How to prepare for NBDE I: 91-87 score experiance

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she means Kaplan NBDE Part I Review Book

hi ninety ,
can u please help me sail through Anatomy, which are important and which books to focus on, how much of Kaplan is imp? its really detailed for some parts i feel. feel lost sometimes .
which portions are must do from kaplan ?

also i had this question for you, DA , kaplan gives a chart of occlusal outline and occlusal profile and its texts say something else, it is a reliable source?

would be looking forward to your help and suggestion.

dental matrix, yes i meant Kaplan n otes
truth seeker, for anatomy i only used decks+Netter atlas whic is perfect to visualize while you are reading
i didnt have time to go through kaplan anatomy but i think decks are more than enough, and if you can memorize and repeat as many times, your score will increase incredibly
what is important in anatomy, in addition to memorizing blood/nerve supply or muscles, is visualization
in other words, you should imagine relationship of A structure in relation to B and C structures (sine in test Qs come in different format but asking about the same structres in different angle of view)
e.g. lingual nerve relation to mm and Lingual vessels (test may ask about vessels or nerve in relation to mm, or vice versa)
so if you know where each structure is located wou will ace this section!

Originally Posted by Ninety

i myself didnt do better but ppl usually do
so try again!

hi ninety
Thank you very much for your help ,Really you have heart of gold
I am just start prepare for NBDE1 i feel am bad in biochem. what do recomend me?
i have difficult finding Q exams?
Thank you with all love:lov e:

Originally Posted by Ninety

dental matrix, yes i meant Kaplan n otes
truth seeker, for anatomy i only used decks+Netter atlas whic is perfect to visualize while you are reading
i didnt have time to go through kaplan anatomy but i think decks are more than enough, and if you can memorize and repeat as many times, your score will increase incredibly
what is important in anatomy, in addition to memorizing blood/nerve supply or muscles, is visualization
in other words, you should imagine relationship of A structure in relation to B and C structures (sine in test Qs come in different format but asking about the same structres in different angle of view)
e.g. lingual nerve relation to mm and Lingual vessels (test may ask about vessels or nerve in relation to mm, or vice versa)
so if you know where each structure is located wou will ace this section!

Thanks ninety.
Was reading this post of yours and ur indeed right when u say try to visualise....coz anatomy would remain the same and the trick is in asking the same thing which might be sentenced differently or might be asking Bs relation to A.
I did mess up a few questions like this in my exam as i was hurrying to finish up and things looked so familiar and i would end up ticking the wrong answer only later did i realise they have asked a diffrent relation altogether. So reading the question carefully is also a key to ace anatomy.

Originally Posted by Ninety

dental matrix, yes i meant Kaplan n otes
truth seeker, for anatomy i only used decks+Netter atlas whic is perfect to visualize while you are reading
i didnt have time to go through kaplan anatomy but i think decks are more than enough, and if you can memorize and repeat as many times, your score will increase incredibly
what is important in anatomy, in addition to memorizing blood/nerve supply or muscles, is visualization
in other words, you should imagine relationship of A structure in relation to B and C structures (sine in test Qs come in different format but asking about the same structres in different angle of view)
e.g. lingual nerve relation to mm and Lingual vessels (test may ask about vessels or nerve in relation to mm, or vice versa)
so if you know where each structure is located wou will ace this section!

thanks a lot, hope this will help me, i'm doing 06-07 decks, hope that will suffice ! were there any corrections in that ? i dont find them in the dental decks website though . And dint get the "mm"... ?
so Decks, q's and Netter's should be fine for embryology, histology and ostelogy, including general anatomy ? agreed revision required...... i badly hope i can revise all these stuff ......

pls suggest. I 'll follow whate'er you suggested !

