For ABOG 2025 Certifying Exam Candidates
The application period for the 2025 Certifying Exam will open on March 3rd. For GYN patients, each file should include the patient’s history and physical (H&P), operative notes, pathology reports, and discharge summaries. For OB patients, the file must contain the prenatal form, delivery notes, discharge summaries, and postpartum notes. The case entry process should remain straightforward, guided by clinical judgment and practical reasoning. To support candidates in this process, Dr. Das will facilitate a Case List Construction session as part of the Virtual April 2025 Board Review Course, scheduled from April 1st to April 6th. This comprehensive course is designed to address the diverse needs of adult learners preparing for the OB/GYN Certifying Board Exam, leveraging advanced e-learning tools and strategies. Each day will feature focused didactic sessions covering OB, REI, Primary Care, Oncology, GYN/Office, and Urogynecology topics. Afternoon sessions will employ an oral exam format, allowing participants to apply and integrate the material presented in the morning. Faculty-led structured case discussions, tailored to individual case lists, will provide an opportunity to practice verbalizing answers in a manner consistent with the certifying exam experience.
For AOBOG & ABOG 2025 Qualifying/Written Exam Candidates
For candidates preparing for the ABOG exam, the $1,700 application and examination fee must be submitted by February 14th. Applications received from February 15th through February 28th will incur an additional $400 late fee. No applications will be accepted after February 28th.
For AOBOG exam candidates, the $1,175 examination fee is due by February 19th. The final application deadline is March 19th, with a late fee of $352.50 applied to submissions after February 19th.
First-Time Exam Candidates:
If this is your first attempt at the exam and you have historically performed at or above average on your CREOG In-Service Training Exam, now is the time to establish a well-structured study plan. Begin by reflecting on your strengths and areas for improvement to develop a realistic approach.
- Prevent burnout: Plan to take at least two days off during your study period if possible.
- Prioritize key topics: Focus on essential subject areas first.
- Utilize resources: Our Test Topics Manual is an excellent guide to help you organize your studies.
- Plan strategically: Develop a comprehensive yearly study schedule with detailed plans for December as a starting point. This will provide a framework for refining your schedule in subsequent months.
- Integrate practice: Dedicate time to clinical reviews and practice written questions on each topic.
Repeat Exam Candidates:
Your study plan should already be in place for those taking the exam for at least the second time. If not, follow the guidance above. By this stage, you should have a realistic understanding of how much time is required to review individual topics effectively. Reflect on this to refine your study plan for the months leading up to the exam, particularly through July. We strongly recommend enrolling in our Test-Taking Skills Online Course if you have previously struggled with the written exam format. This course, designed to enhance mastery of our CQRPE test-taking methodology, can be completed in two months and provides an opportunity to apply these strategies during the January CREOG exam.
Test Taking Technique
The CREOG in-service training exam is an excellent resource to gauge your performance for the written board exam. Anyone, not just residents, can take the exam and is STRONGLY advised for those who are repeating their board exam. Don’t worry…the results come only to you. Visit https://www.acog.org/Education-and-Events/CREOG for more information
For you, AOBOG folk:
It’s always good to keep it all in perspective. Begin with the end in mind. Make sure you cross-reference to the AOBOG list of exam content before you launch or monitor your studying.
GYN 39-43%
REI 7-11%
FPMRS 6-10%
Oncology 4-8%
OB & MFM 34-38%
Chief Residents Planning a Subspecialty Fellowship
As you prepare to matriculate into your chosen subspecialty, it’s crucial to also develop a strategy for your general oral exam. Subspecialty fellows are required to include a minimum of 20 applied patients from their chief resident year for their off-specialty case list. For example, GYN Oncologists, REI, and Urogynecologists will need an OB list, while MFMs will need a GYN list. Be sure to retain your residency log, as it will be a valuable resource. Refer to the ABOG Bulletin for detailed guidelines on selecting these 20 patients.
To ensure flexibility, we recommend collecting at least 30 cases so you can strategically choose the most appropriate ones for your final list. Additionally, selecting a diverse range of categories will enhance the depth and breadth of your case list. This not only creates a strong first impression but also ensures the examiner has sufficient options to select from during the exam.
For prospective cases, maintain organized files as follows:
- GYN patients: Include history and physicals (H&Ps), operative notes, pathology reports, and discharge summaries.
- OB patients: Include prenatal forms, delivery notes, discharge summaries, and postpartum notes.
Office patients can be compiled during your fellowship and do not need to be a focus at this time.
It’s important to recognize that your general OB/GYN knowledge is currently at its peak. Without regular use, this knowledge base can regress over time. Complex or rare cases that are fresh in your mind now may become significantly harder to defend in the future. For this reason, focus on selecting cases that are straightforward and defensible. Seek feedback from junior residents—if they struggle to defend a case, consider choosing a different one.
For AOBOG 2025 Oral Exam Candidates
For candidates preparing for the April oral exam, please note that the $3,275 application fee is due by December 16th. To ensure thorough preparation for the spring exam, we highly recommend our comprehensive Home Study Package. This package includes:
- A 42-hour lecture series covering 95% of current exam topics.
- Over 2 hours of video content led by Dr. Adelowo and Dr. Das, focusing on AOBOG core topics, exam strategies, and case defense techniques.
To further enhance your readiness, we encourage combining these resources with private mock oral sessions. Practice, paired with expert guidance, is the key to success.
Test Taking Technique
ABC’s OMM for the OBGYN question manual is designed specifically for our AOBOG candidates, covering topics for those preparing for their written, oral, or OCC osteopathic exam. It includes 25 multiple-choice questions, visual clinical scenarios based on osteopathic structural exams, and related OMT/OMM techniques. Click on the link for more details.
Royal College 2025 Exam Candidates
The written exam is scheduled for September 25, 2025. To support your preparation, consider attending our Virtual Board Review Course, held April 2–6, 2025, via Zoom. This course emphasizes strategies for excelling on the written exam while providing an in-depth walkthrough of the exam format and content. Participants will also gain access to a proven system for analyzing performance and predicting results. Recordings of the course will be available to attendees for three months after the event.
For candidates preparing for the OSCE exam in April, we recommend purchasing our Course Recordings for the Canadian College Exam. This program includes essential resources designed to optimize your study efforts.
What’s Included:
- Over 42 hours of high-yield, exam-focused recordings, covering critical topics such as OB, Oncology, Urogynecology, Primary Care, Perioperative Care, Office GYN, and REI.
- Test Topics Manual: An exclusive syllabus tailored to the topics most likely to appear on the exam.
- Course Binder: A comprehensive resource containing lecture handouts to facilitate effective note-taking and review.
- One-year subscription to our audiovisual recordings via ABC’s LMS platform, Litmos, with a user-friendly mobile app for seamless access to course materials.
- Category II credit hours: Self-claiming credits available to support your professional development.