USMLE Step by Step Lecture Presentation

1. USMLE Step By
Step
Amr Abdelbadee
General Practitioner,
Assiut Health Directorate, MOH

3. What is USMLE?
• USMLE stands for the United States Medical
Licensing Examination
• Taken by EVERYONE who wants to work as a
doctor in the US – US citizens included

4. Why USMLE
• Apply for USMLE if you want or have plans to
work as a doctor in…
o The United States
o Arab countries
o Most top private hospitals in Egypt (Dar El-Fouad,
World Medical Center, Prof. Sir Magdi Yacoub
Heart Center,….)

5. Is America good for me?
• Yes, if…
o You seek a job in top medical institutions in the
world
o You want to learn from the best doctors
o Science and knowledge are your primary
concern
o You want to live with higher freedom limits
o You are good enough in English
o You are open-minded and accepting cultural
differences

6. Is America good for me?
• No, if…
o Money is your primary concern – Go to the Gulf!
o Religion is a serious issue to you – KSA is good for
a Muslim, or just stay in Egypt!
o You can barely speak medical English – Egypt
loves you this way!
o Cultural differences are a pain to you – Arab
nations can pay you well while living in a similar
culture to ours…
o You’re a girl… sometimes!

7. Easy enough???
• You should think again!

8. Before you start..
• Think about the real
goal of your life
• Think about your
opportunities in Egypt
• Think about the
benefits and risks of
taking the USMLE
• Think about other
opportunities
worldwide
• Think about your own
conditions

9. Girls and USMLE
• Your Life Plan
o Family vs. career
o Marriage
o Ability to travel
o Ambition

10. ARE YOU READY?

11. USMLE for an IMG
• You can apply if your college is present on
their records – IMED
• Applications go through the ECFMG Web
Portal
• Prepare your documents the right way
• Prepare your credit card and load it with
money, lots of it! (about EGP 10,000 in
today’s rates)
o Don’t have one?! Get one now from CIB

12. Get Started – Seriously!
• Open an account at ECFMG Web Portal
• Costs some money – $65 as of 2014

13. Step 1
• Computer-based MCQ
• Taken at a registered Prometric Center
• Tests your knowledge in basic medical
sciences
• Tests your thinking and interpretation skills
• Tests how you may deal with clinical
problems based on the basic science you
know
• Tests your patience!

14. How much does it cost?
$1015
as of 2015

15. Preparation
• Long-Term Plans
• Mid-range plans
• Short-term plans
• Crash plans

16. Sources
• Notes
• Videos

17. Notes
• Kaplan Notes
• First Aid
• USMLEWorld
• Kaplan Qbank
• PreTest questions
• Student notes and summary (Hand-made)

18. Videos
• Kaplan Videos
• USMLERx First Aid
• Dr. Najeeb
• Doctors in Training (DIT)
• … and many others

19. Step 2
• Clinical Knowledge (CK)
• Clinical Skills (CS)

20. Step 2 CK
• Computer-based MCQ
• Taken at a registered Prometric center
• Tests your knowledge in clinical medicine
• Tests your way of management of clinical
conditions based on your clinical training
• Tests your patience….. Really??

21. How much does it cost?
$1030
as of 2015

22. Preparation
• Kaplan notes & Videos
• Master the Boards
• PreTest books
• USMLEWorld
• Kaplan QBank

23. Step 2 CS
• Taken in the UNITED STATES
• Take in 5 centers: Atlanta – Georgia,
Chicago – Illinois, Houston – Texas, Los
Angeles – California & Philadelphia –
Pennsylvania.

