The FAA AME Refresher Seminar is a 2½-day FAA training event of AME-specific subjects, and completing it fulfills your recurrent seminar training requirement. Attend a seminar at least every six years, or interleave MAMERC 3.0 under its restrictions, and register through a Designee Management System account.
What the refresher seminar is
The Refresher Seminar is a 2½-day FAA training event of AME-specific subjects, and it fulfills the AME recurrent seminar training requirement.
The FAA runs several seminar types for Aviation Medical Examiners, and knowing which one you need saves you a wasted booking. The Basic seminar runs four and a half days and prepares physicians to be designated as AMEs; priority goes to applicants submitted by Regional Flight Surgeons. The Refresher seminar is the shorter, recurrent option for physicians who already hold the designation.
Two specialty formats also satisfy the same recurrent requirement. The Aerospace Medical Association (AsMA) seminar runs three and a half days alongside the AsMA conference, and you register through AsMA, which charges its own fee. The Civil Aviation Medical Association (CAMA) seminar runs three days, is sanctioned by the FAA, and is likewise registered and paid through CAMA.
- Basic: 4½ days, for physicians seeking AME designation
- Refresher: 2½ days of AME-specific subjects; fulfills the recurrent training requirement
- AsMA Refresher: 3½ days with the AsMA conference; register and pay through AsMA
- CAMA Refresher: 3 days, FAA-sanctioned; register and pay through CAMA
Official sources: AME Seminar Schedule | Federal Aviation Administration — Seminar types and 2026–2027 schedule
How the seminar fits your 72-month training cycle
AME refresher training is required every 36 months, and seminar attendance is mandatory at least every 72 months regardless of when you last completed the online course.
The online Multimedia Aviation Medical Examiner Refresher Course (MAMERC) 3.0 can fulfill a mandatory refresher cycle, but only under restrictions. You qualify if you attended an AME seminar within the last three years. Used that way, MAMERC 3.0 extends your seminar currency by 36 months.
The limit matters: attendance at an AME seminar is required every six years (72 months), no matter when you last completed MAMERC. So the online course buys you time between seminars; it never replaces the six-year seminar obligation.
Do not confuse other FAA online courses with this requirement. Completing the Clinical Aerospace Physiology Review for AMEs (CAPAME) is explicitly not an acceptable substitute for seminar training. Continuing Medical Education (CME) credit is also a separate matter: you may complete MAMERC 3.0 or CAPAME for CME at any time, but that credit does not count toward refresher training.
| Path | What it does | Key restriction |
|---|---|---|
| Attend an AME Refresher Seminar | Fulfills the recurrent training requirement | Required at least every 72 months |
| Complete MAMERC 3.0 | Fulfills a 36-month refresher cycle | Only if you attended a seminar within the last three years |
| Complete CAPAME | Counts toward CME and is part of the path to designation | Never a substitute for seminar training |
Official sources: AME Online Training | Federal Aviation Administration — MAMERC 3.0, CAPAME and MCSPT requirements
Who can register and what comes first
Registration requires a Designee Management System (DMS) account. Physicians who are not currently designated AMEs must obtain prior approval before they can register.
A DMS account is required to register for any FAA AME seminar. If you are not currently a designated AME, you must first request and receive approval from the FAA's Aerospace Medical Education Division. Do not assume a registration will be accepted without it.
If your goal is to become an AME rather than maintain the designation, the FAA directs you to the Regional Office responsible for your locality. The training sequence for prospective examiners is specific: you must complete the Medical Certification Standards and Procedures Training (MCSPT) and CAPAME online before attending a Basic seminar. The FAA also warns prospective AMEs not to start those online courses until they have applied through DMS and been approved by the appropriate region.
Official sources: AME Seminar Schedule | Federal Aviation Administration — Seminar types and 2026–2027 schedule; AME Online Training | Federal Aviation Administration — MAMERC 3.0, CAPAME and MCSPT requirements
Upcoming refresher dates and locations
The FAA's published 2026–2027 schedule lists refresher-type sessions in October and November 2026 and several 2027 dates, including virtual and AsMA and CAMA options.
The schedule below comes from the FAA seminar schedule page, which the FAA last updated on September 2, 2026. Only refresher-type sessions are listed here; Basic seminars for prospective AMEs run separately in Oklahoma City.
Two cautions come directly from the FAA. First, it recommends making all travel and lodging reservations refundable, because an in-person seminar may be rescheduled as virtual with little notice. Second, sessions shown with a TBD location open for registration only after the contract is approved and hotel information is received, so check back rather than booking early.
| Dates | Seminar type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| October 22–24, 2026 | CAMA Refresher | Dayton, OH |
| November 13–15, 2026 | Refresher | Virtual (International) |
| January 22–24, 2027 | Refresher | TBD |
| May 24–27, 2027 | AsMA Refresher | Dallas, TX |
| August 6–8, 2027 | Refresher | TBD |
| November 5–7, 2027 | Refresher | Virtual (International) |
Official sources: AME Seminar Schedule | Federal Aviation Administration — Seminar types and 2026–2027 schedule
How to prepare before you attend
The FAA describes the refresher curriculum only as AME-specific subjects and does not publish a detailed topic list on the pages retrieved for this guide, so your preparation should center on the current Guide for Aviation Medical Examiners and the FAA's own online courses.
Be honest with yourself about scope. The seminar schedule page does not itemize the subjects covered, so any study plan built around a specific topic list is guesswork. If you want the actual curriculum, ask the Aerospace Medical Education Division or review the materials provided when your registration is confirmed.
As general advice, not an official requirement: work through the sections of the Guide for Aviation Medical Examiners you use least often. The Guide's general information section covers your responsibilities as the FAA's representative in medical certification, classes of medical certificates, application dispositions, special issuance procedures, and examination fees, among other topics. Refresher training is a natural point to refresh the parts of that role your daily practice touches rarely.
Use the FAA's online training strategically. CAPAME and MAMERC 3.0 can be completed at any time for CME credit, and MAMERC 3.0 also serves the refresher-training role described above when its conditions are met. MCSPT is aimed at those becoming AMEs or for staff training. Before choosing a session, check your own training currency so you know whether you need a seminar now or whether MAMERC can carry you to a later date.
- Confirm your training status and whether the 72-month seminar deadline is approaching
- Request curriculum detail from the Aerospace Medical Education Division if you need it
- Study the least-familiar sections of the current AME Guide
- Use CAPAME or MAMERC 3.0 for CME, remembering these credits are separate from refresher training
Official sources: AME Seminar Schedule | Federal Aviation Administration — Seminar types and 2026–2027 schedule; AME Online Training | Federal Aviation Administration — MAMERC 3.0, CAPAME and MCSPT requirements; Guide for Aviation Medical Examiners | Federal Aviation Administration — Application Process — General Information section list
Official sources
Facts checked against FAA pages retrieved September 18, 2026: