which licensing exam to take? (IMG)

[Valéria Conroy]

Hey everyone, hope everything is going well

I'm a 4th year med student in a 7-year MBBS program in Cairo, Egypt. I'm planning to take a licensing exam and practice abroad. But the thing is I don't know where to go. I'm currently in the US temporarily as a research assistant (some sort of summer training in research) and I was really thinking of USMLE as a great option for me to come practice and live here after I graduate from Egypt. However, I think PLAB is also a great option, and UK is a great country to live in (but I don't know if it's also interesting in terms of practicing there). Plus, PLAB is so much easier. There are also other options like Canada, Australia, Germany...

I don't want to keep confusing myself but it seems that there are many options and I don't know which country I would want to live in after I graduate, so I want to take a step that will open many doors in different countries. Not sure what that should be. Also, I don't want to end up doing an exam for a country that doesn't take many IMG, such as Canada.

Should I go ahead and take USMLE and maybe later take the PLAB if I want to? Or are there other better plans? Also, please bear in my that I'm an international student.

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[The Knife & Gun Club]

As an IMG in the US you don’t just have to take USMLE.

First USMLE is a 3 part exam - known as STEP 1, STEP 2 CS, and STEP2 CK. You must take all 3 and do VERY well. Many international students spend 6-12 months studying for the USMLE STEP 1, and must score at least the 75th percentile to be considered.

Second to practice in the US you must complete a 3-7 year residency program in your field (internal med, psych, surgery, etc). To do this you first must complete an ERAS application and apply for residencies through “The Match”.

Also depending on your green card status you may be required to practice in a healthcare underserved region for several years after residency.

 

[Winged Scapula]

Moving to International Forum

 

[adrenergic91]

As an IMG in the US you don’t just have to take USMLE.

First USMLE is a 3 part exam - known as STEP 1, STEP 2 CS, and STEP2 CK. You must take all 3 and do VERY well. Many international students spend 6-12 months studying for the USMLE STEP 1, and must score at least the 75th percentile to be considered.

Second to practice in the US you must complete a 3-7 year residency program in your field (internal med, psych, surgery, etc). To do this you first must complete an ERAS application and apply for residencies through “The Match”.

Also depending on your green card status you may be required to practice in a healthcare underserved region for several years after residency.

Adding to this, you also should have a good CV. This includes, but is not limited to

• Research, with publications preferably in US or UK journals.
• US Clinical Experience: If you're still a student, try to do away rotations in the US. Else, you may have to do externships or observerships. In looking at program requirements this year, I've seen this requirement distributed as follows: about 30% want at LEAST 3 months of US/Canadian experience, 40% want 1 month or more, and 30% don't care.
• Letters of Recommendation from US physicians (at least 2 are preferable). These have to be from doctors who have worked with you and can attest to your clinical skills.