Board Certification in Psychiatry

[Yoyomama88]

For the initial certification, did you guys feel like you needed dedicated study time? I have the option to start my job either before or after the board exam. I've always done fine on PRITEs and other standardized tests but I did study for Step 1 and 2... not really step 3. Not sure how boards compares. Thanks!

Did vert well on prite, studied about 10 to 14 days before exam and did slightly above average. Just an N of 1.

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[nrmp]

For the initial certification, did you guys feel like you needed dedicated study time? I have the option to start my job either before or after the board exam. I've always done fine on PRITEs and other standardized tests but I did study for Step 1 and 2... not really step 3. Not sure how boards compares. Thanks!

Yes I would recommend at least 3-4 weeks of dedicated time and not take exam too lightly regardless of how you did on PRITE.

 

[Layercake]

Hi everyone,
I passed the psychiatry certification exam with a score of 440, about 2.8 standard deviations above the mean (average score 300, avg 311 for 1st time test takers, with standard deviation of 50). To study, I used BTB, K&S, DSMV manual, and APA practice guidelines. I watched all the BTB lectures, read the lecture outlines twice, and completed all the BTB questions over and over again until 100% correct. I also looked at the outline of content covered for the maintenance of certification exam (the outline for content for the initial certification was more vague) which was more detailed and made sure I knew everything listed, you can see the outline here: https://www.abpn.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/2021_Psychiatry_CC-MOC_Content_Specifications.pdf

Lastly, I read through the dsm as it lists the prevalence, age of onset, gender differences, associated disorders, risks / protective factors for each. I also read through the APA practice guidelines that was very helpful. I hope this helps.

 

[futuredo32]

Hi everyone,
I passed the psychiatry certification exam with a score of 440, about 2.8 standard deviations above the mean (average score 300, avg 311 for 1st time test takers, with standard deviation of 50). To study, I used BTB, K&S, DSMV manual, and APA practice guidelines. I watched all the BTB lectures, read the lecture outlines twice, and completed all the BTB questions over and over again until 100% correct. I also looked at the outline of content covered for the maintenance of certification exam (the outline for content for the initial certification was more vague) which was more detailed and made sure I knew everything listed, you can see the outline here: https://www.abpn.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/2021_Psychiatry_CC-MOC_Content_Specifications.pdf

Lastly, I read through the dsm as it lists the prevalence, age of onset, gender differences, associated disorders, risks / protective factors for each. I also read through the APA practice guidelines that was very helpful. I hope this helps.

I needed THREE times to pass. I would agree with reading DSM 5. I found BTB helpful for the "cheat sheets" in the vault and content, but their questions were weak. I used several q banks. There was also a book by Phillip Muskin about the nitty gritty details about diagnoses that I found helpful. One other bonus of BTB is that Dr. Jack will review your exam and give you tips on what to focus on. Congrats to those who passed, to those who didn't I know the pain well and I never thought I would pass, but I did and with a nice margin, give it your all next time and maybe get some advice on how to study from someone who knows you and can sit down with you and review what the problem might be. Maybe it's a lack of knowledge, maybe test taking skills. It's not an easy exam for many and it's a pain in the @ss, but it's doable.

 

[Layercake]

I needed THREE times to pass. I would agree with reading DSM 5. I found BTB helpful for the "cheat sheets" in the vault and content, but their questions were weak. I used several q banks. There was also a book by Phillip Muskin about the nitty gritty details about diagnoses that I found helpful. One other bonus of BTB is that Dr. Jack will review your exam and give you tips on what to focus on. Congrats to those who passed, to those who didn't I know the pain well and I never thought I would pass, but I did and with a nice margin, give it your all next time and maybe get some advice on how to study from someone who knows you and can sit down with you and review what the problem might be. Maybe it's a lack of knowledge, maybe test taking skills. It's not an easy exam for many and it's a pain in the @ss, but it's doable.

BTB questions were definitely weak

 

[pisekar]

I did not buy BTB due to its price. Studied of K&Spiegel Q Bank and Focus Q Bank. Passed the test with an average score.

 

[blazer123]

Does anyone know how long it takes for the Board Certificate to be mailed to us?

 

[JKinSC]

Does anyone know how long it takes for the Board Certificate to be mailed to us?

Pretty sure they said sometime in March. If there was an actual date, I don’t remember it.

 

[Nudexta]

Hello every one,
I am new to this forum
Hope you all are staying safe and healthy
Congratulations to every one who have passed.
I need some help as I was not able to pass again.
If any one is interested in tutoring and guiding me for the next year I will be very grateful to that person.
I am willing to pay the lessons fee if its ok please don't mind
I have given the exam 3 times and I have done everything possible.
K and S, Focus, BTB, Board Vitals etc. I wanted to have 1 hr lesson once or twice a week starting from jan
Please respond if anyone can help me in this situation it will be very much appreciated.
How can I contact that person?