Originally Posted by Ninety

hello maiya,
since this is your 2nd attempt, i would say 1 month delay is never a bad idea

so yes, if you can afford studying in this one more month as you are doing now and there is nothing in your life (college deadline, family issues ..etc), then absolutely go for it

and i would suugest you concentrating on your MISTAKES in asda papers... but how?
by checking each piece of information and refering to your refernce of info (decks, nbde 1st aid, wikipedia ..) so that you dont only know the answere of this Q but the whole section info being tested

why? although only 20-40 Qs repeat in real exam, other Qs are almost repeated in another form, so if you have revised this section then you will definitely answere it

check our last posts of our thread "is there anyone having exam in may/june?" i did a quite good post on exam conditions
and once you pass it dont forget to bring me some colorful candies=)

Dear NINETY
sorry I was lae to thank you.I was preparing for toefl and was busy.I got 86 in nbde part 1.It is all beacuse of our inspiration.It is not a great scorethough for the sco attempt but I am eligibe to apply colleges.Now toefl is eating my head.Life is like that

Cordially thannx a lot
Maiya

Originally Posted by rayman

hi ninety
Thank you very much for your help ,Really you have heart of gold
I am just start prepare for NBDE1 i feel am bad in biochem. what do recomend me?
i have difficult finding Q exams?
Thank you with all love

hello,
you can read 1st aid as an outline then do kaplan review so that you can add any additional info to 1st aid
as the exam become closer, you can review the 1st aid easily with additional info
best of luck

Originally Posted by Truth seeker

thanks a lot, hope this will help me, i'm doing 06-07 decks, hope that will suffice ! were there any corrections in that ? i dont find them in the dental decks website though . And dint get the "mm"... ?
so Decks, q's and Netter's should be fine for embryology, histology and ostelogy, including general anatomy ? agreed revision required...... i badly hope i can revise all these stuff ......

pls suggest. I 'll follow whate'er you suggested !

hello,
i have no idea about Decks correction, but yeah absolutely 1st has much more mistakes, i can hardly find 2-3 mistakes in decks
what you mentioned should be enough but remeber that bone biochem/physio is different and verrry imp. as well, esp. collagen!

Originally Posted by maiya

Dear NINETY
sorry I was lae to thank you.I was preparing for toefl and was busy.I got 86 in nbde part 1.It is all beacuse of our inspiration.It is not a great scorethough for the sco attempt but I am eligibe to apply colleges.Now toefl is eating my head.Life is like that

Cordially thannx a lot
Maiya

congrats on your scor!
i am preparing for toefl too, but dont forget my candies=)

hey this really helps.thanx for it...me just beggining with th prep.really confused wat books to buy n wat not...atleast tat had me an eye over few i know...

Originally Posted by Ninety

hello,
i have no idea about Decks correction, but yeah absolutely 1st has much more mistakes, i can hardly find 2-3 mistakes in decks
what you mentioned should be enough but remeber that bone biochem/physio is different and verrry imp. as well, esp. collagen!

thanks ninety,
wish you good luck for ur future endeavours

Just an UP for this topic. I have it in my bookmarks, but I just can’t find it on the forums anymore. It isn’t on page 1 or page 2.
Normally it should be at Student Doctor Network Forums > Dental Forums [ DDS / DMD ] > Dental > NBDE Exams & Licensure Exams, but there isn’t any topic named How to prepare for NBDE I: 91-87 score experience .

Maybe this will fix the problem.

EDIT > yes, it is visible again.

yeah, i couldnt find it either, and if mods find this thread useful, why not stick it!

hi ninety.
can u tell me few thngs in ece...do we need to do a course by course evalution with general report?thn wat to choose in purpose of evalution-further studies or professional licensure?do we need to get attested the photocopies? pls reply..thanks

or any1 who know can help me...

Originally Posted by Ninety

yeah, i couldnt find it either, and if mods find this thread useful, why not stick it!

What was your class rank Ninety?

dolphine12, it is better to do course by course evaluation since most schools ask for it..
and i think i have choosed further study (since i dont intend to work in US)
DrReo, my rank is not that impressive!

Originally Posted by Ninety

dolphine12, it is better to do course by course evaluation since most schools ask for it..
and i think i have choosed further study (since i dont intend to work in US)
DrReo, my rank is not impressive, almost in middle of the class (about 20 students), although i started with 4th ranking!

thanks a lot ninety......and do we need to attest the photocopies?

i dont think so, but it is better to send originals since in their website they claim that some institutions requires evaluation to be based on original documents

Your thread is the most useful one I have read so far. I hope I will use it well though. Can anyone tell me did u guys use all the six dvd's of acland? Moreover what subject did u you use Harper for? I saw it has a couple of subjects. Even the netter atlas has three kinds of atlas. Can u tell me which one and if someone has them to sell plz let me know.

