ABAI

ABAI certifies physicians in allergy and immunology and is a conjoint board of the American Board of Internal Medicine and the American Board of Pediatrics. The board publishes certification requirements, certification instructions, and training program information on its site. Because specific eligibility rules are set by the board and can change, verify your individual situation against the current ABAI requirements page before applying.

Content follows the specialty's two core areas: allergy and immunology. Expect immunologic mechanisms and immunodeficiency on one side and clinical hypersensitivity disorders, asthma, rhinitis, urticaria and angioedema, drug and food allergy, and immunotherapy on the other. ABAI also publishes core competencies for its diplomates, which are a useful checklist for structuring your review.

Applications are submitted through ABAI's Apply for an Exam pathway, which lists the exam overview, how to apply, important dates, and fees and payment details. Fees and deadlines are set by the board and are not fixed permanently, so pull the current figures from ABAI directly rather than relying on older published numbers.

ABAI publishes exam overview material and scheduling information through its application pages, but the format, item count, and time allocation should be confirmed from the board's current exam overview rather than assumed. Plan your pacing practice around the official structure once you have it, and check for any announced changes before exam day.

ABAI does not publish a fixed passing percentage in its general public materials, and scoring standards are set by the board. Treat any specific cut score you encounter online with caution. Focus on broad, accurate coverage of both domains rather than targeting a number, and direct scoring questions to the board.

Retake and reapplication policies are governed by ABAI and are not stated in its general overview pages. Before you sit, review the board's certification instructions and exam application pages for the current rules on reapplying, waiting periods, and any associated fees, and contact the board directly if your situation is unusual.

ABAI maintains a separate Maintenance of Certification program with published MOC requirements, schedules, and core competencies, and it offers reciprocal credit in some circumstances. Because MOC requirements are periodically revised, confirm your current obligations and reporting deadlines on the ABAI site rather than relying on what colleagues certified years ago describe.

Start with immunology fundamentals, since allergy questions are usually built on mechanisms: immunoglobulin biology, complement, mast cell and eosinophil biology, and primary immunodeficiency. Then move to clinical allergy in system-based blocks, finishing with mixed vignette practice that forces you to commit to a single best answer under time pressure.

Candidates most often lose points by memorizing drug and allergen lists without the underlying mechanism, by under-reviewing primary immunodeficiency and complement, and by misreading vignettes that hinge on one distinguishing detail such as timing of a reaction or route of exposure. Practicing structured vignette interpretation addresses all three.

ABAI provides a Verify a Certification tool for diplomates and a formal verification service for credentialers, along with a diplomate login for managing your own record. Employers and hospitals should be directed to the formal verification route. Contact the board at its Philadelphia office for anything the online tools do not resolve.