WDOMS Listing vs Accreditation

The World Directory of Medical Schools (WDOMS) is the reference most regulators, credential checkers and applicants use to confirm that a medical school exists. Because it is so widely used, a listing is often read as a stamp of quality. It is not. A WDOMS listing is not accreditation or endorsement. This guide explains what the directory records, what accreditation is, and how to check each one separately for any school you are considering.

What the World Directory is

WDOMS is published jointly by the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME) and FAIMER, a division of Intealth. WFME describes it as a free, searchable directory of the world's undergraduate (basic) medical education programs, with information on more than 3,700 schools, both operational and historical. It brought together the information previously held in the WHO World Directory and the IMED and Avicenna directories.

The directory aims to list every school that provides a complete program of instruction leading to a basic medical qualification, one that permits the holder to obtain a license to practice as a medical doctor. According to WFME, before an eligible school can be included, the directory team must confirm the school's operational status and its recognition by an appropriate government agency or ministry.

So a listing tells you two useful things: the school exists (or existed), and a government authority in its country recognized it as a medical school at the time it was listed.

What a listing does not mean

The directory's own disclaimer is explicit. The listing of a medical school "does not denote recognition, accreditation, or endorsement" by the directory, by WFME or by FAIMER, nor by any sponsor of the directory unless that is expressly stated. The disclaimer adds that a school's association with FAIMER or WFME, for example as a member of a network, is not related to its listing or to any accreditation.

WFME's FAQ says the same in plainer terms: listing "does not mean or imply that the school is accredited."

In practice, this means a listing does not tell you:

• whether any accrediting agency has reviewed the school;
• whether the quality of teaching or clinical training meets a particular standard;
• whether its graduates can register or obtain a license in another country;
• whether its graduates are eligible for ECFMG Certification, which is shown separately (see below).

A WDOMS listing does not establish eligibility to practice in the United States or anywhere else. Each country's regulator decides for itself.

What accreditation is

Accreditation is an external review of a medical school or program against published standards, carried out by an accrediting agency. Agencies are usually national bodies, but some work across borders. Accreditation normally involves a self-study by the school, a site visit and a formal decision, and it is repeated over time.

Not every country has a medicine-specific accrediting agency, and an agency's existence does not mean every school in the country is accredited by it. WFME's agency page notes that inclusion of an agency in FAIMER's Directory of Organizations that Recognize/Accredit Medical Schools (DORA), or recognition of an agency by WFME, "does not imply that all medical schools in this country are currently accredited by the agency." It advises contacting the agency directly about a specific school.

WFME recognition is about agencies

WFME does not accredit individual medical schools. Through its Recognition Programme, it evaluates accrediting agencies against published criteria and grants Recognition Status to those that meet them. The recognized agency then accredits schools. When you read that a school is "WFME-accredited," the accurate description is that it is accredited by a WFME-recognized agency, if that is in fact the case. See WFME Agency Recognition Explained for how that process works.

How the pieces fit together

These are separate decisions made by separate bodies. One does not imply another.

Sponsor Notes and accreditation notes inside a listing

A WDOMS listing has tabs, and some of the most important information sits there rather than in the school's name and address.

• Sponsor Notes tab. Organizations that sponsor the directory may add notes about a school. ECFMG uses this tab for its Sponsor Note. ECFMG states that if there is no ECFMG Sponsor Note on that tab, the school's students and graduates are not eligible for ECFMG Certification. ECFMG also states that it does not recognize, accredit or endorse medical schools; the note describes ECFMG's requirements for graduates, not the school's quality. See ECFMG Sponsor Notes Explained.
• Recognized Accreditation Policy notation. Intealth reports on the Sponsor Notes tab, below the ECFMG Sponsor Note, when a school currently meets its Recognized Accreditation Policy, meaning it is accredited by an agency recognized by WFME or by the US National Committee on Foreign Medical Education and Accreditation (NCFMEA). Intealth states this reporting does not affect anyone's eligibility for ECFMG Certification.
• Program Details tab. Intealth notes that for schools accredited by a WFME-recognized agency, WFME provides specific accreditation information on this tab.

Regulators also read these tabs. The UK General Medical Council, for example, requires the awarding institution to have a WDOMS entry with contact details for verification, expects the degree title, duration and awarding body to match the listing, and says it will consider the content of any sponsor notes. A listing is one of its criteria, not the whole test: the GMC applies several further criteria on duration, clinical placements and teaching methods.

How to check a school yourself

1. Find the listing. Search the World Directory for the school. Check that the name, city, degree title and program duration match what the school tells you. A branch campus or partner institution may have a different entry or none.
2. Read every tab. Look at Program Details and Sponsor Notes, not only the summary page. Note any graduation years mentioned.
3. Ask the school which agency accredits it. WFME's FAQ recommends asking the school first, then verifying the status on the agency's own website.
4. Check the agency. Look up whether that agency holds WFME Recognition Status on WFME's list of recognized agencies, and in which countries it operates.
5. Check your destination regulator. Read the rules of the authority in the country where you intend to practice. Our guide to investigating practice requirements lists the questions to ask.

Our recognition overview and methodology explain what this site records and its limits.

Common misreadings to avoid

• "Listed in WDOMS, so it is accredited." Not so; the directory says listing does not denote accreditation.
• "Listed in WDOMS, so I can practice in the US." Not so; US pathways depend on ECFMG Certification, examinations, residency and state licensing, each with its own rules.
• "Listed, so approved by an international body." The former WHO World Directory was merged into WDOMS, and the directory's disclaimer says a listing is not recognition, accreditation or endorsement by its publishers or sponsors. A school that markets its listing as an approval deserves careful questions.
• "Accredited in its own country, so recognized everywhere." Accreditation in one country never guarantees eligibility elsewhere.

A listing is a starting point. Accreditation, agency recognition, sponsor notes and the rules of your intended country of practice each need to be checked on their own.