Step 2 CK required for interviews?

[twilightwood]

Are more schools, not just the Cali ones, requiring step 2 for interviews? Also, how important is step 2 for interviews and match? I got a step 1 of 246 and was wondering if I should take step 2 soon.

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[doc MD]

Are more schools, not just the Cali ones, requiring step 2 for interviews? Also, how important is step 2 for interviews and match? I got a step 1 of 246 and was wondering if I should take step 2 soon.

yes, more and more programs are requiring step2 to at least rank you. However, for interviews it may not necessarily be required, but preference is given to those that have it. How else are you going to separate thousands of applicants?

source: programs website and correspondence emails when I applied

 

[twilightwood]

Thanks! This is helpful.

 

[OCPreMed]

246 is not that strong to consider it from exonerating you from step 2.

 

[dermathalon]

246 is not that strong to consider it from exonerating you from step 2.

Actually it is, unless Step 2 is required for rank lists.

 

[drdan766]

Agreed. Almost no one i talked to on the interview trail had taken step 2 last year. I did b/c my school insisted but it was NEVER discussed. My step 1 was discussed . . . .

Unless you have score less than 240, i would talk to more people before taking step 2 pre-interviews. This is b/c no score can really help you, but it can hurt.

My 2cents

 

[twilightwood]

my score is so close to a 240 so it does make me nervous.

 

[Balderdash]

Nrmp program directors survey from 2010 found on their website that roughly 70 percent of the derm program directors had step 2 ck as required when considering an applicant for an interview. You can check charting the match website for the PDF or figure which schools make up the 30 percent and apply to them

 

[drdan766]

I was told the same thing by MANY administrators. Then I went on interviews and 75% of people said they hadn't taken step 2 and I felt stupid for having taken it. I guess they all could have lied . . . . .

Can someone else weigh in, and tell what their interview experience was like this past year? I only have personal anecdotal evidence. Not the best, but it's all I got.

 

[username456789]

I went on 16 interviews and the subject of Step 2CK was brought up exactly once, at my very last interview (in early mid-February). And even then it was just "so, did you take Step 2?" and I said "yup, my score was ____" and the response was "oh good, seems like everyone today has gone up from Step 1, that's nice to see." And I had only gotten my score back a few days prior (I took Step 2 in late December).

Most other people I talked to had not taken Step 2 at the time of interview season (and the ones who had seemed to indicate that they had done so to make up for a less than stellar Step 1). My goal in taking it in December was to be able to have the score back prior to rank lists being due, but opting to not automatically release it right away to programs (so that if it came back as a poor score, I could choose to delay it until after ranklists were in, and if it came back high, I could release it before schools ranked applicants). Sure, some programs probably ranked us right after the last interview and never looked back, but it was a chance I was more than willing to take.

Even one of the programs that explicitly stated on their website that one must have taken Step 2 prior to November 1 in order to be considered for an interview offered me an interview (I think the offer came mid-November) before I had ever taken the test. So even for them it was not a hard and fast rule.

Whoever said that 70% of program directors surveyed said they require it should go back and look at the sample size in those surveys. If I recall correctly, something like 25% (at most) of all program directors were represented in that survey, so the numbers are not quite so impressive.

So, maybe I just lucked out and the 16 places that offered me interviews were some of the only programs that didn't require Step 2 before offering interviews, but judging by what I saw on the interview trail, I agree with drdan that more often than not it seemed as though people had put the test off.

 

[dermpen]

.

 

[drdan766]

That is the question. Everyone i talk to always speaks about their score going up. You would have to hope above a 245 on any step would be adequate, but you never know. That is why i recommend waiting to take Step 2 if you did well on step 1. All you can do is hurt yourself.

I know very few programs that weed out candidates for interviews at a score below 250, but it happens. Just try to put your best foot forward and hope for the best. Try not to give them an excuse to question your credentials.

 

[Balderdash]

The program directors survery had an n of 54, just about half of all programs. Though anecdotal evidence may contradict its findings, this is the only objective evidence available.

For the most part, step 2 does not matter once you get the interview. Programs just want to be sure you aren't an insufferable human being on interviews. Think for a moment from the program's perspective. There will be roughly 400 applicants vying for an average of 3 spots. The only way to make this manageable is to add in criteria like screening for step 2 completion.

I don't mean to imply that all schools do it; I don't mean to imply that when schools do, they give it a great deal of weight. What I do mean to say is that in the event that your All-Star candidate application with great step 1, great grades, solid research etc. goes up against State U's All-Star application with great step 1, great grades, solid research, and a completed step 2 that is roughly equal to the step 1 score, the State U candidate would probably feel a little bit better in this situation of all else being equal.

Considering this, as well as the objective data from NRMP with an n of 54, the prudent decision would be to complete Step 2 early. The cost? 4 weeks of missing drinking with your friends, watching football, etc. The cost of the alternative? Spending about 500 dollars applying to schools that will throw your application out when they see you don't have step 2 done and not having the peace of mind that your application is as complete as it can be.

Step 2 is not hard. The entire 3rd year is geared towards Step 2. You studied pre-test, case files, etc which is all board fodder. Buckle down and do it early... that's my 2 cents

 

[drdan766]

Actually, the worst you could do is score over 10 points lower than your stellar Step 1. Then they may doubt your score when all you had to do was wait until after your interview. It is a lot of pressure to do better on Step 2 if you did well on Step 1.

 

[tdog2983]

I was questioning this same issue around this time last year. Step 1 250. I had no intention to take step 2 until I saw the PD survey. Like drdan I ultimately decided the cost of having a bad day and doing worse would have done much more harm than an equal or better step 2 would have helped.. I received 7 interviews. I got Step 2 score back in mid December, 265. Emailed a couple of programs with the updates but no more interviews offered. Everything ended up working out match wise. Looking back, I would have done things the exact same way if applying again this year. While almost no one does worse on step 2, it can happen, and it could stain the grades, research, and hardwork that you have put in up to the point of application. In my opinion, assuming a candidate is AOA, solid grades/research, LORs, then I would probably use 240 for my cut off for taking Step 2 early.

 

[dermathalon]

I do not recommend taking step 2 early if you had a great step 1. Case by case basis depending on the schools that you are applying to but step 1 is king everywhere. To be balanced, yes, you should look at each individual school and see what their requirements really are. Read it well too and you can call the program coordinator to get his/her take on how they use step 2. Schools in Cali do not all look for step 2 and many screen just on step 1 and don't care about step 2.

If you have a bad day and your step 2 is worse than step 1, you run a risk of taking a good looking application and making it look like you have become a lazy med student or someone that can't do well on a more clinically directed exam. I think 4 weeks directed toward further publications is better served for derm application than in studying for step 2 if you don't need to take it. I took it right before interviews and it was just fine as the score was not a concern yet they knew that I had taken the exam.

There's no wrong answer here but I'm of the opinion that you are better served doing something else for your derm applications rather than spending time with step 2. Again, if you are concerned, look at the programs particular wording and call to clarify.

If your step 1 score was low, then that's a whole another ball of wax....

 

[N-Surge]

Smelling of "What are my chances?". Seems the question has been answered (thx to doc MD)... If you have personal scores to post, compare, be concerned about then please use the "What are my chances" sticky. Thanks!