The Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), through its program of certification, assesses whether international medical graduates are ready to enter residency or fellowship programs in the United States that are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).
To be eligible for certification by ECFMG, international medical graduates must meet the following examination and medical education credential requirements..
To meet the medical science examination requirement for ECFMG Certification
applicants must pass Step 1 and Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK) of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE).
To meet the clinical skills requirement and communication skills requirement for ECFMG Certification
• Complete an ECFMG Pathway, which includes attaining a satisfactory score on the Occupational English Test (OET) Medicine,OR
• Have a passing performance on the former Step 2 Clinical Skills (CS) component of USMLE that is valid for ECFMG Certification.
You must send two (2) photocopies of your medical diploma and one (1) full-face color photograph to ECFMG. Applicants for ECFMG Certification must document the completion of all requirements for, and receipt of, the final medical diploma. ECFMG verifies every applicants medical school diploma with the appropriate officials of the medical school that issued the diploma. When ECFMG sends your medical diploma to your medical school for verification, ECFMG will request the medical school include your final medical school transcript when the school returns the verification of your medical diploma to ECFMG. An applicants credentials are not considered complete until ECFMG receives verification of the medical diploma and the final medical school transcript directly from the medical school. For detailed information, see Medical Education Credentials (ECFMG 2023 Information Booklet)
The physician’s graduation year must be included in the ECFMG note in the medical school's World Directory listing. International medical graduates must have been awarded credit for at least four credit years (academic years for which credit has been given toward completion of the medical curriculum) by a medical school that is listed in the World Directory with an ECFMG note stating it meets ECFMG eligibility requirements. There are restrictions on credits transferred to the medical school that awards an applicant’s medical degree that can be used to meet this requirement.