- What Pediatric Dermatology Means as a Credential
- Who Issues It and What the Certificate Represents
- Who Can Sit for the Exam
- Exam Format, Fee, and the 2026 Calendar
- The Fifteen Curriculum Headings
- Disease Topics Candidates Must Master
- Diagnostic Tests and Procedures
- What the Published Results Show
- Staying Certified After You Pass
- Where Certified Pediatric Dermatologists Work and What They Earn
- Sequencing Your Preparation Around the Curriculum
- Frequently Asked Questions
- This credential is the American Board of Dermatology's Pediatric Dermatology subspecialty certification, taken after primary dermatology certification and...
- The exam is 200 multiple-choice questions over roughly four hours at Pearson VUE test centers, with a USD 1,800 fee.
- The 2026 exam is October 15, 2026; the application deadline was June 1, 2026.
- The fifteen curriculum headings are preparation topics, not published exam weights or official exam domains.
What Pediatric Dermatology Means as a Credential
When physicians and trainees search "what is Pediatric Dermatology," they usually mean one of two things: the clinical field that treats skin, hair, and nail disease in infants, children, and adolescents, or the formal subspecialty certification that recognizes advanced competence in that field. This article covers both, with the emphasis on the credential: the American Board of Dermatology (ABD) Pediatric Dermatology subspecialty certification.
The scope is narrow on purpose. This is not the pediatric portion of the general dermatology CORE examination, it is not an AOBD (osteopathic) certification, and it is not the continuing-certification assessment that existing diplomates complete. It is a separate, subspecialty-level examination that a dermatologist takes after completing dedicated fellowship training in pediatric dermatology.
If you want terminology variants, we cover them in separate articles: Pediatric Dermatology Meaning, What Does Pediatric Dermatology Stand For?, and What Is Pediatric Dermatology Certification?. For the credential's full overview, see our page on Pediatric Dermatology Certification.
Who Issues It and What the Certificate Represents
The certificate is issued by the American Board of Dermatology. It signals that a board-certified dermatologist has completed accredited fellowship training and passed a subspecialty examination focused on the skin diseases of childhood, from neonatal disorders to adolescent acne and psychocutaneous problems.
Because the pool of candidates is small, the credential carries weight mostly inside academic and children's hospital settings, where pediatric dermatology clinics, consult services, and fellowship programs depend on subspecialty-trained faculty. We discuss the career side in more detail below and in our ROI analysis of the certification.
Who Can Sit for the Exam
Eligibility is sequential, which is why candidates cannot "skip ahead" into the subspecialty. Per the ABD fellowship-training page, you need all of the following:
- An unrestricted medical or osteopathic license in the United States or Canada.
- Primary ABD certification in dermatology.
- At least one year of ACGME-accredited pediatric dermatology fellowship after general dermatology training.
For candidates who did not complete a prior postgraduate pediatric residency year, at least 80% of fellowship time must be devoted to clinical pursuits. Board eligibility normally extends five years after fellowship, which gives candidates some flexibility but not an open-ended window. For the full prerequisite walkthrough, read our guide to Pediatric Dermatology requirements, and for the training pathway itself see Pediatric Dermatology Training.
Exam Format, Fee, and the 2026 Calendar
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Question type | 200 multiple-choice questions |
| Duration | Approximately 4 hours |
| Delivery | Pearson VUE test centers |
| Examination fee | USD 1,800 |
| 2026 exam date | October 15, 2026 |
| 2026 application deadline | June 1, 2026 (already passed as of this article's research date) |
Two practical notes follow from those facts. First, the application deadline falls months before the exam, so planning has to begin well before test day. Second, a single annual administration means a missed deadline typically costs you a full year. For scheduling detail see Pediatric Dermatology exam dates, and for the full cost picture beyond the exam fee see Pediatric Dermatology certification cost.
One caution on scoring: no initial-exam passing-score threshold has been verified from ABD sources, so be skeptical of any site that quotes a specific cut score. Our passing score article explains what is and is not known.
