FAIMER has begun to receive information from international medical schools that will allow it to enhance its web-based resources on international medical education. Included is information about each school’s student body, application requirements, medical curriculum, and teaching methods. This information will provide a more detailed picture of international medical schools and their graduates, allowing FAIMER to expand data resources, such as the International Medical Education Directory (IMED), and to further its research on international medical education programs.
International medical schools are providing this information as part of an agreement with the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG®). According to the agreement, schools that provide such information will be able to obtain from ECFMG aggregate data on the performance of their students/graduates on Step 1, Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK), and Step 2 Clinical Skills (CS) of the United States Medical Licensing Examination® (USMLE®). International medical schools have expressed interest in obtaining USMLE performance data on their students/graduates, and it is expected that this exchange of information will benefit the medical schools, ECFMG, and FAIMER. FAIMER research staff are partnering with ECFMG to collect the medical school information via a Medical School Profile survey.
Eligible schools will be able to obtain aggregate USMLE performance data beginning in May 2010. Schools wishing to receive these data must meet certain criteria, including the completion of a Performance Information Agreement and the Medical School Profile survey.
In addition to its plans to provide aggregate data, ECFMG began to provide eligible international medical schools with performance data on individual examinees in late 2009. For more information on the provision of individual performance data, refer to “ECFMG to Provide International Medical Schools with USMLE Performance Data on Their Students/Graduates” on the News page of the ECFMG website.
Officials of international medical schools can obtain a Performance Information Agreement by contacting the ECFMG Medical School Web Portal (EMSWP) Administrator at emswpadmin@ecfmg.org.
