Physician Training and Accreditation
Clear answers to the questions policymakers, journalists, and patients are asking about residency, accreditation, and the system that prepares physicians for practice.
Value of Accreditation
This video provides a high-level overview of the function and value of accreditation in graduate medical education, and why that should matter to patients across the US.
Explore the Basics
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How Doctors Train
After earning a medical degree, every physician in the United States completes a residency, a period of supervised clinical training that typically lasts three to seven years depending on the specialty. Learn how a doctor moves from medical school to independent practice, and who oversees each step.
Who Does What
No single organization controls physician training. See which body sets the standards, which licenses physicians, which funds training, and where accountability actually sits.
Understanding Accreditation
Accreditation is the independent process of setting educational standards for medical training programs and verifying, through structured review, that those programs meet them. See who sets the standards, how residents and the public weigh in, and what happens when a program falls short.
The Physician Training Journey
Learn how physicians are trained, who oversees the process, and how accreditation supports high-quality medical education across the United States.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is accreditation?
Accreditation is a formal recognition that an institution or program meets established educational and clinical training standards. It applies to programs and institutions—not to individual physicians. The ACGME evaluates whether training programs provide the curriculum, supervision, and learning environment necessary for physicians to complete their education successfully. The ACGME accredits programs and institutions—not individual physicians.
Who licenses physicians?
Physicians in the United States are licensed by the medical board in each state or jurisdiction where they practice. Most states require 1 to 3 years of accredited residency in order to obtain an unrestricted license.
State medical boards review a physician’s education, training, examinations, and professional history before granting a license. They also establish rules for medical practice and may investigate complaints or take disciplinary action. The ACGME does not license physicians.
What is the difference between accreditation and certification in medical education?
Accreditation applies to educational programs and the institutions that sponsor them. For example, the ACGME accredits residency and fellowship programs that meet its educational standards.
Completion of an accredited residency or fellowship can be a requirement for certification.
Certification generally applies to an individual physician. Medical specialty boards certify physicians who have met defined standards for education, training, knowledge, experience, and skills in a specialty or subspecialty.
In simple terms, a program is accredited, while a physician is certified. Board certification is separate from the medical license required to practice medicine.
Who funds physician training?
Graduate medical education is funded through several public and private sources.
Medicare provides significant funding to eligible teaching hospitals through Direct Graduate Medical Education payments and Indirect Medical Education payments. Other funding may come from Medicaid, the Department of Veterans Affairs, federal programs administered by agencies such as the Health Resources and Services Administration, state and local governments, teaching hospitals, health systems, and other organizations.
Funding arrangements vary by institution and program, and some hospitals fund residency positions beyond the number supported by Medicare.
Does the ACGME run the Match?
No, the ACGME does not run the Match.
The National Resident Matching Program, commonly known as the NRMP, administers the Main Residency Match and many fellowship matches. The ACGME establishes accreditation and educational standards for residency and fellowship programs, while the NRMP operates the matching process that connects applicants with participating programs.
Some specialties use matching organizations other than the NRMP.
