Examination Date 2025:
March 8/9, 2025
The examination to acquire the ABO degree is held once a year.
The candidates will be informed of the place and time of the examination in a good time, i.e. at least 3 months before the set date.
Please register before July 31, 2024.
Make sure to take notice of the guidelines on the requirements for obtaining the ABO certification and on the examination process itself.
The VÖK is offering a preparatory seminar for the ABO exam on June 8, 2024.
Impressions of the ABO-Examination
Application for the ABO certification
Applications to acquire the ABO degree must be submitted before 31 July of a calendar year at the office of the VÖK and the examination fee must have been paid by this time.
The executive board will decide by simple majority whether the candidate is granted permission to take the ABO examination. The office of the VÖK will inform the candidate of the result of this evaluation and of the place and time of the examination at least 3 months before the date of the examination. No later than 2 months before the date of the examination, the candidate will receive the candidate number assigned to them from a notary public.
Members of the “European Board of Orthodontists” may be awarded the certificate of the Austrian Board of Orthodontists by the decision of the executive board of the VÖK. The holders must submit their application in writing along with the certificate of the European Board of Orthodontists.
Examination Fee
The current fee for VÖK-Members amounts to €850,00; for Non-Members €1600,00 (effective 2024/2025).
The examination fee must be settled in its entirety at the time of registration for the ABO-Examination. If the application is withdrawn at least 2 months before the examination date, one half of the fee will be retained as cancellation charge; if the application is withdrawn less than 2 months before the examination date, there will be no reimbursement of the fee.
If S 1 (case presentations) and Part 2 (oral examination) are repeated, the full fee must be paid again.
No additional fee will be charged if only Part 2 (oral examination) is repeated.
Requirements for the submission of applications
The candidate must verify a minimum of 3 years of predominant or exclusive orthodontic work (in his/her own practice and/or at an orthodontic department at a university clinic and/or comparable specialised institution). Corresponding verification must be submitted.
The candidate must confirm with their signature that the cases presented by them have been treated by them alone.
At the same time, the candidate irrevocably consents that the ABO board commission be granted permission to verify whether his/her presented case study legitimately was treatment by the candidate alone. Naturally, in accordance with medical confidentiality.
The candidate must sign an agreement wherein he/she accepts the decisions of the board of examiners as final.
Examination process for the attainment of the ABO-Certification
The examination is split into two parts.
Part 1 – Case Presentations
Part 1 is based on the presentation and evaluation of the documents presented
concerning eight completed cases, which comprise a suitable spectrum of malocclusions. The board of examiners will evaluate the cases according to their complexity and the results of treatment. To a lesser extent, the presentation of documentation (written information, dental casts, X-rays, etc.) are part of the evaluation.
Part 2 – Oral Examination
The oral examination is conducted in German or in English. Its purpose is to determine the knowledge, comprehension and abilities of the candidate regarding performing orthodontic treatment. The candidate will be given the initial documents of two cases unknown to them regarding a diagnostic analysis and a treatment plan. The presented materials consist of dental casts, photographs and X-rays. The candidate must perform tracing of the lateral skull radiograph and analysis in accordance with the guidelines of the European Board of Orthodontics. The candidate has also the possibility to perform additional tracings of the cephalometric radiographs if they wish to do so.
