seeing real patients – every duty surgery is free practice. After each, ask yourself the classic SCA questions: Did I establish the patient’s agenda early? Did I share the plan clearly? Did I pay attention to their verbal AND non-verbal cues? Did I offer that information leaflet or extra resources at the end?
Record, review, reflect: one recorded surgery a fortnight (with patient permission) gives rich material to critique communication style, empathy cues and safety-netting. I never liked doing this either, but it can help you immensely to watch the playback of your consultation. Some say it’s the best way to improve, everything from your posture to the words you use and those awkward pauses!
Join or start a Balint or case-based discussion group – great for relational skills and builds the “relating to others” domain. If you are in a large surgery where there are several GP trainees, you can easily achieve this. If not, then maybe have a chat with your PD to see if they can facilitate this.
Look after you – build in exercise, daylight and holiday. Emotional intelligence and consultation finesse are dulled when you’re exhausted.

Summer is the perfect blend of pause and prepare. A little structured practice each week keeps your clinical and communication muscles limber, while proper rest restores the curiosity and empathy that the SCA rewards.

Remember to step out and get those early morning sunrays.

We’ll keep adding fresh material and update the examiner written feedback when the results are released in July. Being familiar with the things that went wrong in previous cohorts is a great way of being more prepared for your own SCA exam. Get in touch with us if there’s a topic you’d like us to cover from the Hot Topics section or if you have any feedback or suggestions.

Enjoy the sunshine and good luck with your SCA revision!☀️📚🩺