Official 2009 USMLE Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread

sebsvenmdc said:

Dude, don't even waste your energy replying to Bonenibbler's comments.

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calespine said:

Is everyone who is taking the test this month regardless of Fred V1 vs. V2, going to get scores back on July 15?

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quietude said:

I can't stress how you really need to understand the balance and activation of humoral and cellular immunity.

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Could you explain more what you mean by this? What resource covers this balance? Just FA stuff?

Bonenibbler's such a douche he cracks me up. I think I have a problem.

I took Step 1 Saturday. Overall I think (and hope) it went pretty well but I can't help somewhat obsessing over 5-7 questions that I've realized I got wrong. Three of them were just stupid mistakes and I guess a couple of others I just didn't know the answer. I think I've forgotten the questions I probably got right and the wrong questions just stand out to me.

On the first block I had to rush but on most of the others I had a lot of extra time.

I took the exam in Paris although I'm in medical school in the US. I spent the last month studying in Paris and took the exam at a prometric site here. It was a very nice Prometric site - not crowded at all and the employees were really helpful.

My practice test scores were the following

NBME 1 two or three weeks before the real thing: 223
USMLE world practice exam a few days before: 252
Free 150 questions one week before: 86%

AAh I just want to go on with my life and be happy I finished but I'm scared about my grade.

slippy22 said:

Could you explain more what you mean by this? What resource covers this balance? Just FA stuff?

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Immunology in FA is mostly a series of stuff to memorize, like most of FA. I don't think it's very good at putting the pieces together...

That doesn't necessarily mean that you need to go outside of FA, though, since it's a relatively low-yield topic. Your own memory from your Immuno or Micro class might be enough. I used Hi-Yield Immunology as a refresher. It goes into slightly too much detail, but it's good.

Hi I was wondering if anyone who took the test already could comment on how good FA 2009's section for microbio was. I was planning on just doing that before I take the exam in 8 days. But when I do UWorld questions, it seems like FA is missing alot of little details. Anyone just use FA and feel like it was enough?

Hi all,
Thought I'd just give back since I've been reading this thread throughout step 1 prep. I took my test 10 days ago and I've been busy with a social life (gasp hahaha finally) so didnt have time to write stuff down earlier.
What I used to prep: CMMRS, Levinson's Micro and Immuno, High Yield Cell and Molecular Bio/BRS Cell Bio (neither in its entirety), Road Map Genetics (skimmed in 2.5 hr), RR Path, Lippincott's Biochem, First Aid Organ Systems (Quick review part at end of each chapter), BRS Physio, Kaplan Anatomy/Neuroanatomy/Embryo, High Yield Neuro/BRS neuro (half and half), Lange Pharm flashcards, USMLE Made Ridiculously simple( highly recommend), Step Up to USMLE, Kaplan Qbook, First Aid Q&A, and of course UWorld and FA. *Note: only RR, First Aid (read 4 times), CMMRS, BRS physio read in entirety. also, i studied everything in organ systems with the exception of micro and biochem and immuno and cell bio/genetics.
Stats (ranges to preserve some kind of anonymity)
UWorld: 92% complete, mostly 48Qs random : overall 75-80%; with high of 90% in individual blocks; last 10 blocks was average of 80% (mostly 84% sprinkled with 2 or 3 mid 70s)
NBME 4 as baseline 4.5 weeks out: 235-240
Free 150 at center (2.5 weeks into studying/halfway point): 89% (only done with respiratory and cardio path/micro/immuno/biochem...)
NBME 5 (1 week out prior to reviewing materials but after first pass of all materials): 245-250

In last week, Went through FA 2 more times. Entire set of pharm cards 2 more times. And read anatomy charts in Step 1 made simple. Also, reviewed World pharm and my notes.

Test day:
Started the test at 7:45 b/c the center was good at getting things started by 7:30. Took 10 min lunch break and break after block 2 and 5.
Neuro: A few sections and identify the location of lesion. about 2 questions about specific cranial nerves (simple)
Anatomy: Pelvic pelvic pelvic. Not easy b/c it wasnt in first aid and I neglected pelvic anatomy. Also one about identifying in what sacral foramen etc the nerve in the scenario passed through. One giveaway brachial plexus question.
Micro: Staph, strep bread and butter but made u think about it in a different way ie dealing with the way to isolate in culture. Lots of derm related micro (skin findings, pruritus, shock)
Immuno: a few questions on cytokines and really tested understanding of shock etc. dont remember much but it wasn't too bad. One tumor marker.
Pharm: not so much what drug but rather drug mechanism. eg(not used in test, don't worry moderators) a guy is taking a drug for toe fungus...this drug most acts like (a) blocks microtubules, etc. Lots of cholinergic and antimuscarinic stuff with all those charts and graphs. One particularly obscure drug showed up twice. Guessed lucky once...not so much the other time.
Path/Physio: Lots of those tables where you have to pick what hormone goes up and down etc. Lots of endo. Fair amount of Renal. Don't remember much onc at all or heme. Repro was rampant. Wasn't that bad but honestly path is the one subject I was secure in. A few crazy ones about sleep medicine etc.
*Heart sounds: I had a lot. And, I mean a lot. Couldn't really tell them from the scenario or sound clip. Also, my sequential question was tough and tested more clinical stuff ie how would you diagnose this with tests. Oh well.
Biochem: first question of the test hahah and it wasn't a classic presentation at all. A few more inborn errors/storage diseases. One vitamin question. One crazy hard one about phosphorylation etc. One random endocrine hormone and its effect on nutrition/appetite...luckily i vaguely remembered it from nutrition class. Overall, decent.
Behavior: One extreme giveaway followed by about a few reasonable ones and some that were out in left field. about 10 total. One or two biostatics questions where I'm fairly certain the answer was no where to be found (concerning NNT) in the answer choices. I just put the next best thing.

