- Understanding the Two-Part Exam Format
- Part I: The 150-Question Written Examination
- Part II: Video Interview Vignettes
- The Clinical Scope Behind the Questions
- How Eligibility Requirements Shape What's Tested
- The CME Core Curriculum and Content Signals
- Registration, Fees, and Scheduling Mechanics
- Who Hires Candidates With This Certification
- Mapping a Study Plan to the Exam Format
- Recertification and Ongoing Content Requirements
- Frequently Asked Questions
- ABAP certification uses a two-part format: 150 written MCQs (Part I) plus two 25-question video vignettes (Part II), 200 questions total.
- Both parts must be passed; there is no single combined score that lets you fail one part and compensate with the other.
- Eligibility requires at least 25% of patient-care time devoted to ages 11-26, which directly shapes exam content.
- Candidates need 36 relevant AMA PRA Category I CME credits within the preceding three years before applying.
Understanding the Two-Part Exam Format
Unlike credentials that describe their exam in terms of weighted content domains, the American Board of Adolescent Psychiatry (ABAP) structures its Certification in Adolescent and Young Adult Psychiatry around format rather than a published percentage breakdown of topic areas. That distinction matters when you're planning your prep. Instead of memorizing "Domain 3 is worth 18% of the exam," candidates need to understand two distinct testing formats that assess different clinical skills.
The exam is delivered online and professionally proctored, meaning you sit for it from your home or office after your application is approved - there's no test center to travel to. It is administered in two parts, and both parts must be passed to earn certification. This is a critical planning point covered in more depth in our requirements breakdown, but it's worth repeating here: passing Part I with a strong result does not offset a weak Part II performance, and vice versa.
Part I: The 150-Question Written Examination
Part I consists of 150 multiple-choice questions delivered in a traditional written format. This is the portion of the exam that most closely resembles other written psychiatric board examinations you may have taken during general or child psychiatry board certification through ABPN, AOA, NBPAS, or the Royal College of Physicians in Canada.
Because ABAP does not require an ACGME child-psychiatry fellowship and is not an ABMS member board, Part I is designed to test practical, applied clinical judgment for physicians who already hold a qualifying board certification and are extending their practice into adolescent and young adult populations - not to re-test general psychiatric fundamentals from scratch.
- Delivered as standard multiple-choice items, proctored online
- Sits alongside Part II as one of two mandatory passing components
- Best prepared for using the official ABAP study guide and review course, which are the board's own recommended resources
For a deeper walkthrough of exactly how many questions you need right to clear this section, see our dedicated guide on the passing score.
Part II: Video Interview Vignettes
This is the portion of the ABAP exam that sets it apart from most psychiatric certification formats you've likely encountered before. Part II is composed of two video interview vignettes, each followed by 25 questions, for 50 questions total. Combined with Part I's 150 items, that brings the full exam to 200 questions.
The video vignette format requires candidates to observe clinical interactions - likely involving simulated or recorded patient encounters relevant to the 11-26 age range - and then answer questions that test observational judgment, diagnostic reasoning, and interpersonal assessment skills that a written-only exam cannot capture. This format rewards clinicians who are comfortable interpreting nonverbal cues, developmental presentation differences, and interview dynamics specific to adolescents and young adults, rather than clinicians who are only strong at recalling textbook facts.
Part II Format Snapshot
What candidates should understand about the video vignette structure before test day.
- Two separate video vignettes, each paired with its own 25-question block
- Questions likely assess clinical observation and interview interpretation, not simple recall
- Proctored online like Part I, so a stable connection and quiet environment matter for both parts
If you're trying to gauge how challenging this video-based format feels compared to a standard written board exam, our article on how hard the exam really is goes into more detail on what candidates report about adjusting to it.
The Clinical Scope Behind the Questions
Since ABAP has not published a formal domain-weighting outline the way some other boards do, the most reliable way to understand what the exam actually covers is to look at who is eligible to sit for it and what their day-to-day practice looks like. Eligibility requires that at least 25% of a candidate's patient-care time be devoted to patients aged 11 to 26. That single requirement tells you a great deal about the clinical scope of the exam: it is built around the developmental, diagnostic, and treatment considerations unique to the adolescent-to-young-adult transition, not general adult psychiatry and not early childhood psychiatry.
Practically, this means candidates should expect the exam to draw on clinical reasoning across:
- Developmental presentation differences between early adolescence, later adolescence, and young adulthood
- Diagnostic and treatment nuances that shift as patients age out of pediatric-oriented care and into adult-oriented systems
- Interview and rapport-building skills relevant to a population that is often testing autonomy and trust with providers
- Collaboration and communication considerations unique to caring for patients who may still involve parents/guardians in care decisions while also asserting independent decision-making
Key Takeaway
Instead of hunting for a published domain list that doesn't exist for this credential, orient your review around the 11-26 age range and the clinical judgment skills that both the written and video-vignette formats are designed to test.
How Eligibility Requirements Shape What's Tested
ABAP's eligibility criteria function almost like an informal content outline. To apply, candidates need accepted general or child-psychiatry board certification through ABPN, AOA, NBPAS, or the Royal College of Physicians in Canada, an active unrestricted medical license, three recommendation letters, and the 25% patient-care threshold discussed above. Because every eligible candidate already holds a base psychiatric certification, ABAP's exam is not attempting to re-test foundational psychiatric knowledge - it is testing the specialized layer that sits on top of that foundation: recognizing and managing the clinical realities of the 11-26 age band specifically.
