BOTH Class of 2018 Board Study Group

[gobigorgohome22]

Hey fellow Class of 2018ers!

I hope everyone is enjoying the last free summer of your lives!

As the start of 2nd yr gets closer, I have started thinking a little about the infamous STEP 1 exams for USMLE and COMLEX (I'm an Osteopathic student). I thought it might be a good idea to have kind of a study group here to help keep me in check and keep each other in check as studying starts and decided to create this.

I would like to open this up to both USMLE and COMLEX discussion.

So, how's everyone spending their summer? Started thinking any about the hell that is going to be coming up over the next year?

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[zhopv10]

Are you using headphones?

Yup, I tried without just to see too...that didn't work haha. What's annoying too is generally I'm really not that bad with murmurs, like on other sites I hear it fine, in class when our tests had them it was fine, heck I've even picked em up in pts ok but man on uworld my brain just exploded on those questions hahaha


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[Blue Flame]

Half the time the UWorld murmur audio file won't even load for me. Still, I've gotten those questions right mostly from the history alone so far. You don't necessarily need to hear an S4 to guess that a 65-year-old man with longstanding HTN, DMII, and a murmur in the apex of his heart will have LVH, for example.

 

[Entadus]

What drives me crazy is it doesn't let me easily replay the audio file. I have to close it and open again. Ugh

 

[TheShaker]

What drives me crazy is it doesn't let me easily replay the audio file. I have to close it and open again. Ugh

I just wish it would loop. If we have the technology to let me loop my Taylor Swift songs then why can't I loop my murmurs?

 

[Entadus]

Doing UWSA 2 today! Will report back in ~4-5 hours!

 

[Entadus]

Doing UWSA 2 today! Will report back in ~4-5 hours!

242 ..... slightly disappointing but I still have 3 weeks till the real thing.... I will take an NBME next week and hopefully that will be higher!
Also, it was interesting that this one was 4 blocks of 40 questions, not 44 like UWSA1 that I took last week...

Lots to review, my raw % scores seem pretty good for UWorld: (85, 93!, 73, 78), overall 82%. So the curve seems harsher since that's a little better than last time....

Maybe I got tired at the end?

 

[Postictal Raiden]

242 ..... slightly disappointing but I still have 3 weeks till the real thing.... I will take an NBME next week and hopefully that will be higher!
Also, it was interesting that this one was 4 blocks of 40 questions, not 44 like UWSA1 that I took last week...

Lots to review, my raw % scores seem pretty good for UWorld: (85, 93!, 73, 78), overall 82%. So the curve seems harsher since that's a little better than last time....

Maybe I got tired at the end?

Strange, I took the test just last week and scored 244 with an overall 78% correct. Seems like they have adjusted their scale recently.

 

[TheShaker]

Make my life decisions for me SDN. I have two more practice exams to take. Should I do NBME 17 or 18 first? I'm just worried about the people saying that NBME 18 killed their confidence going in.

 

[Amba]

Make my life decisions for me SDN. I have two more practice exams to take. Should I do NBME 17 or 18 first? I'm just worried about the people saying that NBME 18 killed their confidence going in.

FWIW I think I'm gonna do 18 before 17 for that very reason.

 

[TwinsFan]

242 ..... slightly disappointing but I still have 3 weeks till the real thing.... I will take an NBME next week and hopefully that will be higher!
Also, it was interesting that this one was 4 blocks of 40 questions, not 44 like UWSA1 that I took last week...

Lots to review, my raw % scores seem pretty good for UWorld: (85, 93!, 73, 78), overall 82%. So the curve seems harsher since that's a little better than last time....

Maybe I got tired at the end?

80%+ in uworld should be way more than low 240s unless the self assessment is stacked with easy Qs. Something seems off...

 

[Postictal Raiden]

Are these UWSAs the same for everyone? or are they different combination of qs?

 

[TheShaker]

80%+ in uworld should be way more than low 240s unless the self assessment is stacked with easy Qs. Something seems off...

I don't think it really relates to UW Qbank percentage though. I found the UWSA 1 to be easier than UW (not that I think it was easy, just easier).

 

[gobigorgohome22]

Make my life decisions for me SDN. I have two more practice exams to take. Should I do NBME 17 or 18 first? I'm just worried about the people saying that NBME 18 killed their confidence going in.

FWIW I think I'm gonna do 18 before 17 for that very reason.

Same. Also planning on doing 18 before 17. Dont need low score right before the exam.

 

[Derivations]

UWorld is so demoralizing. Yesterday I thought I bombed a block...85%. Today I thought I destroyed a block...55%.

 

[TheShaker]

UWorld is so demoralizing. Yesterday I thought I bombed a block...85%. Today I thought I destroyed a block...55%.

Pretty much just happened to me. Sigh.

 

[TheShaker]

So...only 59% of UW users know the rules of not dating patients...

 

[Derivations]

So...only 59% of UW users know the rules of not dating patients...

Only UWorld could make up a question convoluted enough for that to be possible

 

[StraightOuttaBrooklyn]

Missed a UW question on abusive head trauma - thought it was neonatal K deficiency.

