Admission
When you have fulfilled all the requirements and ABOG has determined that you are eligible to take the Certifying Exam, you'll receive:
- An email with your exam week assignment
- A second email notifying you of the day, time, and place to report for your examination, no later than 4 weeks prior to the week you are scheduled. It is your responsibility to ensure that all contact information is current and accurate on your ABOG portal.
ABOG does not have a hotel room block. Candidates approved to take the exam will be provided with details regarding hotels, parking, registration and other travel logistics in the Candidate Manual. Please stay at a hotel or other accommodations that best suit your needs.
Candidates may not request a specific week for their examination unless there is a date conflict beyond the control of the candidate. If candidates have a need to request a specific examination week, please Contact Us. Once the request has been received, a task will be made available on the candidate’s ABOG portal to submit required supporting documentation. Requests must be received no later than the last day in April of the exam year and should be submitted as soon as the candidate is aware of the need for a specific week. ABOG reserves the right to deny any such request.
Certifying Exam Instructions
You will receive an email regarding the time and place for registration. If you are late for registration, you will not be allowed to take the exam.
After registration, a brief orientation will be provided. Then you will be escorted to the testing floor. You will be assigned an examination room and will remain there for the three hours of the examination.
Examiners
You will be informed of the names of the six examiners - two in obstetrics, two in gynecology, and two in office practice and women's health - who will conduct your examination. If you believe there is a conflict with one or more examiner, an alternate examiner will be provided.
Each pair of examiners will independently award a grade for their portion of the examination, but the final grade will be decided by members of the ABOG Board of Directors after reviewing all of the information from the examination.
Examination Format
The Certifying Examination is three hours in length, equally divided in the areas of obstetrics, gynecology, and office practice and women's health. Communication, ethics, and patient safety questions may be included in each of the three major areas.
Each hour will be divided into two sections of approximately 30 minutes in length. One section will be devoted to questions derived from your case list, and the other section will consist of structured and/or simulated cases written by ABOG. The structured cases are used to elicit your responses to specific clinical situations.
The examination will be conducted in English.
A list of the topics that may be covered in the examination can be found here.
At the end of the exam, you'll return to the hotel registration area.
Electronic Devices
You must not take any electronic device into the examination room. This includes any devices that can access the internet and any device with a recording feature. This includes wearable devices, such as the Apple Watch, and similar devices. If you need to use medical equipment during the exam (such as an insulin pump), submit a request for a special accommodation.
Candidates who will be lactating at the time of the examination or require an accommodation for disability must notify the ABOG office at the time of application and no later than the close of the application period. Candidates who will be lactating at the time of the examination will be scheduled to use one of the wellness rooms on a first come, first served basis. Lear more about submitting a request for candidate disability accommodations or lactation accommodations.
If you're disapproved for the Certifying Exam, you may re-apply by submitting a new application, paying the appropriate fees, and meeting the requirements applicable at the time of the re-application.
If, at the completion of the Certifying Exam, you believe the test has not been conducted in a fair and unprejudiced manner, a second exam may be requested. A candidate may appeal the examination or request a rescore within 6 hours of the completion of the Certifying Exam. This request must be submitted in writing via the Contact Us form. If the request is granted:
- The exam will be nulled, all scores will be discarded, and no final grade will be assigned.
- The candidate must reapply for the Certifying Examination the next year (i.e., cannot delay beyond the next year) and meet all of the requirements applicable at that time.
- If the candidate meets the requirements, a second examination will be scheduled at the next regularly scheduled annual Certifying Examinations at no additional charge.
- The candidate must prepare a new case list for the repeat examination and the case list for the repeat examination may not include any patient listed on the first examination case list.
- The repeat examination will be conducted by a different team of examiners, who will not be informed that the examination is being conducted as a result of an appeal.
- Neither the questions nor the candidate’s answers on the first examination will be known to or considered by the second group of examiners.
- The decision of the examiners conducting the second examination will be used by the Board to determine the results of the candidate’s Certifying Examination.
Appeals based on the composition of the Certifying Examination team shall not be considered if you were informed before the Certifying Exam of the identity of each member of the team and did not object to the participation of any member in time for an acceptable substitute to be provided.
Appeals based on the content of the examination, the sufficiency or accuracy of the answers given, or the final grade will not be considered.