COMAT Clinical Subject Exams

Examination Format

Each of the COMAT Clinical Subject exams integrates osteopathic principles and practice (OPP) and osteopathic manipulative medicine (OMM) content into the discipline blueprint. Released in 2011, COMAT has been used by COMs to demonstrate compliance with COCA accreditation standards regarding curricula, specifically standards 6.4 and 6.6 (OPP in each year of the curriculum).

Each of the COMAT Clinical subject exams consists of 120 items that must be completed within 2.5 hours. A 5-minute tutorial is provided before each exam begins. Every examination in the COMAT Clinical Subject exam series has multiple forms, and all are psychometrically equivalent in content covered, level of difficulty, and reliability, allowing COMs to administer a given COMAT subject exam multiple times per year.

The COMAT Clinical subject examinations are designed for end-of-course or end-of-clinical rotation/clerkship assessment for students enrolled at a college of osteopathic medicine (COM). 

Individual COMs may also administer the examinations at other times in accordance with their curriculum goals and mission. The examinations emphasize core knowledge and elements of osteopathic principles and practice each discipline that are essential for the predoctoral osteopathic medical student.

General Learner-Centered Objectives

For all COMAT Clinical subject examinations, the examinee will be required to demonstrate the ability to apply:

1. Foundational content knowledge to situations and patient presentations encountered in clinical settings.
2. Foundational content knowledge and clinical problem-solving ability related to physician tasks critical to that subject.
3. Knowledge and clinical problem-solving as related to the Fundamental Osteopathic Medical Competency Domains, including osteopathic principles and practice and osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT), osteopathic medical knowledge, interpersonal and communication skills, practice-based learning and improvement, systems-based practice, professionalism and patient care.
4. Osteopathic principles and practice in commonly encountered patient care scenarios.