USMLE

The United States Medical Licensing Examination is an examination for medical licensure in the United States . It is sponsored by the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) and the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME). Physicians with an M.D. degree are required to pass this examination before being permitted to practice medicine in the United States; see below for requirements of physicians with a D.O. degree. There are 3 steps for this examination.

Step 1: This is a one day examination which tests basic concepts for practicing medicine. Duration of the test is 8 hours

Step 2: This is to check if students can apply their medical knowledge on patient care. This is further divided into 2 tests

• A 9 hour long written examination
• An examination to assess clinical skills by allowing them to interact with the patient

Step 3 : This is a 16 hour test which is divided into 2 days. In some states, foreign medical graduates can take Step 3 to reside. This test is to assess if the candidate is able to apply their medical knowledge without supervision.

Pearson Tests of English (PTE)

PTE Academic is a computer-based academic English language test aimed at non-native English speakers wanting to study abroad. It is a 3 hour test which tests Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking. This is beneficial for those who require fast results for the exams attended. Other English tests like IELTS etc will require up to 2 weeks for results whereas PTE can deliver the results within five business days. This test is approved by the Australian Government for visa applications and accepted by thousands of institutions in the UK, Australia, USA, Canada, New Zealand, and Ireland, including Harvard, Yale and INSEAD. PTE scores are accesed using an online account.