Official policy
Eligibility, exam format, scores, deadlines, fees, certification, application and Match rules are checked against the organization responsible for them.
Trust standard
How we decide what is safe to publish.
USMLE preparation sits next to high-stakes rules, deadlines, professional decisions and medical knowledge. Our process keeps official facts, independent strategy and uncertainty visibly separate.
Study strategy
Recommendations are labeled as guidance and explained through a practical rationale. They are not presented as official requirements or guaranteed methods.
Current context
Time-sensitive pages display a review date and use the applicable exam or application season. Older processes are not silently mixed with current instructions.
No invented authority
We do not claim clinician review, student outcomes, partnerships, rankings or endorsements that have not been verified and disclosed.
Source proximity
Primary links appear near the claims they support. Readers should not need to search a bibliography to find the official rule.
Material corrections
When a material policy or factual error is found, the page is corrected and its review date is refreshed after rechecking the primary source.
Publishing process
Source → explain → challenge → update.
- Define the decisionIdentify what the reader is trying to understand or do.
- Find the authorityUse USMLE, NBME, FSMB, ECFMG, AAMC, NRMP or another responsible primary source.
- Separate layersMark what is official, what is interpretation and what is optional strategy.
- Check edge casesReview applicant category, date, exception and process dependencies.
- Publish provenanceShow review date, source links and an independence statement.
- Watch change triggersReview official announcements, annual application seasons, scoring updates and source changes.
Free and independent
Editorial coverage is not for sale.
USMLE Guide is intended as a free public resource. The current site does not sell coaching, consulting, subscriptions, sponsored rankings, paid placement or affiliate links. Resource coverage and factual editorial decisions are not sold.
Medical review
Review credentials must be specific.
Study-process and administrative guides are reviewed by the editorial desk. A page will name a clinician reviewer only after that person has reviewed the specific content and their relevant credentials can be disclosed. The absence of a named clinician means no clinician review is being claimed.
AI assistance
Tools can assist the work, not replace verification.
AI tools may assist with drafting, organization, technical implementation and quality checks. AI assistance is not clinician review. High-stakes factual claims are checked against primary sources before publication, and material changes should be rechecked before review dates are refreshed.
Exam integrity
Secure test content does not belong here.
USMLE Guide does not solicit, reproduce, distribute or encourage the use of recalled or secure exam questions, answers or other protected test content. Study content should focus on concepts, reasoning and publicly released or otherwise authorized resources.