MRCS Part B Revision · Anatomy
Skull Vault — MRCS Part B Anatomy
By Dr Richard Miller, MBChB FRCS · Reviewed
Skull Vault is a surgical anatomy station. Three of the seventeen examined stations in the MRCS Part B OSCE are surgical anatomy. The anatomy stations put a prosected specimen, a model or an image in front of you and ask you to identify structures and say what they do, what they relate to and what happens when they are injured.
What you need to know for the Skull Vault station
The Skull Vault
Below the skull case is a complex of foramina (openings) and bones, including the foramen magnum which houses the neural spine.
The neurocranium is formed by the endocranium, the lower portions of the cranial vault, and the skull roof.
The neurocranium is divided into two portions:
(a) the membranous part, consisting of flat bones, which surround the brain as a vault; and
(b) the cartilaginous part, or chondrocranium, which forms bones of the base of the skull
Images from this station
What are you asked at the Skull Vault station?
The station runs to 20 questions over nine minutes. A prompt the station repeats — against each marker on a specimen, for instance — is listed once here; the model answers are in the question bank.
- Identify areas 1-3
- Identify structures 4-7
- Identify structures 8-9
- Identify structures 10-12
- Identify structures 13-15
- Identify structures 16-18
- Identify structures 19-21
- Identify structures 22-24
- Identify what runs in groove 25?
- Identify the sinuses that run in their corresponding grooves 26-29
- What are the layers of the scalp?
- What are the bones of the cranial cavity?
And 7 more at this station.
How is the anatomy station marked in MRCS Part B?
An anatomy station is marked out of 20, and all 20 marks go to clinical knowledge and its application. No communication, technical-skill or professionalism marks are available in an anatomy bay, which is unusual: in most other stations more than half the marks sit outside your factual knowledge.
FAQ
What does the Skull Vault station ask?
It opens with "Identify areas 1-3" and runs to 20 questions over nine minutes. An anatomy station is marked out of 20, and all 20 marks go to clinical knowledge and its application. No communication, technical-skill or professionalism marks are available in an anatomy bay, which is unusual: in most other stations more than half the marks sit outside your factual knowledge.
How many anatomy stations are there in MRCS Part B?
Three of the seventeen examined stations are surgical anatomy, and two more are surgical pathology. Together they make up the five Anatomy and surgical pathology stations of the Applied Knowledge component.
How are the anatomy stations marked?
Each station is marked out of 20 and all 20 marks are awarded for clinical knowledge and its application. You also receive a separate global rating of pass, borderline or fail for the station.
Are the specimens real?
Yes. Anatomy bays use prosected cadaveric specimens, models and images. Candidates report being shown photographs of specimens as well as the specimens themselves, so practise on real dissection photography rather than diagrams alone.
What happens if I get an early question wrong?
The intercollegiate guidance says that if a wrong answer would affect your performance on later questions at the same station, the examiner gives you the correct answer before moving on. One mistake does not have to cost you the whole bay.
How many stations are in the MRCS Part B OSCE?
Seventeen examined stations of nine minutes each, with a minute to read the task before each one. Two preparation stations and at least one rest station bring the circuit to about twenty, and the exam takes about three and a half hours.
What is the pass mark for MRCS Part B?
There is no published pass mark. The cut score is set separately for Applied Knowledge and Applied Skills, for each circuit, by borderline regression. Published pass rates across the 2024/25 diets ranged from 51% to 66%.
Can I fail a station and still pass?
Yes. There is no rule about how many stations you may fail: the cut score applies to your total mark in each component, so a weak station costs the marks you lost on it and strong stations elsewhere can make them back. Applied Knowledge and Applied Skills are passed separately and must both be passed at the same sitting, so a strong anatomy performance cannot rescue a weak communication one.
Dr Richard Miller, MBChB FRCS
Station summaries are reviewed against the current intercollegiate MRCS syllabus and the published marking blueprint. Guidance changes between diets: check the royal colleges' own pages before relying on a date, a fee or a threshold.
Practise this station
The question bank carries the model answer to every question above, with the rest of the anatomy stations.
More anatomy stations