This is one school’s experience with NBME assessments. Results or outcomes may vary and depend on factors beyond NBME’s control, such as student participation, individual study habits, faculty support and engagement, and/or variations in curriculum, among other things.

VinUniversity’s College of Health Sciences, established in partnership with the University of Pennsylvania, has advanced medical education in Vietnam by integrating internationally aligned assessments. Early adoption of the International Foundations of Medicine® (IFOM®) Program, translated into Vietnamese, helped standardize residency admissions and fostered national dialogue on competency-based education. 

IFOM, Subject Exams, and Customized Assessment Services (CAS) are embedded across VinUniversity’s MD and Graduate Medical Education programs. Faculty use CAS to select questions for six clinical clerkships, guided by institutional blueprints to ensure alignment with curriculum goals. These assessments support admissions, help track clinical readiness, and guide academic progression. 

VinUniversity’s residency programs in Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, and Surgery were the first in Vietnam to achieve ACGME-I accreditation, setting a new benchmark for medical education in the region. The university now serves as a national model for competency-based training, offering structured feedback, targeted support, and a curriculum focused on clinical excellence. 

Faculty at VinUniversity report that CAS  help certify knowledge, validate competencies, and provide structured feedback that refines the curriculum and supports continuous improvement. The integration of internationally benchmarked assessments has transformed residency admissions.

“NBME’s CAS helps us certify knowledge and validate ACGME-I competencies, helping to ensure graduates are ready for independent practice.”

Phuoc Le, MD, Vice Dean for Clinical Education

“Using IFOM transformed our residency admissions by introducing internationally benchmarked assessments aligned with global training standards.”

Thanh Ngoc Tien, MD, MsC, Program Director

“NBME assessments offer structured feedback that helps refine our curriculum, support learners, and foster continuous improvement in education.”

Nguyen Thi Tuyet, MD, Ph.D, DIO

NBME PORTFOLIO PARTS USED 

IFOM

The International Foundations of Medicine Program enables medical schools and other organizations around the world to assess students’ knowledge and compare their performance against international benchmarks. VinUniversity adopted the IFOM Clinical Sciences exam, originally translated into Vietnamese, to standardize residency admissions. It now administers the English version via computer-based testing.  

Customized Assessment Services (CAS)

VinUniversity uses CAS to tailor exams to its MD curriculum, embedding assessments throughout the pre-clerkship and clerkship phases. In Graduate Medical Education, faculty develop blueprints and select questions to create high-stakes graduation exams that assess medical knowledge and meet Ministry of Health requirements. 

NBME® Subject Exams

Subject Exams are embedded throughout VinUniversity’s MD program to assess clinical knowledge at key milestones. These exams support consistent evaluation of student readiness and align with international standards for residency training, including ACGME-I benchmarks. 

SUPPORTING DATA 

Peer Reviewed Article: Chandramouli, et al., “Impact of NBME IFOM Examination on Students’ Academic Achievement,” Health Professions Education (2019). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hpe.2019.01.001 

ACGME-I Accreditation – ACGME Announcement: https://www.acgme-i.org/newsroom/review-committees-approve-accreditation-of-programs-including-firsts-in-two-sponsoring-institutions/ 

ACGME-I Accreditation – VinUniversity Announcement: https://vinuni.edu.vn/vinuniversity-vietnams-first-and-southeast-asias-second-university-to-achieve-acgme-international-accreditation/  

VinUniversity and University of Pennsylvania Alliance: https://www.med.upenn.edu/vingroup-penn-alliance/education.html  

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