Checked 2 November 2026. Exam facts are from APC's OPRA Exam Guide (30 July 2026, version 2.3), its OPRA Exam Sample Content (30 July 2026, version 2.1) and its Knowledge stream page, all read on 2 Nov 2026. APC updates these documents; check the version date on its site before you rely on a detail.
There are no official OPRA past papers or previous-year question papers: before the exam every candidate has 5 minutes to read and agree to a non-disclosure agreement, and the Australian Pharmacy Council (APC) says it does not share the questions and answers from any exam attempt. The free official material is APC's OPRA Exam Sample Content PDF (25 retired questions with an answer sheet) and Pearson's online sample test of the exam software.
Below you will find how APC writes OPRA questions, what each of the five content areas asks for, two original worked questions with full answers (one pharmacokinetics calculation and one therapeutics dose calculation), and a free 4-question sample, from 4 different content areas, that you can take in our timed practice player.
ProSyllabus is an independent study site. It is not affiliated with the Australian Pharmacy Council (APC) or Pearson VUE. The questions on this page are original exam-style questions written by us; they are not APC questions and not questions from any OPRA exam.
APC OPRA Exam Guide, 30 July 2026, version 2.3, read 2 Nov 2026.
Key facts: OPRA exam questions
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Question type | Multiple choice: each question has a single correct answer and 3 incorrect options |
| Number and time | 120 questions in 150 minutes (2 hours 30 minutes); the timer starts at the first question |
| Before and after | 5 minutes to read and agree to a non-disclosure agreement and a 10-minute software tutorial before; a 5-minute feedback survey after. None of this counts towards exam time |
| Delivery | Closed book, computer-based, at approved test centres. Each session has several live versions, randomly allocated, and the question order is random |
| Scored questions | 90% are scored; 10% are unscored calibration questions, spread evenly across the five areas |
| Pass standard | Scaled scoring; the passing score is set by psychometric standard-setting with subject matter experts. APC does not release raw scores or percentages |
| Past papers | None. APC does not share the questions and answers from your exam attempt |
| Official free practice | APC's OPRA Exam Sample Content PDF (13 pages, 25 questions with an answer sheet) and Pearson's online sample test of the exam software |
| Exam fee | AU$2245 per attempt (the eligibility check is AU$810 and is needed first) |
Official pages: APC's OPRA exam guide and sample content page, the OPRA Exam Guide PDF, and the Knowledge stream page for eligibility, fees and dates. Pearson VUE, APC's exam provider, has the online sample test. For the next sittings and registration windows, see our OPRA exam alerts and updates and OPRA exam dates 2027 pages.
Is there an official OPRA question paper or previous year paper?
No. Searches for an "OPRA question paper", "OPRA previous year papers" or "OPRA questions and answers PDF" will turn up files that claim to be from real sittings. APC's position is plain: it does not share the questions and answers from your exam attempt, and candidates agree to a non-disclosure agreement before they start. Material sold as "recalls" is unverified, and sharing remembered exam content may also breach that agreement. APC also warns candidates to be cautious of third-party information and scams, and says it does not endorse any OPRA preparation program, ours included.
What APC does publish is useful. Its sample content PDF (version 2.1, 30 July 2026) has 25 questions that APC says are no longer used in its exams, chosen from all five content areas so you can see the format and layout, with an answer sheet that names the content area of each question. It gives the key but no explanations, and APC notes that it cannot guarantee the answers stay accurate as practice guidelines change. Do it first, timed at about 75 seconds a question (150 minutes ÷ 120), and then use the worked questions below to practise the reasoning.
