CHANGE FROM PAPER TO ELECTRONIC SCHEDULING PERMITS

As announced in the 2007 Information Booklet, scheduling permits for Step 1 and Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK) are changing from paper documents to electronic documents. This change will take effect on December 7, 2006.

Beginning on this date, only electronic scheduling permits will be issued for Step 1/Step 2 CK; applicants will access their electronic scheduling permits using ECFMG's Interactive Web Application (IWA).

Traditional, orange paper scheduling permits will no longer be mailed to registered applicants. This change will not affect scheduling permits for Step 2 Clinical Skills (CS).

After this change takes effect, ECFMG will continue to send e-mail notification to applicants when their Step 1/Step 2 CK registrations are complete, and the National Board of Medical Examiners(r) (NBME(r) will continue to issue the scheduling permits. However, beginning December 7, 2006, the NBME will issue the permits in electronic format.
ECFMG will send a second e-mail, within about one week of the first, to notify registered applicants that their scheduling permits are available; this message will include instructions for accessing the electronic scheduling permit using IWA.

Consistent with current procedures, if the beginning of an applicant's assigned eligibility period is more than six months away, the scheduling permit will not be available and the second e-mail will not be sent until proximately six months before the beginning of the assigned eligibility period.

Applicants must print a copy of the electronic scheduling permit and bring it to the test center on their exam date. Consistent with current policy, applicants who do not bring their scheduling permit to the test center on their exam date will not be permitted to take the exam.