USMLE
The United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) is an exam conducted jointly by the Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States and the National Board of Medical Examiners.
The USMLE assesses a physician's ability to apply knowledge, concepts, and principles, and to demonstrate fundamental patient-centered skills, that are important in health and disease and that constitute the basis of safe and effective patient care. Each of the three Steps of the USMLE complements the others; no Step can stand alone in the assessment of readiness for medical licensure. Because individual medical licensing authorities make decisions regarding use of USMLE results, physicians seeking licensure should contact the jurisdiction where they intend to apply for licensure to obtain complete information. Also, the FSMB can provide general information on medical licensure.
Step1
Step 1 assesses whether you understand and can apply important concepts of the sciences basic to the practice of medicine, with special emphasis on principles and mechanisms underlying health, disease, and modes of therapy. Step 1 ensures mastery of not only the sciences that provide a foundation for the safe and competent practice of medicine in the present, but also the scientific principles required for maintenance of competence through lifelong learning. Step 1 is constructed according to an integrated content outline that organizes basic science material along two dimensions: system and process.
Click here for Step 1 content and general information
Step 2
Step 2 assesses whether you can apply medical knowledge, skills, and understanding of clinical science essential for the provision of patient care under supervision and includes emphasis on health promotion and disease prevention. Step 2 ensures that due attention is devoted to principles of clinical sciences and basic patient-centered skills that provide the foundation for the safe and competent practice of medicine.
Clinical Knowledge (CK)
Step 2 CK is constructed according to an integrated content outline that organizes clinical science material along two dimensions: physician task and disease category.
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Clinical Skills (CS)
Step 2 CS uses standardized patients, i.e., people trained to portray real patients. The cases cover common and important situations that a physician is likely to encounter in clinics, doctors’ offices, emergency departments, and hospital settings in the United States.
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Step 3
Step 3 assesses whether you can apply medical knowledge and understanding of biomedical and clinical science essential for the unsupervised practice of medicine, with emphasis on patient management in ambulatory settings. Step 3 provides a final assessment of physicians assuming independent responsibility for delivering general medical care. A principal organizing dimension for Step 3 design is normal conditions and disease categories. Second and third organizing dimensions are the clinical encounter frame and physician tasks. Step 3 content reflects a data-based model of generalist medical practice in the United States.
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Click here for USMLE FAQs
Click here for USMLE Information Bulletin
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