NBDE-2 Score thread and Experience.....

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MitPat

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Hi Guys,
Why don't we start NBDE-2 score thread and the experience associated with the exam. Please feel free to jolt down your total part-2 preperation schedule and books used for the success , and share with everybody.
Thanks.:thumbup:

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hi..
please, canany recent test takers tell me if questions are asked on direct filling gold, onlays and inlay preparations in the test???
thank you..
 
Hi folks, just thought of contributing. I got my result about a week ago, received a score of 352/500, with a composite score of 84%. I did decks, mosby, ADSA papers, and text books for refernces. I've studied about 3 1/2 months full time on this exam with the hopes of acing it, but after the day of the exam, I didnt know what to expect especially for day 2. It wasnt so much that questions where that hard, but some of the choices for a question seemed to sound almost all correct at times. Alloted time for day 2 was just about adequate, but id suggest to know the numbering sytem by heart to save time, to the point with out rechecking. Sounds easy enough, but when teeth are missing, or root fragments are present and drifting occurs, it could be confusing. So got to know that by heart to save time....

On to the next step, I hope this is enough for me to ultimately become licensed here one day.
 
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Got my score for Part II back, above a 95 is all I'll say. I rocked it. 421/500 right. Got 68/100 case questions right (included in the 500).

Studied everyday for 2 months. Here I my thoughts on sources of information.

-Kaplan: terrible
-First Aid: average
-Dental Secrets: terrible
-Mosby's: far and away, the best source
-Decks: Pretty good, should have looked at more than once.
-Random stuff from school: average
-Released exams: only did 1993 and the latest package. They are so boring.

Day 1: terribly random, just go with your gut, maybe 25 repeats from recent released exams. Guess wisely, eliminate obviously wrong questions.

Day 2: horrible, blurry, miserable images, etc. I didn't even finish, I left probably 10 blank (bubbled in B at the last minute). Was really frustrated this day. You can't possibly study for this. Just use your brain to guess smartly.

I seriously thought I did poorly so I was shocked to get my score back. I was expecting a score in the low 80s. Obviously, they curved the heck out of my exam.

Overall thought is that this is a random exam. Better pay attention in dental school/class for the first 2 years because studying is only a review and can't possibly teach you dentistry. You will pull answers from random facts you learned freshman year.

Don't ignore pedo/ortho and behavioral sciences, tons of questions on this stuff. Endo/operative/pros were pretty easy. Perio was tough.

Best of luck. Best advice is to pay attention in school and don't look at this like some exam you can cram for 2 months for and expect to do well on.

-A little luck, a little skill, a little hard work, and some intelligent guessing is what it needs to do well.

-Jack
 
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Congrajulations! that's indeed a Grt score. Well I got my scores too! I thought I did well but ended up with only 81 comp. 361/500 right; 64/100 case based right (included in the 500). I dont understand why I got such a low composite score? :mad:
 
Congrajulations! that's indeed a Grt score. Well I got my scores too! I thought I did well but ended up with only 81 comp. 361/500 right; 64/100 case based right (included in the 500). I dont understand why I got such a low composite score? :mad:

yeah thats weird. on day two i only scored 58/100. but manage to score above average on most of the sections except for resto and O.S.
 
You guys made it, Sorry about other guys who had variability in their percentile, I had the same Q and i did call ADA as to why is this happening as to one candidate with the same score have one percentile and the other one have different one, their answer was "WE CANT TELL THAT TO ANY CANDIDATE." Its just for us. So good luck with the system. Glad guys r make it through with at least passing it. or getting 95% Plus. God bless the ADA an the way they calculate candidate performance.:thumbup:
 
hi ..
pls help me out..i have part 2 in 12 days, and im confused between kaplan qbank and crack the nbde which is better..does crack the nbde give explanations for answers. and cover all subjects , even pharmac?
please reply ..which one simulates the real test better?
thanks
 
can u please tell me which post no. it is???? if you are talking about the technical report, i have seen it.... it does not give any national mean of individual subjects, only the mean of the comprehensive score is there..... please help me out... thanks.
 
hi..
i just got my part 2 scores..i got 77..
i did really badly and got below the national mean in most subjects..
but i did not prepare sincerely for it also..i studied only decks and flipped trough the old papers once..must have studied for 20 days...neglected pharmacology...
in the case based sectio, i got only 56 questions right...
 
