South Africa exam track
FC Orth(SA)
Fellowship of the College of Orthopaedic Surgeons of South Africa, awarded through the Colleges of Medicine of South Africa (CMSA) after the FCS(SA) Primary, the FC Orth(SA) Intermediate, and the FC Orth(SA) Final examination. This is an independent OrthoVellum study map based on public CMSA exam information, not an official CMSA product.
- Topics mapped
- 824
- Subspecialties
- 13
- Assessment formats
- 6
- High-yield
- 478
Reference library references tied to the track
Blueprint domains represented
Assessment formats in this track
Priority A topics marked in the map
Free
Blueprint & coverage map
See every subspecialty, its study-map weighting, and the topics that cover it.
Free
High-yield evidence
The landmark trials the written papers and orals expect you to know — what each showed and the exam take-home, by domain.
Premium
Adaptive question bank
Practice questions weighted to the blueprint, surfacing your weakest areas first.
Premium
OrthoMentor — live AI viva
Be examined out loud by an AI examiner grounded in verified content, marked to the exam rubric.
Premium
Readiness score
A live pass-probability estimate from your retention and blueprint coverage.
Premium
Clinical examination stations
Region-by-region examination routines, special tests and viva-ready exam technique for the clinical cases.
Premium
Image interpretation practice
Timed image-based short-answer cases across radiograph, CT and MRI — build the spot-diagnosis skills the exam tests.
Assessment formats
Question bank:11,850Single Best Answer (SBA)
1
FC Orth(SA) Intermediate - Written Papers
Two three-hour papers of 100-120 single best answer questions each: Paper I on care of the surgical patient and Paper II on the principles of orthopaedic surgery.
2
Final Written Paper 1 - Elective and Basic Sciences
Three-hour paper of 100-120 single best answer questions across general orthopaedics, paediatric orthopaedics, spinal surgery, shoulder and elbow, hand and wrist, and basic sciences in roughly equal shares.
3
Final Written Paper 2 - Elective and Foundation Competencies
Three-hour paper of 100-120 single best answer questions across arthroplasty, arthroscopy and sport, tumour, sepsis and limb reconstruction, the pelvis, sacrum and hip joint, foot and ankle, and foundation competencies.
4
Final Written Paper 3 - Trauma
Three-hour paper of 100-120 single best answer questions devoted to orthopaedic trauma, spread across general and paediatric trauma, the upper limb, the axial skeleton, and the lower limb.
5
Clinical Based Scenarios
Three 30-minute clinical scenario based stations, each marked by two examiners who agree a consensus mark; only candidates who pass the written papers proceed.
6
Standardised Orals
Three 30-minute standardised orals on slide presentations of eight to ten cases covering orthopaedic trauma, orthopaedic pathology, and reconstructive and elective orthopaedic surgery.
Subspecialty weighting
Full blueprintTrauma
33%
Paediatric Orthopaedics
6%
Spinal Surgery
6%
Shoulder & Elbow
6%
Hand & Wrist
6%
Basic Sciences
6%
Arthroplasty
6%
Arthroscopy & Sport
6%
General Orthopaedics
5%
Tumour, Sepsis & Limb Reconstruction
5%
Pelvis, Sacrum & Hip Joint
5%
Foot & Ankle
5%
Foundation Competencies
5%
Checking your access…
FC Orth(SA) examination structure and blueprint
The FC Orth(SA) is administered by Fellowship of the College of Orthopaedic Surgeons of South Africa, awarded through the Colleges of Medicine of South Africa (CMSA) after the FCS(SA) Primary, the FC Orth(SA) Intermediate, and the FC Orth(SA) Final examination. This is an independent OrthoVellum study map based on public CMSA exam information, not an official CMSA product. for candidates in South Africa. It is assessed across 6 assessment formats and 13orthopaedic subspecialties. OrthoVellum maps 824 verified topics onto this blueprint.