Thanks
Waiting for the responses as I want to start as soon as possible

One of my friends used a tutor and found it helpful.

 

[mllethenardier]

For those who have taken the boards in the past couple of years, is this 4-6% on neuro actually accurate? I had thought about going through Kaufman's but now it seems very low yield. Thank you!

 

[rjs2131]

For those who have taken the boards in the past couple of years, is this 4-6% on neuro actually accurate? I had thought about going through Kaufman's but now it seems very low yield. Thank you!

Took it last September - very little neuro

 

[JKinSC]

Took it last September - very little neuro

Ditto

 

[JMJM AMDG]

For those who have taken the boards in the past couple of years, is this 4-6% on neuro actually accurate? I had thought about going through Kaufman's but now it seems very low yield. Thank you!

Even though it's 4-6%, that might be the amount you need to pass. I was told Kaufman is good and worth it. Its a 4-6% guaranteed, why not?

 

[rjs2131]

Even though it's 4-6%, that might be the amount you need to pass. I was told Kaufman is good and worth it. Its a 4-6% guaranteed, why not?

I think if you have a ton of extra time to go through Kaufman and are interested in learning detailed neurology, sure...but if the goal is to pass, you'd be much better off using that time to do neuro-focused MCQ's (or just MCQ's in general). As with most of our standardized exams, there's always a degree of "how good of a test taker are you" that tends to matter more than if you've spent hours memorizing random facts/details.

The nice thing about adult boards is that there is a breakdown of specific topics/percentages, so if you're worried about neurology just focus on the topics that they actually test. I don't know of anyone that went through all of Kaufman and found this helpful for the most recent board exam, but it can be useful as a reference.

 

[JMJM AMDG]

I think if you have a ton of extra time to go through Kaufman and are interested in learning detailed neurology, sure...but if the goal is to pass, you'd be much better off using that time to do neuro-focused MCQ's (or just MCQ's in general). As with most of our standardized exams, there's always a degree of "how good of a test taker are you" that tends to matter more than if you've spent hours memorizing random facts/details.

The nice thing about adult boards is that there is a breakdown of specific topics/percentages, so if you're worried about neurology just focus on the topics that they actually test. I don't know of anyone that went through all of Kaufman and found this helpful for the most recent board exam, but it can be useful as a reference.

Thanks for the tip!
I was told to study it but I haven't ventured to do so just yet. True, I generally focused on the high yield and if time permits study the additional or more challenging potential set of topics.

 

[annmarie]

For anyone who took the adult boards in the past 1-3 years, did you find BV or Psych Genius more helpful? I have K&S and BTB from my residency program, but between BV and PG, which one was more reflective and/or more helpful for the boards? I plan on starting my prep in mid June and give it 3 solid months of studying.

 

[nrmp]

I would say none, may get few points here and there but I wouldn't say high yield for the exam and would spend more energy on repeating K&S and BTB, read BTB material well with videos, not a big fan of BTB q-bank though. Hope this helps!

 

[JMJM AMDG]

For anyone who took the adult boards in the past 1-3 years, did you find BV or Psych Genius more helpful? I have K&S and BTB from my residency program, but between BV and PG, which one was more reflective and/or more helpful for the boards? I plan on starting my prep in mid June and give it 3 solid months of studying.

My colleagues told me BV was good for gen psych board. More solid questions than BtB.
I was told BtB was superficial but helpful for those who needs structure and extra review material.

 

[mllethenardier]

I think if you have a ton of extra time to go through Kaufman and are interested in learning detailed neurology, sure...but if the goal is to pass, you'd be much better off using that time to do neuro-focused MCQ's (or just MCQ's in general). As with most of our standardized exams, there's always a degree of "how good of a test taker are you" that tends to matter more than if you've spent hours memorizing random facts/details.

The nice thing about adult boards is that there is a breakdown of specific topics/percentages, so if you're worried about neurology just focus on the topics that they actually test. I don't know of anyone that went through all of Kaufman and found this helpful for the most recent board exam, but it can be useful as a reference.

Thank you so much! That's very helpful. I don't think I'll spend too much time stressing out about neuro then.

 

[rjs2131]

For anyone who took the adult boards in the past 1-3 years, did you find BV or Psych Genius more helpful? I have K&S and BTB from my residency program, but between BV and PG, which one was more reflective and/or more helpful for the boards? I plan on starting my prep in mid June and give it 3 solid months of studying.

I used BTB + PG and felt that was more than adequate. PG isn’t necessarily reflective of the actual exam but I felt like the questions were harder which I liked from a confidence standpoint. Also liked that PG was organized by topic and reasonably priced.

