A Staphylococcus aureus isolate is erythromycin resistant and appears clindamycin susceptible. An erythromycin disc placed near a clindamycin disc produces a flattened, D-shaped clindamycin zone. How should clindamycin be reported?

Susceptible, increased exposure

A flask of broth culture breaks on the laboratory floor outside a safety cabinet. After warning others and leaving aerosols to settle, what should be done?

Cover with absorbent, add disinfectant, wait, then clean

Wipe it up with dry paper towels at once

Mop the area with water and detergent

Spray alcohol and leave the glass in place

Free DHA Microbiology Laboratory mock test

12 original exam-style questions from our Microbiology Laboratory bank, timed at the exam’s own pace, scored against the 55% DHA pass mark. They span 10 of the 10 blueprint domains, so you will see exactly where you are weakest - free, no sign-up.

Free diagnosticNo sign-up · no email · results instantly

Sit 12 original exam-style questions at real exam pace

These are 12 original questions taken from our Microbiology Laboratory bank, spread across 10 of the 10 domains of the published blueprint. You get 72 seconds per question, which is exactly the pace of the real MIC5691 exam (14 minutes for 12). At the end you will see which domains you are weakest in, and the full worked reasoning for every question.

12: questions
14:24: time limit
55%: DHA pass mark

A short diagnostic cannot predict whether you will pass - only the real exam does that. It will show you, honestly, where you currently stand.

What the real Microbiology Laboratory licensing exam looks like

Candidates for a Microbiology Laboratory licence in the UAE sit a computer-based multiple-choice examination - DHA exam code MIC5691, delivered through Prometric for DHA, MOHAP and SHA, and through Pearson VUE for DOH Abu Dhabi. The DHA pass mark is 55% (DHA CBT Guideline, Sep 2026); other authorities set their own, so confirm yours before booking. The result is reported to you as pass or fail only - your score is never released.

Pass marks at a glance: DHA exam codes and pass marks for all written exams in one sourced table.

The paper is built to a published blueprint, which is why a domain-by-domain diagnostic is more useful than a raw percentage. Your questions above were drawn from across Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing and Resistance, Bacteriology and Identification, Biosafety, Infection Prevention and Quality, Mycobacteriology and 6 more - the same areas the real paper weights.

Before you can book the exam at all you need Dataflow primary source verification of your degree, licence and experience, which typically runs several weeks. Candidates routinely underestimate this and end up sitting the exam sooner after study than they planned. Check where you stand with our free eligibility checker or confirm whether your title even requires an exam using the Prometric exam checker.

You get three attempts in total across all UAE authorities - not three each - under the Unified Professional Qualification Requirements. At roughly AED 880 per attempt, plus the licensing delay each failure adds to your visa and start date, the cost of going in underprepared is not really the exam fee.

What is on the Microbiology Laboratory exam: the full blueprint

The published blueprint splits into 10 domains and 67 testable sub-topics. The diagnostic above samples across them, which is why its breakdown maps onto the structure the real paper is built from.

Specimen Collection, Transport and Processing~10%6 topics
Bacteriology and Identification~20%9 topics
Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing and Resistance~15%8 topics
Mycology~8%6 topics
Parasitology~8%6 topics
Virology and Serology~10%7 topics
Molecular Diagnostics~8%6 topics
Mycobacteriology~6%6 topics
Biosafety, Infection Prevention and Quality~10%8 topics
Clinical Syndromes and Interpretation~5%5 topics

Questions: 150 multiple-choice (DHA MIC5691)
Duration: 3 hours, including registration
DHA pass mark: 55% - reported as pass or fail only

Figures for the DHA exam, from the DHA CBT Guideline, Sep 2026. DOH, MOHAP, SCFHS, QCHP, NHRA and OMSB set their own length, timing and pass mark. See the DHA exam guide and pass marks for every DHA exam.

A worked Microbiology Laboratory exam question

Every question in the diagnostic and in the paid bank is written to this standard: a clinical stem, four plausible options and the reasoning for the answer, with its source.

Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing and Resistance

For disc diffusion testing, the inoculum is adjusted to match a 0.5 McFarland standard. About how many bacteria per mL does this represent?

A1.5 x 10^3 CFU/mL
B1.5 x 10^5 CFU/mL
C1.5 x 10^10 CFU/mL
D1.5 x 10^8 CFU/mLCorrect

Why: A 0.5 McFarland standard corresponds to about 1.5 x 10^8 CFU/mL. Standardising the inoculum is essential, as heavy inocula give smaller zones and light inocula give larger zones. The plate should be inoculated within 15 minutes of adjustment.

Source: CLSI M02: Performance Standards for Antimicrobial Disk Susceptibility Tests

Microbiology Laboratory sample questions with answers

4 more original exam-style Microbiology Laboratory questions, worked in full. They are not real or recalled exam questions, and none of them is in the diagnostic above, so sit that first if you have not.