Just waiting on my score. Have no idea what to expect. Felt that it was easier than world, quite a few buzzwords but the 7th block was a killer (a horrible way to end the test) and I was burning out by halfway thru the 6th and i felt like i had a freakin bamboo spine and butt damage from sitting.

whatnext86 said:

Hi I was wondering if anyone who took the test already could comment on how good FA 2009's section for microbio was. I was planning on just doing that before I take the exam in 8 days. But when I do UWorld questions, it seems like FA is missing alot of little details. Anyone just use FA and feel like it was enough?

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FA's microbio section will give you probably 75% of what you need to know. the last 25% i learned from doing uworld questions and/or distant memory from the end of first year (when we took microbio at my school).

oh yea, sorry for the random thought, but for the media-related questions, i just remembered that i had a picture of a brainstem that asked me to identify the hypoglossal nerve, about 4-5 heart murmurs i had to listen to bc the murmur wasn't described in the stem, no brainstem cross-sections (which is what i was worried about), a glomerurlar IF stain, some microbio stains (to ID n.gono, gardnerella, and giardia), a brain arteriogram, CXRs for COPD, and a head CT to ID empty sella syndrome.

How do you recommend that we approach the pelvic anatomy? It seems like everyone is getting lots of pelvic questions.

Ok so here's how studying went for me.

Took my school's CBSA on 3/05/09. Score: 62 (Proj 180)

What I did between then and the end of the school year. During this time I was maybe doing 10-15 hours a week of boards stuff on top of class. So a couple hours a day, not necessarily every day of the week. Nothing too stressful. I wanted to do things to more "prepare to cram" at the end then really hit it hard and burn myself out. So more do things to RELIEVE stress and make me feel like I was being productive than add undue stress to my life:
-Listen to all of Goljan audio and annotate into RR Path
-Consolidate BRS Phys into FA
-Consolidate HY Behavioral into FA
-Consolidate CMMRS into FA
-Consolidate Lange Immunology into FA
-Consolidate RR Biochem into FA
-Consolidate HY Neuro into FA
-Do Robbins Review of Path questions and consolidate missed Q's into FA
*When I say "consolidate" I mean photocopied useful figures and 3 hole punched them into my FA binder, added facts to pertinent info in sections of FA as well as add "high yield" fact sheets of my own notes to the end of each subject/system.

I started doing UWorld questions 40 days before the exam. Timed blocks of 48. Started with a block a night then transitioned to two blocks every morning when classes were over and I transitioned into fulltime boards study mode.

I took NBME 4 at the end of classes/the beginning of my boards cram period. Score: 350 (Proj 190)

I gave myself exactly 3 weeks to study for Step 1 after the end of classes. You can see my full study schedule HERE (Word document available if you're really that desperate, just PM me). In retropect, my schedule was perhaps a bit too amitious. I gave myself "blocked out" time for things like working out and relaxing at the end of the day and found I didn't use any of it. Basically, instead of my days being over at 7 or 8pm like I planned, I found myself studying from 8am to 10 or 11pm most days since I wasn't getting through info as fast as my schedule dictated, then skipping the gym in the morning to get an extra hour of sleep. I was not a well-rounded person these past 3 weeks, but I also knew I could handle it. It's all about knowing your own limits.

After a while, I switched to tutor mode on UWorld (but did not change any answers if I got them incorrect). I just found the instantaneous feedback of "Did I get this wrong and why?" more useful for my studying than reviewing the answers after I had completed a block 45 minutes later. Doing it the latter way, I found I had lost some of my thought processing for the questions and in tutor mode I could see if I was "thinking through" questions better.

Here's what my question block progression looked like (it's kind of confusing to read, but as you go to the right, you get closer to my Step 1 date):


I took NBME 2 a week into my intensive study period. Score: 470 (Proj 216)

About 12 days out from Step 1 is when I started to see real progress in my UWorld questions. As you can see in the graph, before that point, my question blocks were wildly oscillating between high 40's/low 50's all the way up to low 70's. I just couldn't seem to smooth things out and make my scores more consistent until about 12 days out. Then all of a sudden my scores equilibrated into the 60's and started to climb. I didn't suddenly do anything differently. I think the difference was 1.) that was around the time I first got through all of FA the first time and 2.) that was around the time I crossed the 1500 questions mark in my UWorld bank. I think there's something to be said to just doing "a lot of questions" since there's a certain thought process needed in the questions to "think through them" correctly.

