Free GPhC practice
Free GPhC practice questions
Ten free questions in the format of the GPhC registration assessment: five Part 1 calculations, then five Part 2 questions. Every answer comes with a worked explanation, and none of it needs an account or an email.
Part 1 · Calculations
You are the pharmacist in a hospital dermatology pharmacy that makes topical preparations in-house. A 49-year-old man with chronic plaque psoriasis on his elbows and knees has thick scale that needs removing before starting a topical vitamin D analogue. He also uses Dermol 500 lotion as a soap substitute.
The dermatologist prescribes 200 g of salicylic acid 5% w/w in white soft paraffin. You have stock of salicylic acid 2% w/w in white soft paraffin and salicylic acid 10% w/w in white soft paraffin, and you will make the product by mixing these two only. To allow for losses during transfer, you will make 10% more than the quantity prescribed.
What mass, in grams, of the salicylic acid 10% w/w ointment is needed? Give your answer to one decimal place.
What this covers
- Five Part 1 calculations, from infusion rates to dosing by renal function
- Five Part 2 questions: single best answer and an extended matching pair
- Supplied tables and extracts, as in the real assessment
- Answers to the decimal places the question asks for
- A worked explanation after every answer
- Your results for each part
Example questions & worked answers
Try to answer each yourself first, then reveal the worked explanation.
Part 1 · Dilutions & Concentrations
Mr J, 68, is on the coronary care unit with a serious ventricular arrhythmia. His serum magnesium is 0.61 mmol/L (reference range 0.70–1.00 mmol/L).
He is prescribed magnesium sulfate 2 g by intravenous injection over 15 minutes, using magnesium sulfate 50% w/v injection, 5 mL ampoules (2 mmol Mg²⁺ per mL). Hospital guidance is to dilute it with sodium chloride 0.9% to no more than 20% w/v.
What is the minimum volume, in mL, of sodium chloride 0.9% that must be added to the dose of magnesium sulfate 50% w/v so that its concentration does not exceed 20% w/v? Give your answer to the nearest whole number.
Show the answer and working
Answer: 6 mL
Rule used: % w/v is grams per 100 mL; the amount of drug does not change on dilution, so the final volume is the dose divided by the maximum concentration.
Step 1: 50% w/v = 50 g in 100 mL = 0.5 g/mL. Volume of injection for the dose = 2 g ÷ 0.5 g/mL = 4 mL (from one 5 mL ampoule; the remaining 1 mL is discarded).
Step 2: 20% w/v = 0.2 g/mL. Smallest final volume that keeps 2 g at no more than 20% = 2 g ÷ 0.2 g/mL = 10 mL.
Step 3: diluent to add = 10 mL − 4 mL = 6 mL.
Check: C1V1 = C2V2 gives 50% × 4 mL = 20% × V2, so V2 = 10 mL. This matches the BNF's advice to dilute 1 part of the 50% injection with at least 1.5 parts of diluent (4 mL × 1.5 = 6 mL).
Rounding: 6 mL is already a whole number.
Common errors: 10 mL (the final volume, not the volume to add); 4 mL (the volume of 50% injection); 8 mL (7.5 mL, diluting the whole 5 mL ampoule, which holds 2.5 g, more than the dose). The mmol content is not needed.
Part 1 · Percentage Calculations
You are working on an intensive care unit. Mr B, 54, is ventilated and sedated with propofol 2% w/v emulsion, undiluted by syringe pump. He had propofol 1% w/v for induction in theatre.
His estimated admission weight was 90 kg; today he weighs 78 kg, and the unit doses on measured weight. Overnight the pump ran at 12 mL/hour; at 08:00 it was increased to 15.6 mL/hour.
The unit reviews any patient receiving more than 4 mg/kg/hour, because of the risk of propofol infusion syndrome.
What dose of propofol, in mg/kg/hour, is Mr B receiving at the 08:00 rate? Give your answer to one decimal place.
Show the answer and working
Answer: 4.0 mg/kg/hour
Rule used: % w/v is grams per 100 mL; convert to mg/mL, multiply by the rate, then divide by the measured weight.
Step 1: 2% w/v = 2 g in 100 mL = 2000 mg ÷ 100 mL = 20 mg/mL.
Step 2: hourly dose at 08:00 = 15.6 mL/hour × 20 mg/mL = 312 mg/hour.
Step 3: dose per kg = 312 mg/hour ÷ 78 kg = 4.0 mg/kg/hour.
Rounding: 4.0 mg/kg/hour to one decimal place. This is at the unit's review threshold but not above it; any further increase would be.
