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Medical schools outside the United States and Canada
vary in educational standards, curriculum, and evaluation methods. The
Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), through
its program of certification, assesses whether physicians graduating
from these schools are ready to enter programs of graduate medical
education in the United States.
This Fact Sheet is intended to provide international
medical school students and graduates (IMGs) interested in graduate
medical education in the United States with basic information on ECFMG
Certification, as well as next steps and additional resources for those
who are ready to begin the certification process.
The definitive resource on ECFMG Certification is the
ECFMG
Information Booklet. The definitive resource on the United
States Medical Licensing Examination™ (USMLE™) is the
USMLE
Bulletin of Information. Before applying for examination and
certification, you must read the appropriate editions of these
publications. In the event that information in this Fact Sheet differs
from the corresponding information in the ECFMG Information Booklet
/ USMLE Bulletin of Information, the latter publications will
contain the most current and accurate information.
ECFMG Certification
The purpose of ECFMG Certification is to assess the
readiness of IMGs to enter U.S. residency and fellowship programs that
are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical
Education (ACGME). If you wish to enter such a program, you must be
certified by ECFMG before you can start the program. ECFMG Certification
is also required before applying to take Step 3 of the United States
Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE). In the United States, to obtain a
license to practice medicine, physicians must apply directly to the
jurisdiction where they plan to practice medicine. Licensing
jurisdictions in the United States require that IMGs applying for
unrestricted licensure be certified by ECFMG.
To be certified by ECFMG, you must satisfy ECFMG's
medical education credential requirements. You must also pass a series
of exams. Applicants who satisfy all requirements are issued ECFMG's
Standard ECFMG Certificate.
Eligibility & Requirements
To apply for ECFMG Certification, you must be an
international medical student or graduate. This means that your medical
school is located outside the United States and Canada. U.S. citizens
who graduate from such schools are considered IMGs and are eligible to
apply for ECFMG Certification. Non-U.S. citizens who graduate from
schools in the United States and Canada are not considered IMGs and are
not eligible for ECFMG Certification.
Additionally, your medical school must be listed in the
International
Medical Education Directory (IMED) of the
Foundation
for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research
(FAIMER®). If you are a medical school graduate, your graduation
year must be included in your school's IMED listing. If you are a
student, the "Graduation Years" in IMED for your medical school
must be listed as "Current." You can access IMED on the
ECFMG website.
To be eligible for certification, you must
graduate from a medical school that meets the requirements described
above, and fulfill the following additional medical education credential
requirements:
- You must have had at least four credit years (academic years for
which credit has been given toward completion of the medical
curriculum) at a medical school listed in IMED.
- You must supply ECFMG with copies of your medical education
credentials. These medical education credentials are listed in
ECFMG's
Reference Guide for Medical Education Credentials, available
in the
ECFMG Information Booklet on the ECFMG website. ECFMG
sends medical education credentials to the medical school that
issued them and must receive verification of these documents
directly from the medical school.
Applicants for ECFMG Certification must also satisfy the
following examination requirements:
- Medical Science Examination. USMLE Step 1 and Step 2
Clinical Knowledge (Step 2 CK) are the exams currently administered
that satisfy this requirement. Applicants register for these exams
with ECFMG and take these exams worldwide at test centers of
Prometric, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. ECFMG also accepts
certain former medical science exams to fulfill this requirement.
Refer to the
ECFMG
Information Booklet for more information.
- Clinical Skills Requirement. USMLE Step 2 Clinical Skills
(Step 2 CS) is the exam currently administered that satisfies this
requirement. Applicants register for Step 2 CS with ECFMG and take
the exam at one of several regional Clinical Skills Evaluation
Centers in the United States. Applicants who have both passed
the former ECFMG Clinical Skills Assessment (CSA®) and
achieved a score acceptable to ECFMG on an English language
proficiency test (such as the Test of English as a Foreign Language™
[TOEFL®] or the former ECFMG English test) can use these passing
performances to fulfill this requirement. Refer to the
ECFMG
Information Booklet for more information.
Step 1, Step 2 CK, and Step 2 CS are the same exams
taken by graduates of U.S. and Canadian medical schools. Detailed
information on the USMLE is available on the
USMLE website.
Refer to the
ECFMG website
for information on exam eligibility, fees, application, scheduling, test
centers, preparation, and sample test materials.
