USMLE World Scores and Step II Scores

Step 1: 243
Step 2: 259

Used Kaplan then Uworld throughout 3rd year corresponding to the service I was on. Averaged about 54% on Kaplan and 71% on Uworld throughout the year but always did Kaplan questions before Uworld, hence the large difference. Usually averaged in low 80's on shelf exams. Did well on medicine exam at end with 89, with Kaplan and Uworld as only resource for that.

Cleared and repeated all of Uworld as my only preparation for 2.5 weeks before the actual test with 83%.

IMO, Uworld is all you need. Made and kept notes of things I missed or thought I should remember which was about 25 typed pages. Read that the day before the test, and saved the 60 biostats questions till the day before the test for short term recall (hate biostats).

The actual test was very very similar to Uworld, with some questions being almost exact replicas. Actual test had some seemingly very long questions, longer than the longest on Uworld, but most were manageable. Usually marked about 8-10 questions per block that I was unsure on and had about 10-15 minutes to re-read those. Usually left with 2-4 questions per block that I was like WTF?

Not nearly as intimidating as Step 1 IMO. There is only so much they can really test you on. If you do enough questions you will see most of the concepts multiple times. On Step 1 I felt like they could ask a million different things on biochem, cellular mechanisms, etc. Ugh. Step 2 is a little longer, but overall if you do well on Uworld and really understand why answers are what they are and you understand the "next best step" you should do very well.

i used DIT, uworld, and kaplan q bank. basically went through uworld 2x (once during the year and once during the month off i used for studying. the second time though my avg was 77% I ended up with a 263 overall for ck

UWorld average 66%
actual Step2 CK 246!!
my Step 1 score was 205

For those hoping to improve on your Step1 scores, it's possible! For Step 2 CK I studied for 3.5 weeks, 6-8 hours per day, 5-6 days per week. I got through 95% of the UWorld qbank, and used First Aid for Step 2CK as a reference to read up on specific sub-topics I needed more context for. I also used Master the Boards in the 1st 2 weeks to read the chapters on topics that I was scoring low on. My main focus was getting through as many Uworld questions as possible, and I always used either "Timed" or "Timed Tutor" mode. I felt that I would have been ready to take the exam at the end of week 3, rather than extending my study time out to 3.5 weeks. I made sure to take at least one day off per week, and didn't study at all the day before the test.

On test day, I could feel that things were going better than Step 1, and I finished most blocks with around 7 minutes left. I resisted the urge to change answers unless I had a very compelling reason to do so. That last block of the day was the hardest--I made sure to take a good, refreshing break before that block even though I just wanted to finish and get out of there.

In the end, I couldn't be happier with my score! This will certainly give a little oomph to my pediatrics application!

I'm taking Step 2 CS in 2 weeks, haven't done much studying yet, but recently passed my school's CS-style test without problem.

publichealth06 said:

UWorld average 66%
actual Step2 CK 246!!
my Step 1 score was 205

For those hoping to improve on your Step1 scores, it's possible! For Step 2 CK I studied for 3.5 weeks, 6-8 hours per day, 5-6 days per week. I got through 95% of the UWorld qbank, and used First Aid for Step 2CK as a reference to read up on specific sub-topics I needed more context for. I also used Master the Boards in the 1st 2 weeks to read the chapters on topics that I was scoring low on. My main focus was getting through as many Uworld questions as possible, and I always used either "Timed" or "Timed Tutor" mode. I felt that I would have been ready to take the exam at the end of week 3, rather than extending my study time out to 3.5 weeks. I made sure to take at least one day off per week, and didn't study at all the day before the test.

On test day, I could feel that things were going better than Step 1, and I finished most blocks with around 7 minutes left. I resisted the urge to change answers unless I had a very compelling reason to do so. That last block of the day was the hardest--I made sure to take a good, refreshing break before that block even though I just wanted to finish and get out of there.

In the end, I couldn't be happier with my score! This will certainly give a little oomph to my pediatrics application!

I'm taking Step 2 CS in 2 weeks, haven't done much studying yet, but recently passed my school's CS-style test without problem.

Click to expand...

This is wonderful, CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

I have a similar story, I'd like to share as I just got my scores back today

Step 1= 210 by studying 2-4 hours a day with too many family distractions

Step 2 study=8-9 hours a day for 4 weeks while doing total care of my 3 month-old Boxer puppy who was paralyzed d/t autoimmune meningitis (she's recovering, now, yay!)

