As found in the Information for Applicants and Candidates handbook for certification, an applicant for certification by the American Board of Urology must:

• Be a graduate of a medical school approved by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) or a school of osteopathy approved by the Bureau of Professional Education of the American Osteopathic Association

• Complete a urology residency program accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) or Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada [RCPS(C)]

The American Board of Urology mandates a minimum of 5 clinical years of postgraduate medical training. The training must include:

• 48 months in an ACGME-approved urology program, and

• 3 months of general surgery in an ACGME-approved surgical program, and

• 3 months of core surgical training (e.g. intensive care unit, trauma, vascular surgery, cardiac surgery, etc.) in an ACGME- approved surgical program, and

• 6 months of other rotations, not including dedicated research time, in an ACGME- or RCPS(C)-approved core surgery program

All rotations listed above that are not part of the core urology training must have been approved by the candidate’s program director. As part of the core urology training, the candidate must have completed at least 12 months as a chief resident in urology with the appropriate clinical responsibility and under supervision in institutions that are part of an ACGME-approved program.

Doctors who attended medical school in Canada and received all pre-urology and urology residency training in approved Canadian programs must satisfactorily complete the same training as listed above. Certification by the RPCS(C)  is not required for the Qualifying (Part 1) Examination, but is required to be admissible to the Certifying (Part 2) Examination.

Medical graduates from schools outside the United States or Canada who wish to apply for certification must:

• provide an equivalent medical background   

• complete an ACGME-approved urology residency in the United States

• have a a valid certificate from the Education Committee for Foreign

            Medical Graduates (ECFMG)

Any resident intending to transfer to another urology residency program during the urologic portion of the training must obtain the approval of the Board prior to the change. The resident must send a letter of petition to the Board in advance of the transfer. The Board also requires the written acknowledgement and approval of both Program Directors.

In regard to leaves of absence for parental leave, illness, injury, disability, vacation, alcohol or substance abuse during residency training in urology: time away from clinical residency may not exceed 15% of the clinical residency training period and not more than 20% of the chief resident year.