Just wonder how does ADA assign a score to the candidate? I heard it depends on the candidates who take exam in a certain period. ADA does not score according to the weight of each question like GRE. So, if you take exam with fewer people in a certain period, the higher chance to pass.
If you take the exam with smart people, the average to pass will be increased. Can anyone input about this? Thanks.
 
Hi! Does anyone know what the trend is with NDBE II now?? Are people passing at a decent rate? Or is the fail rate still pretty high as it was earlier this year?
 
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Hi! Does anyone know what the trend is with NDBE II now?? Are people passing at a decent rate? Or is the fail rate still pretty high as it was earlier this year?

Still high....according to my classmate who just took it 2 weeks ago. upper class said the pass rate will increase in Dec. ......
 
really?? that is not good news.. the reason why i'm asking is because i took this exam earlier once before and did not pass -- but noticed that others who took this exam with the same scores that i had gotten DID PASS.
I wonder how they determine that in December they will ease up on the fail rate?? Why December?
 
really?? that is not good news.. the reason why i'm asking is because i took this exam earlier once before and did not pass -- but noticed that others who took this exam with the same scores that i had gotten DID PASS.
I wonder how they determine that in December they will ease up on the fail rate?? Why December?

Hi twinkle88. There is no rule to calculate. That's what I heard. Maybe your upper classmates are good source to ask. I think it is all experience and rumer....maybe.
 
for those of you who studied the decks, did you notice there was still quite a bit of head and neck anatomy. Is it all fair game for step 2?
 
Hi every one...i am new to this forum..I want to take ndbe II so want some help regarsing study material.:confused:..Are decks and kaplan notes sufficient...I gave partI and got 91 comp.score...:luck:
 
hi everyone,
got my part 2 score 80 :(., my score is 346/400 and 50/100., i feel i have got less compsite score., cd someone help me with this.,:scared:
 
hi...got my scores last week...scored a 79.....had 320/400 and 60/100 on day 2.....was expecting a better score...but i guess thts ok....good luck to all those preparing for the exam.
 
I just got my scores today.... this was my second time taking the exam and I am furious!!! Just as the first time i took the exam, my scores were just soso... but everyone else who got a score similar to mine or even lower passed and I DID NOT!!!

My scores: 347/500 first day
56/100 second day ~ 403/600

I ended up with a 72 and obviously failing....
What do i do to pass this exam??? I only have one try left :(
 
it was 347/400 and 56/100
with a score of 72 = FAIL[/QUOTE]

The comp. score is out of 500.I think that you are adding the case based score to total of your grades(which you shouldn't,because it's already included there).Best of luck for your next time,don't lose hope.:)
 
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oops, mistake on my score post..

it was 347/400 and 56/100
with a score of 72 = FAIL

Sorry to hear about your recent score ! But I genuinely believe that you have to contact the ADA and talk to them logically about it.. as you mention above you final score is 403/500 ... HOW COME THAT IS NOT PASSING SCORE.. your % is 80.6.. and still not enough even to pass !!!.. I am really speechless :confused:

I mean look in this forum and see.. just show and tell. with your socre you should score at least between 75- 80...

This is my 2 cent .... hopefully they can change that for you !:)
 
hi twinkle.....sorry to here abt this injustice....i can imagine ur frustration very well...i had not done well in my first attempt either so wanted to really be done with part 2 this time...why dont u talk to the joint commission ppl and submit ur scores for re-count...hope tht helps....dont worry everything will be ok....
 
I also received my score yesterday and I failed with a comp score of 73. This is the first time taking the test and I did not think I was going to get that low of a score. I noticed that I would of passed if I wrote it in April because a 75 is only getting 295 correct responses out of the 500 based on the information from this thread. I obviously had way more than that and I only had a 73. The national mean for the test I wrote was very very high. The case studies national mean was 76/100 and the national mean overall was 375/500. I guess for a 75 you need to get way more than 300 questions out of 500 correct to pass. This is frustrating because I have to wait another 3 months to write the test. I have a family to support with bills and rent to pay. The ADA definitely need to change these testing policies because it is getting to be ridiculous.
 
