Ophthalmology board exams by country: USA, Canada, UK, Europe, Australia and New Zealand

US residents take the Ophthalmic Knowledge Assessment Program (OKAP) every year of residency. It is run by the American Academy of Ophthalmology with items written jointly with the American Board of Ophthalmology, has 260 questions spread across the 13 BCSC sections, and reports a scaled score and percentile rank by training year. It has no passing score, so it is an in-training benchmark rather than a certifying exam.

Board certification comes from the American Board of Ophthalmology in two steps. The Written Qualifying Examination (WQE) is 250 multiple-choice questions sat once a year at Pearson test centers; the next is September 18, 2027, and a scaled 700 of 1000 is needed to pass. Candidates who pass then sit the Oral Examination, 42 cases over three online appointments, next held May 14–15, 2027.

Canadian ophthalmologists are certified by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, and passing its examination in ophthalmology is required for certification and Fellowship (FRCSC). The exam has a written component and an applied component, and the written must be passed before you are invited to the applied. Candidates are graduates of Royal College-accredited ophthalmology residencies, plus eligible US-trained and internationally trained ophthalmologists, and each component can be taken in English or French.

In 2027 the written runs on March 11–12 at regional exam centres in Canada, and the applied is in person in Toronto or Ottawa on May 21 (the last traditional-curriculum cohort) or November 5 (the first Competence by Design cohort). Each component costs C$2,565. The Royal College reports three-year average first-attempt pass rates of 93.5% for the written and 99.0% for the applied among fully Canadian-trained candidates. Several Canadian programs also have residents sit the OKAP during training, and graduates of Royal College residencies can be eligible for the ABO exams in the USA.

The Royal College of Ophthalmologists awards Fellowship (FRCOphth) after four exams: Part 1, the Refraction Certificate, Part 2 Written and Part 2 Oral. Part 1 is 180 single-best-answer questions on basic and clinical sciences, sat online with remote proctoring and open to any doctor with a GMC- or IMC-approved medical qualification, so candidates sit it from many countries. Part 2 Written is another 180 single-best-answer questions on clinical ophthalmology, for trainees who have passed Part 1.

The Part 2 Oral combines a five-station structured viva with a clinical OSCE and a communication station, and needs Part 2 Written and the Refraction Certificate first.

The European Board of Ophthalmology Diploma is a one-day exam open to final-year residents and specialists trained or qualified in 32 listed countries; passing gives the title FEBO. Part I is a 2-hour written test of 30 multiple true/false questions with five statements each plus 30 single-best-answer questions, with no negative marking since May 2024. Part II is 8 clinical cases across 4 stations.

The EBOD is the only major ophthalmology exam here that uses multiple true/false questions, for half of the written section, so practice that format specifically. The spring 2027 sitting is online on May 14, 2027, and the autumn 2027 sitting is in person in Berlin on October 1, 2027.

The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists assesses trainees in its Vocational Training Program through a sequence of exams. Basic Training includes the Ophthalmic Sciences papers (Anatomy, Optics and Physiology, each 100 multiple-choice questions in 2 hours, sat each September) and the OBCK, an OSCE on examination technique. Advanced Training includes Ophthalmic Pathology (100 multiple-choice questions, sat each March), which must be passed before the RANZCO Advanced Clinical Examination.

The RACE is the final exam: four written papers of short-answer questions, then an 18-station OSCE over two days, held twice a year. For the next sitting, the written papers are on January 12–13, 2027 and the OSCE on March 4–5, 2027. Some specialist international medical graduates are also required to sit the RACE clinical component.

The International Council of Ophthalmology runs exams that trainees and ophthalmologists in any country can sit, usually in March and October at local test centers. The Standard level has three exams (Visual Sciences, Optics, Refraction and Instruments, and Clinical Ophthalmology); passing all three opens the Advanced exam and the FICO. All are single-best-answer questions from four options with no negative marking, and results are mailed about six weeks after the exam.

The OKAP is spread across the 13 BCSC sections; FRCOphth Part 1, the RANZCO Ophthalmic Sciences and the ICO Visual Sciences all test optics, anatomy, physiology and pathology; and the clinical written exams (ABO WQE, FRCOphth Part 2 Written, EBOD Part I, the RACE written papers and ICO Clinical) all test diagnosis and management across the same subspecialties.

What differs is the format and the weighting. Optics weighs heavily in the basic-science exams, so a subspecialty breakdown of your weak areas is more useful than a count of questions done.

Use a question bank for the knowledge tests, organized by subspecialty, and practice the format of your exam on top: timed single-best-answer blocks for most written exams, true/false sets before the EBOD, and written short answers or a study group for the RACE. For orals and OSCEs, question banks help with the knowledge but not the delivery, so rehearse cases aloud.

OphthoMentor is an independent question bank organized by the 13 BCSC-aligned subspecialties, with original single-best-answer questions plus EBO-style true/false items. Every question has an explanation, many with a decision flowchart, and there are weak-topic drills, a spaced-repetition review queue and a readiness dashboard. A free plan opens 65 questions, five from every subspecialty; Core ($319, 12 months) opens the full bank as a one-time payment with no subscription, and Residency ($619) gives the same access for 36 months, which can span several exam years.

OphthoMentor's questions are original, not past papers from any exam body, and are not mapped to any one exam's blueprint. The bank has no short-answer or OSCE practice. The free public library of sample questions is at ophthomentor.com/ophthalmology-questions.