<P> The USMLE Step 1 (more commonly just Step 1 or colloquially, The Boards) is the first part of the United States Medical Licensing Examination . It aims to assess whether medical school students or graduates can apply important concepts of the foundational sciences fundamental to the practice of medicine . US medical students, as well as non-US medical students who wish to seek licensure to practice medicine in the US, typically take Step 1 at the end of the second year of medical school . Graduates of international medical schools (i.e., those outside the US or Canada) must also take Step 1 if they want to practice in the US . Graduates from international medical schools must apply through ECFMG, and the registration fee is $915 . For 2016, the NBME registration fee for the test is $600, with additional charges for applicants who choose a testing region outside the United States or Canada . </P> <P> Prior to 1992, the NBME Part I examination served as the staple basic science examination for medical students at the end of their second year . Upon the launch of the three - part United States Medical Licensing Examination, NBME Part I exam was carried forward in its new format, the USMLE Step 1 examination, which has since evolved to become an increasingly clinically - applied examination of the foundational sciences . The exam became computer based several years later . In May 2015, the USMLE began emphasizing of concepts regarding patient safety and quality improvement across all parts of the USMLE exam series, including Step 1 . </P>

When do medical students take usmle step 1