I took NBME 3 another week into my studying (6 days out from Step 1). Score: 550 (Proj 234)

The last week was basically spent filling in holes and working on my weaknesses (micro/biochem esp). I finished UWorld that monday and spent the rest of the week doing question blocks of ones I had missed incorrectly.

I took the free USMLE test 2 days before I took Step 1. Score: 85 (Proj 249)

Overall scores from UWorld:
-Total for 1st time through the entire bank: 61% (Proj 225-232)
-Total for all of my question blocks: 67% (Proj 235-245)

I thought my actual test was very fair. I didn't find any subject particularly heavy so much so that I found myself saying "Oh god another x questions" at any point. But it was very molecular bio heavy. A lot of questions asking you to diagnose a disease than asking about the molecular machinations of the disease process. 90 days of UWorld was the best $215 I ever spent. Their interface is literally EXACTLY like Fred and many times throughout the test it felt simply like I was doing question blocks instead of actually taking the Step 1. The day goes very fast. I was sick with a cold when I took it so I made sure to pack prophylactic DayQuil.

My goal for Step 1 was to at least hit 220. I told myself at the beginning that I would be "very, very happy" if I broke 235 and 250 was my pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. So it was kind of eerie that my last NBME projected 234 and my USMLE score projected 249. So I appeared to be right where I wanted to be going in. I wanted to post my experiences because I made a lot of progress in a short amount of time. Often around here people make it sound like unless you're scoring 230+ when you START studying you are doomed to mediocrity. Personally between the CBSA and my actual Step 1 score I added 73 points to my projected score.

I will update when I got my score.

Update - SCORE: 253/99! Unreal.

ZagDoc said:

Ok so here's how studying went for me.

Took my school's CBSA on 3/05/09. Score: 62 (Proj 180)

What I did between then and the end of the school year. During this time I was maybe doing 10-15 hours a week of boards stuff on top of class. So a couple hours a day, not necessarily every day of the week. Nothing too stressful. I wanted to do things to more "prepare to cram" at the end then really hit it hard and burn myself out. So more do things to RELIEVE stress and make me feel like I was being productive than add undue stress to my life:
-Listen to all of Goljan audio and annotate into RR Path
-Consolidate BRS Phys into FA
-Consolidate HY Behavioral into FA
-Consolidate CMMRS into FA
-Consolidate Lange Immunology into FA
-Consolidate RR Biochem into FA
-Consolidate HY Neuro into FA
-Do Robbins Review of Path questions and consolidate missed Q's into FA
*When I say "consolidate" I mean photocopied useful figures and 3 hole punched them into my FA binder, added facts to pertinent info in sections of FA as well as add "high yield" fact sheets of my own notes to the end of each subject/system.

I started doing UWorld questions 40 days before the exam. Timed blocks of 48. Started with a block a night then transitioned to two blocks every morning when classes were over and I transitioned into fulltime boards study mode.

I took NBME 4 at the end of classes/the beginning of my boards cram period. Score: 350 (Proj 190)

I gave myself exactly 3 weeks to study for Step 1 after the end of classes. You can see my full study schedule HERE (Word document available if you're really that desperate, just PM me). In retropect, my schedule was perhaps a bit too amitious. I gave myself "blocked out" time for things like working out and relaxing at the end of the day and found I didn't use any of it. Basically, instead of my days being over at 7 or 8pm like I planned, I found myself studying from 8am to 10 or 11pm most days since I wasn't getting through info as fast as my schedule dictated, then skipping the gym in the morning to get an extra hour of sleep. I was not a well-rounded person these past 3 weeks, but I also knew I could handle it. It's all about knowing your own limits.

After a while, I switched to tutor mode on UWorld (but did not change any answers if I got them incorrect). I just found the instantaneous feedback of "Did I get this wrong and why?" more useful for my studying than reviewing the answers after I had completed a block 45 minutes later. Doing it the latter way, I found I had lost some of my thought processing for the questions and in tutor mode I could see if I was "thinking through" questions better.

Here's what my question block progression looked like:

I took NBME 2 a week into my intensive study period. Score: 470 (Proj 216)

About 12 days out from Step 1 is when I started to see real progress in my UWorld questions. As you can see in the graph, before that point, my question blocks were wildly oscillating between high 40's/low 50's all the way up to low 70's. I just couldn't seem to smooth things out and make my scores more consistent until about 12 days out. Then all of a sudden my scores equilibrated into the 60's and started to climb. I didn't suddenly do anything differently. I think the difference was 1.) that was around the time I first got through all of FA the first time and 2.) that was around the time I crossed the 1500 questions mark in my UWorld bank. I think there's something to be said to just doing "a lot of questions" since there's a certain thought process needed in the questions to "think through them" correctly.

