USMLE Step 2 CK Scheduling 2026: Apply, Eligibility Period, and Prometric
USMLE Step 2 CK is reported with a three-digit score and a Pass/Fail result. For exams administered on or after July 1, 2025, the current minimum passing score is 218. In 2026, USMLE says results are typically available two to four weeks after the test date, but examinees should allow at least eight weeks for notification because reporting can be delayed. Score reports remain available in the appropriate registration portal for about 365 days; after that, scores are obtained through an official transcript. USMLE passing-standard notice · 2026 Bulletin Addendum
Step 2 CK scoring at a glance
| Question | Official 2026 answer |
|---|---|
| How is Step 2 CK reported? | Three-digit score plus Pass/Fail. Reported Step 2 CK scores range from 1 to 300. USMLE |
| What is the minimum passing score? | 218 for examinations administered on or after July 1, 2025. USMLE |
| When are scores usually released? | Typically two to four weeks after the test date; USMLE says to allow at least eight weeks for notification. USMLE 2026 addendum |
| How long is the score report available online? | Approximately 365 days from the email notification. After removal, scores are available through an official transcript. USMLE · FSMB |
| Does the report show more than the total score? | Yes. The current sample includes the test result, three-digit score, comparison display, uncertainty information, and relative strengths/weaknesses across reported content groupings. USMLE sample report |
How the Step 2 CK score is reported
Step 2 CK remains numerically scored in 2026: USMLE reports a three-digit score and Pass/Fail outcome, with reported scores ranging from 1 to 300. Statistical procedures adjust for small differences in form difficulty. USMLE Score Interpretation Guidelines
The current passing standard is 218
The USMLE Management Committee raised the Step 2 CK minimum passing standard from 214 to 218 for examinees testing on or after July 1, 2025. USMLE describes the Pass/Fail result as a recommendation based on a specified level of proficiency, not a quota in which a predetermined percentage of examinees must pass or fail. The passing standard is reviewed periodically and can be adjusted after a formal review. USMLE June 16, 2025 notice · USMLE scoring page
Do not convert 218 into an unofficial percentage-correct target; USMLE says the percentage of correct items needed to pass varies by Step and form. USMLE Bulletin
What appears on a Step 2 CK score report
The current four-page sample report shows the examinee and test date, Pass/Fail result, three-digit score, minimum passing score on a comparison display, and a score interval based on the standard error of the estimate (SEE). USMLE 2026 sample score report
Subsequent pages provide relative strengths and weaknesses. The report categorizes content-area performance as lower, the same, or higher relative to the examinee’s overall Step 2 CK performance. Current reporting includes groupings by physician task, system/discipline, and clinical science. These indicators are relative performance signals; they are not a second set of independent numeric section scores. USMLE sample report · USMLE score-report FAQs
When Step 2 CK scores are released in 2026
The 2026 Bulletin Addendum says Step results are typically available two to four weeks after the test date. It also warns that various factors can delay reporting and tells examinees to allow at least eight weeks to receive notification that a score report is available. The May 2026 Step 2 CK test-delivery software update repeated the same timing guidance, so the interface change did not create a new routine release schedule. USMLE 2026 addendum · USMLE May 2026 update
Who sends the score notification?
After the 2026 USMLE service transition, the notification route depends on the examinee’s registration entity. On or after January 26, 2026, students and graduates of LCME- or COCA-accredited programs receive an email notification from NBME when the report is available in the MyUSMLE Portal. On or after January 12, 2026, eligible students and graduates of medical schools outside the United States receive the notification from FSMB and access the report through FSMB’s USMLE portal. USMLE 2026 addendum · NBME USMLE page · FSMB USMLE portal
What can delay a report?
