USMLE World Scores and Step II Scores

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Originally Posted by justdoit31

I went through about 65% of UW during clerkships at 53% (didn't do all the IM or pysch questions)... reset and am at 61% now (done 40%). IM is my weakness for sure- I do best on Peds and Ob/Gyn questions.

Took the CCSE through my school last week 2 weeks and 5 days out from actual test and it predicted 212.

Is it possible to pull up to 230 in a little over 2 weeks? I am going to focus on weaker areas and questions while still finishing up a few Kaplan videos.

Yes but READ MTB 2 instead not videos since you are weak in IM..

Originally Posted by docman85

Turns out I did the same thing last Wed and decided to take NBME 2 that same afternoon, talk about burned out!!! I take the test this Wednesday but was going to do a UWSA based on reading people's post on here saying it was more accurate than NBME.

The other problem here in VA is there is still no power so if they don't have power I don't know that I will do a make up test since I am a DO, 220 on USMLE step 1 and will be starting auditions the end of July, anybody have any advice on this?

Finished all of uworld 67% timed random
NBME 2 1 wk out 221

NBME 4 with extended feedback

To update I just finish UWSA and made 236, so let's hope UWSA is the predictive but a long as I make >220

there were three sections with only 42 questions. 2 drug ads (6 questions total) and one thesis (3 qusetions total)

The ads used the same fictional name but applied it to different kinds of drugs. (vs the uWorld practice where they used real life drug ads)

Half of the drug ad questions were testing simple concepts (Sensitivty, PPV, use of controls)

the other half were just concepts that... let's say would be more apparent if one knew exactly how to read a paper... (and that's not me)

which of the folowing roles would hte FDA most likely approve?
what kind of study is this (most choices were not familiar ones from test prep)?
which of the following claims would be most weakened if so and so were to be true?

Originally Posted by NewYorkDoctors

which of the folowing roles would hte FDA most likely approve?
what kind of study is this (most choices were not familiar ones from test prep)?
which of the following claims would be most weakened if so and so were to be true?

Yea they asked some funky stuff about the drug ads. Some seemed like no-brainers but others left me going

Originally Posted by Dissected

Yea they asked some funky stuff about the drug ads. Some seemed like no-brainers but others left me going

Felt the same way. The drug ads were super easy, like middle school level, or left you asking what in the world they wanted. Seemed pretty polarized.

Test wasn't too bad. Definitely more straight forward than Step 1- the difficulty (around 10%) lies in trying to pick the best answer among usually 2 that could be reasonable (and stuff that is not stressed in any review source that I encountered or on the wards). Agree with the above about the drug abstract questions- they were either laughingly easy or I had no clue what they wanted. My exam did have a ton of odd sexual vignettes- I did lol at one in particular. Some of these NBME writers have sick minds : )

Originally Posted by HalladayWeekend

My exam did have a ton of odd sexual vignettes- I did lol at one in particular. Some of these NBME writers have sick minds : )

Ha, I wonder if they're based on real patients...

Took it today...

Felt similarly to previous posters. Much more straightforward than step 1. 70-80% of questions were relativley easy while the other 20-30% were noticeably more difficult. I had such a disproportionate amount of peds on my test it was laughable. Medicine was heavily tested (obviously) and ob gyn too. Psych was weird much more difficult than uworld and involved a lot of guessing. Biostats and Epi werent too bad like 20ish questions including one drug study/research abstract that was part of a 3 question set that was pretty damn hard. Surgery was pretty straightforward. Overall I think I did ok. Aiming for 250+ and my qbank avg was 71% with 252 on Uwsa, 251. 258 and 267 and nbme 2, 3 and 4 respectively. Well see what happens. Good luck to anyone taking it this wk!

Originally Posted by HalladayWeekend

Test wasn't too bad. Definitely more straight forward than Step 1- the difficulty (around 10%) lies in trying to pick the best answer among usually 2 that could be reasonable (and stuff that is not stressed in any review source that I encountered or on the wards). Agree with the above about the drug abstract questions- they were either laughingly easy or I had no clue what they wanted. My exam did have a ton of odd sexual vignettes- I did lol at one in particular. Some of these NBME writers have sick minds : )

I think I had the same question...