Did you think the test was difficult? How much time did you study for? Did you do good in part 1? I am just trying to gauge how things are scored etc
 
Its sad to hear about this failure incident, i know how you all might be feeling about the failed system doing injustice in the students. The reason i called it a failed system coz if you happens to go the the techmical report by ADA and you scroll to the amount of US student and foreign trained student passing rate based on the # of Q's needed to pass varies with huge difference, It is for sure ,for sure foreign trained dentist need to do more then just be perfect to get just 75% in PART-2 NBDE. Even if you score in that range there is no good reason you would pass final decision is taken by ADA member , so there is what i call a glitch in the system. They dont have a perfect system to work it out , they rely on various odds and ratios of epidemiologic punk and since that is not enough final result decision is made by ADA mamber god knows WHO r they. Why cant they make a system just based on # of Q correct out of 500 Q and if a candidate falls in that range is a sucessful/ Failure one.
Does anyone think of raising this issue legally ?????????.
 
can u throw some light on the score pattern of NBDE part 2,,i thought first day was for 400 and second day for 100 i.e case based questions....then how come the total is 600?????


it was 347/400 and 56/100
with a score of 72 = FAIL

The comp. score is out of 500.I think that you are adding the case based score to total of your grades(which you shouldn't,because it's already included there).Best of luck for your next time,don't lose hope.:)[/quote]
 
can u throw some light on the score pattern of NBDE part 2,,i thought first day was for 400 and second day for 100 i.e case based questions....then how come the total is 600?????




The comp. score is out of 500.I think that you are adding the case based score to total of your grades(which you shouldn't,because it's already included there).Best of luck for your next time,don't lose hope.:)
[/QUOTE]

Hey
That is exactly what I'm saying ,it's out of 500 not 600.
 
it was 347/400 and 56/100
with a score of 72 = FAIL

The comp. score is out of 500.I think that you are adding the case based score to total of your grades(which you shouldn't,because it's already included there).Best of luck for your next time,don't lose hope.:)[/QUOTE]
hey momani,
yes you're right... it should be 347/500 with a score of 72%. Thanks for pointing that out!

BUT, it's still not fair :-/ I was looking at some of the past scores on this thread and i just noticed someone got an 84% with 352/500 ( which is only 5 points more than me)... i think i'll call the ADA anyway and see what they have to say about these scores being so inconsistent. I'll let everyone know what i find out!
 
Let me know also. I had a score of 361/500 for a comp score of only 73%. The scoring system is getting to be totally ridiculous. Do they expect us to get a 450/500 on this test to pass now? This is outrageous....
 
Hi! has anyone taken the exam lately - in October or in November? I would love to hear their feedback as it is closer to the upcoming exams..
Was there an unusual high number of one subject over the other? did you get a lot of repeats?

It would be great if you also got your results and post it so we can see how they are grading now

thanks in advance
 
I just took the test yesterday and today. I thought it was long, grueling, and pretty hard. There is a very wide breadth of knowledge required.

I studied and practiced 3-4 hours a day for the past six weeks. I covered 2/3 of the Dental Decks, 1/2 of the First Aid book, and 1/3 of the Mosby book. I also learned not crammed during my many dental classes. However, I'm not sure that these were enough, but who knows. I guess I will find out in 2 weeks.

Then again maybe not. Part of the testing software crashed at the end (after I pushed "End" but before the survey popped up). The testing center people said it was no problem, but then they were unable to print my letter confirming that I had taken the test. They told me to call the ADA in 24-48 hours to check if my responses were uploaded to the ADA. So if they didn't get my responses, I guess I have to retake it :smuggrin:

I won't comment on the content of the exam; so please don't ask.
 
The discussion of remembered or unreleased exam questions is STRICTLY prohibited by the ADA as well as SDN. Any discussion will be subject to disciplinary actions by both parties and my result in voiding of your scores. The ADA takes this very seriously folks.

Also any requests for remembered questions or any other illegally copyrighted materials will be deleted.
 
Hi Guys,
I was wondering how ADA and Dental school would count NBDE - 1 and 2 result for the candidate who will pass just couple of month before 2010 JAN. I guess it should be PASS/FAIL as well as it would be not fair to either candidate i guess. Please share your view. Thanks a lot.:thumbup:
 
Scores will be reported right up until the date that it becomes pass/fail. If you are taking it that year and you want to get into a specialty, it would probably be best to take it before it becomes pass/fail.
 
Foreign trainned dentist and Part 2

As far as I can think, there should be very few dental students taking part 2 in Oct. or Nov. Most of the examees in Oct. and Nov. are foreign dentists. It also can explain why the passing score is getting higher and higher in these 2 months.

Someone with 342/500 can pass with 84% in July. However, someone with 402/500 fails with 72% in Nov. Does it mean examee of Oct. and Nov. raise the score up?
 
hy
im taking part 2 next month can anyone tell me about day 2 and what to expect in the cases is there any review book to get prepaed for the cases.
 