NBMA 2 at beginning of study month=211
UWorld= 72% after having used it for all of 3rd year, then ran through it 1.5 X's again
NBME 4 at 1.5 weeks before test=207 (didn't sleep night before, shouldn't have attempted it)
UWSA 2 days before actual test=230

Actual Step 2=236

I'm not a "Typical" SDN scorer, but thank you God!!!! It'll work for General Surgery ;-)

Best tips:
UWorld!!!!! And I annotated my incorrects and missing info in FA.

step 1: low 230's
Step 2: 265

Studied an avg of 6 hours/day x 3.5 weeks. Did uworld throughout the year and then again with SUTS2 once through.

focus on doing well as a 3rd year and then its really not that bad...study smart, not necessarily study hard.

My experience.

Third and fourth quartile student in years 1 and 2. Year 3 pretty middle of the road.

Step 1: 232
Step 2: 258 (taken 7/19, found out today 8/8)

Prep was done very casually over 2 months. I read Pre-Test for medicine for a refresher, then I read First Aid once while taking UWorld blocks. I completed the qbank about 3 days before the test date. All were untimed, tutor mode except the last 10 or so. My UWorld first pass percent was 69%. I did not have time to review any missed questions or do any practice tests. I read Secrets in the 2 days prior to the exam. And I read First Aid high yield in the back the morning before the test. This preparation could have been condensed into a solid 3-4 weeks if someone were dedicated with good work ethic. I can not work more than 6-8 good hours a day, so prep took me longer. Hope this helps.

I typically read the very last sentence of each question so I can get a quick idea of what the stem will be about and what type of information to be looking for. This works very well during Uworld, but I noticed it didn't work so well on the NBME practice test. The NBME would ask "What is the primary cause of this patients symptoms?" vs Uworld asking "What is the primary cause of this patient's dyspnea?".
For those who have recently taken the test, is there any benefit to reading the last sentence of each question? Or is it more in line with the NBME test?

.

[q

Step 1: 251

Uworld: 74% Timed, Random 45 question blocks done in 3 weeks
NBME 4: 264

Step 2: 261

Read secrets, First Aid for CK, Boards and Wards.

I did study for 3 straight weeks (I am not the brightest bulb so I have to work hard for my grades). When I say straight, I mean 6 am to 9-10 pm almost every day. Maybe its unreasonable, that's what it took for me.

Good luck comrades, hopefully this helps someone.

PS- I did skim through step up to step 2, it sucks, don't waste your time.

mandinca said:

This is wonderful, CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

I have a similar story, I'd like to share as I just got my scores back today

Step 1= 210 by studying 2-4 hours a day with too many family distractions

Step 2 study=8-9 hours a day for 4 weeks while doing total care of my 3 month-old Boxer puppy who was paralyzed d/t autoimmune meningitis (she's recovering, now, yay!)

NBMA 2 at beginning of study month=211
UWorld= 72% after having used it for all of 3rd year, then ran through it 1.5 X's again
NBME 4 at 1.5 weeks before test=207 (didn't sleep night before, shouldn't have attempted it)
UWSA 2 days before actual test=230

Actual Step 2=236

I'm not a "Typical" SDN scorer, but thank you God!!!! It'll work for General Surgery ;-)

Best tips:
UWorld!!!!! And I annotated my incorrects and missing info in FA.

Click to expand...

Congrats, Glad your dog is doing well!

Hi,

I didn't do too well in Step 2. Got 222. Step 1 was 225. Heart set on Anesthesiology. Will the drop hurt a lot?

Villin said:

no. not even a little bit. i believe your 2 digit scores are similar, right?

Click to expand...

2 digits scores were phased out and are no longer reported to programs.

Villin said:

ha! why?

took my step 3 only 3 yrs ago and received a 2 digit score...am i that old? sheeeet.

Click to expand...

Well you still get it, but recently they phased it out.

No idea why it was done though, its all a big propaganda.

Thought I would add some encouragement for the actual average student, vs the "sdn" average

Step 1: 223/95
Step 2: 252/85

Did Uworld once during the year to study for shelf exams, and again in a 3.5 week study time. Also used secrets and MTB a bit.
Felt like complete crap coming out of there, and I had recurring dreams that I got a 217!! This is proof that even if you have an average step 1, you can improve your step 2!!!

Everyone has amazing scores! Best of luck this year with applications!!

chillyphilly said:

Thought I would add some encouragement for the actual average student, vs the "sdn" average

Step 1: 223/95
Step 2: 252/85

Did Uworld once during the year to study for shelf exams, and again in a 3.5 week study time. Also used secrets and MTB a bit.
Felt like complete crap coming out of there, and I had recurring dreams that I got a 217!! This is proof that even if you have an average step 1, you can improve your step 2!!!

Everyone has amazing scores! Best of luck this year with applications!!

Click to expand...

pretty much study twins and score twins. awesome job.

JimK said:

Hi,

I didn't do too well in Step 2. Got 222. Step 1 was 225. Heart set on Anesthesiology. Will the drop hurt a lot?

Click to expand...

