American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS)

Helps physicians demonstrate specialty expertise and supports patients and organizations in recognizing professionals committed to current knowledge and high-quality care.

Recognizes physicians’ and PAs’ quality improvement work with continuing certification credit while helping organizations advance care improvement and safety goals.

Advance research and develop health care leadership with funding, mentorship, and engagement across the board certification community.

Funds independent research and fosters collaboration to inform improvements in medical specialty certification.

Helps organizations create and sustain reliable assessments for certification, ongoing learning, and professional development.

Helps physicians find relevant, accredited CME for continuing certification and gives providers a streamlined way to submit activities for review by multiple ABMS Member Boards.

Explore accessible, aggregated board certification data to better understand the physician and medical specialist workforce.

Explore searchable, curated literature and high-impact articles to support understanding of physician certification across medical specialties.

Understand the ABMS-certified physician workforce through official certificate listings and statistics on certification activity, participation, and distribution.

Understand board certification and explore certifiable medical specialties, subspecialties, and the conditions they commonly treat.

Helps patients and organizations verify ABMS specialty certification to support informed provider and credentialing decisions.

ABMS Board Certification

ABMS board certification is a specialty credential awarded through ABMS Member Boards. It provides an independent evaluation of physicians’ and medical specialists’ knowledge, skills, judgment, and professionalism against specialty-specific standards. Initial certification follows required education, training, and assessment; continuing certification supports career-long learning, assessment, and practice improvement.

Category: Professional Certification Services

• Demonstrate Specialty Competence
  The credential shows that a physician or medical specialist has been evaluated against specialty-specific standards for knowledge and skills.
• Keep Knowledge And Skills Current
  Ongoing certification activities support physicians in keeping their knowledge up to date, maintaining skills, and responding to changing patient health needs.
• Earn Specialty Certification
  Physicians can pursue initial certification after completing the education and training requirements set by the relevant Member Board and successfully completing its assessment.
• Signal Commitment To Quality Care
  The credential communicates a commitment to specialty expertise, professional standards, lifelong learning, and safe, high-quality patient care.
• Identify Gaps And Focus Learning
  Assessment results help physicians identify areas for learning and refocus their efforts, while supporting retention and the adoption of new clinical information.
• Address Specialty-Specific Requirements
  Member Boards can shape certification programs around specialty-specific requirements while using a shared standards framework for initial and continuing certification.
• Pursue Subspecialty Certification
  This pathway allows eligible physicians to demonstrate additional expertise in a specific area of a specialty.
• Support Quality And Safety Improvement
  Participation connects ongoing professional development with improvement work in physicians’ practices and health systems.

ABMS Portfolio Program

The ABMS Portfolio Program helps physicians, medical specialists, and physician assistants earn continuing certification credit for eligible quality improvement work. A national network of Program Sponsors supports participation by monitoring activities, reviewing attestations, and confirming completions for transmission to participating ABMS Member Boards or the NCCPA. The program recognizes improvement work connected to clinical practice or organizational and leadership roles, and is designed to fit participating organizations’ operations. It also supports organizations’ quality and safety goals and offers Sponsors opportunities to share implementation practices and learn from one another.

Category: Professional Certification Services

• Earn Credit For Quality Improvement Work
  Practitioners can receive continuing certification credit for improvement activities they are already doing, helping connect their contribution to quality improvement with continuing certification requirements.
• Manage Activity Submissions And Confirmations
  The Sponsor network provides an administrative process for submitting activities, reviewing attestations, and confirming completions so eligible credit can be transmitted to participating certification organizations.
• Fit The Program To Organizational Operations
  Organizations can implement the program in a way that works with their operations, while Sponsors oversee and administer activities through their quality improvement infrastructure.
• Document Meaningful Improvement Participation
  A defined attestation process connects an individual’s participation to their practice or organizational role and provides Sponsors a basis to review and confirm activity completion.
• Advance Local Care Improvement Priorities
  Organizations can engage practitioners in improvement initiatives that address local care needs and organizational priorities, including patient safety and patient experience.
• Strengthen Quality And Safety Culture
  By connecting improvement work with continuing certification credit, the program supports organizational quality and safety goals and can contribute to a culture focused on improvement.
• Learn From Other Program Sponsors
  Sponsors have recurring opportunities to share and learn about program implementation, management, and impact with other organizations in the nationwide Sponsor community.
• Connect Teams Across Improvement Functions
  Closer collaboration among QI, CME/CPD, credentialing, and information technology teams can help organizations coordinate their improvement-related work.

