The American Board of Radiology's Alternate Pathway for Diagnostic Radiology: What the Programs and the Applicants Need to Know

The American Board of Radiology (ABR) developed the international medical graduate alternate pathway to give foreign trained radiologists an alternate route to independent radiology practice without having to undergo radiology residency in the United States. After 4 years of fellowship/faculty experience in the same training institution, the foreign trained radiologist becomes eligible to sit for the radiology board examinations conducted by the ABR. As this pathway is not offered at every radiology training program, many training institutions are unfamiliar with the fundamentals of this pathway. At the same time, both the training institutions and the applying foreign-trained physicians face a plethora of confusing choices on the state and federal level. In this paper, we review the main factors which both the international medical graduate radiologists and training programs must consider before embarking on the diagnostic radiology ABR Alternate Pathway, namely, eligibility, visa options, state medical licensure requirements, their costs and implications for future employment opportunities.

Automated summary

This paper discusses the alternate pathway developed by the American Board of Radiology (ABR) to provide foreign trained radiologists with an opportunity for independent radiology practice. Many training institutions are unfamiliar with this pathway, and both the applying physicians and training programs face numerous choices and considerations.