USMLE & COMLEX Tutor in Maryland

Baltimore holds Johns Hopkins, a private school, and the University of Maryland, a public one and the oldest on the list. Bethesda has the Uniformed Services University, the federal school on the list. Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine in Hagerstown is the newest and the only DO program.

Baltimore holds 13 of the 21 teaching hospitals on the CMS list for Maryland, and the rest sit in Towson, Hagerstown, Laurel, Silver Spring, Salisbury, Bethesda and Annapolis (CMS list). The in-state pull differs by school: the University of Maryland filled 69% of its 171 places with Marylanders, Uniformed Services 10.7% of 177, and Johns Hopkins, with 8,057 applications, 7.6% of 118 (AAMC FACTS).

Medical schools in Maryland

School list: LCME and COCA accreditation lists, via the list of medical schools in the United States, checked October 2026.

Teaching hospitals in Maryland by city

• Baltimore: University of Maryland Med Sys; Mercy Medical Center; The Johns Hopkins Hospital; St. Agnes Hospital; Sinai Hospital of Baltimore INC.; MedStar Franklin Square Medical Ctr; MedStar Union Memorial Hospital; Johns Hopkins Bayview Med. Ctr.; MedStar Harbor Hospital; Maryland General Hospital; Good Samaritan Hospital; James Lawrence Kernan Hospital; Kennedy Krieger
• Towson: Greater Baltimore Medical Center; Sheppard & Enoch Pratt Hospital
• Hagerstown: Meritus Medical Center
• Laurel: Univ of MD Capital Region Med Ctr
• Silver Spring: Holy Cross Hospital
• Salisbury: TidalHealth Peninsula Regional INC
• Bethesda: Suburban Hospital
• Annapolis: Anne Arundel Medical Center INC.

Facts about Maryland

Accreditation: LCME directory; applications, places and in-state share: AAMC FACTS, Table A-1.

ABIM internal medicine certification exam by residency program: ABIM residency program pass rates; ABIM says to read rates from under 25 takers with caution.

• The Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine in Hagerstown holds COCA pre-accreditation status, under which a new college may enroll no more than 50% of its approved class size in its first year and 75% in its second; its Year 1 pre-accreditation site visit was scheduled for January 2026. (Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine)
• Meritus builds COMLEX-style question practice into its curriculum from the first week to graduation through a capstone review course, teaches largely by team-based learning, grades pass/fail and uses holographic anatomy instead of cadaver dissection. (Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine)
• Meritus students train alongside Meritus Medical Center in Hagerstown, a hospital of more than 327 beds, and the curriculum sets aside one day a week for research. (Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine)
• The Meritus clinical phase covers the third and fourth years and 20 clinical clerkships, with emphasis on rural and underserved communities. (Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine)
• Meritus lists clinical rotation partners across Maryland, among them Meritus Medical Center, Tidal Health in Salisbury, GBMC in Towson and UPMC Western Maryland in Cumberland, plus sites in Pennsylvania and the VA Martinsburg Healthcare System in West Virginia. (Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine)
• Meritus says its most competitive candidates have overall and science GPAs of at least 3.5 and an MCAT at or above the 50th percentile; for the 2026-2027 cycle it accepts MCAT scores from January 1, 2023 on. (Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine)
• The Uniformed Services University accepts 178 students a class, civilians and active duty; they pay no tuition, are commissioned as officers before classes begin, and owe seven years of active duty after graduation, or ten for the Public Health Service. (Uniformed Services University)
• At USU a sixteen-month pre-clerkship period leads into the clerkship year, and the six weeks of dedicated time for USMLE Step 1 come afterward, in the post-clerkship period, followed by the six-week Bench to Bedside and Beyond module; Step 2 CK is taken in the same period. (Uniformed Services University)
• USU gives its matriculants' average MCAT as 510 and its incoming class's average GPA as 3.7, and reviews applicants with a total MCAT of 496 or higher, rising to 500 from the 2028 application cycle. (Uniformed Services University)

Sources: LCME, directory of accredited U.S. programs (checked October 29, 2026); AAMC FACTS, Table A-1, 2025-2026 (checked October 29, 2026); Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine, Notices (checked November 1, 2026); Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine, Curriculum (checked November 1, 2026); Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine, Clinical Affiliates and Rotations (checked November 1, 2026); Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine, Admissions Requirements (checked November 1, 2026); Uniformed Services University, School of Medicine, MD program (checked November 1, 2026); Uniformed Services University, School of Medicine, Application Requirements (checked November 1, 2026); ABIM, residency program pass rates 2023-2025 (checked October 29, 2026).

Bethesda: Step 1 comes after the clerkship year at USU

The Uniformed Services University takes 178 students a class, civilian and active duty alike. They pay no tuition, are commissioned as officers before their first class, and owe seven years of active duty after graduating, or ten in the Public Health Service (USU MD program).