This is a meaningful distinction from ABPN's Child and Adolescent Psychiatry subspecialty certification, which follows a different pathway and different sponsoring structure entirely. ABAP, sponsored by the American Society for Adolescent Psychiatry (ASAP), is a separate, distinct certification, and candidates should not assume overlap in exam blueprint, fees, or governance between the two. For a full walkthrough of who qualifies and how to document your eligibility, see our requirements guide.
The CME Core Curriculum and Content Signals
One of the clearest indicators of exam content comes from the CME requirement itself. Applicants need 36 relevant AMA PRA Category I CME credits completed within the preceding three years, earned either through ABAP's approved core curriculum or through board-approved alternative CME. This core curriculum is effectively the closest thing ABAP offers to a public content roadmap - completing it exposes candidates to the topic areas the board considers essential before sitting for the exam.
Because the core curriculum is designed by ABAP itself, it's a stronger predictor of exam content than any third-party outline. Pairing it with the board's own study guide and review course - the two officially endorsed preparation resources - is the most direct route to aligning your studying with what the exam actually tests.
Registration, Fees, and Scheduling Mechanics
Understanding the exam's content areas is only half the picture; you also need to understand the mechanics of getting to test day. Initial charges consist of a $450 registration fee plus a $750 examination fee, for a total of $1,200. ASAP membership is optional, but eligible members can apply a coupon for 25% off the registration fee, which brings the calculated initial total down to $1,087.50.
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Registration fee | $450 |
| Examination fee | $750 |
| Total (non-member) | $1,200 |
| Total with ASAP member coupon (25% off registration) | $1,087.50 |
| Retake, single part | $150 |
| Retake, both parts | $300 |
| Re-registration fee (if retake not requested within 6 months of failure) | $200 + updated application |
Results are not instant - they follow cohort analysis, and candidates should expect results generally within 30-90 days after completing the exam. If you fail a part and don't request re-examination within six months, a $200 re-registration fee and an updated application are required before you can try again. For the complete fee breakdown including how these numbers interact with membership status, see our certification cost guide.
Who Hires Candidates With This Certification
Because ABAP certification signals a specific, documented commitment to treating patients aged 11-26, it tends to matter most to employers and settings where that age range is the core population: adolescent medicine clinics, college and university counseling-affiliated psychiatric services, young-adult transition programs, and private or group practices that market themselves specifically around teen and young-adult mental health. It is not a substitute for ABPN Child and Adolescent Psychiatry subspecialty certification in settings that require that specific credential, so candidates should be clear about which employers are asking for which certification before assuming interchangeability.
To understand how this credential functions in the broader job market and what roles specifically value it, our jobs guide covers practice settings in more detail, and our ROI analysis weighs the certification's costs against its practical career value.
Mapping a Study Plan to the Exam Format
Because the exam has two distinct formats rather than a list of weighted domains, your study calendar should mirror that split rather than a generic weekly template. A reasonable approach is to dedicate early study weeks to Part I's written content - using the ABAP study guide and core curriculum materials as your spine - before shifting focus toward Part II's video vignette skills, which require a different kind of practice: watching clinical interactions and practicing rapid interpretation under time pressure.
Written Content Foundations
- Work through the ABAP core curriculum and study guide chapter by chapter
- Build recall around 11-26 age-specific clinical scenarios rather than general psychiatry review
Applied Judgment Practice
- Practice timed multiple-choice sets that mimic the 150-question Part I structure
- Review recommendation-letter and eligibility documentation so administrative steps don't compete with study time later
Video Vignette Readiness
- Practice interpreting recorded or simulated clinical interviews for observational detail
- Simulate the online-proctored environment at home to remove technical surprises on test day
For a more complete week-by-week strategy, including how to sequence review sessions across both exam parts, see our full study guide. You can also test your readiness against realistic practice questions on the main practice test platform before committing to a final test date.
Recertification and Ongoing Content Requirements
Initial certification lasts ten years, after which certificants enter five-year renewal terms. Starting July 1, 2026, the recertification policy requires a clinical evaluation and summary submitted with the renewal application, continued qualifying licensure and board status, and a choice between two pathways: the CME pathway or a shorter 75-question online recertification examination.
The CME pathway requires 100 relevant credits during the initial renewal term and 50 credits during each subsequent term, with annual documentation submission required throughout. The published recertification fee is $500, and the July 2026 guidelines also introduce a $50 annual CME-report maintenance fee, which may be waived in a given year. Importantly, these renewal assessments are entirely separate from the 200-question initial examination described earlier in this article - recertification content is scoped narrower and delivered in a different format.
Key Takeaway
Don't confuse the 75-question recertification exam with the 200-question initial certification exam - they serve different purposes, use different question counts, and sit on different fee schedules.
For quick reference on all these numbers in one place, bookmark our cheat sheet, and check our practice test hub periodically as new question sets are added ahead of upcoming testing windows.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Unlike some ABMS boards, ABAP does not publish weighted content-domain percentages for this exam. The most reliable content signals come from the eligibility criteria (the 11-26 patient-care requirement) and the CME core curriculum candidates must complete before applying.
200 total: 150 multiple-choice questions in Part I, plus 50 questions in Part II delivered as two video interview vignettes with 25 questions each.
No. Both Part I and Part II must be passed independently. There is no combined or averaged score across the two parts.
No. This is Certification in Adolescent and Young Adult Psychiatry through ABAP, sponsored by ASAP. It is distinct from ABPN's Child and Adolescent Psychiatry subspecialty certification and does not require an ACGME child-psychiatry fellowship.
Results follow cohort analysis and are generally released 30-90 days after you complete the exam, not immediately after testing.