Anybody's permit links disappear this week? Cause mine sure didn't. I was hoping for a score release today

I also just realized that it is a national holiday...further decreasing the odds of them releasing our scores.

In any event, Happy 4th everybody!

So I am going through UWorld for a second time, the first time was during my third year. I really don't remember the questions, as I actually did most of them during Internal Med back in November. At the moment, I have been averaging 70% since I started again, but when I took NBME 1 a week and a half ago I got a 210. Is the NBME more accurate of where I am, or should I feel good about getting in the 70s on UWorld?

Originally Posted by libihero

So I am going through UWorld for a second time, the first time was during my third year. I really don't remember the questions, as I actually did most of them during Internal Med back in November. At the moment, I have been averaging 70% since I started again, but when I took NBME 1 a week and a half ago I got a 210. Is the NBME more accurate of where I am, or should I feel good about getting in the 70s on UWorld?

Even if you don't remember the individual questions from UW, you might remember the specific concepts that you learned from some of the questions that you got wrong, which would artificially inflate your score.

If you haven't done the UWSA, you could try that.

Bah taking it tomorrow. Really wondering if I'm going to last nine hours without some serious burnout. Any tips from people who already took it?

Originally Posted by Celestine

Bah taking it tomorrow. Really wondering if I'm going to last nine hours without some serious burnout. Any tips from people who already took it?

Bring enough coffee to last the day and don't drink too much early. Snack throughout the day. I brought 4 pb&js so I'd have enough protein for the day and a bunch of fruit snacks so I'd have enough quick carbs. I took two aleve in the morning in case I got a headache.

Just be prepared and pace yourself. Honestly, adrenaline took me most of the way. You'll be fine. Good luck.

see quoted post

Originally Posted by seva86

I took an NBME assessment a month ago with about 20% of UW done and completely bombed it. I've completed almost 80% of UW on tutor mode since then, with a 66% average. Scores on the last few blocks have been in the low 70s. (Peds and Ob/gyn are killing me ) Step 1 was in the 230s and I recently passed CS (yay!). Today, I decided to suck it up and go through the questions I missed on my diagnostic. Turns out I did the Clinical Medicine assessment for Step 3, instead of the Clinical Sciences test for CK! Yeah, I know, I know. Stupid me, lol...I was all freaked out, about ready to push my exam back and now I'm totally unsure.

Does anyone know how much Step 2CK differs from Step 3 content? I'm going to take the right assessment this week to see where I stand. I take the exam in 3 weeks and am getting worried

update - so I just took NBME 2 and scored 500/230. I'm relieved I'm (finally) within passing range, but bummed because my Step 1 was in the 230s so I'd like to at least earn in the 240s on the real thing. I'm about 2 weeks out from my exam...is there still time to improve? I'm going to do a UWSA this weekend.

Originally Posted by FSU2013

Bring enough coffee to last the day and don't drink too much early. Snack throughout the day. I brought 4 pb&js so I'd have enough protein for the day and a bunch of fruit snacks so I'd have enough quick carbs. I took two aleve in the morning in case I got a headache.

Just be prepared and pace yourself. Honestly, adrenaline took me most of the way. You'll be fine. Good luck.

sorry not to be a jerk, but protein in PBJ? If you have some special kind of bread or peanut butter, please fill me in. I know they have those high protein, low card artisan breads out there.

Originally Posted by shan564

Even if you don't remember the individual questions from UW, you might remember the specific concepts that you learned from some of the questions that you got wrong, which would artificially inflate your score.

If you haven't done the UWSA, you could try that.

isn't that what you want?

Originally Posted by NewYorkDoctors

sorry not to be a jerk, but protein in PBJ? If you have some special kind of bread or peanut butter, please fill me in. I know they have those high protein, low card artisan breads out there.

I'm confused......peanut butter has plenty of protein to get you through the test....what's the problem?

