There are no test preparation courses affiliated with, or sanctioned by, the SPEX program. The most appropriate preparation for the SPEX is a well-planned and comprehensive review of up to-date textbooks, clinical review publications and periodicals. The FSMB has provided a practice test that may be printed and is available to anyone who is interested in it. Review of the items in the SPEX Information Bulletin and the practice test should provide familiarity with the formats used in the exam.

In addition, registered SPEX examinees may register with the FSMB and pay a nominal fee to Prometric Testing Centers to take the SPEX Practice Test. The fee for the practice exam is payable directly to Prometric at the time of scheduling. Please note that the Practice Test is the same as the practice examination offered to the left but is designed to provide examinees with an opportunity to experience the entire testing environment prior to the actual day of testing. The Practice Test is a 2-hour exam (a tutorial and two one-hour sections of approximately 50 test items each).*

To register for the SPEX Practice Test at a Prometric Testing Center, candidates should contact the FSMB at spex@fsmb.org or call (817) 868-4041 upon receipt of the scheduling permit.

* On April 26, 2010, a new, enhanced version of the SPEX will be released. Examinees who are taking SPEX on or after April 26 are encouraged to prepare by using a new, web-based "self-assessment" - the Comprehensive Clinical Medicine Self-Assessment (CCMSA). The content of the items in the CCMSA resembles the content in SPEX and will help SPEX examinees become familiar with the question formats used in the examination and with how to maneuver within the examination before their actual test date. The CCMSA is available at:

https://apps.nbme.org/nsasweb/servlet/mesa_main

Additional information about the new version of the SPEX is available here.