Issue Thirty-Five - November 11, 2003
Deadline for Taking CSA® for the 2004 Match
International medical graduates who wish to participate in the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP), or "the Match," must have passed all exams required for ECFMG Certification. To ensure that CSA results will be reported to the NRMP in time to participate in the 2004 Match, you must take the ECFMG Clinical Skills Assessment (CSA) no later than January 31, 2004. CSA results for applicants who take CSA after January 31, 2004 will not be available in time for participation in the 2004 Match.
The number of applicants seeking to take the CSA may exceed the number of testing spaces available in the months preceding the Match. As a result, there is no guarantee that the number of testing spaces will be sufficient for all applicants to meet deadlines imposed by the NRMP or graduate medical education programs. If you plan to participate in the 2004 Match, you are strongly encouraged to apply for the CSA as soon as you become eligible and to schedule your CSA exam date as soon as possible.
For information on ECFMG Certification and the CSA, to apply for the CSA, or to schedule a CSA session, visit the ECFMG website. For more information on the Match and NRMP requirements and deadlines, visit the NRMP website.
A Posting on Irregular Behavior by the Office of the USMLE Secretariat
This year, as of October 31, 2003, the USMLE Committee on Irregular Behavior made determinations in 27 instances that USMLE examinees had engaged in irregular behavior. Seven examinees were found guilty of having posted examination content in Internet chat rooms. The posting of any examination content in a public forum such as the Internet may provide unfair advantage to future test takers and is therefore strictly prohibited. These determinations of irregular behavior resulted in annotation of the examinees' USMLE transcripts. As a result, recipients of these transcripts, such as residency program directors and state licensing authorities, will be made aware of these determinations. For some infractions, examinees were also barred from USMLE for a period of time. As emphasized in the posting, a determination of irregular behavior can put your medical career in jeopardy.
View the full posting on the USMLE website.