PLAB 2 dates, fees and booking: how to plan

Booking PLAB 2 well is a planning exercise as much as an administrative one. Dates are finite, the exam is held in one location, and the timing you choose shapes your whole preparation. Here is how to approach it sensibly.

How booking works

Once you have passed PLAB 1, you book PLAB 2 through your GMC Online account. Slots are released periodically and the most convenient dates go quickly. The authoritative source for availability and the current fee is always the GMC PLAB 2 guide — check it directly rather than relying on second-hand figures.

What to budget for

• The PLAB 2 exam fee itself (separate from PLAB 1).
• Return travel to Manchester.
• Accommodation — ideally arriving the day before so you are rested.
• Preparation costs, which on-demand practice can keep modest.

Choosing your date

Give yourself enough runway to prepare properly — for most candidates that means a clear block of focused weeks before the exam, not a date squeezed in around other commitments. At the same time, do not push it so far that your PLAB 1 knowledge goes stale. A date six to ten weeks out, with a realistic study plan, suits many people.

Whatever date you choose, build your preparation around realistic, timed practice. ZWIP lets you rehearse stations from home before you ever travel, so your trip to Manchester is for the exam itself — not for your first taste of the format.