How OPRA questions are built
APC's exam guide describes its question-construction standards and the approximate mix of cognitive levels. Knowing these rules saves time on the day:
| Rule | What APC says | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Drug names | Drug and ingredient names follow the TGA list of approved names | Learn the TGA approved names, for example paracetamol, adrenaline and furosemide (formerly frusemide) |
| Units and directions | Follow the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care recommendations for terminology, abbreviations and symbols | Learn the Commission's recommended medicine terminology and abbreviations |
| Values | SI (metric) units | Creatinine in micromol/L, glucose in mmol/L; practise formulas in SI form |
| Determiners | Bold and capitalised, for example CORRECT, MOST, LEAST, NOT | Read the determiner twice; a LEAST or NOT question reverses what you are looking for |
| Thinking level | About 55% remembering/recall, 30% comprehension/understanding, 15% application | About 55% of questions assess recall, so drill facts, but practise understanding and application (cases, calculations) too |
| Scope | The exam does not examine pharmacy practice issues specific to Australia or NZ, such as legislation or practice standards; these are examined in later assessments during the internship | Spend your time on the sciences and therapeutics, not on Australian law |
The five content areas and their weights
APC gives the approximate percentage of questions allocated to each area. APC also says the 10% unscored questions do not count towards these content-area targets, so it does not specify an exact number of questions per area. Therapeutics and patient care alone is almost half of the exam.
APC OPRA Exam Guide, Table 1. Unscored questions do not count towards these targets.
| Content area | APC share | APC topics (examples) |
|---|---|---|
| Biomedical sciences | 20% | Physiology of all systems, pathophysiology, medical microbiology, immunology and vaccines, fluid, electrolyte and acid-base disorders, signs, symptoms and lab values |
| Medicinal chemistry and biopharmaceutics | 10% | Physicochemical properties, formulations, drug stability (hydrolysis, oxidation, zero and first order), solubility, formulation by route, pharmaceutical microbiology |
| Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics | 10% | Drug metabolism, bioavailability, half-life, clearance, protein binding, steady state, loading doses, dose adjustment in renal and hepatic dysfunction |
| Pharmacology and toxicology | 15% | Receptor theory, mechanisms of action, adverse reactions, interactions, overdose and antidotes, genetic polymorphism |
| Therapeutics and patient care | 45% | Screening (BMI, creatinine clearance), dose calculations, primary health care, special populations, monitoring and adherence, harm minimisation, health promotion, confidentiality |
The full topic list per area, with a study-hours checklist, is in our OPRA exam syllabus guide.
What each content area asks for
| Content area | What the questions tend to test (our reading of APC's topic list) | How to practise |
|---|---|---|
| Biomedical sciences | Normal and abnormal body function, often physiology that later explains how a drug works | Learn the numbers that matter (where and how much) and link each one to a drug class |
| Medicinal chemistry and biopharmaceutics | Formulation, stability, solubility and the materials and methods used to formulate drug delivery systems | Know what each common excipient is for, and practise first- and zero-order stability sums |
| Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics | Definitions (steady state, half-life, clearance) and the calculations APC names: loading doses, time to steady state, dose adjustment | Write each formula with units and check the answer is the right order of size |
| Pharmacology and toxicology | Mechanisms of action, receptor theory, adverse reactions, interactions, overdose and antidotes | Wrong options can be other real drug classes: name the drug behind each option |
| Therapeutics and patient care | Calculations, screening formulas, special populations, monitoring, harm minimisation and counselling | Write every calculation out in steps, with units, even when it looks easy |
Worked question 1: pharmacokinetics
Try it before you open the answer. PK questions mix definitions with short calculations; this one tests first-order elimination.
Question 1 · Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics
A drug is eliminated by first-order kinetics with a half-life of 6 hours. Its plasma concentration is 80 mg/L at 8 am, and no further doses are given. What is the expected concentration at 8 am the next day?
- A. 5 mg/L
- B. 10 mg/L
- C. 20 mg/L
- D. 0 mg/L (fully eliminated)
Show the answer and explanation
Answer: A. 5 mg/L.
24 hours is 24 ÷ 6 = 4 half-lives. Each half-life halves the concentration: 80 → 40 → 20 → 10 → 5 mg/L. As a formula: C = C0 × (½)n = 80 × 1/16 = 5 mg/L.