That's not a significant difference and also...does anesthesiology care about Step 2? I was under the impression they don't really.

VenusinFurs said:

That's not a significant difference

Click to expand...

I think a lot of people are concerned that anything less than a 10-point increase is equivalent to a "drop."

Thanks. Makes me feel a bit better. By the way, there was no 2-digit score for the Step 2. My Step 1 was 225/98.

VenusinFurs said:

That's not a significant difference and also...does anesthesiology care about Step 2? I was under the impression they don't really.

Click to expand...

Many schools now want both reported. In any case, if I've taken it then I guess I should report it.

Got my results back Wednesday...

Step 1 - 237/99

UWorld- first pass 73%, completed ~20% for 2nd pass at 83%

UWSA (two weeks out) - 232

Real thing - 249/85

DO student - took COMLEX two days before USMLE (not the usual advice, but somehow I felt like it helped with the USMLE because it further highlighted material I may have been weak on).

Read Secrets 2x, MTB 1.5x with special emphasis on stuff I had gotten wrong on UWSA. Googled random stuff (esp biostats) and studied that material also. Had ~8 weeks overall. Test isn't hard if you put in the effort, use UWorld to your advantage and keep reviewing stuff that isn't sticking. I had hopes of blowing this test away (260+), but a fair amount of burnout was dragging me down by the time the study period started and I was dealing with some family issues in the two weeks before the exam. Given those constraints, I consider these results to be something of a triumph because I easily could have seen this going poorly. Toward the end of the study period, I decided I'd be happy with a 250 and I'm glad to have ended up there.

I felt like the UWSA was weird, rather difficult and not at all representative of real questions on the exam. I would take it just to get another dose of UWorld qs, but don't think that it's the be-all end-all of Step 2 assessment. I did worst on OB and peds on the UWSA, but on the real thing these were two of my best categories according to the graphs on the score report; to me, this indicates that the UWSA is best for highlighting what you need to review. Just know that if you pick up the pace and really cram the stuff you didn't know on the UWSA, you can greatly improve your score.

Coming out of the exam, I felt way better than I did on step 1. The first few blocks really 'clicked' with me, and I blew through the first three without even taking a break (figured I was on a roll, so let's keep it going...). Blocks 4-6 were much harder, and there were many more weird renal/rheum/electrolyte qs, which I generally have the hardest time with. However, even on most 'weird' qs you can still take info from the stem and drop 3-4 answer choices. You'll be surprised how often you can reason your way to the correct answer even when you feel like you have no idea what's going on. Furthermore, you'll also be surprised to see how few 'wacky' qs you actually run into if you've prepared properly. Later blocks were somewhere between these block groups in difficulty. I left the exam feeling confident things had gone well, but I still counted up about 15-20 mistakes over the next week that had me worried until the score report came back.

Remember - 1) you can definitely build on your UWSA score if you have adequate time 2) go with your gut 3) chew gum during the exam - it really helps you stay crisp.

Good luck everyone.

Thought I'd give an update. Nothing new really to add as far as strategy. Did UWorld x2 and Secrets

Step 1:253
UWorld average 1st pass: 68%
UWorld average 2nd pass: 93%
UWSA (8 days out): 260
Step 2: 257

Would have liked a little higher but I'm very happy with the outcome. I'll be in a good place come application season. Keep up the hard work everyone!

Took my exam on 7/24. Hopefully, the result comes out this Wednesday. The wait so far hasn't been too bad but Wednesday can't come soon enough.

xpilot said:

Took my exam on 7/24. Hopefully, the result comes out this Wednesday. The wait so far hasn't been too bad but Wednesday can't come soon enough.

Click to expand...

Is it the "print permit" link still up for you?

No, it's gone.

Mine is gone too. Took it 7/23. 2 more days of waiting...

Test day coming up....
UW 71% (first round,random,unused)
NMBE 2 (225) 2months out
USWA (242) 2 weeks out
NBME 4 (249) today

I don't think I'm prepared for it
How to calm down and relax before the test day???
any suggestions????

Good Luck to all !!!

print permit link is gone on mine. Expiration was for 8/31 before.

Took mine 7/25.. print permit disappeared this morning - was there yesterday. Fingers crossed for getting scores on Wednesday. Gulp!

hey, do you mind clarifying if you mean to say the actual link is gone (blank space) or that if you click on the link it gives an error message. I'm guessing you mean the former but i wanted to make sure.

Did anyone notice that Uworld just changed the percentile scores? Like I was getting an average of 67% timed/unused/random through my first 25 full length blocks and the precentile that corresponded to was 77th percentile. Then today I looked again (having not taken a test yet) and all percentiles were dropped by like 15-25. My overall 67% with 1/2 the entire q-bank completed went from the 77th percentile --> 55th percentile.

