Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates

Through its program of certification, the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) assesses the readiness of international medical graduates to enter residency or fellowship programs in the United States that are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).

ECFMG acts as the registration and score-reporting agency for the USMLE for foreign medical students/ graduates, or in short, it acts as the designated Dean's office for the Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs), called nowadays as the International Medical Graduates (IMGs) in contrast to the American Medical Graduates (AMGs).

It conducts three examinations: Step 1, Step 2CK, Step 2CS. The ECFMG certificate is issued to a physician if he or she clears the above the three exams within a time period of seven years.

Medical schools in Canada that award the M.D. are not assessed by ECFMG, because the Liaison Committee on Medical Education accredits M.D.-granting institutions in both the U.S. and Canada. Medical graduates of American and Canadian institutions are not considered IMGs in either country.

History

First established in 1956. cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = ECFMG Celebrates 50th Anniversary | work = | publisher = | date = | url = http://www.ecfmg.org/2007ib/ibcertnews.html | format = | doi = | accessdate = 2007-08-20]

References

External links

* [http://www.ecfmg.org Education Committee for Foreign Medical Graduates]
* [http://www.usmle.org United States Medical Licensing Examination]
* [http://www.imgunited.com International Medical Graduates United]