ABMS Scholars Program

The ABMS Scholars Program is a year-long, part-time research program for early-career physicians and researchers. It supports projects aligned with the ABMS mission and the research priorities of the ABMS Research and Education Foundation and co-sponsoring ABMS Member Boards. Scholars receive a $15,000 award for research and travel expenses, work with self-selected mentors, and engage with peers, experts, and the broader certification community. The program also supports participants’ research development and evolution as health care leaders.

• Fund Research And Program Travel
  The $15,000 award helps scholars cover research and travel expenses connected with participating in the program and completing research deliverables.
• Develop Mission-Aligned Research
  Scholars can pursue original research or expand an existing project with a new scope, focused on priorities related to board certification and the ABMS community.
• Get Guidance From Research Experts
  Mentors, peers, subject matter experts, and program alumni provide feedback and guidance as scholars develop their research projects.
• Develop Health Care Leadership Skills
  The program combines research participation with leadership development, helping early-career physicians and researchers grow as contributors within the ABMS community.
• Connect Across The Certification Community
  Monthly virtual sessions and ABMS committee meetings give scholars opportunities to share project updates and engage with peers, experts, mentors, alumni, and the broader certification community.
• Present Findings To A National Audience
  The annual ABMS Conference provides scholars with an opportunity to present their research findings before a national audience.
• Continue Research At Your Home Institution
  Scholars remain at their home institutions during the program year while working on their research and participating in program activities.

ABMS Research and Education Foundation Grant Program

The ABMS Research and Education Foundation Grant Program funds original, independent research that generates insights to inform improvements in the structures, processes, and outcomes of medical specialty certification. The program supports investigator-driven proposals aligned with the ABMS mission and encourages research collaboration with ABMS Member Boards and the broader certification community.

• Advance Certification Research
  Researchers receive funding to investigate certification and generate insights that can inform improvements in certification and its outcomes.
• Fund Research Projects
  Grant funding supports independent investigators conducting research aligned with the ABMS mission.
• Submit Proposals For Review
  The staged application process lets applicants submit an initial Letter of Intent before selected proposals proceed to full consideration through peer review.
• Build Member Board Collaborations
  Researchers can engage relevant Member Boards for certification expertise and feedback, including on proposals that span multiple boards.
• Connect With Certification Researchers
  Grantees interact with fellow researchers, Member Boards, and ABMS Scholars to develop a community focused on research into certification.
• Apply As An Independent Investigator
  Eligible organizations and unaffiliated investigators can seek funding while maintaining independent decision-making over their projects.
• Share Research Findings
  Recipients report on project progress and outcomes, present findings to a national audience at the annual ABMS Conference, and submit findings for peer-reviewed publication.

ABMS AssessLink

ABMS AssessLink is a longitudinal assessment platform offered alongside professional test development and comprehensive assessment services. It helps organizations design, deliver, and sustain assessments for high-stakes certification, learning, and professional development across a wide range of industries. Its assessment services focus on producing valid, reliable, and defensible assessments. The platform supports longitudinal assessments, which use shorter assessments over time to support learning and professional development.

• Assess Knowledge Over Time
  Organizations can use the platform to support recurring assessments over time, helping individuals maintain current knowledge and develop their skills.
• Develop High-Stakes Assessments
  Organizations can access professional test development services for assessment programs in certification, learning, and professional development.
• Build Valid And Reliable Assessments
  The stated focus on validity, reliability, and defensibility supports organizations developing assessments for high-stakes certification and other professional programs.
• Tailor Assessments To Practice
  Personalized assessment design can align assessment content with specialty and practice needs, while recurring shorter assessments support ongoing professional development.
• Identify Knowledge Gaps
  Feedback and suggestions for further study help participants recognize areas where additional learning may be useful.

ABMS Continuing Certification Directory

The ABMS Continuing Certification Directory is an online collection of practice-relevant, accredited continuing medical education activities for board-certified physicians and medical specialists. Activities are accredited through the ACCME system and reviewed and approved by one or more ABMS Member Boards. They are organized by ABMS specialty or subspecialty and by ABMS-ACGME competency. Physicians can choose self-directed activities suited to their needs and scope of practice. Activities are routinely added to reflect specialty medicine updates and high-priority national health initiatives. CME providers can submit activities for review, using a single form to seek approval from multiple participating ABMS Member Boards.

