CHANGE IN STEP 1 MINIMUM PASSING SCORE

As stated in the USMLE Bulletin of Information and as explained in a previous posting to the USMLE website, the level of proficiency required to meet the recommended minimum passing level for each USMLE Step examination is reviewed periodically and may be adjusted at any time. Notice of such review and any adjustments are posted at the USMLE website.

At its December 2006 meeting, the Step 1 Committee conducted such a review, considering information from multiple sources including: 1) recommendations from physicians and scientists who participated in content-based standard-setting activities in the fall of 2006; 2) results of surveys of various groups concerning the appropriateness of current pass/fail standards for Step examinations; 3) trends in examinee performance; and 4) score precision and its effect on the pass/fail decision. As a result of this review, the Step 1 Committee decided to raise the three-digit score recommended to pass Step 1 from 182 to 185. The new minimum passing score will be applied to Step 1 examinations for which the first day of testing is on or after January 1, 2007.

Step 3 Electronic Scheduling Permit

EFFECTIVE DECEMBER 7, 2006, THE USMLE PROGRAM WILL PRODUCE SCHEDULING PERMITS AS AN ELECTRONIC DOCUMENT. THEREFORE, AN E-MAIL ADDRESS IS A MANDATORY FIELD THAT MUST BE COMPLETED ON THE STEP 3 APPLICATION IN ORDER TO INSTRUCT YOU ON OBTAINING AND PRINTING YOUR SCHEDULING PERMIT. CHECK THE USMLE AND FSMB WEBSITES FOR THE MOST CURRENT INFORMATION.

Once your application is registered and eligibility status approved, an email will be sent to you indicating you have been approved and that information regarding your electronic scheduling permit will be forthcoming. Within 3-5 business days, a subsequent email will be sent to you with instructions on obtaining and printing your electronic scheduling permit. The scheduling permit includes your assigned eligibility period (90 days plus two additional weeks for processing), which begins immediately once your application is approved, as well as other pertinent information and instructions. Consult the USMLE Bulletin of Information for more details.

NOTE: THE NAME ON YOUR UN-EXPIRED, GOVERNMENT-ISSUED PHOTO IDENTIFICATION THAT YOU ARE REQUIRED TO PRESENT AT THE TEST CENTER MUST MATCH EXACTLY THE NAME ON YOUR SCHEDULING PERMIT.

It is your responsibility to obtain and print your USMLE Step 3 electronic scheduling permit. Your permit will remain available until after your Step 3 score report is released. Therefore, if your scheduling permit is misplaced or destroyed you can reprint it from the Candidate website. You will not be allowed to sit for the Step 3 exam without presenting your Scheduling Permit to the proctoring staff on each day of the exam.

Inability to present your permit may require you to cancel your current test date and reschedule your appointment. You may also incur a fee from Prometric if you are rescheduling within five days of your exam date. If there is insufficient time remaining in your eligibility period to reschedule (or request and pay for an eligibility extension), you risk forfeiting your Step 3 exam fee.

NOTE: You can use the Candidate website to monitor the status of your application and the availability of your scheduling permit.

Interruption of Prometric Scheduling Services For Step 1, Step 2 CK and Step 3 October 13-15, 2006

Thompson Prometric, which provides scheduling services for Step 1, Step 2 CK, and Step 3, is moving into new headquarters in Baltimore, MD. Scheduled outages to exam scheduling systems are planned for weekend hours and will be kept to a minimum.

Prometric's online and telephone scheduling systems will be unavailable during the following times:

• Friday, October 13th at 8:00 PM EDT to Sunday, October 15th at 8:00 PM EDT

During this period, you will be unable to do the following for Step 1, Step 2 CK, or Step 3:

• Schedule, cancel, reschedule, or confirm your testing appointment
• Print a confirmation notice

Scheduling services for Step 2 CS will not be affected.

If you anticipate using the above services during these times, please complete your transaction(s) before the times posted to ensure that you do not miss required deadlines or incur any fees that may result.

There should be no interruption in testing during this time.

Step 2 CS Scheduling - Pilot of email notification system

Beginning September 7, a new service will be pilot tested as part of the Step 2 CS scheduling process.  As part of this service, individuals who have already registered for Step 2 CS, and who are interested in scheduling a testing appointment, can indicate their preferences for test dates and centers.  As new testing sessions are opened, or as previously scheduled examinees change their appointments, the individuals participating in this notification program will be contacted about the opening(s) by email.  Participants will be allowed to submit preferences regardless of whether they have scheduled testing appointments, although it is recommended that examinees schedule a testing appointment as soon as they can after registration. This pilot notification program is an optional service; Step 2 CS registrants do not need to create preferences to use other features of Step 2 CS Scheduling, such as browsing available test dates or scheduling a testing appointment.

Participants in the pilot notification program will be asked to enter preferred date(s), test center(s), and an e-mail address for notification. Multiple dates and centers may be entered, but the dates must fall within the registrant’s eligibility period.  Please note that participants will receive a separate e-mail message for every date that becomes available within their range of preferences.  As a result, the number of e-mail messages may be large.  Also, indicating preferences will not automatically schedule the examinee for available dates; the participant will still need to go through the scheduling process and obtain a confirmation. If the participant has a scheduled testing appointment, then they will need to reschedule in order to get an available date.

