applicant
information
available in the ERAS Support Services section of the ECFMG website. Information on the status
of requests for electronic transmittal of USMLE transcripts via ERAS is not available through OASIS. If the program
does not participate in ERAS, you must submit a transcript request using Form 172 and pay the required fee.
Important Note: If you took the former ECFMG CSA, your USMLE transcript will indicate only that you
have CSA examination history. It will not provide any additional information on your attempt(s) on the CSA.
To request official copies of your CSA performance history, you must complete a
Request for an Official
ECFMG
®
CSA
®
History Chart (Form 297)
and submit it to ECFMG with the appropriate fee. Form 297 is
available in the Resources section of the ECFMG website and from ECFMG, upon request. For each
attempt on the ECFMG CSA, the Official ECFMG CSA History Chart includes the month and year of the
administration and the result of your performance. For additional information, refer to the instructions that
accompany Form 297.
Score Rechecks
For all Steps and Step Components, a change in your score or in your pass/fail outcome based on a recheck is an
extremely remote possibility. However, a recheck will be performed if you submit a
Request for Recheck of USMLE
®
Step 1, Step 2 CK, or Step 2 CS Score (Form 265)
and the fee for this service to ECFMG. Form 265 is available in the
Resources section of the ECFMG website and from ECFMG, upon request. Your request must be received by ECFMG
no later than 90 days after your score report release date. See Score Rechecks in the
USMLE Bulletin of Information
for more information.
Last updated: September 7, 2017
Copyright © 2017 by the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates. All rights reserved.
Page 39
The United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE)
About USMLE
|
Registration and Test Delivery Entities
|
Applying for Examination
|
Scheduling the Examination
|
Preparing for Examination
|
Taking the Examination
|
USMLE Program and Irregular Behavior
|
Examination Results
|
Reexamination and Reapplication
Reexamination and Reapplication
USMLE policy generally does not allow applicants to retake a Step or Step Component if they have already passed
that Step or Step Component. However, there are exceptions for the purpose of complying with a time limit imposed by
a medical licensing authority or another authority recognized by the USMLE program. See 'Time Limit for Completing
Examination Requirements' below.
If you fail a Step or Step Component, you must reapply, including payment of the appropriate fee(s), to retake the
exam. If you do not take an exam during your assigned eligibility period, you must reapply, including payment of the
appropriate fee(s), if you wish to take the exam; in this event, you may reapply at any time, however, ECFMG
cannot begin to process a subsequent application for this exam until at least four weeks after the end of the
eligibility period for the exam you did not take.
Number of Attempts Allowed
The USMLE program limits to six the total number of times an examinee can take the same Step or Step Component.
An examinee is ineligible to take a Step or Step Component after six or more prior attempts to pass that Step or
Step Component, including incomplete attempts. All attempts at a Step or Step Component are counted toward the
limit, regardless of when the exams were taken.
For the purpose of U.S. medical licensure, state medical licensing authorities may limit the number of attempts allowed
to pass each Step or Step Component. Information regarding specific state requirements can be obtained on the
FSMB website
.
Time Between Examination Attempts
The USMLE program has established rules on how quickly you can retake the same Step or Step Component. You
may not take the same examination more than three times within a 12-month period. Your fourth and subsequent
attempts must be at least 12 months after your first attempt at that exam and at least six months after your most
recent attempt at that exam.
Example: An examinee took and failed her first attempt at Step 1 on January 15, 2016, her second attempt
at Step 1 on April 15, 2016, and her third attempt at Step 1 on September 15, 2016. In January 2017, the
examinee applied for a fourth attempt at Step 1, and wanted the March-April-May eligibility period. The
earliest date that was both 12 months after her first attempt on January 15, 2016 and six months after her
most recent attempt on September 15, 2016 was March 15, 2017. Since the March-April-May eligibility
period began before this date, the earliest eligibility period that the applicant could request was
April-May-June.
When you reapply, your eligibility period will be adjusted, if necessary, to comply with these rules. You must read the
editions of the ECFMG Information Booklet and the USMLE Bulletin of Information that pertain to the eligibility period
in which you take the exam.
Time Limit for Completing Examination Requirements
For the purpose of ECFMG Certification, you must pass the USMLE Steps and Step Components required for ECFMG
Certification within a seven-year period. If you do not pass all Steps and Step Components required for ECFMG
Certification within a maximum of seven years, your earliest USMLE passing performance will no longer be valid for
ECFMG Certification. See
Time Limit for Completing Examination Requirements
in Examinations for ECFMG
Certification.
If you have passed a Step or Step Component but this passing performance is no longer valid for ECFMG
Certification, you may request an exception to retake the previously passed exam that is no longer valid.
For the purpose of U.S. medical licensure, time limits to complete the USMLE are established by state medical
Page 40