Hey Ninety , can you please help me out in Physiology and Biochemistry revision, it feels like i never e'er read them, gosh what have i been doing !

A sensible way to revise , or any suggestion would be greatly appreciated !

wonderful thread

Originally Posted by dentist2001

Your thread is the most useful one I have read so far. I hope I will use it well though. Can anyone tell me did u guys use all the six dvd's of acland? Moreover what subject did u you use Harper for? I saw it has a couple of subjects. Even the netter atlas has three kinds of atlas. Can u tell me which one and if someone has them to sell plz let me know.

i didnt use any

Originally Posted by Truth seeker

Hey Ninety , can you please help me out in Physiology and Biochemistry revision, it feels like i never e'er read them, gosh what have i been doing !

A sensible way to revise , or any suggestion would be greatly appreciated !

hey,
for physio, yes it is tough esp. regulation of each mechanism (most important are cardio/resp), i revised it once and then did some questions to know important areas
for bio, if you have the first aid, then review the diagrams that intercorrelate all of the pathways, esp the carbs one and how other pathways (proteins, fat, AA ...etc) interact with it
if you have time, do a table of all pathways and corresponding key enzymes and locations, this will help you a lot the day before exam
wish you all the best =)

Thank you ninety, need the wishes badly !

Also grateful for your tips and meaningful guidance.

hi all, I just receive my result two days ago and it was 94, so anyone has question just contact me

Originally Posted by daiz

hi all, I just receive my result two days ago and it was 94, so anyone has question just contact me

\

Congratulations for ur score..I guess its all the hard work that pays off in the end..
It would be great if u could let us know what all material u studied for the exam and whether u are a foreing trained dentist..Also for how long was ur preparation time for this exam and which material u stressed on more and the others u just referred..

thanx in advance and all the best for u future

hey daiz..
congratulations ,,all best.

Daiz, I saw your previous posts and you said you were going to take exam in June 2009. Did you end up taking it on Feb 2010 ? DUring those time since april 2009, have you studied intensively ? I am pretty nervous now that my exam's aim will be so soon in May.

Your score is awesome, congratulations, Daiz

The discussion of remembered questions appearing on the NBDE is against the nondisclosure agreement you sign before taking the exam. Only officially released questions may be discussed. This is also NOT the place to solicit study material. Any further violations will result in this thread being closed.

Originally Posted by tinman831

The discussion of remembered questions appearing on the NBDE is against the nondisclosure agreement you sign before taking the exam. Only officially released questions may be discussed. This is also NOT the place to solicit study material. Any further violations will result in this thread being closed.

1) i have not mentioned any remembered Qs, and i do not think that discussing the important subjects with other members is illegal or violates the terms

2) again, i have not started this thread to solicit study materials, you should warn members who discuss such issues and not warning to close this thread

3) if you want to close this thread please do, so that we do not need to contribute to this helpful forum anymore

just read posts carefully before judging them

I agree with Ninety. I dont see any violation. How can discussing a topic be illegal?

i think the moderator made a mistake!

Hello people. I want to write the new Canadian format exam in February 2011 (basically it is a sort of US NBDE part I + II all in one) and I am trying to setup the best possible strategy to approach this exam.
First of all I want to decide on the books I need and going through this topic I still don't have a clear picture about the Kaplan notes you keep mentioning.

1. Kaplan has (or had) Review Notes and Lecture Notes. Lecture Notes are still available online, but I can't find anything about the Review Notes
2. Is THIS the Kaplan NBDE Part 1: Review Book that you are referring to? If yes, it seems it is no longer available.
3. HAs the Kaplan Review book been replaced with a different book? What is the alternative to it or where I can find it (I prefer an old school paper format, but an online source would be OK if it is the last resort).

Thank you all.

Originally Posted by Dr CC

Hello people. I want to write the new Canadian format exam in February 2011 (basically it is a sort of US NBDE part I + II all in one) and I am trying to setup the best possible strategy to approach this exam.
First of all I want to decide on the books I need and going through this topic I still don't have a clear picture about the Kaplan notes you keep mentioning.

