Foreign Medical Graduates Credentials Check

International Doctoral Degrees and International Graduate Medical Training:

1. Individuals seeking certification by the ABMG must fulfill all basic requirements for certification detailed in Training Requirements for Certification.
    

2. All individuals with a doctoral degree earned outside of the US, Canada or Puerto Rico are strongly urged to have their international credentials reviewed by the ABMG Credentials Committee for equivalency of their doctoral degree prior to entering medical genetics training in an ABMG-accredited fellowship or ACGME-accredited clinical genetics residency program. The documentation listed below should be submitted to the Committee by mail at the ABMG Administrative Office, 9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20814-3998:
   
   Credentials Review Request Form
    

   1. Copy of the doctoral diploma and transcript of doctoral degree. ABMG requires potential applicants who hold foreign medical or doctoral degrees, i.e., degrees earned outside the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada, to have their degrees reviewed from an outside transcript review organization like WES or the Foreign Education Credential Service of American Association of Collegiate Registrar and Admissions Offices (AACRAO) prior to submitting their applications for the ABMG certification examination
       

   2. Curriculum vitae with bibliography that includes dates and location of undergraduate education, doctoral education, post-doctoral training and professional employment
       

   3. For an individual with an MD degree applying for the specialty of Clinical Genetics: Copy of a standard certificate from the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG).
       

   4. Individuals with an earned PhD degree or MD degree from a country in which English is not the primary language who are interested in applying for certification in the specialties of Clinical Biochemical Genetics, Clinical Cytogenetics and Clinical Molecular Genetics must have taken the TOEFL-iBT examination within two years of entering an accredited training program or applying for ABMG certification. This is a four part exam and you must take all four parts. Each section of the exam is scored separately. Total minimum passing scores for the four part exam is 85. You must also achieve a minimum of 23 on the speaking portion of the exam. Applicants must have the official TOEFL-iBT examination scores sent directly to the ABMG Administrative Office by the Educational Testing Service (www.ets.org) no later than November 30, 2008.
      
      You must enter the TOEFL code of 8509 on your answer sheet as well as on the Score Report Request Forms (for tests previously taken). These scores will then be sent to the ABMG from Educational Testing Service
      
      NOTE: Because the Educational Testing Service retains TSE examination scores for only two years following the examination, applicants for ABMG certification must have these scores sent to the ABMG Administrative Office within two years of taking the examination. The TSE examination scores may be sent to the ABMG Administrative Office before the applicant submits any other portions of the application. It is suggested that official scores be sent to the ABMG Administrative Office as soon as an individual enters a training program.
       

3. Individuals interested in entering an ACGME-accredited clinical genetics residency, who have received graduate medical training outside the US, Canada, or Puerto Rico, are strongly urged to contact the ABMG Credentials Committee at the ABMG Administrative Office in writing prior to beginning training for determination of the equivalency of their graduate medical training. The following documentation should be submitted to the Committee by mail at the ABMG Administrative Office, 9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20814-3998: Copy of certificate of graduate medical training, letter from the director of the graduate medical training program stating the inclusive dates and the amount of time the individual spent in the training program, and verification of board certification from the country in which graduate medical training was received (if available).
   
   Credentials Review Request Form
   
   The Credentials Committee may grant graduate medical training equivalency for two years, one year, or no years.
    

   • If the Credentials Committee grants one year of graduate medical training equivalency, the individual must complete 12 months of full-time training in an ACGME-accredited residency program (other than clinical genetics).
      

   • If no graduate medical training equivalency is granted, the individual must complete 24 months of full-time training in an ACGME-accredited residency program (other than clinical genetics) or 48 months of full-time training in an ACGME-accredited 4 year clinical genetics residency or 60 months of training in a combined Clinical Genetics/Pediatrics or combined Clinical Genetics/Internal Medicine residency program.

Recognition of Training by the Canadian College of Medical Genetics (CCMG)-Accredited programs and ACGME / ABMG-accredited programs

1. The ABMG recognizes CCMG specialty certification as evidence of successful completion of ABMG- or ACGME-accredited training.
    

2. Applicants for ABMG certification who are CCMG diplomates or who have received medical genetics training in a CCMG-accredited program must also meet all other applicable credentialing requirements of the ABMG.
    

3. Individuals trained in a CCMG-accredited training program, but who are not CCMG certified, may apply to the ABMG for certification. Evidence of completion of a prescribed course of accredited training must be submitted by the applicant’s training program director. Cases obtained from a CCMG-accredited training program are acceptable and must be submitted in the ABMG logbook format. The ABMG reserves the right to require additional training to ensure that its requirements for certification are met.
    

4. Three letters of endorsement may be submitted by CCMG or ABMG diplomates, one of whom must be the director of the applicant’s medical genetics training program. A request is sent by email to the diplomates whose names appear on the application.
    

5. Applicants are responsible to the ABMG for the full application fee, examination fee(s), and any other application fees and deadlines.