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Does anyone know when the in service is?
Does anyone know when the in service is?
what is usually asked , basic knowledge usmle type questions or more detailed questions ? what resources are recommended to prepare for the exam ?
T
Ideally by the time you are a 3rd year resident you need to be close to getting a passing score (~ 410). I'm preparing for the real boards right now and let me just give a word of warning to the new peds interns -- the ABP is testing for crap that you almost never see in the daily practice of pediatrics. You could practice pediatrics for 20 years as an attending and still easily fail the exam because the test covers a lot of rare stuff that general pediatricians dont see often. Just because you go to a residency program that promises that you'll see "every kind of patient imaginable" that by itself wont be enough to pass the boards.
That is strange, how the ABP is structured that way. Thanks for the heads up, that probably explains why the board pass rate is only around 70% for general peds.
how is it scored? each carries 4 marks? or is it different?
It's part of the equation, however, the pass rate is determined by the ABP and they've been the one's who have decided what % of people will pass. In other words, it's not a function of people failing to meet a minimum standard, but rather that the ABP says there's going to be a set number of people who will fail. Even if everyone got >95% of the questions right on the exam, there would be those who fail.
I've heard lots of people say that (my wife included). But what I haven't seen is ABP or anyone else showing documentation that they only let so many people get through the gate each year. Especially since that, in and of itself, is pretty much evidence that there is no reason for taking the test.
Look at it this way. You say yourself that if everyone gets >95% right that a certain percent would fail because there is some %ile cutoff. Then, the next year, if the average score is lower, someone with a worse score is board certified, when someone the year before wouldn't be. And I can't believe that for a second. This is why so many other boards (ABR, ABS, etc) have come out against the recalls. Because the cutoff for pass vs not pass is so narrow, that they can't change the questions very often, or at all. Every board has a problem with not applicable material on the exam, so it's not like peds is worse than all the other specialties. But I never have heard the IM, FM, or any other specialty say that there has to be an absolute number to fail like I hear the peds guys say.
If anyone has proof other than anecdote, then I'll concede that maybe you guys are different. But until then, I'm not buying it.
I do buy the "more people fail peds boards than other boards", but I can't pin that on an absolute pass rate. I would argue that the test itself is probably poorly written enough that more normal people fail it, that's all.
Once this standard is determined, pass/fail decisions will be based on a candidate's demonstrated mastery of content and whether or not they have met the defined standard. Pass/fail decisions will not be based on how an candidate's performance compares to that of other test-takers. As a result, it will be possible for all candidates to pass the examination if they have met the defined standard.
Anesthesiologists talk about the ABA written having a definitive number failing; I don't recall if it is a percentage or a variation on an SD interval. However, here on SDN, they've discussed it.
when do the results come back from the inservice?
when do the results come back from the inservice?