The Fifteen Curriculum Headings
The ABD's fellowship curriculum page organizes pediatric dermatology training into eight Clinical Core Curriculum headings and seven Didactic Curriculum headings. We use these as our fifteen study domains. An important clarification: these are unweighted preparation-curriculum topics. They are not published initial-exam objectives, they do not come with official exam weights, and they do not guarantee exhaustive exam coverage. Treat them as a map of the training, not a blueprint of the test.
Clinical Core Curriculum (Domains 1-8)
- Outpatient Experience: the volume and variety of pediatric skin disease you evaluate in clinic.
- Continuity Experience: following children longitudinally through chronic conditions such as atopic dermatitis, vascular anomalies, and genodermatoses.
- Consultation: inpatient and neonatal consults, where diagnosis often hinges on systemic context.
- Departmental, Office Administration, and Systems of Care: running a pediatric dermatology practice and coordinating care.
- Telephone Inquiries: triage and counseling by phone for parents and referring clinicians.
- Community Based Consultation: outreach and shared care beyond the academic center.
- Pediatric Dermatologic Surgery: biopsies, excisions, and procedures in children.
- Laser Surgery: laser therapy for vascular and pigmented lesions in the pediatric population.
Didactic Curriculum (Domains 9-15)
- Pediatrics: general pediatric knowledge that frames dermatologic disease.
- General Dermatology: the adult-overlap foundation.
- Dermatopathology: histologic correlation for pediatric entities.
- Pediatric Dermatology: the core subspecialty content itself.
- Educational Contributions by the Fellow: teaching and scholarly dissemination.
- Photography: clinical documentation.
- Basic and Clinical Research: research literacy and participation.
For a heading-by-heading breakdown, see Pediatric Dermatology exam domains: the complete guide to all 15 content areas.
Disease Topics Candidates Must Master
The ABD curriculum explicitly lists the disease topics a pediatric dermatology fellow is expected to know. Think of this list as the content backbone of your preparation:
- All forms of dermatitis
- Papulosquamous diseases
- Bullous diseases
- Viral, bacterial, and fungal skin infections
- Skin infestations
- Drug reactions
- Genodermatoses
- Developmental anomalies
- Neonatal skin disorders
- Disorders of cornification
- Hair and nail disorders
- Acne
- Skin malignancies
- Connective tissue diseases
- Granulomatous diseases
- Vascular anomalies
- Melanocytic lesions
- Psychocutaneous disease
- Child abuse
- Skin signs of systemic disease
- Photosensitivity disease
Key Takeaway
Several of these topics are distinctly pediatric in character: neonatal skin disorders, genodermatoses, disorders of cornification, vascular anomalies, and child abuse. Candidates coming from a heavily adult-oriented practice should spend disproportionate time here, because these topics rarely appear in adult clinic volume.
Questions on a subspecialty examination of this kind tend to reward pattern recognition tied to age: what a presentation means in a newborn versus a toddler versus an adolescent, and which systemic associations or genetic syndromes should be on your mind. Our one-page cheat sheet compresses many of these associations into a quick-review format.
Diagnostic Tests and Procedures
The curriculum also expressly lists the bedside and procedural skills that define the subspecialty. These support your clinical knowledge but do not create additional official exam domains:
- Skin biopsy techniques
- Potassium hydroxide (KOH) examinations
- Tzanck examinations
- Mineral oil examinations
- Hair mounts
- Fungal cultures
- Curettage and electrodesiccation
- Cryotherapy
- Laser therapy
- Surgical excisions
Expect to be able to reason about which test answers which question: a KOH preparation for suspected dermatophyte or yeast infection, a Tzanck smear in a vesiculobullous eruption, a mineral oil prep for infestation, and a hair mount when evaluating hair shaft disorders or trichotillomania. Knowing indications, limitations, and pediatric-specific considerations (anesthesia, cooperation, anatomic site) is more valuable than memorizing technique steps.
What the Published Results Show
ABD publishes first-time results for its subspecialty exams, and the numbers are small because the candidate pool is small. The figures below are exactly what the sources report, and the cohort distinctions matter:
| Year | Reported figure | Source note |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 94% first-time pass rate; 18 candidates | ABD pass-rate page and 2025 Year in Review (October 14, 2025 administration) |
| 2024 | 100% first-time pass rate | Year in Review reports 23 total candidates; the live first-time-results table lists 22 candidates |
Do not treat the 2024 total of 23 as the first-time denominator; the Year in Review total and the first-time-results table are different counts. With cohorts this small, a single result moves the percentage noticeably, so avoid over-reading year-to-year changes. For interpretation, see our pass rate analysis and difficulty guide.
Staying Certified After You Pass
Older descriptions of this credential refer to a ten-year certificate with additional subspecialty modules. That is outdated. ABD's explicit 2026 Verification for Credentialers policy makes certification continuous without end dates, conditional on participation in continuing certification. Where the older fellowship-training page conflicts, the current policy takes precedence.
To remain certified, you maintain:
- Your primary dermatology certification
- An unrestricted US or Canadian license
- CertLink participation
- One practice-improvement activity every five years
- The USD 150 annual fee, which covers all ABD certificates
CertLink delivers 13 new questions per quarter, with one quarterly sabbatical per year and no extra subspecialty question requirement. The five-year assessment cycle evaluates performance after four years, with the fifth year used as a holiday or catch-up year depending on results. That cycle is an assessment rhythm, not a fixed certificate expiration term. Beginning in January 2026, separate CME totals no longer need to be reported to ABD, although state or other CME obligations remain separate. Do not confuse any CertLink threshold with an initial-exam passing score; they are unrelated.
Where Certified Pediatric Dermatologists Work and What They Earn
Pediatric dermatologists concentrate in academic medical centers and children's hospitals, where they staff specialty clinics (vascular anomalies, genodermatoses, blistering disease, atopic dermatitis), cover inpatient and neonatal consults, and teach residents and fellows. Some work in large multispecialty groups or hybrid private-academic arrangements. Our Pediatric Dermatology Jobs article covers the hiring landscape.
On compensation, the Society for Pediatric Dermatology's 2025 Compensation Report (dated October 14, 2025, Table 9.1) reports a median base compensation of USD 342,500 for its full-time new-hire subgroup of 22 respondents. That is a narrow slice. It is not a national salary for all pediatric dermatologists, and it does not isolate a causal premium from holding the certification. For context and caveats, see the Pediatric Dermatology salary guide.
Sequencing Your Preparation Around the Curriculum
You do not need a generic study system here; you need an order of attack that mirrors where pediatric dermatology is hardest. A reasonable sequence for a fellow in the months before the October exam:
Distinctly pediatric content first
- Neonatal skin disorders, genodermatoses, disorders of cornification
- Developmental anomalies and vascular anomalies
Inflammatory and infectious disease
- Dermatitis, papulosquamous and bullous diseases
- Viral, bacterial, fungal infections and infestations; drug reactions
Systemic and high-stakes topics
- Connective tissue and granulomatous diseases, skin signs of systemic disease
- Child abuse, psychocutaneous disease, photosensitivity
Procedures, pathology, and timed practice
- Dermatopathology correlation, diagnostic tests, laser and surgical indications
- Full-length timed question blocks against the 200-question, four-hour format
Practice questions are most useful once you have a content base, so build timed blocks into the final weeks. Our Pediatric Dermatology study guide expands this plan, and you can test yourself on the main practice test site to find weak areas early.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. It is an ABD subspecialty certification taken after primary dermatology certification and at least one year of accredited pediatric dermatology fellowship. It is distinct from the general dermatology CORE examination.
The exam has 200 multiple-choice questions over approximately four hours at Pearson VUE test centers, and the examination fee is USD 1,800. The 2026 administration is October 15, 2026.
No. They reproduce the ABD fellowship curriculum headings (eight clinical core, seven didactic). They are unweighted preparation topics, not published exam objectives or a guarantee of exhaustive coverage.
Under ABD's current 2026 policy, certification is continuous without end dates, as long as you stay in continuing certification: primary certification, license, CertLink participation, a practice-improvement activity every five years, and the USD 150 annual fee.
No initial-exam passing-score threshold has been verified from ABD sources. ABD reported a 94% first-time pass rate for 2025 among 18 candidates, but that is a result, not a cut score. See our passing score article for details.