AMC Handbook 2026: Structure, Weighting, and How to Use It

What is the AMC Handbook?

The AMC Handbook is the Australian Medical Council's official examination reference for International Medical Graduates. It is published in two companion volumes:

• Handbook of Multiple Choice Questions — defines the scope, blueprint, and sample items for AMC MCQ.
• Handbook of Clinical Assessment — defines the station blueprint, marking domains, and sample stations for AMC Handbook AI RolePlay (Clinical / MCAT).

Together they describe the breadth of medical knowledge and clinical performance that an Australian intern (PGY1) is expected to demonstrate on day one of practice. The Handbook is not a textbook — it is a blueprint.

Handbook structure

Each Handbook is organised by clinical discipline. Within each discipline, sub-chapters cluster conditions by system or theme. The same disciplines and weightings apply to both AMC MCQ and AMC Handbook AI RolePlay:

• Internal medicine (~25%) — cardiology, respiratory, endocrine, gastroenterology, nephrology, haematology, neurology, rheumatology, infectious diseases, geriatrics.
• Surgery (~15%) — general surgery, orthopaedics, urology, ENT, ophthalmology, peri-operative care.
• Paediatrics (~10%) — neonatal, infectious, developmental, immunisation, child protection.
• Obstetrics & Gynaecology (~10%) — antenatal, labour and postpartum, contraception, screening, gynaecologic emergencies.
• Psychiatry (~10%) — mood, psychosis, suicide risk, substance use, perinatal and adolescent mental health.
• General Practice / Population Health (~25%) — preventive screening (RACGP Red Book), chronic disease, cultural safety, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health.
• Emergency Medicine (~5%) — resuscitation, trauma, triage decisions.

The AMC MCQ Handbook prints sample MCQs with worked explanations. The AMC Handbook AI RolePlay handbook prints sample station vignettes, the simulated-patient instructions, and the marking criteria mapped to the four domains (data gathering, clinical reasoning, communication, professionalism).

Recent changes for 2026

The 2026 edition introduces three notable updates that examiners will be watching for:

1. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health

Cultural safety and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health content has been expanded across all disciplines, not just the population health chapter. Expect items on culturally safe consultations, the social determinants of health, and the rheumatic heart disease screening framework. AMC Handbook AI RolePlay stations increasingly include Aboriginal simulated patients with explicit cultural-safety marking criteria.

2. Mental health

Perinatal mental health (depression and anxiety in pregnancy and postpartum), adolescent mental health (suicide risk assessment, eating disorders), and psychosis recognition have been expanded. The HEEADSSS adolescent assessment framework is implicitly testable.

3. Antimicrobial stewardship

All antibiotic-related questions are now anchored to the latest Therapeutic Guidelines: Antibiotic. Common pitfalls include outdated empirical regimens for community-acquired pneumonia, urinary tract infection, and sepsis. Cardiovascular risk questions use the updated Australian absolute CV risk calculator (2023 update).

How to use the Handbook as a study spine

The Handbook is most powerful when used as a structured checklist alongside high-volume question-bank practice. A 6-step workflow:

1. Read the discipline blueprint first. Open the chapter for the discipline you are studying (e.g., Paediatrics) and scan the topic list. This becomes your study coverage map.
2. Practice questions, not pages. Move straight to your question bank and complete a 50-question block in that discipline. Tag wrong answers by Handbook sub-topic.
3. Backfill from the Handbook. For every sub-topic you got wrong, return to the Handbook chapter and read the named conditions. This is targeted, not bulk reading.
4. Calibrate on Handbook samples. The official MCQs at the end of each chapter are written by AMC item-writers in the same style as the real exam. If you score below 70% on them, your readiness in that discipline is overstated.
5. Map AMC Handbook AI RolePlay stations to the same chapters. The clinical Handbook's station blueprints align with the same disciplines. Run a roleplay against the corresponding sample station immediately after finishing your AMC MCQ block.
6. Review changes annually. Confirm you are on the 2026 edition. Even one-year-old editions miss the cultural safety and antibiotic stewardship updates.

What the Handbook does not give you

The Handbook defines the scope. It does not provide:

• Depth of explanation. Use Murtagh's General Practice, the RACGP Red Book, and Therapeutic Guidelines for content depth.
• Volume of practice questions. The Handbook has dozens of sample items. The exam needs thousands of practice items to internalise reasoning patterns.
• Adaptive analytics. The Handbook cannot tell you which sub-topic is your weakest. A modern question bank like Mostly Medicine's does this automatically.
• Roleplay rehearsal. AMC Handbook AI RolePlay sample stations are read material; passing AMC Handbook AI RolePlay needs spoken, timed, feedback-loop roleplay.

How Mostly Medicine maps to the Handbook

Mostly Medicine's content engine is built on the same blueprint structure as the AMC Handbook 2026 — discipline, sub-topic, and condition tags align one-to-one. That means you can use the Handbook as your master checklist and the platform as your active practice and analytics layer.

• 4,400+ AMC MCQ questions tagged to AMC blueprint disciplines and Handbook sub-topics.
• 151+ AMC Handbook AI RolePlay scenarios mapped to clinical Handbook station archetypes with examiner- grade feedback against the four domains.
• Searchable reference library — Handbook 2026 summary, Murtagh, and RACGP Red Book indexed by Claude AI.
• Recall cards for high-yield Australian-specific facts called out in the 2026 update (CV risk thresholds, antimicrobial first-line choices, immunisation schedule).

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Frequently asked questions

What is the AMC Handbook?

The AMC's official two-volume blueprint covering AMC MCQ and AMC Handbook AI RolePlay (Clinical) — disciplines, sub-topics, sample items, and marking criteria.

How is it structured?

By clinical discipline (internal medicine, surgery, paediatrics, O&G, psychiatry, general practice, emergency, population health) with sub-chapters per condition cluster.

What changed in 2026?

Stronger Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and cultural safety content, expanded mental health (perinatal, adolescent), and updated antimicrobial stewardship aligned to current Therapeutic Guidelines.

How should I use it?

As a checklist, not a textbook. Use it to map coverage and calibrate readiness — pair with question-bank practice for depth.

Is the Handbook enough on its own?

No. You also need Murtagh's General Practice, the RACGP Red Book, Therapeutic Guidelines, and 3,000+ practice MCQs.

Where do I buy the 2026 edition?

Direct from the AMC at amc.org.au. Always check you are on the latest edition.