24. Step 2 CS
• Fifteen-minute examinations of twelve
“standardized patients”
• 10 minutes to compose the written record of
the encounter (Patient Note)
• 30 and 15 minutes break
• Tests
o Data-gathering skills including medical history
taking and physical examination skills in patient
note
o Communication / interpersonal skills
o Spoken English language proficiency

25. How much does it costs?
$1505
+ Travel costs
as of 2015

26. Step 3
• The last step you need for full medical
practice without supervision
• Taken in the United States (via Prometric)
• Requires ECFMG Certification and other
requirements by the state licensing board
• Two-day MCQ exam
o Day 1: Foundation of Independent Practice (FIP)
o Day 2: Advanced Clinical Medicine (ACM)

27. How much does it costs?
$815
+ Travel costs
as of 2015

28. The USMLE Exam
Registration Process

29. Registration
• Process
• Required Documents
• PITFALLS!
o Address
o Envelope
o Status
o Letters
o Credit Cards

30. PITFALLS
• Your NAME !!!!
• Your EDUCATION
STATUS: STUDENT OR
GRADUATE !!!!
• College ADDRESS !!!!
• ENVELOPE !!!!
• LETTERS !!!!!

31. Process
• Your name must match the name on your
PASSPORT. If you don’t have a passport, get
one NOW!
• N.B.: Your passport is REQUIRED for entering
the exam center!

32. Process
• Your medical education: College MUST be
registered at IMED (https://imed.faimer.org/)
If not, tell your Dean to register with IMED
IMMEDIATELY or NONE of your college
students will be able to register for USMLE!

33. Process
• IMED Registration is done through the
following address:
o International Medical Education Directory (IMED)
FAIMER
3624 Market St.
Philadelphia, PA 19104
USA
Fax: 215.386.9767
E-mail: imed@faimer.org
• College address: Available at IMED

34. Process
• STATUS:
o Students are students
o Graduates are graduates
o INTERNS (‫االمتياز‬ ‫أطباء‬) ARE STUDENTS!
• Expected Dates: Get them from the Student
or Graduate Affairs’ Office at your faculty

35. Required Documents for
Exam Registration

36. Documents for a Student
• Certification Statement (Form 183) –
required if your medical school is NOT a part
of EMSWP
• Certification of Identification Form (Form
186) – The only form required for students

37. Documents for a graduate
• Final Medical Diploma in both Arabic (Two
copies) and English (Official Translation)
• Score Sheet and Hours in English from all
medical schools you studied in
• Certification of Identification Form (Form 186) –
not required if you did submit it already within 5
years
• IWA Document Submission Form (Form 187)
• ECFMG Medical Education Credentials
Submission Form (Form 344)
• Medical School Release Request (Form 345)

38. Documents for a graduate
• For interns who fall into the Graduate
registration trap, you need an official letter
from your Dean of Students
(‫والطالب‬ ‫التعليم‬ ‫لشئون‬ ‫الكلية‬ ‫وكيل‬ ‫أو‬ ‫الكلية‬ ‫عميد‬) stating
that you are waiting to finish your internship
year before you receive your final medical
diploma and other required documents,
including your transcripts

39. Notes for Sending
Documents
• If your documents include Form 186 (The FIRST
submission), all of them MUST BE SENT from the
Dean’s office in your faculty regardless of your
status.
Ask the Dean’s secretary for a large envelope
with the Faculty’s logo and name in English, put
all the documents inside it, close it and stamp it
from the Chief Secretary of the Faculty (‫الكلية‬ ‫أمين‬)
with the Eagle Seal (‫النسر‬ ‫ختم‬) (Or the Highest
Official Stamp in your Faculty). Then, write down
the Faculty’s Address (Get it from IMED)
preceded with the words “Dean’s Office”.

40. Notes for Sending
Documents
• If your documents don’t include Form 186 or
you’ve submitted it already, you can send
them from your own personal address
without any special procedures.

41. Notes for Sending
Documents
• In all cases, it’s highly recommended to use
Express Mail. Choose the best private
international courier service in your area.
I highly recommend FedEx (usually delivers
in 2 or 3 business days) or Aramex (usually
delivers in 3 to 5 business days).
• If you want your documents to be delivered
fast, DO NOT USE the National Mail in your
country. They’re very VERY slow and delivery
in time is never guaranteed

42. Notes for Sending
Documents
• ECFMG Address for sending documents:
o IWA
ECFMG
3624 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104-2685
USA
Phone: +1-215-386-5900

43. Irregular Behavior

44. Scheduling the Exam
Appointment

45. Scheduling the Exam
• After completing the Exam Registration
Process, the Scheduling Permit is sent to your
email within a month of receiving the paper
forms.