Participants in this program should note that there will be other registrants who provide the same preferences; appointments will still be on a "first-come, first-served" basis and may quickly become unavailable after the notification.  This pilot program will be monitored for the next several months and may be modified or discontinued after an assessment of its impact on the CS scheduling process.   

The NBME test delivery software (FRED) is currently configured so that the Unauthorized Break screen appears if no action (e.g., mouse click) occurs during an examination for two minutes. Examinees receive a warning message 30 seconds before the Unauthorized Break screen appears due to inactivity.

Beginning in August 2006, over a period of approximately eight weeks, this function will be reset so that the length of inactive time to generate the Unauthorized Break screen will increase to five minutes. The warning message will still appear 30 seconds before the Unauthorized Break screen appears.

All individuals applying to take Step 3 using the 2006 application form must apply online by 5:00 CST on September 1, 2006 or forward a paper application for receipt by FSMB on that date.

Approximately three weeks later, the 2007 application will be posted to the FSMB website and online registration re-opened. Once posted to the website, individuals can register online or print and submit the application to FSMB for processing. Federation staff will begin processing 2007 applications starting the first week of October with November 1, 2006 set as the earliest date approved applicants can begin sitting Step 3 using the 2007 application.

The 2007 Step 3 application cycle runs November 1, 2006 through December 31, 2007. Individuals who immediately submit the 2007 application when it is made available can expect an eligibility period beginning November 1 and running through the end of January. Otherwise, the usual processing time will determine the exact start date of an examinee's eligibility period within the 2007 application cycle. (Online registrants: 3-5 business days after receipt of the photo id/signature page; paper applications: 2-3 weeks). An additional 15 days is added to the 90-day eligibility period to allow for mailing of the scheduling permit.

Members of all three United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step committees, including nine current or former members of state medical boards, met in San Diego on July 15th through 18th. The discussions centered upon strategic planning for the future structure, format and content of the USMLE. The group identified a series of recommendations for consideration by a workgroup charged by the FSMB and the National Board of Medical Examiners with the comprehensive review of the USMLE program. This work continues the dialogue already begun with state medical boards through surveys and focus group activities conducted at the FSMB annual meeting.

For further information, contact David Johnson, Director of Examination Services at 817-868-4081 or djohnson@fsmb.org

The USMLE Step 2 Committee is responsible for setting and monitoring pass/fail standards for the Clinical Knowledge (CK) and the Clinical Skills (CS) examinations. Initial standards for the CS examination were set by the Committee in November 2004. Because this process was completed with less than a full year's cohort of examinees, the Committee decided to closely monitor cumulative data on CS during the following year and to undertake a review of the CS standards in the Spring of 2006. This review has been completed.

Based upon the review, the Step 2 Committee has decided to raise the performance levels required to receive a passing outcome on two of the three Step 2 CS subcomponents: Integrated Clinical Encounter (ICE) and Communication and Interpersonal Skills (CIS). There will be no change to minimum passing requirements for the third subcomponent of Step 2 CS, Spoken English Proficiency (SEP).

The new passing requirements will be applied to Step 2 CS examinations taken on and after July 16, 2006.

The USMLE Step 2 Committee is responsible for setting and monitoring pass/fail standards for the Clinical Knowledge (CK) and the Clinical Skills (CS) examinations. Initial standards for the CS examination were set by the Committee in November 2004. Because this process was completed with less than a full year's cohort of examinees, the Committee decided to closely monitor cumulative data on CS during the following year and to undertake a review of the CS standards in the Spring of 2006. This review process is underway and will be completed in the last half of June 2006.

One of the possible outcomes of the review is that there could be a modification to the performance levels required to pass one or more of the CS subcomponents (Integrated Clinical Encounter, Communication and Interpersonal Skills, Spoken English Proficiency). If there is a decision to make such modifications, it is likely that the new requirements will be applied beginning with those examinees taking Step 2 CS in the testing period that starts July 16, 2006. (Click here for 2006 Step 2 Clinical Skills Schedule for Reporting Results.)

Final decisions resulting from this process will be posted to the USMLE website during the last week in June.

The United State Medical Licensure Examination (USMLE) Budget Committee adopted the following fees for the 2007 test cycle at its April 11 meeting : Step1, $470; Step 2 CK, $470; Step 2 CS $1005 and Step 3, $655. (Note: Some variation in fees may occur based on the registering entity and the location where the USMLE is administered.) The $655 cost for Step 3 falls within the previously established $670 fee ceiling as communicated to member boards in a memorandum dated April 11, 2005. The committee also voted to establish a $690 fee ceiling for the Step 3 for the 2008 test cycle.

The fee ceiling alerts examinees and state boards of the possible maximum fee for the next test cycle. The fee schedule will be published in USMLE application materials as well as available on this site. For more information, please contact FSMB's Examination Services department at (817) 868-4041 or by e-mail at usmle@fsmb.org.