251 AMA

[tbhdying]

Hi everyone, I’m not sure if this thread will be any more useful to you than your typical score breakdown threads/AMA. But since everyone has a unique journey, I’m sure I can contribute to some benefitting of this community with my personal experience. Got my score back today and SDN has helped me a lot, so I felt the need to give back.

Please don’t hesitate to ask in the comments or PM. Whichever is more comfortable for you.

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[Fried Plantaris]

How much "pre-studying" did you do before dedicated/the set aside comprehensive block?

 

[tbhdying]

How much "pre-studying" did you do before dedicated/the set aside comprehensive block?

I guess I started pre-studying the moment we finished the very first block (so from embryo to Path and pharm). A friend of mine a year above me told me to begin supplementing my lecture PPTs (which were honestly unnecessarily excessive and obscure at many times), with Boards and Beyond and start Uworld. I began to use UW as a learning resource and just did questions for that specific block. I also bought first aid at that time and used it to supplement boards and beyond and uworld during my School blocks. So I started pre-studying pretty early I guess lol.

 

[Fried Plantaris]

Great way to go about it. Where did you think your baseline score was before dedicated started? How did you improve from there during dedicated?

 

[tbhdying]

Great way to go about it. Where did you think your baseline score was before dedicated started? How did you improve from there during dedicated?

Thank you. So I took my baseline scores with a grain of salt. I took a diagnostic CBSE right at the end of M2 (forced by school) and it was a 210. I knew the diagnostic and its score were pretty limited in value for me bc I hadn't looked at any previous module, prior to taking CBSE. I literally just showed up and only remembered the intricate details/info for the last couple modules I did, since they were fresh on my mind. I also took an NBME couple weeks after and got a 220 range score. I was pretty devastated but I was getting 70s on my UW blocks and it just didn't add up. So, I just asked myself what I thought my weaknesses were and I ended up realizing it was not knowing all the minutiae on first aid. When i told everyone I think that's what i'll do, content review of FA, people were like no!!! do UW only. But i honestly stuck with my guns and knew only I had the best idea of my weaknesses. So i switched my day from 80% uworld and 20% FA to 60% UW and 40% FA. Saw my NBMEs go into 230/235 ranges and also knew that NBME questions are kind of ****ty in themselves but I was confident I knew the material. So as long as you know your weaknesses and don't get peer pressured to do what others say worked for them, it'll help you a great deal.

and honestly right after when i took my UWSA1 and 2 & the real deal.. i found myself saying "got that right cause of FA content review" a lot more than I thought I would.

BUT: a huge priority was to complete UW for me. so i kept that part of the plan at all times. I also made flashcards on the UW app of all the minute details. So knowing those nitty gritty things, along with the bigger picture, will help form a solid base for stuff you don't know.

 

[The Knife & Gun Club]

Is your iPhone background a picture of your score report?

 

[tbhdying]

Is your iPhone background a picture of your score report?

No but it is of your mom.

 

[YeOleBoneWiz]

what makes one think that such a modest score is worth an Ama about

 

[tbhdying]

what makes one think that such a modest score is worth an Ama about

You’re so right! It’s not about the score, it’s actually about someone wanting yet another perspective on how to approach this exam bc different strokes for different folks. It would be pretty unrealistic to imagine someone getting insight on how to approach step all from ONE stellar 260,270 AMA. I’m sure you didn’t!!

 

[drducky.]

Did you do any anki and keeping up the reviews throughout the year or were you doing reviews in dedicated only? In hindsight do you think you shouldve?

 

[tbhdying]

Did you do any anki and keeping up the reviews throughout the year or were you doing reviews in dedicated only? In hindsight do you think you shouldve?

So I never did Anki but the more I talked to people, the more I got peer pressured into starting it. Started it for a week and decided it wasn’t for me. I realized that I didn’t need it because if you’re supplementing these resources (FA/uWorld) early enough — The info just becomes Integrated into your basic foundation because you’ve just been seeing it for that long (it’s always in FA when you flip through FA). So in hindsight I have no regrets for not doing anki.

The only flash cards I had were the ones I made on UW. I made flash cards for any obscure fact, any well explained concept, or something I was not understanding. I reviewed like 100 of those a day because I had about 2,000 made. I felt those flash cards were so useful.

If Anki isn’t for you, stick to not using it! You know yourself best.

Edit: I started dedicated with a 210 baseline score. I felt that FA content review and UW flash cards were tremendously helpful (in addition to doing UW, self assessments, and sketchy, boards of course)

 

[numbersloth]

So I never did Anki but the more I talked to people, the more I got peer pressured into starting it. Started it for a week and decided it wasn’t for me. I realized that I didn’t need it because if you’re supplementing these resources (FA/uWorld) early enough — The info just becomes Integrated into your basic foundation because you’ve just been seeing it for that long (it’s always in FA when you flip through FA). So in hindsight I have no regrets for not doing anki.

The only flash cards I had were the ones I made on UW. I made flash cards for any obscure fact, any well explained concept, or something I was not understanding. I reviewed like 100 of those a day because I had about 2,000 made. I felt those flash cards were so useful.

If Anki isn’t for you, stick to not using it! You know yourself best.

Edit: I started dedicated with a 210 baseline score. I felt that FA content review and UW flash cards were tremendously helpful (in addition to doing UW, self assessments, and sketchy, boards of course)

If you weren’t using Anki did you use something like quizlet or physical cards?

 

[tbhdying]

If you weren’t using Anki did you use something like quizlet or physical cards?

I actually didn’t use any form of flash cards or spaced review because I was doing UW and annotating first aid from the first finished block at school and things became integrated into memory just from the amount of times I looked at it. Just wanted to put this unique approach out there because I am not an innately bright person who doesn’t do anki bc they remember it all. I do need spaced review but there’s a way to truly incorporate it into your studying without increasing the amount of resources you use and you don’t have to use an entirely different resource just to do that. Not saying anything against anki but I was just hesitant on using 5-6 resources.


Edit: like I said I made UW flash cards but that was it! Did 100 a day. Had about 2000. And spaced them out myself to see them 3-4x. Saw many UW flash card concepts on the real deal and felt like I got Atleast ~10 questions from doing that.