I took NBME 3 another week into my studying (6 days out from Step 1). Score: 550 (Proj 234)

The last week was basically spent filling in holes and working on my weaknesses (micro/biochem esp). I finished UWorld that monday and spent the rest of the week doing question blocks of ones I had missed incorrectly.

I took the free USMLE test 2 days before I took Step 1. Score: 85 (Proj 249)

Overall scores from UWorld:
-Total for 1st time through the entire bank: 61% (Proj 225-232)
-Total for all of my question blocks: 67% (Proj 235-245)

I thought my actual test was very fair. I didn't find any subject particularly heavy so much so that I found myself saying "Oh god another x questions" at any point. But it was very molecular bio heavy. A lot of questions asking you to diagnose a disease than asking about the molecular machinations of the disease process. 90 days of UWorld was the best $215 I ever spent. Their interface is literally EXACTLY like Fred and many times throughout the test it felt simply like I was doing question blocks instead of actually taking the Step 1. The day goes very fast. I was sick with a cold when I took it so I made sure to pack prophylactic DayQuil.

My goal for Step 1 was to at least hit 220. I told myself at the beginning that I would be "very, very happy" if I broke 235 and 250 was my pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. So it was kind of eerie that my last NBME projected 234 and my USMLE score projected 249. So I appeared to be right where I wanted to be going in. I wanted to post my experiences because I made a lot of progress in a short amount of time. Often around here people make it sound like unless you're scoring 230+ when you START studying you are doomed to mediocrity. Personally between the CBSA and my final diagnostic I added 69 points to my projected score.

I will update when I got my score.

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Probably one of the best experiences in this thread. Makes me stay motivated! Good Job! I need to get some cowbell myself.

AWESOME JOB Zagdoc!!! Thanks for that great post. I too started at the same level and then ended with similar projections. I think if you really work hard use the right resources, there is no reason you cant get a good score. Thanks for posting such an encouraging experience!

Now we just need to wait and get the real scores!!

Take care!!

Great job ZagDoc! I am sure you did well!

My initial thought is that time management is key. I skipped the tutorial but was surprised to find out about the two part questions. I wasn't expecting that so I gobbled up time reading about it. Leaving the Prometric computer room (signing in and out) was time consuming, eating up precious minutes. By the time I took my lunch I only had 40 minutes left. After my 30 minute lunch, I basically had 10 minutes left of break to spread out between 4 blocks. Not a pleasant experience. I didn't dare leave the computer room, so I was miserably thirsty after the seventh block. I guess I should have taken a practice run at Prometric, that might have helped.

As for the exam, I think it was half brutal and half fair. Whereas I skimmed the USMLEworld questions too quickly, the actual Step 1 questions seemed to be less amenable to quick skimming. I finished each block with less than a minute to spare. Many of the questions I could answerly quickily, but then a slew of questions would pop that really required careful reading. This was frustrating as I was never able to finish a block with time to spare that could be added to my break time.

As for the subjects, my exam had a decent amount of neuro lesions. The exam covered cardio fairly well also, with the exception of cardio drugs. The biochem focused mostly on enzyme deficiencies. I had very few questions regarding vitamins. Pulmonary was also under-represented, but endocrine seemed to show up a lot. Reproductive physiology was also prominent. The micro and pharm were fair. No exotic bugs or drugs. Anyhow that's all I can think of now.

For those of you who have taken the exam: I've read a few comments now that state that biochem and cell/molecular bio have been well represented on some exams. Would you say that it's important to know all the biochem pathways well (glycolysis, TCA, urea cycle, etc.) or just the key deficiencies associated with them? I'm going crazy trying to memorize things I haven't seen since my junior year of undergrad.

When you take the binding off of First Aid and put it into a binder, is there any way to reinforce it so that it doesn't rip all crazy? The pages have to be made from the worst paper in the world.

SplenoMegastar said:

When you take the binding off of First Aid and put it into a binder, is there any way to reinforce it so that it doesn't rip all crazy? The pages have to be made from the worst paper in the world.

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I got mine spiral bound at Kinko's. Since there are more holes it doesn't tear.

Good idea. I was just planning to add photocopied diagrams ZagDoc style which means I better decide what I want to add before getting it re-bound. I was kind of hoping for a machine that could put those little reinforcement things on every page.

I put mine in a binder and really haven't had a problem except for a couple pages here and there. I've also been adding diagrams and whatnot.

I have a half day of studying tomorrow before my test on Wed. Just wondering if anyone that has already taken the test had any questions about clinical indications for drug usage in regard to cancer?

NCF145 said:

I have a half day of studying tomorrow before my test on Wed. Just wondering if anyone that has already taken the test had any questions about clinical indications for drug usage in regard to cancer?

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The only question I had about cancer drugs was about the mechanism of paclitaxol. I think basic MOAs and side effects will serve you well enough for the real deal.

