Plastic surgery is defined as a specialty dedicated to reconstruction of facial and body defects due to birth disorders, trauma, burns, and disease. It is intended to correct dysfunctional areas of the body and is reconstructive in nature.

How does the education differ?
As there is no residency program specifically focused on cosmetic procedures, doctors who wish to pursue it have different backgrounds. First, a surgeon must go through medical school and a residency program, preferably in a specialty such as general surgery, otolaryngology (head and neck), plastic or dermatologic. After proving competent in anatomy, physiology, pathology and basic sciences, they may attain board certification in their specialty and then continue their post-residency training specifically in cosmetic surgeries. This can be done through a fellowship program, as well as through workshops, seminars and lectures. A surgeon with enough experience may choose to become certified by the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery.

Cosmetic and plastic surgeons must follow the same educational timeline. After finishing medical school they complete a residency, learning to treat defects of the face and body including tumors, cleft palates, deformities, hand repair and burn injuries. A surgeon may then become certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. At this point, they may gain experience through a fellowship training program, workshops, seminars and lectures, and then become certified.

Board certification is one of the many yardsticks in determining a surgeon's qualifications. It is important to ask your doctor about his or her credentials and study them carefully. Each certifying board has different requirements and measures a physician’s education and experience in different fields. Check your doctor's certification (and professional society affiliation's) and call the board or society to find out what the requirements are for membership.

What does it mean to be Board Certified?
All Fellows of the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery are certified and/or have their initial certification by one of the member boards of the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS). This provides some assurance of formal training in the fundamentals of cosmetic surgeries. All of these specialty boards require at least four years of residency training and provide a solid base for the surgeon's skills.

Many of these surgeons will then go on to complete the requirements to undergo the rigorous oral and written testing and scrutiny to become certified by the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery, which has established a strict set of criteria to ensure experience and proficiency. It is the only certifying board exam devoted to examining skill in cosmetic surgery of the face and body. It is an independent sub-specialty board that examines and certifies physicians.

What is the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery?
It is the only certifying board exam devoted to examining a surgeon's skill in cosmetic surgery of the face and body. It is an independent sub-specialty board that examines and certifies physicians in general, facial and dermatological surgery.

Eligibility requirements include:

• Being certified in one of several ABMS Boards
• Completing an AACS-approved fellowship,
  or
• Being in practice a minimum of six years and having performed at least 1000 cosmetic surgery cases
• Passing a stringent two-day oral and written examination
• Being of good moral character