1.1 Current Exam Facts

NBCE Part III: Current Exam Facts (With DXI)

Quick Answer: The NBCE Part III examination with Diagnostic Imaging Interpretation (DXI) is a 130-item computer-based test — 80 Traditional Multiple-Choice Questions (TMCQ), 20 Extended Multiple-Choice Cases (EMCQ), and 30 Diagnostic Imaging Interpretation (DXI) sets. TMCQ and EMCQ together make up 80% of the score across 9 clinical categories; DXI makes up the remaining 20% across 6 imaging categories. You need a scaled score of 375 or higher to pass, the fee is $710, and you must have completed Part I and be within 9 months of your anticipated graduation date (with registrar sign-off) to sit for it.

Why Part III Exists

Where Part I tests basic biomedical sciences and Part II tests clinical sciences, Part III is the NBCE's clinical-competency checkpoint. It confirms that a candidate can take a history, examine a patient, order and read the right imaging, arrive at a diagnosis, choose an appropriate technique, and manage the case safely — the exact chain of decisions a doctor of chiropractic makes with every patient. Because most state boards require Part III before issuing a chiropractic license, this exam sits directly between finishing your DC program and being allowed to practice.

The Two Versions of Part III

The NBCE currently administers Part III in two forms, and it matters which one your program has registered you for:

Almost every current administration includes DXI, and this chapter — and the rest of this study guide — assumes the With DXI version, since that is what the large majority of candidates now take. If your program has told you that you're sitting for the version without DXI, the TMCQ/EMCQ content below still applies in full; you can simply set the DXI sections aside.

The 9 TMCQ/EMCQ Clinical Categories (80% of the Score)

Traditional multiple-choice items and extended multiple-choice cases are drawn from nine clinical categories that trace the patient encounter from intake to discharge:

Notice that Diagnosis or Clinical Impression (16%) and Case Management (15%) together account for nearly a third of the entire TMCQ/EMCQ pool. These two categories reward the same skill from two directions — first synthesizing findings into a working diagnosis, then deciding what to do about it (adjust, refer, co-manage, order further imaging, discharge). If you remember nothing else from this section, remember that diagnosis-and-management reasoning is the highest-yield content on Part III.

The 6 DXI Imaging Categories (20% of the Score)

The 30 DXI item sets present radiographs — and occasionally CT or MRI images — and ask you to interpret findings across six categories:

Arthritic disorders alone drive nearly a third of the imaging score — degenerative joint disease, rheumatoid and other inflammatory arthropathies, and spondyloarthropathies should be your first imaging-study priority, well ahead of trauma, which many candidates over-study relative to its actual 10% weight.

Scoring, Fee, and Logistics

• Passing score: A scaled score of 375 or higher. NBCE scores are reported on a scale, not a raw percent-correct figure, and the passing scaled score is fixed by psychometric equating across different test forms.
• Fee: $710 for the Part III (With DXI) examination, payable to the NBCE at registration.
• Eligibility: You must have completed Part I and be enrolled in an accredited program within 9 months of your anticipated graduation date, with your registrar's approval/certification submitted to the NBCE confirming you're on track to graduate.
• Delivery: Part III is a computer-based test (CBT), administered either at approved chiropractic college testing sites or at Prometric test centers, depending on your program and testing window.
• Official source: Always confirm current fees, dates, and eligibility rules directly at mynbce.org/pt-iii before you register — the NBCE updates test plans and administrative details periodically, and this page is authoritative.

What This Means for Your Study Plan

Because NBCE reports one combined scaled score rather than category-by-category pass/fail thresholds, you don't need to "pass" every category individually — but you also can't ignore a 16% category to over-prepare a 7% one. The weights above are your budget: spend roughly proportional time on Diagnosis/Case Management and Arthritic DXI, and don't let Trauma or Clinical Lab & Special Studies crowd out your highest-yield categories. Section 1.3 of this chapter turns these percentages into an actual week-by-week study plan.