Examination Requirements for ECFMG Certification

Examination Requirements
To meet the examination requirements for ECFMG Certification, you must satisfy the medical science examination requirement, the clinical skills requirement, and the communication skills requirement. ECFMG has established time limits for completing these examination requirements for ECFMG Certification. See Time Limit for Completing Examination Requirements in Examination Requirements for ECFMG Certification.

Clinical Skills Requirement and Communication Skills Requirement

To satisfy the clinical skills requirement and the communication skills requirement for ECFMG Certification, you must:

• Have satisfied the requirements of an ECFMG Pathway, which includes attaining a satisfactory score on the Occupational English Test (OET) Medicine, that is valid for ECFMG Certification, OR
• Have a passing performance on the former Step 2 Clinical Skills (CS) component of USMLE that is valid for ECFMG Certification.

For detailed information on Pathways, including satisfactory scores for OET Medicine and Pathways eligibility requirements, refer to the Pathways in the ECFMG Certification section of the ECFMG website.

Important Note on Validity of Pathways: The Pathways are offered on a seasonal application cycle, and IMGs should consider the timing of their applications carefully. If you meet the clinical skills requirement and communication skills requirement for ECFMG Certification through the Pathways, your accepted Pathway is subject to expiration. The expiration date is based on the Pathways season for which the Pathways application was accepted. An accepted, unexpired Pathway is required to become ECFMG Certified. An accepted, unexpired Pathway also is required to participate in the National Resident Matching Program^® (NRMP^®) Main Residency Match^® (The Match^®). For detailed information on the Pathways, including expiration dates for each Pathways season, refer to the Pathways in the ECFMG Certification section of the ECFMG website.

IMGs also should be aware that ECFMG Certificates issued based on a Pathway are subject to expiration. See Standard ECFMG Certificate in ECFMG Certification for more information.

Important Note: Prior to its discontinuation by the USMLE program in 2020, Step 2 CS was the exam that satisfied the clinical skills and communication skills requirements for ECFMG Certification. A passing performance on the former Step 2 CS component of USMLE that is valid for ECFMG Certification still satisfies the clinical skills and communication skills requirements. This means that, if you have a passing performance on Step 2 CS that is valid for ECFMG Certification, you do not have to (and are not eligible to) pursue a Pathway. ECFMG Certificates issued to applicants who satisfied the clinical and communication skills requirements for ECFMG Certification through the former USMLE Step 2 CS are not subject to expiration.