About The Program
Recommendations
United States Medical Licensing Examinations (USMLE)
It is most critical that you do not take any of the USMLE’s without first achieving a minimum score of 500 on a National Board of Medical Examination practice test. Residency programs will receive all your USMLE attempts and scores. More than one failure usually will exclude you from further consideration by training programs.
English as Second Language
Regardless of your English language fluency, we recommend that you enroll in an ESL course. If you are in the LA area, we highly recommend the English for Health Professionals’ course offered at Los Angeles City College (LACC) as it is tailored to IMGs and taught by UCLA faculty member Darren Kelley, MFA Classes are held at LACC on Saturday mornings from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM and are free of charge.
Basic Science Preparatory Course
Dr. Luis Cazal teaches a 14-week basic science review course which will prepare you for the UCLA IMG Program A (USMLE Step 1 Basic Science). Individuals who do well in his course have the highest rate of acceptance to Program A at UCLA. Please contact Dr. Cazal should you wish to enroll. Classes take place at the following address:
Molina Health Center1 Golden Shore
Long Beach, CA 90802
M-F 5-10pm
(323) 722-1762
Application Process
How to Obtain an Application
Please download the initial application from our website.
Please review the application grid before submitting an initial application. Note that there is a twenty-five ($25.00) dollar processing fee per application required (make checks payable to UC Regents).
Initial applications will be reviewed by an advisory committee throughout the year. Applicants will be notified if they should complete a Secondary Application.
Eligibility Criteria
Please read closely before submitting an initial application
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US Citizenship or Permanent Resident or Refugee Status.
Please Note:UCLA's IMG Program cannot assist you in obtaining immigration visas - F-1 Visa holders must possess a Social Security number and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. The program does not accept B-1/B-2 or L-1/L-2 visas.
- At least 3 months of residence in the State of California prior to admission into program. If accepted into the program, you must live in the Los Angeles area.
- Fluency in both oral and written English and Spanish, bi-cultural competency in U.S. American and Latin-American cultures.
- Graduated from medical school or completed a residency training program on or after 2003 (A case-by-case exception can be granted should a candidate evidence exceptional, updated clinical skills or stellar NBME/ USLME test scores).
- Medical school appears on the Medical Board of California website.
- Meet all requirements to obtain the Postgraduate Training Authorization Letter (PTAL), also known as the California Letter, which includes possessing a Social Security number. Please refer to the document published by the Medicial Board of California and see the section on PTAL below.
Post-Graduate Training Authorization Letter (PTAL)
Certificate of Clinical Clerkship/L5 Section of PTAL
Candidate’s medical school curriculum must satisfy mandatory clinical hours per clinical subject as outlined below:
Please Note: These requirements are subject to change at any time by the Medical Board of California (MBC); visit the MBC’ website for most updated information.
Total Instruction in clinical courses must be minimum of 72 weeks in length.
- Instruction in the core clinical courses of surgery, medicine, family medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, and psychiatry must total a minimum of 40 weeks in length. Minimum course length for the core clinical courses is outlined on the Core Clinical Course grid in accordance with Section 2089.5 of the Business and Professions Code.
| Core Clinical Subject | Clinical Weeks/ Clinical Hours |
|---|---|
| Surgery | 8/256 |
| Medicine | 8/256 |
| Pediatrics | 6/192 |
| Ob-Gyn. | 6/192 |
| Family Medicine | 4/128 |
| Psychiatry* | 4/128 |
| Total | 36/1152 |
In addition to the minimum weeks for the core clinical courses (36 weeks), an additional 36 weeks of elective hours must come from any combination of core clinical courses for a total of 72 hours.
* The Medical Board of California (MBC) will determine what portion of a neurology clerkship may be utilized to fulfill the psychiatry clerkship.
For computation purposes, one week of clinical clerkship equals 32 hours and lecture or theory hours can not be applied to the clinical clerkship hours. Further, you may include hours earned during your internship so long as the clerkship hours were earned prior to receiving your medical degree.
Selection Criteria
Program A
- Evidence of enrollment in any USMLE Step 1 in-person or web-based preparatory course
- Scores on individual components of the USMLE subjects which include: anatomy, biochemistry, pathology, pharmacology, genetics, microbiology, immunology and behavioral sciences
- Evidence of enrollment in an ongoing English as a Second Language (ESL) course
- Certificate of English competency level
- Ability to type 40-50 words per minute (If invited for interview, typing skills to be assessed at that time.) A simple typing test is available at Calculatorcat.com.
Selection Criteria - Program B and C
- Applicants with USMLE scores of 200 or above that have no more than one failed USMLE tests will be given priority status.
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Priority for entry to Program B (Clinical Sciences):
- Program A applicants receiving a score of 200 or greater on the USMLE within 8 months of beginning Program A.
- Program B applicants receiving a 200 or greater on the USMLE and demonstration of English-language competency.
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Priority for entry to Program C (Clinical Observership):
- Program B applicants receiving a score of 200 or greater on the USMLE Step 2 CK and a pass on the USMLE Step 2 CS within 6 months of beginning Program B.
- Program C applicants receiving a score of 200 or greater on the USMLE Step 1, USMLE Step 2 CK and a pass on USMLE Step 2 CS and demonstration of English language competency. In addition priority will be given to those who have obtained an ECFMG certificate and PTAL (California Letter).