Applying for ECFMG Certification
The certification process begins when you send your
first exam application to ECFMG. Before applying for examination, you
must read the appropriate editions of the ECFMG Information Booklet
and the USMLE Bulletin of Information. Both publications are
available on this website. You can
apply for the
exams online, or you can
download paper
application materials. Detailed instructions accompany each
application.
Both medical school students and graduates can begin the
certification process. You can apply for the required exams as soon as
you meet the exam eligibility requirements. All of the required exams
are offered continuously throughout the year. However, since one of the
requirements for ECFMG Certification is verification of your medical
education credentials with your medical school, you cannot complete the
process until you graduate and obtain these documents.
There is no time limit for completing the certification
process. However, there are specific time requirements for completing
the exams for ECFMG Certification and medical licensure. These
requirements are described in the ECFMG Information Booklet and
USMLE Bulletin of Information, respectively.
The academic year for U.S. graduate medical education
programs typically begins in July. You must be certified by ECFMG before
your program's start date, although you can apply to programs before
becoming certified. In planning the timing of your exam application and
scheduling, you should also consider deadlines imposed by the programs
to which you plan to apply and the National Resident Matching Program.
See Applying to Graduate Medical
Education Programs.
Applying to Graduate Medical Education Programs
The Graduate Medical Education Directory,
published by the American Medical Association (AMA), is recognized as
the official list of ACGME-accredited graduate medical education
programs. For each medical specialty, the Directory provides
general and special requirements and specific information on each
program in that specialty. You can order the Directory on the
AMA website.
Application deadlines vary among programs. You should contact programs
directly for information on their deadlines.
Most programs require applicants to submit their
applications using the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS®).
ERAS® was developed by the Association of American Medical Colleges
(AAMC) to transmit residency applications via the Internet. ECFMG
coordinates the ERAS® application process for IMGs.
ERAS®
information for IMGs is available on this website. Programs that do
not participate in ERAS® require applicants to use paper application
materials. You should contact programs directly for their requirements.
The National Resident Matching Program (NRMP), also
known as "the Match," matches applicants with available residency
positions in the programs to which they have applied. If you wish to
participate, you must register with the NRMP. Refer to the
NRMP Page for
requirements and deadlines, as well as information on the numbers of
IMGs who have obtained residency positions through the Match in recent
years.
Obtaining a Visa
IMGs who are neither citizens nor lawful permanent
residents of the United States must obtain an appropriate visa to
participate in U.S. graduate medical education programs. The most common
visa employed for this purpose is the J-1 visa. ECFMG is authorized by
the U.S. Department of State to sponsor foreign national physicians for
the J-1 visa. Information on eligibility and deadlines is available from
ECFMG's
Exchange Visitor Sponsorship Program. Additional information is
available from the
U.S. Department of State Exchange Visitor Program. General
information on the entry of foreign nationals to the United States is
available from the
Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services and the
U.S. Department of
Homeland Security.
Resources
ECFMG Certification
The ECFMG website
provides access to important updates, application materials, and
publications, including:
ECFMG
Information Booklet, including the
Reference Guide for Medical Education Credentials
USMLE
Bulletin of Information
International Medical Education Directory
The ECFMG Reporter - ECFMG's free e-mail newsletter for IMGs
interested in ECFMG Certification.
Subscribe
Applying to Graduate Medical Education Programs
Graduate Medical
Education Directory
AAMC® ERAS® website
ERAS® for
IMGs
ECFMG-ERAS® News - ECFMG's free e-mail newsletter for IMGs
participating in ERAS®.
Subscribe
National Resident
Matching Program
Visas
ECFMG
Exchange Visitor Sponsorship Program
ECFMG®
J-1 Visa Sponsorship Fact Sheet
U.S. Department of State Exchange Visitor Program
Bureau of
Citizenship and Immigration Services
U.S. Department
of Homeland Security
Additional Information
ECFMG representatives are available to answer your questions by
e-mail at
info@ecfmg.org, or
phone at (215) 386-5900 from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Eastern time
in the United States, Monday through Friday.
ECFMG
ECFMG is a private, non-profit organization committed to
promoting excellence in international medical education. ECFMG's aims
and missions include providing information to IMGs regarding entry into
graduate medical education and health care systems in the United States,
evaluating the qualifications of IMGs, and providing international
access to testing and evaluation programs.
ECFMG's organizational members are:
American
Board of Medical Specialties
American Medical
Association
Association of American
Medical Colleges
Association for Hospital
Medical Education
Federation of State Medical
Boards of the United States, Inc.
National Medical
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