The OPRA pass rate: what is actually published
Short answer: there isn't one. The Australian Pharmacy Council does not publish a pass rate for the OPRA exam, so any figure you find quoted is someone's estimate. Here is what is known, and what to track instead.
No official figure is published
APC does not release pass rates for the OPRA exam, by sitting or by cohort. Percentages circulating in forums and coaching adverts are not sourced from APC, and there is no way to verify them — treat a confident number as a marketing claim rather than data.
We would rather tell you that than invent a figure. If APC begins publishing pass rates, this page will carry them and say where they came from.
Why a pass rate would not tell you much anyway
Even a real cohort figure describes a population, not you. Candidates arrive with different qualifications, different years since graduating, and very different exposure to Australian practice — which is what the exam is actually testing.
A 60% cohort pass rate would not tell you whether you are in the 60% or the 40%. Your own per-domain accuracy under timed conditions does.
What is actually known about the standard
The exam is 120 multiple-choice questions in 2.5 hours, and it is weighted — Therapeutics and patient care is the largest content area in the APC's OPRA Exam Guide, at around 45%. That weighting is published, unlike the pass rate, and it is far more useful: it tells you where the marks are.
See the full syllabus breakdown for what each domain covers and how heavily it counts.
What improves your odds
Candidates who pass first time tend to share a pattern: they study the domains by weighting rather than evenly, drill calculations consistently instead of cramming them, sit full timed mocks, and review the reasoning behind every wrong answer — not just the correct key.
Preparation quality, not raw hours, is the differentiator. The preparation guide sets out a sequence for it.
Measure yourself instead
Since there is no external number to aim at, use an internal one. ClinicalStem scores full timed mocks against its own 70% practice benchmark and breaks the result down by domain, so you can see which area is still short rather than just how far off you are overall.
That benchmark is ClinicalStem's, not APC's — APC does not publish the mark required to pass. Treat it as a study target, not a prediction of the real exam.
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Start freeFrequently asked questions
What is the OPRA pass rate?
APC does not publish one. Any specific percentage you see quoted is an estimate that cannot be traced to an official source.
What mark do I need to pass the OPRA exam?
APC does not publish a pass mark for the OPRA exam either. ClinicalStem uses its own practice benchmark so you have something to aim at while preparing, but it is our figure, not APC's.
Is the OPRA exam hard?
It is a 120-question, 2.5-hour exam weighted heavily toward therapeutics and Australian practice. Candidates who struggle usually do so on the Australian-practice context rather than on pharmacology they already know.
How do I maximise my chance of passing?
Study by domain weighting, practise calculations early and repeatedly, sit full timed mocks, and review the explanation behind every mistake.
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