USMLE does not promise a specific release day. Various factors can delay reporting, and the Bulletin says an unreleased result may be delayed or withheld during a score-validity review. USMLE Bulletin: score validity
Score-report access, transcripts, and “score validity” are different concepts
The portal copy of a Step score report is temporary. The 2026 Addendum says reports remain available for approximately 365 days from the email notification. FSMB’s transcript FAQ states that after 365 days the report is removed and the score is provided only through an official USMLE transcript; it also notes that the graphical performance profiles from the original score report are not included in the transcript. USMLE · FSMB
The sample Step 2 CK report also tells third-party users to rely on official transcripts received directly from the examinee’s USMLE registration entity. The official transcript contains the complete USMLE examination history and specified annotations, not the full graphical feedback package shown to the examinee. USMLE sample report · USMLE transcripts
Do not confuse that 365-day access window with the Bulletin’s separate term score validity. In the Bulletin, score validity refers to whether an exam result is considered a valid measure for reporting; USMLE reserves the right to review, withhold, or cancel a result when it has a good-faith basis to question validity. Separately, USMLE says many state medical boards require the full Step sequence to be completed within a jurisdiction-specific time frame. Those licensing rules are controlled by the relevant authority and are outside this page’s scoring/reporting scope. USMLE score-validity policy · USMLE eligibility/time-limits policy
How USMLE says to interpret a Step 2 CK score
USMLE says a score reflects relative mastery of the concepts and principles assessed by that Step. It also tells score users to treat scores as approximate rather than exact measures of medical knowledge. The current interpretation guidance describes measurement uncertainty, including the standard error of measurement and the standard error of the estimate, and cautions that small score differences should not by themselves be used as the basis for selection decisions. USMLE score-report FAQs · USMLE Score Interpretation Guidelines
The same guidance says scores from the same Step can be compared across forms and years after statistical adjustment, while warning against comparing individual scores obtained more than roughly three to four years apart because exam content and format evolve. USMLE also publishes current norm information separately and updates it over time. This article does not assign an unofficial percentile, specialty target, school cutoff, or probability of selection to any Step 2 CK score. USMLE Score Interpretation Guidelines
Score-report verification checklist
- Confirm that your exam date falls under the current 218 passing standard if it was administered on or after July 1, 2025. USMLE
- Use two to four weeks only as the typical reporting range, not a guaranteed deadline; USMLE says to allow at least eight weeks. USMLE
- Save your score report while it remains available in your registration portal for approximately 365 days. USMLE
- Use an official transcript when a third party requires official score history. USMLE
- Read relative strengths/weaknesses as comparisons with your own overall Step 2 CK performance, not as separate section scores. USMLE sample report
USMLE Step 2 CK scoring FAQs
What is the Step 2 CK passing score in 2026?
The current minimum passing score is 218 for Step 2 CK exams administered on or after July 1, 2025. USMLE
Is Step 2 CK still a three-digit score?
Yes. Step 2 CK is reported with a three-digit score plus a Pass/Fail result, and USMLE’s current score-interpretation guidance describes a 1–300 reporting range. USMLE · USMLE guidance
How long do Step 2 CK results take?
USMLE’s 2026 guidance says results are typically available two to four weeks after the test date, while advising examinees to allow at least eight weeks for notification because delays can occur. USMLE
Does the online score report stay available permanently?
No. The report remains available for approximately 365 days from the email notification. After that window, scores are accessed through an official transcript rather than the original online score-report file. USMLE · FSMB
Can a Step 2 CK score report be delayed?
Yes. USMLE says various factors can delay score reporting. The Bulletin also documents that a score-validity review can delay or withhold an unreleased result pending review or investigation. USMLE Bulletin
Does USMLE say what score a residency program or school requires?
No universal institutional cutoff is established by USMLE in its score-reporting guidance. USMLE explains score meaning and measurement limits, and it cautions against using small score differences alone for selection decisions. Institution-specific selection policies are separate from USMLE scoring. USMLE Score Interpretation Guidelines
Editorial update note
Last reviewed August 29, 2026. KOTC rechecked the current Step 2 CK passing standard, 2026 score-release language, post-transition NBME/FSMB report-delivery routes, current sample score report, transcript access rules, score-validity language, and the 2026 software/nutrition updates. The software and nutrition notices did not announce a new routine score-release timeline. USMLE software update · USMLE nutrition update
