How well does your residency program perform for you and your residents?

Most residency program directors in the United States and Canada use the PRITE and CHILD PRITE to assess the competence of their residents as well as the effectiveness of their educational programs.

Study from past exams

PRITE: $140 / CHILD PRITE: $125

Exams include answer keys and reference guides. Choose from exams from the past five years.

The Psychiatry Resident In-Training Examination® (PRITE®)

One of The College's most valuable contributions to psychiatric education is the annual Psychiatry Resident In-Training Examination (PRITE®). The College designed PRITE® as an educational resource for psychiatric residents and training programs. Each section of the exam focuses on a particular component of psychiatry, offering references to support and explain correct answers.

Nearly all psychiatry residents in the United States, many in Canada and several outside of the U.S. take the exam three to four times throughout their residency training.

Residents receive a detailed computer analysis of their test performance in comparison with other residents at a similar level of training.

Training directors receive results for their individual residents as well as statistical summary data comparing their training program with other groups of participants. Residency programs use PRITE® as one factor, among many, for assessing the competency of residents. This information assists training directors in adjusting their programs to make them more effective.

PRITE Topics

CHILD PRITE Topics

PRITE® consists of 300 questions and is administered in two parts. The content areas covered in the PRITE® are:

  • Neurosciences
  • Clinical Neurology
  • Clinical Psychiatry
  • Development and Maturation
  • Behavioral & Social Sciences
  • Epidemiology
  • Diagnostic Procedures
  • Psychopathology & Associated Conditions Across the Lifespan
  • Treatment Across the Lifespan
  • Consultation
  • Issues in Practice
  • Research and Scholarship Literacy
  • Administration         

PRITE Content Outline (Updated 9 2024)

A related specialty exam, the CHILD PRITE®, is designed for child Fellows. Its 200 questions survey child and adolescent psychiatry issues in depth.

The content areas covered in the CHILD PRITE® are:

  • Neurosciences
  • Clinical Neurology
  • Clinical Psychiatry
  • Development & Maturation (Fetus through adolescence/early adulthood)
  • Behavioral & Social Sciences
  • Epidemiology
  • Diagnostic Procedures
  • Psychopathology & Associated Conditions (Fetus through Adolescence/Early Adulthood)
  • Treatment from Infancy through Adolescence/Early Adulthood
  • Consultation/Collaborative-Integrated Care
  • Issues in Practice
  • Research and Scholarship Literacy
  • Administration and Systems

CHILD PRITE Content Outline (Updated 9 2024)

PRITE Correlation Studies

  1. Arnold LE. A Fuller History of the PRITE. Acad. Psychiatry. 1990;14:54–5.
  2. Cooke BK, Garvan C, Hobbs JA. Trends in performance on the psychiatry resident-in-training examination (PRITE®): 10 years of data from a single institution. Acad. Psychiatry. 2013; 37:261–4.
  3. Dingle AD, Boland R & Travis M. (2017). The PRITE examinations: Background and future directions. Academic Psychiatry. 42(4), 498-502.
  4. Ferrell, B. T., Tankersley, W. E., & Morris, C. D. (2015). Using an Accountability Program to Improve Psychiatry Resident Scores on In-Service Examinations. Journal of graduate medical education, 7(4), 555–559.
  5. Hettinger, A., Spurgeon, J., El-Mallakh, R. et al. Using Audience Response System Technology and PRITE Questions to Improve Psychiatric Residents’ Medical Knowledge.Acad Psychiatry 38, 205–208 (2014). 
  6. Juul D, Schneidman BS, Sexson SB, Fernandez F, Beresin EV, Ebert MH, et al. Relationship between Resident-In-Training Examination in psychiatry and subsequent certification examination performances. Acad. Psychiatry. 2009; 33:404–6.
  7. Juul D, Sexson SB, Brooks BA, Beresin EV, Bechtold DW, Lang JA, Faulkner LR, Tanguay P & Dingle AD.  (2013). Relationship between Performance on Child and Adolescent Psychiatry In-Training and Certification Examinations.  Journal of Graduate Medical Education 5:2, 262-66.
  8. Lynn, D. J., Holzer, C., & O’Neill, P. (2006). Relationships between self-assessment skills, test performance, and demographic variables in psychiatry residents. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 11(1), 51-60.
  9. Mariano, M.T., Mathew, N., Del Regno, P. et al. Improving Residents’ Performance on the PRITE: Is There a Role for Peer-Assisted Learning?. Acad Psychiatry 37, 342–344 (2013). 
  10. Matthews KL, Ticknor CB. Residents’ Satisfaction With the PRITE. Acad. Psychiatry. 1989;13:132–6.
  11. Miller, D. A., Sadler, J. Z., Mohl, P. C., & Melchiode, G. A. (1991). The cognitive context of examinations in psychiatry using Bloom's taxonomy. Medical education, 25(6), 480-484.
  12. Miller BJ, Sexson S, Shevitz S, Peeples D, Van Sant S, McCall WV. US Medical Licensing Exam scores and performance on the Psychiatry Resident In-Training Examination. Acad. Psychiatry. 2014; 38:627–31.
  13. Schrimpf, L., & Trief, P. (2013). Emotional intelligence and psychiatry residents: does the PRITE measure emotional intelligence?. Academic Psychiatry, 37(5), 339-341.
  14. Smeltzer DJ, Jones BA. Reliability and validity of the psychiatry resident in-training examination. Acad. Psychiatry. 1990; 14:115–21.
  15. Strauss GD, Yager J, Liston EH. A comparison of national and in-house examinations of psychiatric knowledge. Am. J. Psychiatry. 1984; 141:882–4.
  16. Strauss GD, Yager J, Strauss GE. Assessing assessment: the content and quality of the psychiatry in-training examination. Am. J. Psychiatry. 1982;139:85–8.
  17. Tankersley, W.E., Patel, R.S., Mekala, H. et al. Does the Psychiatry Residency In-Training Examination (PRITE) Predict Performance on Initial Board Certification in Psychiatry?. Acad Psychiatry 43, 348–349 (2019)
  18. Vautrot, V.J., Festin, F.E. & Bauer, M.S. The Feasibility and Effectiveness of a Pilot Resident-Organized and -Led Knowledge Base Review. Acad Psychiatry 34, 258–262 (2010).
  19. Webb LC, Juul D, Reynolds CF, Ruiz B, Ruiz P, Scheiber SC, et al. How well does the psychiatry residency in-training examination predict performance on the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. Part I. Examination? Am. J. Psychiatry. 1996;153:831–2.
  20. Webb LC, Sexson S, Scully J, Reynolds CF, Shore MF. Training directors’ opinions about the psychiatry resident in-training examination (PRITE). Am. J. Psychiatry. 1992;149:521–4.
  21. Woodman C, Schultz SK. Faculty Assessment of Residents and the Psychiatry Resident In-Training Examination. Acad. Psychiatry. 1999;23:137–41.