The distractors: 20 mg/L stops after 2 half-lives (12 hours) and 10 mg/L after 3 (18 hours). 0 mg/L wrongly assumes the drug is fully gone after four half-lives; under first-order kinetics 1/16 (6.25%) is still there, and the concentration keeps halving without reaching exactly zero.
Rule of thumb: with first-order elimination, about 94 to 97% of the initial amount is gone after 4 to 5 half-lives. Under linear pharmacokinetics with unchanged clearance and regular dosing, concentrations approach steady state over a similar period. Real washout periods also depend on the medicine, its active metabolites and how long its effects last.
Source: standard clinical pharmacokinetics textbook knowledge (first-order elimination); the drug and figures are hypothetical. An original ProSyllabus question, not an APC or OPRA exam question.
Try a free practice test
Take a short free sample in our timed practice player. It has 4 questions from 4 different content areas, explains every answer and shows your score by area.
Free sample: a few timed questions in our test player, with your score, time per question and the reason behind every answer. Start the free sample.
Worked question 2: therapeutics and patient care
Almost half of the exam is therapeutics and patient care, and dose calculations are one of the topics APC lists for it. This one is a weight-based paediatric dose.
Question 2 · Therapeutics and patient care (dose calculation)
A child weighing 18 kg is prescribed paracetamol 15 mg/kg per dose. The pharmacy stocks paracetamol oral liquid 120 mg/5 mL. What volume should be given for each dose?
- A. 2.25 mL
- B. 5.6 mL
- C. 9 mL
- D. 11.25 mL
Show the answer and explanation
Answer: D. 11.25 mL.
Step 1, the dose: 15 mg/kg × 18 kg = 270 mg. Step 2, the volume: 270 mg ÷ 120 mg × 5 mL = 11.25 mL. A quick check: 120 mg is in 5 mL, so 240 mg is in 10 mL, and 270 mg must be a little over 10 mL.
The distractors: 2.25 mL is 270 ÷ 120 with the 5 mL forgotten; 5.6 mL uses a 240 mg/5 mL strength instead of the one stocked; 9 mL is a 12 mg/kg dose.
In practice, paracetamol liquids for children come in more than one strength, which is how mix-ups happen. 11.25 mL is the calculated volume; any practical rounding should follow the measuring device's graduations and local guidance. Confirm the strength on the bottle, then check the dosing interval and the maximum number of doses in 24 hours on the product label or with the prescriber.
Source: calculation from the figures in the question (ratio and proportion); dosing details are in the question stem. An original ProSyllabus question, not an APC or OPRA exam question.
How to use sample questions well
| Step | What to do (our method) |
|---|---|
| 1. Baseline | Do APC's 25-question sample PDF in one sitting, about 31 minutes (25 × 75 seconds), with no notes |
| 2. Mark by area | Use the answer sheet's content-area column to see which areas cost you marks |
| 3. Reason, not just the key | For every miss, write why the right answer is right and why each wrong option is wrong, as in the explanations above |
| 4. Weight your study | Spend time roughly in the APC split: about half on therapeutics, a fifth on biomedical sciences |
| 5. Full-length timing | Before the exam, sit at least one full 120-question, 150-minute mock in one go; stamina is part of the test |
| 6. Software | Run Pearson's online sample test so the exam screen holds no surprises |
APC says its exam content is based on the latest information in peer-reviewed journals, clinical practice guidelines and textbooks, and asks candidates to use up-to-date, evidence-based resources. For Australian medicine information, consult the current TGA Product Information where available; it is free and public.
Common mistakes on OPRA-style questions
- Missing the determiner. NOT asks for the option that does not fit the statement; LEAST asks for the option that fits it least, and all four may look plausible. Read the bold word twice.
- Counting half-lives wrongly: 24 hours at a 6-hour half-life is 4 halvings, not 3; and first-order elimination never reaches exactly zero.