Two days later: missed a neonatal K deficiency question, thought it was abusive head trauma.

Moral of the story: if your patient is a newborn immigrant with a massive anterior fontanelle - its K deficiency. #merica

 

[cyberchicken001]

About the UWSAs - I definitely think that they updated their scaling system, perhaps they got word that they massively overpredicted in the past? Not sure... And I do think they are the same exam for everyone.
Also, the percent of people who got the question right seems to be abnormally high compared to the regular uworld questions. I'm not sure if this is because the questions are easier, or because people tend to take the UWSAs when they are already somewhat prepared, as opposed to the qbank where people might be just starting out. I tend to think it's the former because as I was taking it, it did not seem all that much easier than the regular qbank...

 

[lunchbox2]

ok just took NBME 15 and got a 217 and I'm 17 days out from step 1. feeling upset UWSA2 a week ago was 234

 

[ortnakas]

So...only 59% of UW users know the rules of not dating patients...

I think I had the same question yesterday!

 

[W19]

ok just took NBME 15 and got a 217 and I'm 17 days out from step 1. feeling upset UWSA2 a week ago was 234

It's probably a fluke... Take another NBME in a week and see how you do.

 

[Amba]

Just took NBME 18 and got rocked. Holy s***. Dropped to a 251. That was ridiculously difficult.

 

[Entadus]

Just took NBME 18 and got rocked. Holy s***. Dropped to a 251. That was ridiculously difficult.

hopefully it points out some particular areas you can work on before test day! Let us know your impression and analysis once you've had time to rest/digest!

 

[TheShaker]

Interesting, nobody posted a love/hate comment about UW today.

Guys, UW was mean to me and I didn't like it.

 

[TheShaker]

Just took NBME 18 and got rocked. Holy s***. Dropped to a 251. That was ridiculously difficult.

Your other NBME's were in the mid 250's right? I noticed a lot of people dropped 5 or so points on NBME 18, not sure if it's predictive though (I hope not). At least this didn't happen the week before the real thing.

 

[Amba]

Your other NBME's were in the mid 250's right? I noticed a lot of people dropped 5 or so points on NBME 18, not sure if it's predictive though (I hope not). At least this didn't happen the week before the real thing.

Eh 262 on NBME 15 and 256 on NBME 16 (while sick and having a bad day). Just sucks to drop almost 10 points from my recent average and be trending downward like this. Definitely recommend doing 18 as not your last exam. Glad I still have 17 left and hopefully I can turn it around

 

[aspiringmd1015]

whats the deal with nbme 18, why is it so effed? lol

 

[Postictal Raiden]

Interesting, nobody posted a love/hate comment about UW today.

Guys, UW was mean to me and I didn't like it.

I'm done with my first pass of UW. Right now, I'm scoring 10-15% higher on the blocks than I did before, so i got nothing to complain about. When I was doing my first pass, however, I'd score something as high as 82% then I'd get something like 60% on the following block. Many times, I was on the verge of tossing my laptop inside the dishwasher. So, just keep at it and use as a learning tool. It's a GREAT source.

 

[CyberMaxx]

I'm done with my first pass of UW. Right now, I'm scoring 10-15% higher on the blocks than I did before, so i got nothing to complain about. When I was doing my first pass, however, I'd score something as high as 82% then I'd get something like 60% on the following block. Many times, I was on the verge of tossing my laptop inside the dishwasher. So, just keep at it and use as a learning tool. It's a GREAT source.

Dedicated study period, or as I like to call it "That month and a half I sat alone in a room and cursed at my computer."

edit: lol, 1,000th post

 

[MackandBlues]

I may have given my phone or computer the finger while using uworld


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[Amba]

hopefully it points out some particular areas you can work on before test day! Let us know your impression and analysis once you've had time to rest/digest!

Thanks man, had time to go through it this afternoon. Definitely a tough exam that (imo) resembled UWorld a lot more than previous NBMEs. I felt like 50% of the questions on previous NBMEs were 1-2 sentence gimme questions, but on NBME 18 it was maybe 1/10. Much longer question stems and upper level thinking required, even on the shorter prompts. I also seemed to encounter a fair amount of questions with things I had never heard of (or had only heard of transiently). Maybe 50% of my incorrect answers were things that I really felt I should have known; the other 50% I don't blame myself for getting wrong, but still wish I had taken a better educated guess . All of this being said, it's definitely the toughest NBME but worth taking for the experience since actual Step is apparently similar.

 

[StraightOuttaBrooklyn]

Thanks man, had time to go through it this afternoon. Definitely a tough exam that (imo) resembled UWorld a lot more than previous NBMEs. I felt like 50% of the questions on previous NBMEs were 1-2 sentence gimme questions, but on NBME 18 it was maybe 1/10. Much longer question stems and upper level thinking required, even on the shorter prompts. I also seemed to encounter a fair amount of questions with things I had never heard of (or had only heard of transiently). Maybe 50% of my incorrect answers were things that I really felt I should have known; the other 50% I don't blame myself for getting wrong, but still wish I had taken a better educated guess . All of this being said, it's definitely the toughest NBME but worth taking for the experience since actual Step is apparently similar.

Fantastic.

