Certification News
Application Process Modified for Medical School Graduates
In May 2009, ECFMG modified the USMLE application process and the process for requesting Step 1/Step 2 CK eligibility period extensions for international medical graduates.
ECFMG will not register an international medical graduate for USMLE, or extend his/her eligibility period, before receiving verification of the applicant’s status as a medical school graduate directly from his/her medical school. This status must be verified in one of three ways:
- ECFMG receives primary-source verification of the applicant’s medical education credentials; or
- The medical school verifies the applicant’s graduate status through the ECFMG Medical School Web Portal (EMSWP); or
- The medical school verifies the applicant’s graduate status through the applicant’s Certification of Identification Form (Form 186).
If your medical education credentials have been primary-source verified by ECFMG, your medical school typically will not be required to reverify your graduate status in order for you to be registered for examination.
If your medical education credentials have not been primary-source verified by ECFMG, your status as a graduate must be verified before you will be registered for examination. The process by which your medical school will verify your graduate status varies depending on whether the medical school from which you graduated participates in EMSWP.
If the medical school from which you graduated participates in EMSWP, the medical school must verify your status as a graduate through EMSWP. Follow the instructions for applying for examination and submitting supporting documents, including Form 186 if you do not have one on file with ECFMG, in Applying for Examination. ECFMG will make your record available to your medical school and request verification of your graduate status typically within three weeks of receipt of your complete application. The time needed to complete the processing of your application is contingent upon your medical school’s response to the EMSWP verification request. You will not be registered for examination until your medical school verifies your status.
If the medical school from which you graduated does not participate in EMSWP, the medical school must verify your status as a graduate through your Form 186. Because of this modification in the application process, you may be required to complete a new Form 186, even if you previously had a valid Form 186 on file with ECFMG. Follow the instructions for applying for examination and submitting supporting documents, including Form 186, if required, in Applying for Examination. Once your new Form 186 is accepted by ECFMG, it will remain valid for five years. During this five-year period, you will be able to complete the exam application process entirely on-line.
You can check the status of your medical education credentials and the validity of your Form 186 via ECFMG’s OASIS. When you complete the on-line part of the exam application using ECFMG’s Interactive Web Application (IWA), IWA will produce the appropriate versions of Form 186, which you will be able to print.
ECFMG to Provide USMLE Performance Data to International Medical Schools
In late 2009, ECFMG will begin to provide international medical schools with data on the performance of their students/graduates who take USMLE. These data are made available in electronic format through the ECFMG Medical School Web Portal (EMSWP).
Data are available for USMLE exam administrations for students/graduates registered with ECFMG; this includes administrations of USMLE Step 1, USMLE Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK), and USMLE Step 2 Clinical Skills (CS). The data include whether each examinee passed the exam administration, and, for Step 1 and Step 2 CK, the examinee’s numerical score on both two-digit and three-digit scales.
Examinees have the option to withhold their exam results from their medical school; data are not made available on examinees who exercise this option. To have the results of an exam administration withheld, you must submit a request through ECFMG’s Interactive Web Application (IWA) at least 10 days before your scheduled test date. If you make this request, the score information provided to the medical school for that exam administration will list your name and the notation “record withheld at the request of the examinee.” If you want your score for that exam administration reported to your medical school subsequently, you must request and pay for a USMLE transcript (See USMLE Transcripts and Official USMLE Transcripts and Providing Scores to Third Parties in the USMLE Bulletin of Information).
Additionally, beginning in early 2010, ECFMG expects to start providing medical schools with aggregate USMLE performance data on their students/graduates. Aggregate data will be provided on an annual basis to medical schools that provide ECFMG with certain information relating to their student body, curriculum, and educational programs. The information provided by schools will be used by ECFMG’s foundation, the Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research (FAIMER), in its ongoing efforts to develop data resources on medical education programs throughout the world.
International medical schools have long expressed interest in obtaining USMLE performance data on their students/graduates, and we expect these opportunities to obtain such data to be mutually beneficial for the medical schools and ECFMG.
Eligibility for ECFMG’s IMG Advisors Network Expanded
The IMG Advisors Network (IAN) is a free service that connects qualified international medical students/graduates who plan to enter U.S. graduate medical education with advisors who can answer questions about living and working in the United States. Among other criteria, these IAN advisors must be certified by ECFMG and have entered an ACGME-accredited graduate medical education program.
Starting with the 2009 Match, the eligibility criteria to participate in IAN as an advisee have been expanded. In addition to applicants for initial J-1 Exchange Visitor visa sponsorship by ECFMG, international medical students/graduates who are participating in the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) and who have submitted a rank order list to the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) are eligible to be advisees. For more information on IAN, visit the Acculturation Program section of the ECFMG website or send e-mail to acculturation@ecfmg.org.
ECFMG to Pilot Electronic Primary-source Verification of Medical Education Credentials
In early 2010, ECFMG will begin to pilot electronic primary-source verification of medical education credentials through the ECFMG Medical School Web Portal (EMSWP). Monitor the ECFMG website for additional information.
Biometric Identity Management System Implemented as Part of Test Day Procedures for Computer-based USMLE Examinations
In July 2009, the USMLE program began to adopt new check-in/check-out procedures consistent with Prometric’s Biometric Identity Management System (BIMS) in most test centers for computer-based USMLE examinations (Step 1, Step 2 CK, and Step 3). BIMS is designed to improve the security and integrity of the testing process.
These new procedures include electronic capture of your identification, including your fingerprints and photograph, on the test day. These images and the identification document you provide on the test day will be paired with other personal information you have provided as part of the application process, including your name, address, telephone number, and date of birth or age, allowing accurate identification during the testing process. As you move in and out of the test lab at the test center, you will be able to use your finger to authenticate your identity using the scanners located in the test center, limiting or eliminating the need for you to provide additional identification throughout the test day to test center staff. Other standard procedures that are not part of the BIMS program will still apply; for example, you will be required to sign in and out during breaks. For additional information, refer to the USMLE website and the USMLE Bulletin of Information.
The personal information collected under the BIMS program will be stored in a centralized database for a maximum of 48 hours after your test day. Your biometric information will not be used by Prometric, USMLE, or USMLE program sponsors for purposes other than those stated in the BIMS Privacy Notice for USMLE Candidates, available on the USMLE website.
Comprehensive Review of USMLE
In 2004, the USMLE Composite Committee called for a comprehensive review of the entire USMLE program to determine if the mission and purpose of USMLE are effectively and efficiently supported by the current design, structure, and format of the USMLE. The primary responsibility for this review was given to the Committee to Evaluate the USMLE Program (CEUP), reflecting perspectives of students, residents, fellows, Deans and Associate Deans, basic science and clinical faculty, international medical graduates, state medical boards, practicing physicians, and the public.
The CEUP report and the implications of its recommendations were carefully reviewed by the staff and governing bodies of the Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States, Inc., the National Board of Medical Examiners, and ECFMG. In 2009, the proposal for changes to the USMLE program was approved. Research, planning, and implementation have begun. Up-to-date information on the current status of this process is posted at the USMLE website.
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