USU's calendar puts the clinical year first. A sixteen-month pre-clerkship period, a seven-week Foundation in Medicine module, then organ-system modules ending in Multisystem and Complex Diseases, leads straight into the clerkships; the six weeks of dedicated Step 1 time come after them, followed by the six-week Bench to Bedside and Beyond module, and Step 2 CK is taken in the same post-clerkship stretch (USU MD program).

Six weeks is short for Step 1, but a USU student arrives at it with a full year of shelf exams behind them. We treat the clerkship year as the first half of Step 1 review: each shelf block revisits the basic science behind that rotation's patients, so the six weeks are spent on weak systems and full-length practice tests rather than first-pass content. Because Step 2 CK follows in the same period, many USU students are better served by one combined plan than by two separate ones.

Admission sits in the competitive band: USU reports a matriculant average MCAT of 510 and an incoming GPA average of 3.7, and it reviews applicants with a total MCAT of 496 or higher, rising to 500 from the 2028 application cycle (USU requirements).

Hagerstown: Maryland's new osteopathic school

The Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine is so new that COCA still holds it at pre-accreditation, the stage at which a college may fill only 50% of its approved class in its first year and 75% in its second; its Year 1 pre-accreditation site visit was set for January 2026 (MSOM notices). It is Maryland's only DO program.

Meritus teaches largely through team-based learning, grades pass/fail, uses holographic anatomy rather than cadaver dissection, and keeps one day a week for research. COMLEX-style questions run through the whole program in a capstone review course, from the first week to graduation (MSOM curriculum). For a student that means COMLEX Level 1 preparation is already in the weekly rhythm; tutoring works best layered on that, aimed at the systems the student's own question data show as weak.

The clinical phase spans the third and fourth years and 20 clerkships, anchored at Meritus Medical Center, a hospital of more than 327 beds (MSOM curriculum). Rotation partners reach from Tidal Health in Salisbury and GBMC in Towson to UPMC Western Maryland in Cumberland, with sites in Pennsylvania and the VA Martinsburg Healthcare System in West Virginia (MSOM clinical affiliates). With rotations that spread out, we schedule COMLEX Level 2-CE study around each student's actual site list.

Meritus says its most competitive applicants have overall and science GPAs of 3.5 or higher and an MCAT at or above the 50th percentile, and for the 2026-2027 cycle it accepts MCAT scores from January 1, 2023 onward (MSOM admissions).

Which board exams Maryland students take

Johns Hopkins, the University of Maryland and the Uniformed Services University grant the MD, so their students sit the USMLE: Step 1, reported pass/fail since January 26, 2022, then Step 2 CK, then Step 3 after graduation (USMLE). The order is not the same at every school: USU schedules its Step 1 study weeks after the clerkship year (USU MD program).

Meritus in Hagerstown grants the DO, so its students sit COMLEX-USA (NBOME). Maryland's board does not separate the series: it lists unlimited attempts at each USMLE Step or COMLEX Level (FSMB).

Internal medicine residents later face the ABIM exam. In Baltimore, 94% of 133 first-time takers from Johns Hopkins passed in 2023-2025, as did 92% of 127 from MedStar Georgetown and 91% of 101 from the University of Maryland (ABIM). Bethesda's National Capital Consortium program passed 96% of 57, and Largo's University of Maryland Capital Region Health program 97% of 37 (ABIM).

Maryland licensing rules that affect your exam plan

Maryland's board lists no cap on attempts at any USMLE Step or COMLEX Level and no time limit for finishing (FSMB). It asks for one year of training before a first license, or two for international graduates, and adds requirements if you fail an exam three or more times, under Health Occupations Article, Section 14-307(g) (FSMB).

Source: FSMB state licensure requirements, checked October 2026; confirm with the board before relying on them.

What Maryland's rules mean for how you study

• Maryland leaves attempts unlimited, so the USMLE's own rule sets your ceiling: after four unsuccessful attempts at one Step, you cannot sit any Step, so spend each sitting deliberately (USMLE eligibility rules, FSMB).
• Maryland adds requirements for anyone who fails an exam three or more times (Health Occupations Article, Section 14-307(g)), so after a second failure, rebuild the plan before you book the next attempt (FSMB).
• Maryland lists no time limit, so a gap year does not run into a Maryland deadline; another state's board may set one, so read its rules before you stretch the sequence (FSMB).

Many Maryland students rotate, interview or match next door. Maryland's neighbors on our list: Delaware (0 MD, 0 DO), Washington, DC (3 MD, 0 DO), Pennsylvania (7 MD, 3 DO), Virginia (4 MD, 2 DO), West Virginia (2 MD, 1 DO).

How much Maryland searches for board prep

Maryland's best Google Trends rank is 6th of 51 for 'USMLE Step 1'. 'USMLE' ranks 10th, 'USMLE Step 2' 9th and 'Shelf exam' 16th, while 'COMLEX' ranks 42nd (Google Trends, United States, past five years, retrieved October 2026).

That leans toward USMLE, which fits a state whose only DO school, Meritus, is the newest on the list.

Source: Google Trends, United States, past 5 years, retrieved October 2026; ranks show relative interest, not student numbers.