Frequently asked questions

StudyOwl is a gamified study and review platform for mastering any subject — not just medical board exams. You work through a curriculum of books, sections, and chapters, practicing questions and taking exams to master each topic. Every core mechanic is grounded in learning-science research.

Yes — StudyOwl is free to use during our launch period, and existing learners will get plenty of notice in the app before that ever changes. (This is separate from the per-book "free chapter" trial — that's about unlocking a book's first chapter instantly while an admin approves your full access, not about payment.)

Yes. The app is fully responsive and can be installed to your phone's home screen for quick access, just like a native app.

Pages you've already visited (like your dashboard and recently opened chapters) stay available offline. Starting a new quiz or exam requires a connection, since your progress is scored on our servers.

Chapter practice quizzes, flashcard decks with spaced repetition, ungraded worked examples, multi-step item sets, spaced review of questions you've missed, interleaved section practice, mixed review across mastered chapters, build-your-own custom practice, and per-chapter Skills Exams and Mastery Challenges capped by timed Section and Final exams. The Help Center has a step-by-step guide for every mode.

Click "Get started free" and sign up with your name, email, and a password.

Sign in with the email and temporary password they gave you. You'll be asked to set your own password right away before you can do anything else — after that you're in as normal.

Yes, from your profile page once you're signed in. Forgot it entirely? Your organization's admin can reset it for you.

Open the book from the catalog and click "Request Access." Each book is granted separately, so you only need to request the ones you actually want to study — there's no single account-wide approval step.

Yes. Pick any book and choose "Start free chapter" to unlock its first chapter instantly — no admin wait. Finish your first practice quiz and you'll earn your First Steps badge. The free chapter is fully playable, including its Mastery Challenge; unlocking the rest of the book still needs full access from an admin. A trial lasts 14 days, and you can ask for the full book at any point from the banner on the book page — your trial stays open while an admin reviews it.

Your request goes to an admin for approval. You'll see it as Pending on the book page while you wait, and a notification lands in your bell once it's approved (or if it's denied, you can simply request it again).

Some book grants are time-limited. If a grant has an expiration date, it's shown on the book page — after that date you'd need to request access again.

No. The whole social layer is opt-in and limited to your own organization — you choose to appear on leaderboards, to accept friend requests, and to join groups or challenges. You can block or report another student, and report a group, from the same screens.

What you write, the page you were on, and — unless you untick the box — a picture of that page plus your screen size and browser. The picture is drawn from the page itself inside your own browser, so it captures StudyOwl only, never your address bar or your other tabs, and you see the exact image before you send it. Only administrators at your own organization can view it.

Yes — mastering every chapter in a section earns a Section Scholar certificate, and completing a whole book earns a Wise Owl certificate. Each has a unique code and a QR link so anyone can verify it's genuine.

The Help Center has searchable, step-by-step guides for everything in StudyOwl — studying, hearts and XP, streaks, leagues, notifications, and troubleshooting. Still stuck? Reach out to your admin, or email support.