 

[Amba]

Fantastic.

Thanks brah

 

[CyberMaxx]

That feeling when only 1% of respondents chose the answer you picked in UWorld...

 

[Entadus]

That feeling when only 1% of respondents chose the answer you picked in UWorld...

It means we're special

Speaking of UWorld..... looks like today's forecast is UWorld....

 

[StraightOuttaBrooklyn]

Is it me or do half of the UWorld poisonings/exposure questions (CO, Arsenic, Mercury, etc) seem to have a patient with some kind of psychiatric history and depression purposefully meant to throw you to consider suicidal attempt instead of incidental exposure?

 

[Amba]

That feeling when only 1% of respondents chose the answer you picked in UWorld...

Haha my roommate sent me a snapchat yesterday of an ethics question where he was in the 0%. I was impressed.

 

[apr27]

Woot. 198 NBME 12 (9 weeks) --> 228 NBME 15 (5 weeks). Hope I can make more gains. Wish me luck. Aiming for that 240/250+

 

[W19]

I will most likely finish Rx at the end of this week and then take NBME13--hoping to at least pass it (192+). After that, I will concentrate mostly on Uworld and do a second pass of FA.

In trouble...

NBME13.... 188

I have about 7 weeks left to increase that score to 225+... I am not even sure if that is even realistic.... I am basically fvcked right now!


I have not touched Uworld so far and I am 75% done with Rx... Averaging ~64%!

This is after doing 10 days of dedicated time (10hrs/day)! I am going to have to do 14+ hours/day if I'm gonna to pass that beast...let alone get a 225+

 

[Entadus]

In trouble...

NBME13.... 188

I have about 7 weeks left to increase that score to 225+... I am not even sure if that is even realistic.... I am basically fvcked right now!


I have not touched Uworld so far and I am 75% done with Rx... Averaging ~64%!

This is after doing 10 days of dedicated time 10hrs/day! I am goon have to 14+ hours/day if I need to pass that beat...let alone get a 225+

You should switch to UWorld and take another NBME in ~2 weeks to re-assess. Sorry it didn't go your way!! What were your weak points? (By subject? Time issues?)

 

[Derivations]

In trouble...

NBME13.... 188

I have about 7 weeks left to increase that score to 225+... I am not even sure if that is even realistic.... I am basically fvcked right now!


I have not touched Uworld so far and I am 75% done with Rx... Averaging ~64%!

This is after doing 10 days of dedicated time (10hrs/day)! I am going to have to do 14+ hours/day if I'm gonna to pass that beast...let alone get a 225+

Start UWorld NOW. The explanations are like twice as long and much more useful than in Rx but also painfully difficult to get through. If you wait any longer you'll be forced to rush through it. Good luck man we're all in this struggle together, you still have 7 weeks that's a lot of time to get your score up just don't let up.

 

[W19]

You should switch to UWorld and take another NBME in ~2 weeks to re-assess. Sorry it didn't go your way!! What were your weak points? (By subject? Time issues?)

Physiology (mostly cardio and respi)... Anatomy/Embryology.... Behavioral science... Pathology.

 

[Entadus]

Physiology (mostly cardio and respi)... Anatomy/Embryology.... Behavioral science... Pathology.

UWorld has very hard Cardio physiology.... it is a great learning tool and would probably be your best use of time! Don't panic yet, 7 weeks could be enough to bring you up!

 

[W19]

Do you guys think I can gain 30+ points in 7 weeks?

 

[Entadus]

Do you guys think I can gain 30+ points in 7 weeks?

4-5 points per week would be an improvement of 28-35 points.... so yes I do think it's possible

 

[W19]

You should switch to UWorld and take another NBME in ~2 weeks to re-assess. Sorry it didn't go your way!! What were your weak points? (By subject? Time issues?)

Will do that!

 

[W19]

Will take the rest of the day off... It's been a crazy day!

 

[KP2AZ]

In trouble...

NBME13.... 188

I have about 7 weeks left to increase that score to 225+... I am not even sure if that is even realistic.... I am basically fvcked right now!


I have not touched Uworld so far and I am 75% done with Rx... Averaging ~64%!

This is after doing 10 days of dedicated time (10hrs/day)! I am going to have to do 14+ hours/day if I'm gonna to pass that beast...let alone get a 225+

You can do a lot in 7 weeks! Never really used RX, but if it's like UW, that's pretty darn good. Keep your head up and just grind my friend.
I've got 5 weeks left, so just subjecting myself to as much UW as possible. It's like subjecting myself to torture on purpose

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[Postictal Raiden]

In trouble...

NBME13.... 188

I have about 7 weeks left to increase that score to 225+... I am not even sure if that is even realistic.... I am basically fvcked right now!


I have not touched Uworld so far and I am 75% done with Rx... Averaging ~64%!

This is after doing 10 days of dedicated time (10hrs/day)! I am going to have to do 14+ hours/day if I'm gonna to pass that beast...let alone get a 225+

UWorld STAT!

You still have a lot of time left to improve. You need to use the right material though. UWorld mainly plus FA (or Rx) plus Pathoma. Also keep doing an NBME once a week till your test day.