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February 19, 2026

College. Four years in medical school. Another four years in internship and residency. You’ve done the work to become a neurologist, but there’s still at least one intimidating step left to take: passing your American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN) initial certification board exam in neurology.

Luckily, you’re not alone in this challenge. Your peers are going through it with you, your program directors and other mentors are in your corner, and tailor-made resources like the AAN’s NeuroReady^®: Board Prep Edition can help.

Still, you need a plan to bring your best self in September—so read on for two experienced professionals’ best study tips. 

1. Give yourself time to study

“My #1 tip that I tell residents is to start early enough,” said Ligia V. Onofrei, MD, associate program director for the adult neurology residency program at the University of Utah. “Some people like to study in more concentrated amounts of time, and others like to study for an extended period of time, but no matter what, you have to start early. This isn’t the kind of test you can cram for.”

For most residents, she recommends at least three to six months of studying. It’s also important to keep your schedule in mind. Many exam takers are doing a fellowship at the same time, so it’s extra important for them to plan ahead—and to separate ABPN board exam study time from fellowship study time. 

2. Use spaced repetition

is a proven learning technique popular among medical students that supports long-term memory—making it basically the opposite of cramming. The key is to revisit material over time, allowing you to get better at remembering it when you need to. It’s likely that you already know all about spaced repetition, but a number of resources are available online if not. Here’s from the University of Arizona.

“It’s basic, boring advice, but there’s a reason everybody repeats it,” Onofrei said. “Spaced repetition helps you encode a concept in your memory and then really test your recall for it.”

3. Choose your study material

There are plenty of tools out there to help you study, especially question banks. The key is to choose quality over quantity—and to be consistent with the resources you choose.

“It’s really important to have a question bank and then use a few other resources,” Onofrei said. “But if you’re spreading your attention between too many resources, you’ll start to feel lost in the weeds and overwhelmed.”

NeuroReady: Board Prep Edition is both a question bank and an overall study resource. It has syllabi on the exam’s 21 most heavily weighted categories; video lectures from specialists on their areas of expertise; and a 400-question self-assessment exam with feedback, suggestions for further reading, and comparative peer performance results. 

“The one I endorse is the one offered by the AAN,” said Edgar Samaniego, MD, FAAN, director of the vascular neurology fellowship at the University of Iowa. “It’s created by professionals in the field, and everybody has their area of expertise. If you can review those questions and material beforehand, that will help.” 

4. Take breaks—including before the exam

Between residency, studying, and everything else going on in your life, you have a lot on your plate. Don’t make it harder by avoiding rest.

“There is such a thing as studying too much, to the point that you get burned out,” Onofrei said. “It's really important to have the schedule, but also to incorporate breaks to be effective and recharge your batteries.”

It’s also good to give yourself time to rest and prepare the week before the exam. Onofrei said it varies between her residents, but the ones with a lot of test anxiety benefit from taking the time to breathe and ground themselves—she herself scheduled massages for the days before and after her exam. And for those with busy schedules or clinical rotations, it helps to take a few days off to rest.

“Trust your own instincts about your own learning style and how you do with exams in general,” she said.

5. Know what to expect

You’ll take the ABPN board exam in neurology as a proctored computer exam. It contains 400 multiple-choice questions in eight sections, which you’ll have seven hours to complete. There’s also 50 minutes of optional break time, including lunch.

Samaniego said if you hit a question that makes your mind go blank, it’s best to just mark it to return to later: “Sometimes as you go through different questions, you say ‘Oh, yeah, now I remember.’  Once you finish the block of questions that you know for sure, you can go back to the ones that you weren’t 100% sure about and try to address them again.”

When you’re stuck, it’s also helpful to rule out the answer options that definitely aren’t correct: “Take the time to read the question and really understand it, then use your skills to eliminate as many ‘no’s’ as possible,” Onofrei said. “Then if you really don’t know, take a guess between the answers that remain.” 

Both Samaniego and Onofrei say their residents or fellows usually feel good about their performance after the exam—though it’s normal to become more nervous as you wait for your results. Their residents or fellows often find that the exam wasn’t as difficult as they thought it would be, and that they finished with time to spare. 

After all, you’ve dedicated years of learning and hard work to becoming a neurologist. With enough time and effort studying, the ABPN board exam is just another step toward the rest of your life.

“We’re all used to taking tests during our medical career and our professional development—so this is just another test,” Samaniego said. “Its aim is to measure and quantify how much we know about something we love to do, which is providing care to patients. So if you see it that way, I think you will do fine.”

Other AAN resources to know

NeuroReady: Board Prep Edition is the ultimate resource for preparing for the ABPN board exam in neurology. However, many other resources that can help are either free or available for purchase with your AAN resident and fellow membership.

• The RITE (Residency In-service Training Examination): The RITE is proven to be a positive predictor for future performance on the ABPN exam. It’s also a good “point-in-time” assessment of your education in neurology—challenging you, confirming your areas of strength, and providing discussions and references for additional study.
• The Neurology Question of the Day app: Used for continuing education and studying alike, this free-for-members app follows the ABPN’s continuing certification content blueprint over the course of a year. 
• : This popular CME journal is free for resident and fellow AAN members, helping you build your knowledge base for both the ABPN board exam and your future career. 
• Other resources for residents and fellows: From networking opportunities to tips for applying for a fellowship, we’ve got the tools you need to thrive. Browse webinars, forums, and more.

Remember—you’ve got this! We’re rooting for you as you take the exam and embark on your career as a much-needed neurologist.