The American Board of Surgery in-training examination

Abstract

Since 1975, the American Board of Surgery has annually offered a multiple-choice in-training examination to directors of accredited general surgery programs in the United States for administration to residents in their programs. Residents' scores for the total examination and the five body-system categories are provided to program directors, along with normative data for comparison of their residents' performance against that of all examinees. Each year, residents' scores have correlated well with their level of training. Reliability coefficients have verified that the examinations have functioned effectively as test instruments. The increasingly wide use of the examination and its favorable acceptance by program directors have indicated that the examination is making a significant contribution to surgical education in the United States.