1. Kaplan has (or had) Review Notes and Lecture Notes. Lecture Notes are still available online, but I can't find anything about the Review Notes
2. Is THIS the Kaplan NBDE Part 1: Review Book that you are referring to? If yes, it seems it is no longer available.
3. HAs the Kaplan Review book been replaced with a different book? What is the alternative to it or where I can find it (I prefer an old school paper format, but an online source would be OK if it is the last resort).

Thank you all.

hello,

yes the kaplan review notes are no longer available online so you should search it on ebay or look for previous exam takers
and it is not the lecture notes

by the way, my friend write this exam while preparing for NBDE I and did pass it

gr8 work
m really lookin sumthin lyk dis informatn only
ok tell me a thin i started with Dentessentials
is it worth to start with this book??

Originally Posted by nbde95

gr8 work
m really lookin sumthin lyk dis informatn only
ok tell me a thin i started with Dentessentials
is it worth to start with this book??

no... it's too dense to "start with" i would start w/ 1st aid, then decks, then dentessentials if you want to. 1st aid is very very basic and thus a good thing to start with for bigger picture concepts. decks has EVERYTHING you need to do well on the exam. however, it's almost impossible to memorize everything on those cards, so that's why many people use other references. i got a 98 raw and only used the dental decks. i think it's the best way to go personally.

Originally Posted by Ninety

hello,

yes the kaplan review notes are no longer available online so you should search it on ebay or look for previous exam takers
and it is not the lecture notes

by the way, my friend write this exam while preparing for NBDE I and did pass it

hello Ninety..u r really sweet and helpful
and this is a really nice thread

Originally Posted by ibeflossin

no... it's too dense to "start with" i would start w/ 1st aid, then decks, then dentessentials if you want to. 1st aid is very very basic and thus a good thing to start with for bigger picture concepts. decks has EVERYTHING you need to do well on the exam. however, it's almost impossible to memorize everything on those cards, so that's why many people use other references. i got a 98 raw and only used the dental decks. i think it's the best way to go personally.

well said

Butterfly, you are welcome

DMD, just forget about these and keep on revising (esp anatomy, pathology, and some dental anatomy)

Originally Posted by daiz

hi all, I just receive my result two days ago and it was 94, so anyone has question just contact me

hey diaz ,can you please send me your email id.my email is ljohns_03@yahoo.com. i want to get help from you.

Originally Posted by ibeflossin

no... it's too dense to "start with" i would start w/ 1st aid, then decks, then dentessentials if you want to. 1st aid is very very basic and thus a good thing to start with for bigger picture concepts. decks has EVERYTHING you need to do well on the exam. however, it's almost impossible to memorize everything on those cards, so that's why many people use other references. i got a 98 raw and only used the dental decks. i think it's the best way to go personally.

hey ibeflossin, did you just use dental decks only.how long was your prep?how many hrs did you study?can you please suggest where you studied dental anatomy and human anatomy from?please reply.

I just did the NDB step 1 and this was not my first attempt. Last time, which was last year, raw score was 233 (out of 400), which gave me 74. I honestly don't think I will answer much more than 233. Does anybody knows if this "scale" has changed since April 2010 last year? I mean for 13 months, are students making better where you need to answer for example 250 questions right to get the passing score of 75?
Last time I received the score report in about 13 days or so.. I hope this has not changed this year
Thank you guys

Hey,

Like a few of the other people posting, I am taking the test soon. (Aprox 20 days)

I am worried because I haven't had much time to study at all. School just got out for us. If you were in this situation with limited study time, where would you focus your efforts.

I am thinking the dental decks, any thoughts?

Also, I have been doing well on answer the questions on the dental decks, but they seem easier than actual test questions, any thoughts on this?

Originally Posted by Ninety

i myself didnt do better but ppl usually do
so try again!

hello ninety..i really appreciate your job..thank u everyone who contributed to make these guidelines..this will surey help every SDN member..but i m giving exam in 2012..can i still use decks 2009 2010 and kaplan review as my study material..i cant give exam sooner..plz help me out my fren..

Thank again for this thread. This is the 4th time I've looked over it.

This is the part II thread of how to prepare for NBDE. Information is taken from recent exam takers. If any would like to contribute, please copy/paste questions with your answers.