46. Scheduling the Exam
• Go to http://prometric.com, Select
“Schedule My Test” from the home page.
• Search for USMLE from the providers’ list.
• Select the exam you’ve registered for
• Select your country (and state for US
residents or travelers within the US). If your
country is not available, select the nearest
or most accessible country of your choice.
• Select “Schedule an Appointment”

47. Scheduling the Exam
• Agree to the provided agreements
• Enter your scheduling number (from the
Scheduling Permit) and the first FOUR letters
of your registered LAST NAME
• Select the desired test location. In Egypt,
only ONE location is available in Cairo at the
AMIDEAST headquarters in Dokki
• Select the most appropriate date for your
exam and confirm your appointment

48. Scheduling the Exam
• Print the Scheduling permit and the
appointment confirmation for use at the
Exam Day

49. Common Situations
• Rescheduling the
appointment
• Appointment
cancellation
• Lack of appropriate
date within the
eligibility period

50. Rescheduling / Canceling
the Appointment
• Rescheduling or canceling is easy. The steps
are similar to the initial registration. Instead
of choosing “Schedule an Appointment”,
select “Reschedule or Cancel an
Appointment” after selecting your exam
and country
• Provide the confirmation number (from the
previous appointment confirmation email)
and proceed as necessary

51. Rescheduling / Canceling
the Appointment
• Rescheduling or cancellation is FREE before
30 days to the initial appointment date.
• Fees incur and increase after that point. For
further updated information, check
http://www.usmle.org/apply/rescheduling-
fees.html

52. No available date within
the Eligibility Period
• It happens when you register a little late for
your exam (only a few months before the
eligibility period)
• Try to schedule every now and then. Some
people may reschedule or cancel for their
own reasons, leaving behind their spots.
One of them could be yours!

53. No available date within
the Eligibility Period
• If you’re running out of time, consider
getting an eligibility extension from your
registration page at ECFMG. Extension is
available at the FIRST DAY of your original
eligibility period. It can be done for a fee
(about $70)
• A new scheduling permit will be sent to you
for scheduling within the extended eligibility
period. Good luck!

54. No available date within
the Eligibility Period
• If you still cannot find an appropriate date
or you’re not interested in an extension for
your own reasons, consider scheduling your
exam appointment in another country that
can be easily accessed by you
• For most Egyptians, Jordan (No visa required
for short visits), Saudi Arabia and United
Arab Emirates are the best available
countries if taking an Exam in “Israel” is a
sensitive issue to you!

55. The outcome of the two full steps

56. Next Steps???

57. General Advice
• STAY CALM!
• Stay close to Allah
• Plan ahead for your preparations
• Start as early as possible (but not too early)
• Get yourself proper books, resources,
devices (laptop, tablet,….) and a good
place for your studies
• Try some ONLINE exams to evaluate yourself
• Find a channel away for your frustration –
Meditate, read the Qur’an, listen to music,…

58. What if I fail at USMLE?!

60. Other Opportunities
• In Egypt
o Regular Resident (University / MOH / Other
places)
o Visiting Resident
o Deputation / Training
o Membership of the British Royal Colleges (MRCP /
MRCS / ……)
o Military Options (Police, Army)
o Egyptian Fellowship
o Private Practice

61. Other Opportunities
• Outside of Egypt
o Arab countries
o Germany
o UK
o Australia
o France (and other Western European countries)
o Eastern Europe
o Singapore
o Latin America
o Africa, Central Asia,…..

62. Take Home Message
• USMLE is the most popular foreign
certification for doctors worldwide
• It’s not easy to prepare for USMLE, but you
can do it
• If you’re concerned about the costs of
preparation, remember that you’re investing
in yourself
• If you can’t take USMLE, you still have the
rest of the world of opportunities!

64. Questions ??