Foreign trainned dentist and Part 2

As far as I can think, there should be very few dental students taking part 2 in Oct. or Nov. Most of the examees in Oct. and Nov. are foreign dentists. It also can explain why the passing score is getting higher and higher in these 2 months.

Someone with 342/500 can pass with 84% in July. However, someone with 402/500 fails with 72% in Nov. Does it mean examee of Oct. and Nov. raise the score up?

The exam is "criterion" referenced not "peer" referenced. Your score is curved based on performance on "anchor items" which are consistently used on tests over long periods of time. Your score does not depend on the mean abilities of the cohort with whom you take the test.
 
75% ~ 285 to 290 out of 500
That is not possible , i just got my results (74) with 289/500 ;without counting the cases (339/600)............ I don't really know how they do it.
if someone can give me the best explanation , i would appreciate it. i study really hard from released exams and latest dental decks . Besides that I was shock because I thought I was gonna pass it.

Thanks in advance if you wanna make any comments about it.
 
How many correct answers you got without counting the cases ? I got 289/500 , and with cases i got 339/600. And I got also 74 .
 
Hi, i am a noncredited dental student and try to join some PASS programe. I just had my part I test, can any one tell me it is really important to have to take pat II exam? I find some dental school required both but some just part I (like Upen), how much is the suggested score for both Part I and Part II for the PASS program.

Thanks
 
I got my scores back today. I passed and did pretty well. I guess the data was sent to the ADA despite the computer error that occurred at the end of my test.

There is some information in the score report that many of you might find helpful.

The attached file shows the average raw score in each category. The average overall raw score was 69. Also according to the back of the score report, the ~50 percentile of the "reference group" is an 81 scaled score. So an average curve for an average candidate is apparently about 12 points. According to my score this estimate is accurate. I had a curve of 11 points.

Hopefully this information will help people make sense of their scores on practice tests.
 

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I got my scores back today. I passed and did pretty well. I guess the data was sent to the ADA despite the computer error that occurred at the end of my test.

There is some information in the score report that many of you might find helpful.

The attached file shows the average raw score in each category. The average overall raw score was 69. Also according to the back of the score report, the ~50 percentile of the "reference group" is an 81 scaled score. So an average curve for an average candidate is apparently about 12 points. According to my score this estimate is accurate. I had a curve of 11 points.

Hopefully this information will help people make sense of their scores on practice tests.


Hey this was good info, I would recommend all candidate to post this kind of thumdnail of their results it would be great. Thanks.:thumbup:
 
I got my scores back today. I passed and did pretty well. I guess the data was sent to the ADA despite the computer error that occurred at the end of my test.

There is some information in the score report that many of you might find helpful.

The attached file shows the average raw score in each category. The average overall raw score was 69. Also according to the back of the score report, the ~50 percentile of the "reference group" is an 81 scaled score. So an average curve for an average candidate is apparently about 12 points. According to my score this estimate is accurate. I had a curve of 11 points.

Hopefully this information will help people make sense of their scores on practice tests.
hi oujay,

when you say "points" are you referring to raw# points?? or percentage points? I'm still kind of confused as to how things are scored... so according to that attachment, the average was 346/500 (raw score), which gives 69% So does one add 11-12 percentage points to 69 and that is the standardized score? someone please help..
 
15 which of the following is seen MOST frequently among temporomandibular-joint dysfunction patient
a. depression
b. psychosis
c. sociopathy
d. schizotypical behavior
e. passive-aggressive behavior


can some one answer this plz

i am thinking either a or b

dentists usually send their cemento-metal restoration cases to dental lab for fabrication. upon receiving
the cases, these technicians MOST frequently complain that the

a. margines have been ill-defined
b. teeth have been insufficiently reduced
c. shades for the restorations have been inadequately described
d. impressions or models are inaccurate

i am thinking d or b

plz help
 
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hi answer for 1---a
2---b


15 which of the following is seen MOST frequently among temporomandibular-joint dysfunction patient
a. depression
b. psychosis
c. sociopathy
d. schizotypical behavior
e. passive-aggressive behavior


can some one answer this plz

i am thinking either a or b

dentists usually send their cemento-metal restoration cases to dental lab for fabrication. upon receiving
the cases, these technicians MOST frequently complain that the

a. margines have been ill-defined
b. teeth have been insufficiently reduced
c. shades for the restorations have been inadequately described
d. impressions or models are inaccurate

i am thinking d or b

plz help
 
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