Advice on Postponing Step 1

[match2020]

Hey guys! Complete newbie to posting (but veteran lurker). I'm an IMG graduate.
I was scheduled to my Step 1 in 2 weeks but my NBME scores are dismal:

NBME 13 (6/13/2018): 161
NBME 17 (5/17/2018): 178

That's an increase of 17 points over 4 weeks....still failing
I've come to terms with the fact that I have SIGNIFICANT knowledge gaps (my medical school wasn't the best, and I wasn't the best student). The following is a list of my weak areas according to my last NBME. Starred are the ones I know I am weakest in personally:

1. Biochem *** (I used FA only...basically zero background before studying)
2. Genetics *** (as above)
3. Cell Biology
4. Immunology (as above)
5. Resp/Renal (Pathoma, FA)
6. Neuro *** (Pathoma, FA)
7. Pharm (FA)

I ran out of time during prep because I read SO SLOWLY. So had to use FA only for some stuff.
UWorld: 1st run through was around 50%. Currently on my second run through but I really haven't been prioritizing it. I'm 25 % through my second run through and getting an avd 50% again. My scores in the tests were definitely going up though.

I am aiming to get 240. So I've decided to be realistic and postpone the exam. I have already postponed to the next 3 month block before. I have been studying on and off for about 1 yr and my dedicated time was supposed to be 5 weeks long but I'm 3 weeks in and I don't see the possibility. I've done extensive research and no one can raise their score by 70 in 2 weeks. Go figure. That being said, I want to plan PROPERLY and PRECISELY for the last shot.

Soooo I'm seeking advice on :
1. Is 2-3 months enough time to bring my score up by ~70 points (178 to 240)?
2. What resources should I use for the above, assuming I only have 2-3 months to re-prep? (Note:I've realized how magical Sketchy Micro has been for my micro so I think I work well with videos)
3. Any schedule advice for these 2 months?

Thank you so so much guys ! Any help is appreciated !

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[Doc mu]

If the problem is only in those subjects you listed 3 months should be just about enough ( just barely though) i would personally recommend you get boards and beyond and Texts , what i have decided to do is read the text actively , understand the topic and memorize it from there then do boards and beyond to strengthen the big picture aspect of the subject however you should be reasonable in chosing texts for example in physio go for costanzo (~500 pages) over guyton (~1000 pages) also note that i do this for subjects that are conceptual, for others that are purely memorization i would go for review books instead of texts and it goes without saying you should do LOTS of practice questions , take this with an ocean of salt though MS1 here

 

[match2020]

If the problem is only in those subjects you listed 3 months should be just about enough ( just barely though) i would personally recommend you get boards and beyond and Texts , what i have decided to do is read the text actively , understand the topic and memorize it from there then do boards and beyond to strengthen the big picture aspect of the subject however you should be reasonable in chosing texts for example in physio go for costanzo (~500 pages) over guyton (~1000 pages) also note that i do this for subjects that are conceptual, for others that are purely memorization i would go for review books instead of texts and it goes without saying you should do LOTS of practice questions , take this with an ocean of salt though MS1 here

Thank you Doc mu. It will be about 4 months total but broken up. I was thinking:
Physio: BRS
Path: Goljan review
Immuno- how the immune system works
Pharm- FA with Kaplan pharm vids
Biochem- FA with B+B or KAplan
Neuroanatomy FA + Kaplan 2014

I would use Boards and Beyond for everything on my list except Pharm and Path (Pathoma again)

More feedback would be appreciated.

 

[Doc mu]

Thank you Doc mu. It will be about 4 months total but broken up. I was thinking:
Physio: BRS
Path: Goljan review
Immuno- how the immune system works
Pharm- FA with Kaplan pharm vids
Biochem- FA with B+B or KAplan
Neuroanatomy FA + Kaplan 2014

I would use Boards and Beyond for everything on my list except Pharm and Path (Pathoma again)

More feedback would be appreciated.

seems solid enough however from my personal experience i couldn't learn material from review books because they were mostly in bullet point format and did not follow a smooth narrative or even expand upon certain things they should have, you should know however my lectures suck big time so i have to make myself understand everything so unless your lectures were good i would recommend relatively small texts instead of review books. btw have you seen zanki or brocencephalon anki decks? they really help with memorizing stuff i think it's too late to go through all of them but you should definitely use them for the things that don't stick.

and don't think my or anyone's advice is absolute , at the end of the day everyone learns differently and i still am not prepping for step so take my advice with rivers, oceans and seas of salt

 

[match2020]

seems solid enough however from my personal experience i couldn't learn material from review books because they were mostly in bullet point format and did not follow a smooth narrative or even expand upon certain things they should have, you should know however my lectures suck big time so i have to make myself understand everything so unless your lectures were good i would recommend relatively small texts instead of review books. btw have you seen zanki or brocencephalon anki decks? they really help with memorizing stuff i think it's too late to go through all of them but you should definitely use them for the things that don't stick.

and don't think my or anyone's advice is absolute , at the end of the day everyone learns differently and i still am not prepping for step so take my advice with rivers, oceans and seas of salt

hahaha. Ok thank you so so much! MY lectures sucked too. Horribly. I just downloaded Zanki. SO MUCHHHHH! Thank you for the assistance

 

[Doc mu]

hahaha. Ok thank you so so much! MY lectures sucked too. Horribly. I just downloaded Zanki. SO MUCHHHHH! Thank you for the assistance

Don't mention it mate , i hope you kill step 1

 

[Pruthvi]

IMG here..where can i download zanki?

 

[Doc mu]

IMG here..where can i download zanki?

go to reddit r/medicalschoolanki/

 

[Pruthvi]

go to reddit r/medicalschoolanki/

thank you

 

[Doc mu]

thank you

don't mention it