Question 1 · Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing and Resistance
A Staphylococcus aureus isolate is erythromycin resistant and appears clindamycin susceptible. An erythromycin disc placed near a clindamycin disc produces a flattened, D-shaped clindamycin zone. How should clindamycin be reported?
1. ASusceptible
2. BResistant
3. CSusceptible, increased exposure
4. DNot reportable
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. Resistant
A positive D-test shows inducible macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B resistance, and clindamycin may fail during treatment. Clindamycin should be reported as resistant, with a comment as required by the standard used. Reporting it susceptible risks treatment failure.
Reference: CLSI M100: Performance Standards for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing
Question 2 · Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing and Resistance
An Enterococcus faecium isolate has high-level resistance to vancomycin but remains susceptible to teicoplanin. Which resistance genotype is most likely?
1. AvanA
2. BvanC
3. CmecA
4. DvanB
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. vanB
The vanB genotype typically causes variable vancomycin resistance while teicoplanin remains active, because teicoplanin does not induce the vanB operon. VanA causes high-level resistance to both. VanC gives low-level intrinsic resistance in Enterococcus gallinarum and casseliflavus.
Reference: Murray's Manual of Clinical Microbiology, 12th ed.
Question 3 · Bacteriology and Identification
A blood culture from a pregnant woman grows small Gram-positive rods with narrow beta-haemolysis that are catalase positive and show tumbling motility at room temperature. What is the most likely organism?
1. AListeria monocytogenes
2. BCorynebacterium striatum
3. CBacillus cereus
4. DErysipelothrix rhusiopathiae
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. Listeria monocytogenes
Listeria monocytogenes is a catalase-positive Gram-positive rod with narrow beta-haemolysis and characteristic tumbling motility at 20 to 25 degrees Celsius, and it is aesculin positive. It is an important cause of bacteraemia in pregnancy. Erysipelothrix is catalase negative, and Bacillus cereus forms large spreading colonies.
Reference: Murray's Manual of Clinical Microbiology, 12th ed.
Question 4 · Biosafety, Infection Prevention and Quality
A flask of broth culture breaks on the laboratory floor outside a safety cabinet. After warning others and leaving aerosols to settle, what should be done?
1. AWipe it up with dry paper towels at once
2. BMop the area with water and detergent
3. CCover with absorbent, add disinfectant, wait, then clean
4. DSpray alcohol and leave the glass in place
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: C. Cover with absorbent, add disinfectant, wait, then clean
The spill should be covered with absorbent material, flooded with a suitable disinfectant such as a chlorine-releasing agent, left for the required contact time, then collected with tools into a sharps or waste container. Dry wiping creates aerosols and risks cuts. Detergent alone does not disinfect.
Reference: WHO Laboratory Biosafety Manual, 4th ed.

Last reviewed September 2026. About these questions: every item is original, written to the published blueprint, with a rationale and a reference, and no recalled or leaked exam content is used. How we write our questions.

How to use this diagnostic properly

1Sit it cold, once. Do not look anything up. A diagnostic you help yourself through tells you nothing. The number you get is only useful if it is honest.
2Read every rationale - especially the ones you got right. Getting a question right by elimination is not the same as knowing it. The worked reasoning is free above, whether or not you buy anything.
3Work weakest domain first. The breakdown orders your domains worst-first for exactly this reason. Studying what you are already good at feels productive and moves nothing.
4Re-sit under full exam conditions later. The real paper is far longer than this and stamina matters. Full-length timed papers are what the paid bank is for.

Frequently asked questions

Is this Microbiology Laboratory mock exam really free?

Yes. All 12 questions, your score, the domain breakdown and the full worked answers are free, with no sign-up and no email required. The paid bank is a separate, much larger set of 450 questions.

Are these real Microbiology Laboratory exam questions?

No. They are original questions written to the official Microbiology Laboratory blueprint and drawn from our full bank - not leaked or recalled items, which would breach exam security and are frequently out of date. They follow the exam's format and domain weighting.

What is the pass mark for the Microbiology Laboratory exam?

55% for the DHA Microbiology Laboratory exam (MIC5691), as published in the DHA CBT Guideline, Sep 2026. Other authorities set their own pass marks, so confirm yours before booking. DHA reports only pass or fail - your actual score is never released to you, which is why a diagnostic like this is useful for seeing where you stand.

Does passing this mock mean I will pass the real exam?

No, and we will not claim otherwise. 12 questions cannot predict a full-length paper. What it does reliably show is which blueprint domains you are currently weakest in.

How many attempts do I get at the real exam?

Three in total across all UAE authorities under the Unified Professional Qualification Requirements - not three per authority. Each attempt costs roughly AED 880.

What topics does the Microbiology Laboratory exam cover?

The published blueprint splits into 10 domains covering 67 testable sub-topics: Specimen Collection, Transport and Processing, Bacteriology and Identification, Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing and Resistance, Mycology, Parasitology, Virology and Serology, Molecular Diagnostics, Mycobacteriology, Biosafety, Infection Prevention and Quality, Clinical Syndromes and Interpretation. The full weighting table is on this page.

How long is the Microbiology Laboratory exam and how many questions?

The DHA Microbiology Laboratory exam (MIC5691) is 150 multiple-choice questions in 3 hours, including registration and the introduction, as published in the DHA CBT Guideline, Sep 2026. Other authorities set their own length and timing, so confirm theirs in the current candidate bulletin.

Do I need to create an account to take this mock exam?

No. There is no sign-up, no email capture and no payment. The questions, your score, the domain breakdown and the full worked answers are all free, and nothing is held back behind a form.