1- Are you US trained/Foreign trained ?
lotexigeus: US trained
goldendoc: Foreign trained
kdawg: US
Ninety: foreign trained
cuspofcarabelli: Im in dental school here in the US

2- your composite score:
lotexigeus: 90 (413/500)
goldendoc: 85
kdawg: 83 Comp.; 75/100 Case; 372/500 overall
Ninety: 83
cuspofcarabelli: 80

3- which books or resources you used?
Main resources: .....
Reference ones: .....
lotexigeus:
M: Used dental decks
R: wikipedia and google for unclear subjects
goldendoc:
M:Mosby's Review, Dental Decks 07- 08, ASDA papers
R: wikipedia
kdawg:
M: First Aid, Released exams
R: Mosby, Decks
Ninety:
M: Decks, Mosby, and Tufts review (in order)
R: school notes and Wikipedia of course
cuspofcarabelli:
M: Kaplan Qbanks, dental secret, released board questions
R: Mosby, 1st Aid

4- how much time you spared/spent for NBDE II?
lotexigeus:Studied a month prior to exam date. Studied about 4 hours/day for the first 3 weeks then about 8hrs/day for the last week.

goldendoc: 1 month

kdawg: One week solid study of about 8 hr/day week before exam.

Ninety: 4-5 months (first 3 months was studying irregularly for 2hrs/day, last 2 months 4+ daily) since I am out of school for nearly 3 yrs
cuspofcarabelli: 4-5 hrs Monday- Friday and 10hrs on Saturdays for 2 months

5- method of study:
lotexigeus: Studied dental decks once through. Did 2006 and 2009 released exams and went over questions that were unclear

goldendoc: Went through Decks and Mosby's simultaneously once, doing one subject at a time

kdawg: Cram, cram, cram. Before I began my studies I took one of the released exams to gauge what my strengths/weaknesses were and studied proportionally to that. Found out I was weak in Pharm & Path. Then studied hard using a couple more released exams along the way to monitor progress. Then saved one for the end to see if I was ready. I only used 4 most recently released exams. Seems like getting about 65-70% on those exams translates easily to a passing grade on the real exam. I know I studied properly and balanced because I wasn't too far off (above or below) the national mean in any area.

Ninety: I did decks once for all subjects except pharma and Beh. sciences. I read pharma from Mosby to know general classification of drugs followed by Tufts review. I read Beh. Sciences from Mosby. Then I did some ASDA papers and Kaplan Qs coupled with second reading of areas I was not confident enough about (oral medicine, pharma, prosth, restorative, radiology, beh. sciences)
cuspofcarabelli: started with released boards questions to find my weaknesses ( recent years 1st), used mosby to read on the subjects that are causing me harm lol, then I started on the Q banks ( make sure to read the explanation on all questions included the ones I got right ), dental secret. 3 weeks before my exams I redid 1998 and up released board questions.

6- your comments on:
decks:
lotexigeus: good, I read them slowly and thoroughly
goldendoc: I did only once. very useful for Radiology and OSHA, according to me
kdawg: Not totally necessary, but helpful in your weaker areas. Good for casual study.

Ninety: great source, good to score in 80s (except for pharma since too much and disorganized + I did not use it for beh. sciences so I can not judge this section)
cuspofcarabelli: didnt use them to study for the exam But during my junior year I used endo, ortho/pedo and O.S decks as my study materials for my midterm and final exams.

1st aid:
lotexigeus: didn't touch
goldendoc: n/a
kdawg: Too concise to stand alone. I used it as an outline and wrote notes in it from other sources.
Ninety: rarely used it. Not even an outline (unlike part I where it is a perfect outline that needs little extra readings from other sources)
cuspofcarabelli: used for reference ONLY

mosby:
lotexigeus: didn't touch
goldendoc: very good resource and a must
kdawg: Too detailed. Great resource but overkill
Ninety: only did beh. sciences from it. Classical textbook style. Beh sciences, as in other sources, lacks a lot in insurance information (especially for foreign trained like me who have no background about the system in US). But seems to be a great source especially in Pedo/Ortho it is very organized and informative but I already did them from decks so could not do them again
cuspofcarabelli: I read on the subjects that I'm weak in

Kaplan Q bank:
lotexigeus: didn't touch
goldendoc:
kdawg: n/a
Ninety: great to fully understand and solidify information. I recommend doing it after first reading and before ASDA papers
cuspofcarabelli: used it a lot. I did all the questions