In regards to cancer drugs, just like above poster said no MOA and MAJOR toxicities (vincristine/vinblastine, bleo, doxorubicin, etc.). Another good thing is knowing what phase of the cell cycle unique ones act on.

SplenoMegastar said:

Good idea. I was just planning to add photocopied diagrams ZagDoc style which means I better decide what I want to add before getting it re-bound. I was kind of hoping for a machine that could put those little reinforcement things on every page.

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You're right, FA's paper does suck (not just for 3 hole punching, but for writing, highlighting, basically everything).

I just kept a box of those 3 hole reinforcers in my backpack and patched up pages as they tore. Ended up "patching up" a fair number of pages, but when you only do a page or two here and there it isn't as monumental of a task.

I loved the 3 hole punch idea because once I was done consolidating sources, all I had in my backpack was my supplemented FA and Goljan RR. No juggling sources or anything. Was it worth all that extra effort? I have no idea. But I know that it wasn't NOT worth it.

I got a lot out of reading these posts throughout the past two years, so here is my contribution.

First, when you are reading these posts, remember that the distribution of questions per subject is different for each test. Meaning everyones test was DIFFERENT. I got what seemed like a boat load of immunology, and I have read here that some people barely got any. I'll try to list here some similarities that I experienced to others who have posted here (i.e here is my advice):

DO NOT STUDY HARD THE DAY BEFORE THE TEST. You need your mind to be rested. 7 sections is a lot and performance could be the most important thing. The test is not overly difficult. Its just the pressure your are under that makes it hard. Therefore, just stay relaxed and come in with a rested mind. There are easy Qs and hard Qs, but for the most part they aren't trying to trick you. You either know it or you don't, but don't let a hard Q knock you off your game. I had trouble moving on from a hard Q and therefore barely finished some sections, which is a shame cause the last Qs seemed to be the easiest. I think doing well is 50% being prepared and 50% performing on test day. Just stay calm, put what you think is the best answer and move on. Your not going to fail, but stressing out during the test, will only hurt your score.

I studied everyday for 6 weeks and was burned out. Therefore, I had no choice but to take it easy for 2 days before the test. I was worried that by taking this time to ease my mind I would lose what I had learned. Reality is....the boards do a good job of testing if you understand the material. Yes there are straight up Qs that require minor details, but for the most part it tests how well you can reason through what they are asking. Answer the question they ask, don't do anything else. Don't wish they had asked something else and then get upset that they didn't. Just do your best to answer exactly what they are asking for.

Now that being said on performance, first I'd like to say that I feel USMLE WORLD Q BANK is the best thing I ever did for studying for this thing. The interface is exactly the same, so you feel at home when taking the test. Plus, I just felt USMLE World covered everything that was asked on my test (except for a handful of Qs). My only regret really is not finishing USMLE World a week before the test, and then have a chance to go through some of the Qs I flagged again. Second, First Aid really does have it all. Its crazy, but all the answers are in there somewhere. I swear they are, it is just easy to skip over minor details, or even remember them. Third, Goljan's RR Book, is awesome. Mostly for the UNDERSTANDING, and especially for the blue boxes and the blue side note. I reccommend knowing First Aid cold, but not before reading Goljan once, and then going to it later as a reference. Finally, Goljan's audio was worth the commitment. Personally, I don't think he nailed but a few Qs for my particular test, but he helped me understand things, and if your lucky, he may just very well nail 10 - 20 Qs on the head.

Therefore like has been written here before: USMLE WORLD Q Bank + First Aid + Goljan's book and Audio = success.

Now obviously I haven't gotten my score, but I feel real good about these sources. Now if your reading this and didn't do these things then its still not a big deal. In the end you just pick your sources and stick with them. Know them as best you can and you'll be fine.

Some other minor points: I had a lot of pictures. Therefore, I would be familiar with CT cross sections from head to toe. The CTs, X-rays, and histo slides only helped, and weren't necessary for the answer for all but a few times. Also, use your break time even if early on you feel you don't need it. I cruised through the first 3 sections and then crashed in the 4th. Fatigue is a factor!! Performance matters, use your break time often (I did at least 5 min after every section but the 1rst).

In the end, just relax and do your best. Trust yourself and your preparation no matter what your doubts are. I feel your score will be fair and better than you may percieve if you studied hard and do your best. GOOD LUCK!!!

So I took the test yesterday and I must say that it was pretty challenging. It felt like an 8 hour UsmleWorld simulation test (except this one actually counted). I truly have no idea how I did; I feel like hopefully I got in the 220s, but I'm hoping for higher. To be honest, I couldn't really tell which questions were the experimental ones.

My study plan was basically to use UsmleWorld as a study tool. So starting from the beggining of the school year, as my school was going through the different systems (cardio, neuro, etc.), I would be reading that section in First Aid and then doing all the questions on Cardio, or Neuro, etc. in UsmleWorld. I only did questions on tutor mode and whatever I didn't know and wasn't in First Aid, or that was explained better on World, I would type up. It took a long time, but I finished all of World and felt like I had seen almost every way that they could ask me a question. My actually test was balanced. There are probably 300+ different forms for Step 1, so I'm not going to go into detail as to what my test had. I think its better to study in a balanced way so that you aren't surprised by much.