• Find Accredited CME
  Physicians can access a collection of accredited CME activities intended to support their continuing certification.
• Choose Board-Approved Activities
  Physicians can find activities reviewed and approved by participating ABMS Member Boards for certification.
• Browse By Specialty
  Specialty and subspecialty categories help physicians locate activities related to their medical discipline.
• Choose Relevant Activities
  Physicians can select activities according to their professional needs and scope of practice.
• Submit Once For Multiple Reviews
  CME providers can use one submission form to seek activity approval from multiple participating ABMS Member Boards.
• Browse By Competency
  Competency categories provide another way for physicians to find activities relevant to continuing certification.
• Access Updated Activities
  Routine additions bring specialty medicine updates and high-priority national health initiatives into the Directory.

ABMS Board Certification Data Viewer

A free online tool that provides interactive, visual access to aggregated board certification data collected by ABMS and its 24 Member Boards. Users can explore filtered views of certified physicians and medical specialists across the U.S. healthcare system, including data on Member Boards, certificates, continuing certification participation, state distribution, and international certificates.

• Explore Certification Data
  Use an interactive visual tool to explore aggregated information about board-certified physicians and medical specialists.
• View Data By Category
  Navigate focused views of board certification data, including certificates, continuing certification participation, geographic distribution, and international certificates.
• Filter Workforce Data
  Narrow available data by demographic, specialty, and geographic characteristics to examine relevant segments of the diplomate population.
• Access Data For Free
  Explore aggregated board certification information without a fee.
• Select A Data Month
  Choose an available month to examine certification data for a specific point in time, with more months added throughout the year.

ABMS Reference Library

The ABMS Reference Library is a searchable resource featuring literature relevant to events and activities organized by the ABMS Research and Education Foundation. Its references span multiple specialties and focus on improving health care through high standards for physician board certification. ABMS staff and expert consultants select foundational research and recent work, with references categorized by topic and medical specialty board. The collection is periodically updated with new references and annotations and includes an annual list of the top 10 high-impact articles on board certification.

• Find Relevant Certification Literature
  Search literature relevant to the Foundation’s activities and events, including references across multiple specialties related to physician board certification.
• Explore Expert-Selected Research
  Access references selected by ABMS staff and expert consultants, spanning foundational research and recent work, with annotations added as literature evolves.
• Browse By Topic And Specialty
  Use topic and medical specialty board categories to navigate the library’s references.
• Discover Top Certification Articles
  Find an annual selection of the top 10 high-impact articles on board certification.

ABMS Board Certification Report

An annual publication dedicated to information about physicians and medical specialists certified by ABMS Member Boards. It lists the specialty and subspecialty certificates approved by ABMS, reports new certificates issued over the past 10 years, and presents diplomate distribution by Member Board, specialty, and state. The report also provides current statistics on active certifications and participation in continuing certification, with data about the diplomate population such as age and gender.

Category: Professional Reference Publications

• Review Approved Certificate Listings
  Consult the report’s official list of specialty and subspecialty certificates approved by ABMS.
• Explore Diplomate Distribution
  See how board-certified diplomates are distributed across ABMS Member Boards, specialties, and states.
• Track Certificate Issuance Trends
  Review new specialty and subspecialty certificates issued over the past decade to understand certification activity over time.
• Review Certification Participation Statistics
  Use the report’s snapshot of active certifications and continuing certification participation to understand the scale and engagement of the certified diplomate population.
• Examine Diplomate Demographics
  Review age and gender statistics describing the diplomate population and how its composition changes over time.

ABMS Guide to Medical Specialties

A downloadable companion publication that provides an overview of board certification and lists the specialty and subspecialty areas in which physicians can be certified by an ABMS Member Board. It describes each area, including the types of conditions commonly treated.

Category: Professional Reference Publications

• Explore Certification Areas
  Find the specialty and subspecialty areas for which ABMS Member Board certification is available.
• Compare Specialty Areas
  Review descriptions of the specialty and subspecialty areas covered in the guide.
• Understand Board Certification
  Use the guide’s overview to learn about board certification.
• Learn About Common Conditions
  See the types of conditions commonly treated in each described specialty and subspecialty area.
• Download The Guide
  Access the guide as a PDF publication from the ABMS website.

ABMS Certification Verification

ABMS provides certification verification options for credentialers and organizations seeking to verify physician and medical specialist specialty certification. ABMS identifies its verification services as serving the public, hospitals, health systems, insurers, and other organizations, with separate verification pathways for credentialers and patients.

• Verify Physician Certification
  Credentialers can use ABMS Solutions options to verify physician certification as part of their credentialing work.
• Check A Doctor’s Certification
  Patients can use the Certification Matters verification pathway to check a doctor's certification when selecting a specialist.
• Verify Specialty Certification
  The verification service supports the public and organizations—including hospitals, health systems, and insurers—in verifying specialty certification for credentialing and other decisions.