  22. A Virtual Standardized Patient-Based Assessment Tool to Evaluate Psychiatric Residents' Psychopharmacology Proficiency.  Rakofsky JJ, Talbot TB, Dunlop BW. Acad Psychiatry. 2020 Dec;44(6):693-700. doi: 10.1007/s40596-020-01286-x. Epub 2020 Jul 17. PMID: 32681418 Free PMC article.

  23. The effect of a forensic fellowship program on general psychiatry residents' in-training examination outcomes.  McBain SM, Hinton JA, Thrush CR, Williams DK, Guise JB. J Am Acad Psychiatry Law. 2010;38(2):223-8. PMID: 20542943

  24. Neuroscience and humanistic psychiatry: a residency curriculum.  Griffith JL. Acad Psychiatry. 2014 Apr;38(2):177-84. doi: 10.1007/s40596-014-0063-5. Epub 2014 Mar 14. PMID: 24627044

  25. A comparison of longitudinal and block rotations for a psychiatric resident consultation-liaison experience.  Watts BV, Green RL. Acad Psychiatry. 2015 Apr;39(2):196-9. doi: 10.1007/s40596-014-0242-4. Epub 2014 Nov 15. PMID: 25398266

  26. Neurology training in psychiatry residency : self-assessment and standardized scores.  Albucher RC, Maixner SM, Riba MB, Liberzon I. Acad Psychiatry. 1999 Jun;23(2):77-81. doi: 10.1007/BF03354246. PMID: 25416010

  27. Selection factors among international medical graduates and psychiatric residency performance.  Shiroma PR, Alarcon RD. Acad Psychiatry. 2010 Mar-Apr;34(2):128-31. doi: 10.1176/appi.ap.34.2.128. PMID: 20224023

 

PRITE Data Sharing Policy 

Please click here to view our PRITE Data Sharing Policy. 

If you have any questions or wish to submit a proposal request, please contact Kathryn Delk - kathryn@acpsych.org 

Interested in Joining the PRITE Editorial Board? 

We are always looking for item writers to join the PRITE Editorial Board.  Please take a look at the "Job Description" and if you are interested, please reach out to Kathryn Delk (kathryn@acpsych.org) for application materials. 

Training Directors & Coordinators

PRITE Administration: September 24 - October 15 (this date range does not change each year)

CHILD PRITE Administration: December 1-7 (this date range does not change each year)

Content Outlines:

PRITE Content Outline (UPDATED 9 2024)

CHILD PRITE Content Outline (UPDATED 9 2024)

PRITE Fellowship Program

Ensure that the expertise of psychiatric residents is reflected in the PRITE.  PRITE Fellows participate with seasoned Editorial Board members to develop, edit and reference questions for the PRITE and CHILD PRITE.

How to become a PRITE Fellow »

Questions?

Contact Kathryn Delk
Kathryn@ACPsych.org