Here are my practice scores:

NBME free 150= 242 (from medfriends estimate)
UsmleWorld Sim Test 1= 245
Comprehensive Basic Science Exam: 245-250
Real thing: (TBA July 15)

I feel like I did worse than my practice test scores, but I felt bad after I took those practice tests too, until I saw the score, so I don't know what to say about my feelings, lol. All I know is that for 2 weeks I'm free and I'm going to enjoy it.

So once that magic date rolls around and our scores are released, how do we find out? Do they email them to us? Do they post them on the NBME website?

DoctaJay said:

My study plan was basically to use UsmleWorld as a study tool. So starting from the beggining of the school year, as my school was going through the different systems (cardio, neuro, etc.), I would be reading that section in First Aid and then doing all the questions on Cardio, or Neuro, etc. in UsmleWorld. I only did questions on tutor mode and whatever I didn't know and wasn't in First Aid, or that was explained better on World, I would type up.

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Two questions:

1. How much did it cost to have UWorld from the beginning of 2nd year to June 2009?

2. Since you did all the questions once during the school year as you studied that material, did you go through those questions again during your Boards study month? If so, did you feel like you were doing questions or just trying to remember the answers to questions you vaguely remember doing earlier?

Elixir86 said:

Two questions:

1. How much did it cost to have UWorld from the beginning of 2nd year to June 2009?

2. Since you did all the questions once during the school year as you studied that material, did you go through those questions again during your Boards study month? If so, did you feel like you were doing questions or just trying to remember the answers to questions you vaguely remember doing earlier?

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1. http://www.usmleworld.com/Step1/step1_qbank.aspx scroll down to the end

2. I only went through the topics in the spring semester. Yes, I went over them again, as I found that they were starting to be my lower scores. As far as remembering answers, yes you will remember some, but you have to be honest with yourself. Do you just know the answer, or do you know the concept, can you explain why the others are wrong. If so, then be happy, usmle world has just worked for you.

Entgegen said:

So once that magic date rolls around and our scores are released, how do we find out? Do they email them to us? Do they post them on the NBME website?

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Singing telegram.

they send you an email 2 hours before they will release your score and then you go on their website and see it.

Notified that you would be getting your score today? Wow- that's only 2 Wednesdays from your exam. So maybe they aren't keeping to the July 15 date?

Hi all.....just getting ready to study for step 1.
i have 2 questions....when you all talk about FA...is it the 2set book or the FA for the usmle step1.
also does anybody know as far as prep course the diff btw falcon and kaplan...

thnx

sumozmom said:

Hi all.....just getting ready to study for step 1.
i have 2 questions....when you all talk about FA...is it the 2set book or the FA for the usmle step1.
also does anybody know as far as prep course the diff btw falcon and kaplan...

thnx

Click to expand...

First Aid for the USMLE step 1- Single book- bible for Step 1.
no FA no honey.

What's difference between V1 and V2 exam version? I only know that V2 is the newer one with audio Qs on it, right? Lastly, V1 is no longer used right?

Thanks guys

TXDO said:

First Aid for the USMLE step 1- Single book- bible for Step 1.
no FA no honey.

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ok great what do you know about the FA for the basic sciences and the system FA?

thnx you!!!!

calespine said:

Notified that you would be getting your score today? Wow- that's only 2 Wednesdays from your exam. So maybe they aren't keeping to the July 15 date?

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Who was notified?

wbrinj said he did, but I think he mispoke, and edited himself after my post

I think it's time for the mods to delete some more crap from this thread.

pseudoknot said:

I think it's time for the mods to delete some more crap from this thread.

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Seriously...this thread has gone downhill in a big way. Please delete all irrelevant posts including this one.

Like many of the above posters, I have looked over these threads to get an idea of how to study for the beast. So here is what I did.

I had 8 weeks to prepare. I spent ~6hrs. per day the first 6 weeks, and then ~8-10hrs. per week the last two weeks.
(I wish I only spent 6 weeks total, b/c you start forgetting stuff, slacking off, and for me at least, I work better under pressure).

Books:
RR Path, BRS Phys, Road map to USMLE Pharm, Microcards, HY Behavioral, Lange Pharmacology flash cards, and First Aid 2009.

Other Stuff:
Goljan bootleg audio and USMLE World.

I studied subjects first. I started with Phys, Path and Pharm, which are the three most important subjects for boards. For path, I would listen to Goljan and then read the relevant chapter in RR Path.

Then, I did the rest of the subjects and did systems based review.

I used UWorld lightly during the first 4 weeks, then when I was on systems I used it more often.
2 weeks before my exam I had 50% left, and that is when I started to bust out UWorld questions in the last two weeks.

I would review the answers from the Qs, both correct and incorrect.
I felt that I learned a lot from reading the explanations to UWorld questions.