Originally Posted by NewYorkDoctors

sorry not to be a jerk, but protein in PBJ? If you have some special kind of bread or peanut butter, please fill me in. I know they have those high protein, low card artisan breads out there.

There's a fair amount of protein in peanut butter isn't there? Do you have any idea what you are talking about?

Anyone get the Biostats subject review on UW and if so, is it helpful? Seems like bio stats is pretty heavily tested...

Originally Posted by disorder

isn't that what you want?

Ya thats why I'm confused... If I'm solid with 70% of UWorld "concepts", shouldn't that translate?

Originally Posted by Dissected

There's a fair amount of protein in peanut butter isn't there? Do you have any idea what you are talking about?

Was that really necessary? Anyway, I'll say I should not have sounded so sarcastic or mean... (though any emotion attributed to text is usually based on the reader's perspective)

Anyway, 1tbspn of peanut butter has about 4 grams of protein. I guess it's just a matter of perspective regarding if that's a lot or little. There's far more fat in peanut butter than protein (albeit nonsaturated fats)


Anyway, back to more relevant discussions

The OP's comments about proper nutrition for the test were well founded though

what kind of nutrition was asked? Like Vitamins? Daily requirements?

Originally Posted by libihero

Ya thats why I'm confused... If I'm solid with 70% of UWorld "concepts", shouldn't that translate?

lol. i sure hope those "concepts" translate.

Originally Posted by NewYorkDoctors

Was that really necessary?

No. My apologies.

Took it yesterday and I have to say it wasn't as hard as I was expecting. With that being said, it felt exactly like the UWSA (hopefully it will turn out the way that one did), but I made a TON of mistakes on some of the easy questions and God know how many of the harder ones.

On a side note, has anyone done well on practice tests and failed the real deal? Just curious, all I ever see on here is people making 260+ on everything...

Print permit link just disappeared...

Originally Posted by Dissected

Print permit link just disappeared...

if your permit link disappears does that mean your score is going to be released that wednesday? what is a good time to generally start checking.

Hey guys,

I've been reading the forums extensively and had a question for people. I am on my second pass of Uworld. First pass, I averaged a 68%. Second pass, I'm averaging 93% and will finish it by this wednesday. I take Step 2 CK next Friday. I am also reading through Step 2 Secrets.

My question is would you recommend doing a UWSA or NBME between now and the exam or just continue what I'm doing: review my notes from uworld and secrets?

I scored very well on Step 1 and am hoping/needing to replicate/better that score

Thanks for the help!

Originally Posted by ndocy

if your permit link disappears does that mean your score is going to be released that wednesday? what is a good time to generally start checking.

I think it's safe to assume it means they will be released sometime on Wednesday morning....but you better believe I'll be checking in periodically before then

Originally Posted by BrainDoc2985

Hey guys,

I've been reading the forums extensively and had a question for people. I am on my second pass of Uworld. First pass, I averaged a 68%. Second pass, I'm averaging 93% and will finish it by this wednesday. I take Step 2 CK next Friday. I am also reading through Step 2 Secrets.

My question is would you recommend doing a UWSA or NBME between now and the exam or just continue what I'm doing: review my notes from uworld and secrets?

I scored very well on Step 1 and am hoping/needing to replicate/better that score

Thanks for the help!

It depends on what you are looking for. Doing an NBME would assess your general knowledge in each area but would not be that useful as a teaching tool. Supposedly the scores are pretty predictive as well -- so if you're looking for peace of mind it might help. I needed peace of mind and it reassured me that I was ready.

UWSA is a good general assessment and it has a ton more UW style questions that have the full explanations. It would be more time consuming, but if you are looking for more of a learning-intensive activity it would be more useful than an NBME in my opinion. I would venture to guess that this would probably be the way to go since your test isn't till next friday..just hammer it out in half a day and spend a couple hours going over the answers. It was very helpful and quite a confidence boost.

Thanks! 1 more question. I've seen posts on both the UWSA 1 and 2. is one better than the other?

Originally Posted by BrainDoc2985

Thanks! 1 more question. I've seen posts on both the UWSA 1 and 2. is one better than the other?

Hmm..When I took it there was only one form for Step II CK. So if they published another one I couldn't say.

