For students and doctors sitting the Prescribing Safety Assessment (PSA)

Zero surprises onassessment day

The PSA is demanding: 200 marks in just two hours, on an interface you may otherwise meet for the first time on the day. Formulary provides the realistic question bank and timed mock assessments that actually prepare you for it.

Try a free questionBrowse plans
A single heartbeat trace

What you get

  • Practise questions from every domain on interfaces designed to replicate the real assessment.
  • Experience the real field-by-field marking, with feedback and links to relevant British National Formulary (BNF) monographs following each answer.
  • Test yourself using timed full-length mock assessments and get a comprehensive breakdown of your performance.

Why it's different

  • The layout, prescription forms and tools simulate the real interface rather than compressing everything into single best answer (SBA) format.
  • Questions are engineered to be genuinely challenging to ensure you feel thoroughly prepared.

Try a Prescribing (PWS) question

Complete the prescription, then check your answer to see the feedback screen.

Loading the question...

Start practisingWhat's the PSA?

The PSA is challenging. Candidates say so.

200 marks across 60 questions in just two hours, spanning eight different question types, on a native interface with its own highly specific functionalities.1

Time
24%
agreed that the time given to answer was enough.2
Preparation
42%
agreed that their course had prepared them adequately for the questions.2
Writing prescriptions
40%
said they had written five or fewer prescriptions on a prescription chart.2
Full-length mock assessments
1
full-length mock assessment on each of the official PSA and British Pharmacological Society (BPS) Assessment websites.34

Foundation doctors must demonstrate a pass in the PSA before they can be signed off as having completed their first foundation year.5 This assessment is to be taken seriously.

From first question to assessment day

  1. Question bank

    Practise the way the assessment looks.

    Choose a domain, a specific prescription form or a mixture, then work through questions on interfaces structured just like the real thing. After each answer you'll see exactly where your marks were won or lost, field by field.

    A capsule and a tablet

  2. Mock assessments

    Then sit it against the clock.

    Mock assessments run to the full 60 questions with no feedback until the end. You'll then receive a comprehensive breakdown of your performance by domain.

    An hourglass with the sand running

  3. The BNF

    Get quick at finding things.

    The BNF is open book on the day, and every minute spent searching through it is a minute lost. Every answer links to its relevant BNF monographs, and the BNF, BNF for Children (BNFc) and MedicinesComplete all open from the toolbar, so finding a renal dose or a drug interaction becomes second-nature.6

    A kidney

  4. Consistency

    Keep showing up.

    Your analytics dashboard shows each day you've practised, your streak, your weakest domains and the days left to your assessment.

    A ring filling with a tick inside

Invest in your preparation

Give yourself the best chance.

Start practising
Sources

References

  1. 1. Prescribing Safety Assessment. Blueprint (17 August 2026): eight sections, 200 marks, two hours. prescribingsafetyassessment.ac.uk/resources/PSA-Blueprint.pdf
  2. 2. Magavern EF, et al. UK Prescribing Safety Assessment (PSA): the development, implementation and outcomes of a national online prescribing assessment. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2024;90(2). doi:10.1111/bcp.15919. doi.org/10.1111/bcp.15919
  3. 3. Prescribing Safety Assessment, official website. Frequently asked questions, "Is there a practice paper?": three practice papers, two of 30 items and one of 60 items. prescribingsafetyassessment.ac.uk/
  4. 4. BPS Assessment. Prescribing Practice Papers: three papers, two of 30 items and one 60-item full-length paper. portal.bpsassessment.com/portal-shop/prescribing-practice/
  5. 5. UK Foundation Programme. PSA requirements and process. foundationprogramme.nhs.uk/curriculum/prescribing-safety-assessment-psa/psa-requirements-and-process/
  6. 6. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. British National Formulary (BNF) online, including the guidance sections on prescribing in renal impairment, hepatic impairment, pregnancy and breast-feeding. bnf.nice.org.uk/