Practice Exams:
NBME 1- 212 (6 weeks before USMLE)
NBME 6- 214 (3 weeks before): This one hurt the team moral with only a 2 point improvement, but my subject knowledge was much better.

UWorld avg. (70% complete)- 63%
Free 150- (2 weeks before USMLE) 75% (MedFriends est. 229)

2 days before exam I was cramming high yield material and micro/pharm (my two weaker areas).
Day before exam I did some light studying in the morning, but I wouldn't recommend more than that. Stopped in the early afternoon, worked out and watched a movie.

Test Day: I'm not a morning person, so I took the 12pm exam on June 9th.
I got to the test center at 11:30AM, and was able to check in quick. Started my exam at 11:40AM.
1st block is always tough for me, b/c I have to focus and get into the groove. Plus I found out that timing was an issue for me. On UWorld I would usually finish early, but on the real deal I was rushed on most blocks.

I had Fred2 software, which is just like the UWorld interface, and I only had one pair of sequential Qs.

From what I remember:

Biochem: I had maybe 6-7Qs on the exam. Surprised me.
Pharm: My exam was pretty heavy on Pharm, and they love Psych drugs.
Micro: 2-3 per block. Only 3 that were parasites.
Immuno: Like biochem, it was lightly tested.
Neuro: I had a bit of neuro on my exam. Couple of CTs and 1MRI.
Path: Most of the test was path/pathophys, which I was expecting.
Anatomy: 10 or so on my exam. A couple of cross section style Qs.
Behavioral: A few Qs on my exam, and ~5 biostats Qs.
Genetics: Light on this subject. I had 1 pedigree.
Phys: most of my phys was graphs and charts stuff, especially endocrine Qs.

I have no idea how I did. Some Qs were pretty easy, some were really tough. Compared to UWorld, the USMLE Qs were more straightforward, mostly 2step Qs. They were the exact style as the NBME exams.

If you guys have any questions for me, I'll be glad to answer and I'll post scores whenever we get them.

Good Luck to all of you.

Just got done. Wasn't as difficult as I expected so I must have gotten an easier exam, which isn't good. I just hope that I didn't make many dumb mistakes, which does happen to me from time to time. Overall the test has plenty of straight recall questions, but as was stated above, it really tests your reasoning and overall ability to integrate different subjects to reach an answer. The majority of the test was a little easier compared to UWorld, but harder than the NBMEs. Leaving the test I felt similar to how I felt after taking NBME 6.

My stats:

UWorld: Overall - 73% avg, last ~600 Q - 81% with a range of 75%-89% (70% Complete). All timed, random, unused

CBSE (March, no studying done) - 220
CBSE (May, post finals, hadn't started reviewing 1st year material) - 240
NBME 3 (1 week studying) - 253
NBME 6 (2 weeks studying) - 258
NBME Free 150 (3 weeks studying) - 93%, MedFriends equivalent to 266

Hoping for a score similar to NBME 6, but would love to break 260.

Now for the worst part... waiting.

So I took mine today and it went kinda like this...

1st, yesterday... I have three vehicles (older student here) which I keep in great shape. Yesterday at noon when I got back from leaving one at the dealer b/c the ignition switch died, I learned that the other two chose yesterday to break down, too. 3 vehicles, none driveable. Oh and the warranty ran out on the newest one last Monday. And I was supposed to be headed to Knoxville to overnight/study for my test.

Translation: My luck sucks, but that's no secret to anyone who knows me... So much for a stress free last day!

My stats:

Uworld assessment A at the beginning of studying: 195

Uworld B after 2 weeks (halfway): 217 (I think, can't remember)

Uworld % random timed for my last 10 blocks of unused Q's: 64% = 234 via "calculator"

NBME-6 six days from real test: 160 ... I STRONGLY suspect there was an error on my test as I had a MAJOR storm come through and lost my connection lots of times. I sure hope so, at least!!

NBME 150 the next day: 237 (acc. to Medfriends... MUCH more like what i expected on NBME-6)

THE REAL STEP 1: Who knows, but it ain't pretty!!!!!






So.... some study advice: I used primarily FA, UWorld and Goljan's. Let me tell ya, for the first three blocks I was completely stumped most of the time. A LOT of obscure symptoms followed by very similar diseases, and sometimes one'd I'd never heard of. The pharm questions asked detail like i've never SEEN before!!! Example (and NO this is not a 'real question' but similar): They give all the symptoms for a cancer and then state that you will use a Taxol to treat it. Seems simple, right? Then they ask something akin to "what AA sequence does the drug interact with in the microtubule assembly" or something like that... Basically, something about 5 levels past what FA covered. (and don't comment here trying to answer that question as I made it up.)

Basically, my first three blocks were all like that. I had vignettes that were 18-20 lines long, with the average being about 10. I even had micro stuff where the person was co-infected with TWO different arthropod borne diseases and ya had to sort out which it was by a VERY obscure symptom... Even the biostats asked for ridiculous things like a linear regression of a chi square test or some such stuff... Yeah, no "Spin-Snout" here. I nearly cried when the "what would you do" questions had answers that ALL sounded good.

