• The experience of course director Odysseus Argy, MD       Dr. Argy, a board certified general surgeon, has taught over 3,200 surgeons in the last 14 years -- more experience doing board prep than any other surgeon in the country. He does all the teaching himself, so you benefit maximally with consistent coaching, feedback and instruction. Dr. Argy is dedicated to teaching full time, with a part-time clinical practice as a surgeon. This is in sharp contrast to other courses whose faculty teach occasionally (and only as a sideline to their clinical careers,) turn over frequently, and have minimal or no experience with the subtle and sophisticated nuances of effective board preparation.

• More topics, more practice scenarios, higher intensity       Odyssey covers more topics, with more practice scenarios included in the tuition, in a more intensive format, so you get more for your money and time. The cost per topic covered, and per practice scenario you get, is lower than any course out there.

• Superior pass rates       Odyssey has a statistically significant improvement in pass rate (p less than 0.001, based on followup of 95+%) while other courses don't even have a pass rate, let alone one with statistical significance. So the time and money you put into Odyssey's courses have a greater yield in your exam performance.

• Courses run with time to study       Odyssey runs its courses well in advance of the exam, and the teaching includes specific approaches about what to study and how to study it. So you get to go home and apply the skills you've learned in an ongoing manner. By building on the foundation laid down in the courses, you gain even more benefit from them as you approach your exam.

• Small group sizes       All of Odyssey's courses occur in small groups (other board prep has huge class size) so you get the individual attention you need and deserve, adding more value to your course experience.

• Actual exam content       Odyssey uses ONLY actual exam questions -- in other courses, the faculty simply "make up" questions, or use sources of questions that are not representative of the actual exam. Statistically, you will see over 83% of your actual exam questions during your Odyssey courses -- a huge added value to your preparation.

• Odyssey's one-of-a-kind Content Review course        Odyssey offers the only Content Review course available anywhere, where Dr. Argy shares every single exam scenario he has ever seen on the oral boards.

• Multiple course formats       Odyssey offers seven different course formats -- not one size fits all, like other courses -- so you have the flexibility to achieve your goals.

• Superior teaching methods       Dr. Argy has created innovative, effective techniques for teaching board preparation, with an emphasis on organization and presentation skills, as well as content. One of these techniques includes video assessments of your performance. Although another board prep course uses video, the video is not evaluated by an experienced instructor. Dr. Argy uses all his experience to evaluate you and to taper your preparation to meet your needs, identifying strengths and weaknesses, and creating an individualized plan for you.

• Ongoing relationship between you, the candidate, and Dr. Argy       As part of his commitment to teaching and building the relationship between instructor and candidate, your preparation continues once your courses are completed, and Dr. Argy continues to be involved. He is completely available after your courses for you to ask any question, at any time. As the exam gets closer, he also sends out email updates, tips, newly arrived exam summaries, and makes himself available for extra practice to all candidates.

• By the way, the prices of Odyssey's courses have remained constant for the last 10 years.

• See a point by point comparison of Odyssey to other courses looking at pass rate data, statistics, and cost