- Picking the wrong strength in a paediatric liquid calculation. Read the mg per mL in the stem, not the one you remember.
- Answering from home-country names and habits. OPRA uses TGA approved names; use current, evidence-based references, including the Australian Product Information where relevant.
- Trusting "recalls" or "past papers". There are none from APC, and what circulates is unverified.
- Running out of time. 150 minutes for 120 questions is 75 seconds each; flag long calculations and come back.
Ready for a full-length OPRA mock?
A few questions show you the style; the exam is 120 questions in 150 minutes. Our OPRA Exam Mock Test gives you full-length timed mocks in the official content-area weights, original exam-style questions with every answer explained, and a practice score broken down by content area, like the feedback in APC's result report.
See the OPRA Exam Mock Test. Independent practice; not affiliated with the Australian Pharmacy Council.
Frequently asked questions
Are there official OPRA exam previous year papers?
No. APC does not share the questions and answers from any exam attempt, and candidates agree to a non-disclosure agreement before the exam. The official free material is APC's OPRA Exam Sample Content PDF (25 retired questions with an answer sheet) and Pearson's online sample test of the exam software.
Where can I download the OPRA sample questions PDF?
From the Australian Pharmacy Council's OPRA exam guide and sample content page. The 2026 sample content PDF (version 2.1, 30 July 2026) is 13 pages with 25 questions and an answer sheet that names each question's content area.
How many questions are in the OPRA exam?
120 multiple-choice questions in 150 minutes. Each question has a single correct answer and 3 incorrect options. 90% of the questions are scored and 10% are unscored calibration questions, and you are not told which.
What are the OPRA content areas and weights?
Therapeutics and patient care 45%, biomedical sciences 20%, pharmacology and toxicology 15%, medicinal chemistry and biopharmaceutics 10%, and pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics 10% (APC OPRA Exam Guide, Table 1).
What is the pass mark for the OPRA exam?
APC does not publish one as a raw mark or percentage. The exam uses scaled scoring, and the passing score is set through psychometric standard-setting with subject matter experts. You must meet the standard set for the exam form you are given, across the whole exam.
Is there negative marking in the OPRA exam?
APC's exam guide describes scaled scoring of the scored questions and does not mention any penalty for wrong answers, but it does not state a policy either way. Check APC's current candidate instructions for the marking policy. If wrong answers carry no penalty, attempt every question.
Does OPRA test Australian pharmacy law?
No. APC says the OPRA exam does not examine practice issues specific to Australia or New Zealand, such as legislation or practice standards; those are assessed later, during the internship.
Are the questions on this page real OPRA questions?
No. They are original exam-style questions written by ProSyllabus in the official question format, each explained step by step. They are not APC questions and not from any OPRA exam.
Is the OPRA exam the same as the KAPS exam?
OPRA is the current APC knowledge exam for overseas-trained pharmacists. Our guide to the KAPS exam explains what changed from KAPS and what stayed the same.
How much does the OPRA exam cost?
APC lists the exam at AU$2245 per attempt. The eligibility check you need first is AU$810, and the Skills Assessment Outcome after passing is AU$300.
Sources
- official — Australian Pharmacy Council: OPRA exam guide and sample content (exam structure, content areas, scoring, results, resources)
- official — Australian Pharmacy Council: OPRA Exam Guide, 30 July 2026, version 2.3 (PDF, 14 pages)
- official — Australian Pharmacy Council: OPRA Exam Sample Content, 30 July 2026, version 2.1 (PDF, 13 pages, 25 questions with an answer sheet)
- official — Australian Pharmacy Council: Knowledge stream skills assessment (eligibility check, OPRA exam, fees, dates)
- official — Pearson VUE: Australian Pharmacy Council candidate page (online sample test of the exam software)
official = a document published by the conducting body. reported = a news or coaching site we could not check against an original. Where sources disagree this page says so rather than picking one.