Also, I had at least 6-7 questions about HMO management and insurance coverages... WTF??!?? Do other people learn this?

The anatomy was mostly either REALLLLLLLLLLY obscure or REALLLLLY obvious and wasn't too largely covered. Oh, and LOTS of pelvis stuff as echoed by other people.

Finally I had quite a few trickily worded questions and answers, way more tricky that what World offers, along the veins of CD4+ Tc cells or something. Anyhow, i suggest venturing out past FA and Goljan's. It felt a LOT like the questions were often written to deliberately avoid using the "high yield" FA stuff... Anyhow, best of luck to the rest of you, I'm gonna go stress my aldehyde dehydrogenase system for a bit...

NCF145 said:

Just got done. Wasn't as difficult as I expected so I must have gotten an easier exam, which isn't good. I just hope that I didn't make many dumb mistakes, which does happen to me from time to time. Overall the test has plenty of straight recall questions, but as was stated above, it really tests your reasoning and overall ability to integrate different subjects to reach an answer. The majority of the test was a little easier compared to UWorld, but harder than the NBMEs. Leaving the test I felt similar to how I felt after taking NBME 6.

My stats:

UWorld: Overall - 73% avg, last ~600 Q - 81% with a range of 75%-89% (70% Complete). All timed, random, unused

CBSE (March, no studying done) - 220
CBSE (May, post finals, hadn't started reviewing 1st year material) - 240
NBME 3 (1 week studying) - 253
NBME 6 (2 weeks studying) - 258
NBME Free 150 (3 weeks studying) - 93%, MedFriends equivalent to 266

Hoping for a score similar to NBME 6, but would love to break 260.

Now for the worst part... waiting.

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Congrats! Sounds like you did well. Dude, an 81 average for last 600 is amazing too. Have a good break.

no clue how i did

my only clue is that i got a blueprint score equivalent to 182.5 8 weeks before the boards and before i had read any 1st Aid

i basically just read BRS path, BRS phys during the 2nd half of 2nd year and read 1st Aid once for 5 weeks before the test and then re-read the entire thing the weekend before

I did 1/2 of USMLE world and scored 62 % 1st time but did them by subject and not random...i spent about an hour and a half per block reading the answer choices and taking notes in FA

on the test, i felt like one block was cake but on the next one i was making some very educated guesses....i can think of soo many questions that i got right but have trouble remembering the ones i know i missed ( i can only think of 2 right now but of course im probably suppresing)

anxious to get my score....would be happy w/ anything about 220 ( i want to go into neurology) and would be thrilled w/ anything above 230

another thing thats hilarious and ironic

i had just finished reading 1st Aid immuno and called up my friend and asked him to ask me any random fact from 1st AID in any section...he asks me what gives you a negative tetrazolium blue test...i had no idea and had just finished reading immuno....****

also i made a presentation in PBL on Peutz Jeghers syndrome just to be obscure (my friend and i often joked about how obscure of a disease that is)

lets just say that and countless other things like this helped me more than i though they would

Took the real test yesterday. Here was my study approach:

UWorld: Cumulative, 82% avg with 100% complete.
GunnerTraining: Cumulative, 85% avg with 100% complete.
CBSE (March, just after I started to do my initial review) - 230
CBSE (May, after finals) - 245
NBME 3 (spent at least 3 weekends studying by this time) - 258
NBME 6 (spent at least 5 weekends studying by this time) -245

I spent 5 weeks studying after finals. I basically used First Aid, GunnerTraining, and USMLEworld as my main resources. This was supplemented by my own class notes and then focused studying on subjects in other books like High yield Neuroanatomy and some statistics text. I thought the combination of GT and UW were the best. I spent days reviewing the flashcards for GT and doing the recall questions. Then I spent nights doing UW questions for the subjects I had studied on during the day. The next day, I reviewed the GT recall questions from the previous days, and then starting on a new subject. Rinse and wash, I repeated this for the 5 week period.

I thought the test was pretty fair. It seemed like I had 2 really difficult blocks. But then I had a few blocks which I thought were pretty straight forward. Common things seemed to be tested frequently (congested heart failure, diabetes, hypertension). But I had several questions which would of required brut memorization as well. Biochem and Nephro seemed to be common. Several graphs and histology pictures also.

Anyways, its over with and I'm ready to enjoy a some days off before starting 3rd year!

Took the the test yesterday. Ugh, plenty of gay ques or calculations blah blah etc. My question is how many ques wrong is a 220-230? I'm hoping to get in that range, but I know I made some bonehead mistakes in the heat of the moment.

Scotty_G said:

Took the the test yesterday. Ugh, plenty of gay ques or calculations blah blah etc. My question is how many ques wrong is a 220-230? I'm hoping to get in that range, but I know I made some bonehead mistakes in the heat of the moment.

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Can you expand upon this? What was hard, what calculations did you have to make, were the equations from FA, etc?