ASDA papers:
lotexigeus: 06 and 09, gives you a rough estimate on what to expect on the real one, these are slightly tougher than the real exam imo
goldendoc: A must : gives you a very good idea of the exam pattern and questions
kdawg: Four most recent are a MUST; anything older seems outdated. You are silly to not use them.
Ninety: 2006 and 2008 are difficult and will break your confidence, 1993 and pilot exam are straightforward
cuspofcarabelli: recent one up to 1980's, it was helpful but no repeats...only couple questions from the 2009

Crack NBDE:
lotexigeus: didn't touch
goldendoc: n/a
kdawg: n/a
Ninety: didn't use it
cuspofcarabelli: didn't use it

Others:
lotexigeus: wikipedia and google. If a subject is unclear to you, do a quick google search and read up on it until you can get a complete understanding on it. Very useful.
goldendoc:
kdawg: Mosby is great but too detailed. If you're looking to just pass I think you need to be comfortable with a volume of information more than what 1st Aid provides, but don't really need as much as Decks or Mosby provide
Ninety: Tufts, enough said! It is a must for pharma. It does not teach pharma details but categorized all previous board questions and teach you how to solve them
cuspofcarabelli:

7- if you had the chance to repeat NBDE II, what would you have done?
lotexigeus: wouldn't have studied as much, but on the flip side I like to play it safe and wanted to guarantee myself a passing score
goldendoc: learn more vigorously.go through decks and mosby's again after I go through the papers. concentrate more on patient management, insurance, osha and prosthodontics.
kdawg: Nothing. I think the reason I passed by just studying for one week is because I continually study dentistry on my own. If you're someone who is always reading journal articles, reading textbooks, and actively learning then the exam is very practical where you can draw on your base knowledge. The cramming is simply to help you remember details that you've forgotten along the way.
Ninety: do more questions
cuspofcarabelli: To be honest, I don't know what I ll do differently..pray more


8- how did you study/spend your time 1wk to 1month before the exam?
lotexigeus: Took it easy the day before the exam, just did a few old questions
goldendoc: Last 2 weeks I was studying frantically because I hadn't studied for almost 10 days in between Went through Mosby's and the ASDA papers
kdawg: see above. Prior to my one week cram session I studied VERY casually. I mean, I would pick up a few Decks cards of one of my classmates and quiz myself now and again. Or just pick up Mosby and start reading a little.
Ninety: review my own notes, review some difficult questions papers. The night before exam I only studied for 2-3 hrs and went out to relax and relieve stress
cuspofcarabelli: I went over the released papers for the 2nd time and focus on reading dental secrets book.

9- any thing more you wish to add?
lotexigeus: If you've made a conscious effort to thoroughly understand how and why you do things in clinic it will make your life easier on this exam. Take your time, read the questions correctly and figure out the most logical answer
goldendoc: Be positive.. Have faith and confidence... Keep praying.. God will not forsake you...
kdawg: For those of us who are just looking for the pass, I think most over-study. At this point the exam should be something you could pass without studying, theoretically, right? Really. I'm middle of the class in ranking and one week got me an 83. I thought the exam was very fair and exactly as I expected it to be. Plenty of gimme's and several WTF's. The key is to not let the WTF's get to you---just move on. And just like Part I, the test wears on you physically and mentally. Of all the standardized exams I've taken over the years, this one has the most practical relevance and was the least stressful to me. DON'T PUSH YOUR ORIGINAL SCHEDULED EXAM DATE BACK!!! Sticking to a date forces you to go for it. I was one of the first in my class to be done because I insisted on getting it over with. You'll be more ready than you feel. Good luck!
Ninety: If you want to pass, decks are enough to pass (better coupled with Mosby for beh sciences and Tufts for pharma).
cuspofcarabelli: The exam was challenging but just believe in yourself and go in with confidence.
Good luck to everyone!

And finally thanks for our contributors,
lotexigeus, goldendoc, kdawg, and cuspofcarabelli, and to our great forum, SDN

Thank you very much . Yours efforts are very much appreciated !!

Iam confused I cannot understant how those people spent 1 or 2 months only !!!! I feel I will need at least 6 months to prep for nbde 2!!!!

Hi NINETY
Thank you very much for all you have done for us
I ma thankful for all contributors &appreciate your time
GOD BLESS ALL OF US