My OBGYN which had been at 75% and ~88th percentile went down to now being the 60th percentile.

My psychiatry went from 88%/92nd percentile --> 80th percentile

IM (which I have not reviewed yet) went from 65%/~68th percentil --> 56th percentile.

Uhhh I think the first percentiles were fairly inflated...but these I think are ridiculously low. Thoughts?

thetubes said:

hey, do you mind clarifying if you mean to say the actual link is gone (blank space) or that if you click on the link it gives an error message. I'm guessing you mean the former but i wanted to make sure.

Click to expand...

the former

alpha2020 said:

Test day coming up....
UW 71% (first round,random,unused)
NMBE 2 (225) 2months out
USWA (242) 2 weeks out
NBME 4 (249) today

I don't think I'm prepared for it
How to calm down and relax before the test day???
any suggestions????

Good Luck to all !!!

Click to expand...

beta blocker i guess...

So is wednesday the confirmed release date or is this just speculation?

512TA said:

beta blocker i guess...

Click to expand...

Well, Didn't try before...

But thanks for the input

alpha2020 said:

Well, Didn't try before...

But thanks for the input

Click to expand...

I am planning to try it this time.

During step 1 i dropped by 25 points than my predicted score. I strongly blame it on anxiety. Since I have never tried it either, I plan to take NBME using the drug and see how it works.

I have heard great things about it!!!

As a person that suffers from test anxiety, I thought the best way to overcome it was just doing endless questions. During the exam I would click to start block, see the question pop up, shut my eyes and then take two or three deep breaths while squeezing and relaxing my toes really hard. I imagined myself in the same room that I tended to study in.

I also made a conscious effort to treat every question block like it was the exam and to forget a question after I answered it. With enough practice, it becomes your habit. While there is still some element of anxiety omnipresent, it is all about cooling it down to a beneficial level.

We will see if it worked for step 2, but it helped for my shelf exams.

512TA said:

I am planning to try it this time.

During step 1 i dropped by 25 points than my predicted score. I strongly blame it on anxiety. Since I have never tried it either, I plan to take NBME using the drug and see how it works.

I have heard great things about it!!!

Click to expand...

Make sure you try it out before! In a healthy young adult, you could become pretty hypotensive... I've also heard that musicians and artists who use B-blockers for stage fright have been described as having "lifeless performances." I wonder how that translates to intelectual ability. Would the B-blockers dull your thinking ability or really just prevent sympathetic overdrive? Maybe try out a few UWorld blocks beforehand.

MossPoh said:

As a person that suffers from test anxiety, I thought the best way to overcome it was just doing endless questions. During the exam I would click to start block, see the question pop up, shut my eyes and then take two or three deep breaths while squeezing and relaxing my toes really hard. I imagined myself in the same room that I tended to study in.

I also made a conscious effort to treat every question block like it was the exam and to forget a question after I answered it. With enough practice, it becomes your habit. While there is still some element of anxiety omnipresent, it is all about cooling it down to a beneficial level.

We will see if it worked for step 2, but it helped for my shelf exams.

Click to expand...

Well, that sounds pretty familiar what I am doing in past days. It helped a lot already, and the best is " to forget a question after i answer it " .

Well, Don't have much time to practice more techniques... taking the beast tomorrow.
Wish me Good luck guys, I hope it goes well.

512TA said:

I am planning to try it this time.

During step 1 i dropped by 25 points than my predicted score. I strongly blame it on anxiety. Since I have never tried it either, I plan to take NBME using the drug and see how it works.

I have heard great things about it!!!

Click to expand...

While I've never used beta blockers for anxiety, I have been on them in the past for HTN and found they definitely affected my ability to focus and made me tired.

I'd be careful to try them before the test to avoid any nasty surprises.

What dates do you dudes think will be released tomorrow?

dozitgetchahi said:

While I've never used beta blockers for anxiety, I have been on them in the past for HTN and found they definitely affected my ability to focus and made me tired.

I'd be careful to try them before the test to avoid any nasty surprises.

Click to expand...

alright. many of its effects may even depend on the dose one takes. i guess 10mg should be fine for 6 hours.

Has anyone tried this before?

Hi everybody, I had my exam 7/25 and still no score till now
Do u think it is not this week? The permit link was there on last Friday but it disappeared on Monday morning . Kindly advise

Jodin99 said:

Hi everybody, I had my exam 7/25 and still no score till now
Do u think it is not this week? The permit link was there on last Friday but it disappeared on Monday morning . Kindly advise

Click to expand...

It may not be online yet. keep checking this morning.

Usually it gets out like 9.15 est, am I right or this timing , I had step 2 before and they all get out by this time

Plz anybody who took exam on 24,36,26 July, kindly inform if score reports are available for you