Originally Posted by BrainDoc2985

Thanks! 1 more question. I've seen posts on both the UWSA 1 and 2. is one better than the other?

That's for Step 1. For Step 2, there's only one UWSA.

Finished.

The advertisement questions sucked. Terrible.

My "print preview" hasn't disappeared yet... I suppose that means I wait another week.

Originally Posted by olemissbabydoc

My "print preview" hasn't disappeared yet... I suppose that means I wait another week.

Strange, mine is gone and I took it the 20th

My print permit link is still there and I took mine on June 19

my permit is still there and i took it on july 9. WHAT THE HELL!?!?!

Originally Posted by CardioGuy1

My print permit link is still there and I took mine on June 19

June 18 for me. Oh well. I guess we're continuing to wait.

Originally Posted by ASAPRocky

my permit is still there and i took it on july 9. WHAT THE HELL!?!?!

You should call the NBME and ask what the hold up is

Scored in the mid-250's...I am a very happy camper right now.

Long story short... USMLE World is where the money is!!!

NBME self assessment was within 4 points of my real score

Step 1: 255
Step 2: 272

Had one month on a pretty chill rotation (3 full days of clinic a week) plus 10-days completely off.

My take on the resources I used...

Uworld: Arguably the best resource around. I went through it 1x, but I was careful to read every explanation (even the ones that I got right). I made a google doc that contained any info that I wanted to remember for later on, and I reviewed the doc nightly before I went to bed. I am a faster typer than I am a writer, so I opted for digital notes. It is true that writing helps me to remember things better, but with the time I saved I had more repetitions through the material so overall it worked out much better.

Master the boards: Good resource and will fill some gaps that UWORLD doesn't cover. I wish I had spent a little bit more time on this one. If you use it, save it for the last ~2 weeks. I only went through it once. Be cognizant of the fact that this book has some errors.

Green Book (Sabatine's Medicine): Use this as a reference if you are unsure how to manage a disease. It definitely helped for a few questions. Don't read it cover to cover unless you have lots of time.

NMS surgery: The trauma section is well-written. (which is what the USMLE tests). Skip the other sections...you're wasting your time.

Kaplan Notes: I used only the OB notes. They were good, but took a long time to get through. The medicine notes seem good, but if you're getting MTB, then don't bother.

Step up to Step2: Don't get this book. It has numerous errors, is very superficial in the topics it covers, and it will not prepare you. It has so many flaws that I am dubious that DIT can salvage this book. I spent a day on this before it went into the trash.

Step up to medicine: I converted this book into notes for my medicine rotation (more on that below).

First Aid for Psych: I read this book because it helped me get a high score on the psych shelf. I think it's a good book, but it may not be perfect.

Class notes: I saved my notes for all of my shelf exams (peds, medicine, OB, surgery, psych, neuro) and read through them several times before step II. These notes were comprised of all the recommended resources for each of the subject shelf exams. I definitely recommend keeping your notes and looking over them at least once before the exam. It helped.

Test Subjects
Biostats: Know your biostats inside and out. I don't think Uworld gives you enough exposure. Se, Sp, PPV, NPV, ARR, RRR, Hazard Ratio, Odds ratio, Relative Risk, NNT, NNH should be learned cold.

The drug ads: reminded me of the MCAT: read the passage, answer some Q's. Most of these Q's have you apply your knowledge of biostats.


Good luck!

so if its not up by now no dice eh? another week it is

Step 1: 238
Step 2: 256

Yay! I used FA for the non-medicine stuff (Psychiatry, Peds, and OBGYN) and basically relied on USMLE World for IM topics. I went through World once and took my sweet time (read those explanations!) then reviewed the questions I answered incorrectly.

I didn't use a book for IM, but from the little I used FA to look up some topics, I would say Step Up to Medicine is better.

Anyone take it June 16?? Def thought I'd get it back today. Nothing yet.

anyone took the test on June 19th and got the score today ?

Originally Posted by rubi76

anyone took the test on June 19th and got the score today ?

Took it on the 19th, no scores yet either.

..