The American Board of Radiology (ABR) on August 15 released results of the Core Exam to radiology residents who took the test in May and June. But the ABR figures indicate that the percentage of test-takers who failed the 2019 board exam rose to the highest level in seven years.
The Core Exam is a computer-based test administered over two days that evaluates the knowledge and comprehension of candidates in areas key to becoming a radiologist, such as anatomy, pathophysiology, physics, and other elements of diagnostic and interventional radiology. Passing the test is a major milestone in becoming a full-fledged radiologist.
The ABR on Thursday afternoon released results from the June board exam, along with the test's rates of pass and fail. In all, 1,191 candidates took the 2019 exam, with 84% passing and 15.9% failing. A small percentage -- 0.1% -- received a "conditional" grade on the test.
The 2019 fail rate is the highest since 2013, according to data on the ABR's website.
| ABR Core Exam pass/fail rates for 2013-2019 | ||
| Year | Pass rate | Fail rate |
| 2019 | 84% | 15.9% |
| 2018 | 86.2% | 13% |
| 2017 | 93.5% | 6.3% |
| 2016 | 91.1% | 8.5% |
| 2015 | 86.8% | 12.9% |
| 2014 | 91% | 8.3% |
| 2013 | 87.2% | 11.6% |
In the Twitterverse, several pundits were disappointed in the high fail rate for this year's test.
What kind of psychological warfare is @ABR_Radiology waging by releasing overall core results before even telling those of us who took it if we passed or not? Especially with the lowest pass rate ever! You now have almost 1200 4th Yr #Radres in full panic. #core2019 pic.twitter.com/bZmgUsWtRe
— Alex Stuckey, MD (@AlexStuckeyMd) August 15, 2019
ABR #Core2019 results released with highest fail rate in its history! Check out the trend:
— Casey Cable (@ckcable) August 15, 2019
2017: 6.3%
2018: 13.0%
2019: 15.09%
2020: ?
What can be done to correct this?#Radiology #RadRes pic.twitter.com/PaETwqDhXI
