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Hey all, just found out today I passed the initial certification GI Board exam and scored ~55th %ile. Minimum passing score was 324, mean was 464 and I got 480. I made some basic dumb mistakes on the test and second guessed myself a couple times otherwise I am sure I would have done better. I went to a clinically busy, 2nd tier (top 40) GI fellowship program, did very poorly on my ITEs (single digits %ages, so not good at all), so I really wanted to get it right the first time.
I almost exclusively used "Gastroenterology Clinical Focus: High yield GI and hepatology review for Boards and Practice" by Dr. Emad Qayed. This book is a life saver - I can guarantee that if you read this book from cover to cover 3 times, understanding each sentence in it (uptodate anything you dont understand), and practice reading cholangiograms and a few pH impedance studies [not trying to induce panic, just saying that there were 2 on my test] then you are guaranteed to pass the GI Boards initial certification exam! I did only 200 of the Steinberg questions (I did them once lazily at night and didn't review them again), I'm sure I would have done better had I done all of the questions multiple times and probably with the ACG SATs also.
You don't need to do a board review course to pass, you just need to read this book 3 times and look up any concepts you don't understand. This is obviously not sponsored content and I get nothing out of this recommendation aside from helping other people, especially people in a similar position to me (who aren't the best test takers or didn't have the best "boards level" knowledge base leaving fellowship, as is reflected in my low ITE scores), to pass this exam for the first time and be done with it. Good luck to everyone, I hope my advice helps with alleviating some of your concerns about studying and helps you navigate the murky waters of "how should I study for the boards".
I almost exclusively used "Gastroenterology Clinical Focus: High yield GI and hepatology review for Boards and Practice" by Dr. Emad Qayed. This book is a life saver - I can guarantee that if you read this book from cover to cover 3 times, understanding each sentence in it (uptodate anything you dont understand), and practice reading cholangiograms and a few pH impedance studies [not trying to induce panic, just saying that there were 2 on my test] then you are guaranteed to pass the GI Boards initial certification exam! I did only 200 of the Steinberg questions (I did them once lazily at night and didn't review them again), I'm sure I would have done better had I done all of the questions multiple times and probably with the ACG SATs also.
You don't need to do a board review course to pass, you just need to read this book 3 times and look up any concepts you don't understand. This is obviously not sponsored content and I get nothing out of this recommendation aside from helping other people, especially people in a similar position to me (who aren't the best test takers or didn't have the best "boards level" knowledge base leaving fellowship, as is reflected in my low ITE scores), to pass this exam for the first time and be done with it. Good luck to everyone, I hope my advice helps with alleviating some of your concerns about studying and helps you navigate the murky waters of "how should I study for the boards".