Common errors: 3.5 mg/kg/hour (the estimated weight of 90 kg); 2.0 mg/kg/hour (using 1% = 10 mg/mL, the induction strength); 3.1 mg/kg/hour (the overnight rate of 12 mL/hour); 0.4 mg/kg/hour (reading 2% as 2 mg/mL).
Part 1 · Doses & Concentrations
Mr T, 81, weighs 58 kg and has a proximal deep vein thrombosis. His serum creatinine is 96 micromol/L (reference range 64–104 micromol/L); estimated creatinine clearance is 44 mL/minute.
He is prescribed apixaban 10 mg twice daily for the first 7 days (14 doses), then 5 mg twice daily. He took his first 10 mg dose on the ward at 18:00 on Monday, and has had no other dose. He is going home before his next dose is due.
Only 5 mg tablets are supplied. Supply enough to complete the initial phase plus 28 days of maintenance; his GP will then continue treatment.
How many apixaban 5 mg tablets should be supplied? Give your answer as a whole number of tablets.
Show the answer and working
Answer: 82 tablets
Rule used: count the doses still to be taken in each phase, then convert each dose to 5 mg tablets.
Step 1: initial phase = 14 doses of 10 mg; one dose has already been given on the ward, so 13 doses remain.
Step 2: each 10 mg dose = 2 × 5 mg tablets, so 13 × 2 = 26 tablets.
Step 3: maintenance = 5 mg twice daily for 28 days = 28 × 2 = 56 tablets (one tablet per dose).
Step 4: total = 26 + 56 = 82 tablets.
Rounding: 82 is a whole number of tablets.
Common errors: 84 tablets (not deducting the dose already given on the ward); 69 tablets (one tablet for each 10 mg dose: 13 + 56); 138 tablets (26 + 112, giving 10 mg twice daily for the 28 days of maintenance as well). His age and weight meet two of the dose-reduction criteria for atrial fibrillation, but those criteria do not apply to treatment of deep vein thrombosis, and his creatinine clearance is above 15 mL/minute, so the prescribed regimen stands.
Frequently asked questions
Are these real GPhC registration assessment questions?
No. The GPhC does not publish its live questions. These ten come from Dose Up's own exam-style bank, written to the GPhC's registration assessment framework for 2026, and each is reviewed by our pharmacists. Dose Up is independent and is not endorsed by the GPhC.
Does the GPhC publish past papers?
No, the GPhC does not publish past papers from the registration assessment. It publishes example questions for both parts, with a guide that gives their answers; the assessment framework, from which all of the assessment's content is derived; and, after each sitting, the Board of Assessors' feedback on the topics trainees found challenging. Anything sold as a GPhC past paper is someone's own questions, not the GPhC's.
The GPhC's example questions guide (PDF)
GPhC past papers: what the GPhC publishes instead, with a link to each
Is this GPhC practice quiz free?
Yes, all ten questions, with no account and no email needed. You see your results for each part at the end, and can leave your email there for a free PDF of GPhC practice questions if you want one.
Is there a free GPhC mock exam?
Dose Up's free GPhC practice questions are ten questions, not a full mock: five Part 1 calculations and five Part 2 questions in the assessment's format, each with a worked answer, and they need no account or email. With a free account you can also sit a timed Part 1 sample, 10 calculations in 30 minutes on the same exam screen as the mock papers, marked by calculation type; it is a sample, not a full mock either. The GPhC's own example questions are also free, but they do not time out, and as of October 2026 the GPhC says they are "not intended to be used as a mock assessment". Dose Up's full mock papers are paid, and each adds the whole assessment against the clock: a Part 1 of 40 calculations in 2 hours and a Part 2 of 120 questions in 2½ hours, with a worked answer to every question and your marks by area.
What does the GPhC registration assessment involve?
Two parts, sat on the same day. Part 1 is 40 calculations in 2 hours. Part 2 is 120 questions in 2½ hours: 90 single best answer and 30 extended matching.
What is in the Dose Up GPhC mock papers?
Four full mock papers, Mock A, Mock B, Mock C and Mock D, each with a Part 1 of 40 calculations in 2 hours and a Part 2 of 120 questions in 2½ hours, timed like the real assessment and marked by area. They are on sale now.
How should I revise for the GPhC exam?
Practise under timed conditions, drill calculations regularly, and review the explanation for every question — right or wrong — so you understand the reasoning, not just the answer. Spreading practice across weeks beats cramming.
Ready for the clock?
Sit a free timed Part 1 sample: 10 calculations in 30 minutes, with a free account. Four full mock papers, Mock A, Mock B, Mock C and Mock D, each with a Part 1 of 40 calculations in 2 hours and a Part 2 of 120 questions in 2½ hours, timed like the real assessment and marked by area. They are on sale now.