 

[nrmp]

I used BTB + PG and felt that was more than adequate. PG isn’t necessarily reflective of the actual exam but I felt like the questions were harder which I liked from a confidence standpoint. Also liked that PG was organized by topic and reasonably priced.

In my opinion, I wouldn't care how organized topics are if it's not reflective of actual exam. I agree it does have harder questions, some of them more reflective of PRITE but actual exam felt different. Cost does matter but you also need to keep cost of repeat exam fees in consideration.

 

[jdeep]

finally got my certificate

 

[JKinSC]

finally got my certificate

Ooh, I’d forgotten about that! Hopefully tomorrow!

 

[Lanny1403]

I’m in the same boat ! I consider myself quite smart but can’t seem to master the exam and pass ! I don’t even know where to start with resources !

You not alone smiley, ive gone few times too no luck, i have made slow progresses.. now 20 points to pass. I dont know what im doing wrong. No anxiety or time issues and I am studying, done all Q banks out there. want to try psych genius. Dont give up.

 

[Lanny1403]

I needed THREE times to pass. I would agree with reading DSM 5. I found BTB helpful for the "cheat sheets" in the vault and content, but their questions were weak. I used several q banks. There was also a book by Phillip Muskin about the nitty gritty details about diagnoses that I found helpful. One other bonus of BTB is that Dr. Jack will review your exam and give you tips on what to focus on. Congrats to those who passed, to those who didn't I know the pain well and I never thought I would pass, but I did and with a nice margin, give it your all next time and maybe get some advice on how to study from someone who knows you and can sit down with you and review what the problem might be. Maybe it's a lack of knowledge, maybe test taking skills. It's not an easy exam for many and it's a pain in the @ss, but it's doable.

thankyou i have made few attempts too, still cant pin point what my problem is.

 

[futuredo32]

thankyou i have made few attempts too, still cant pin point what my problem is.

If you used BTB, you can email Dr Jack and he will offer some suggestions. 1. Make sure you KNOW the material as good as you think you do. 2. Start studying pretty hard NOW. 3. For me what made a huge difference was doing all of the practice questions I could. I then read the answers and understood why I got the question right OR wrong. It's a tricky exam. 4. Do you have performance anxiety?

 

[deleted1100659]

What did people study for the neurology and psychotherapy portions? those are def my weakest sections. Ive seen people reccomend kauffman but thats like 800 pages? which seems like a ton given that neuro is only 5% of the exam (if i remember correctly)

 

[hebel]

What did people study for the neurology and psychotherapy portions? those are def my weakest sections. Ive seen people reccomend kauffman but thats like 800 pages? which seems like a ton given that neuro is only 5% of the exam (if i remember correctly)

Kaufman is major overkill. I did fine with a combo of K&S and the neuro section from First Aid for step 1 (random, but actually pretty helpful).

 

[wolfvgang22]

The Kenney and Spiegel book is all you need for neuro. Kaufmann, while a good resource, is overkill.

 

[deleted1100659]

What percent correct were people averaging on kenny and spiegel book? First test i got 84% correct but second test dropped to 74%, test was 1/3 neuro..

 

[wolfvgang22]

What percent correct were people averaging on kenny and spiegel book? First test i got 84% correct but second test dropped to 74%, test was 1/3 neuro..

I have no idea how others do but I got over a 90. Didn't really care, it's pass/fail. Not ever gonna do it again anyways what with the MOC article reviews for recertification.

 

[J ROD]

I used Step 1 Neurology section too and found it quite helpful.

 

[deleted1100659]

ugh K and S is so neuro heavy its bringing down my averages. exam 3 I got an 82% but exam 4 dropped to 75% because it was 50 neurology questions and that was by far my lowest average fml. On the flip side, i guess its good its helping me hammer out the neuro stuff.

 

[adaptation1]

ugh K and S is so neuro heavy its bringing down my averages. exam 3 I got an 82% but exam 4 dropped to 75% because it was 50 neurology questions and that was by far my lowest average fml. On the flip side, i guess its good its helping me hammer out the neuro stuff.

I basically knew all the answers to the neuro question on the actual exam. I only used k+s and had a very shoddy neuro background. Make sure to memorize the answer explanations, too. Of note I did not see one metabolic question on my exams. Felt like a waste of time.

 

[futuredo32]

The Kenney and Spiegel book is all you need for neuro. Kaufmann, while a good resource, is overkill.

This isn't true for everyone. I knew it COLD, the questions the explanations, the second time I took it and failed. I would say it is great, but not enough for everyone. I took it 3x to pass and met a few people at the Kauffman review course and others online for BTB who had done K&S , BTB, and still weren't passing. Some people are not good at standardized exams.

 

[deleted1100659]

This isn't true for everyone. I knew it COLD, the questions the explanations, the second time I took it and failed. I would say it is great, but not enough for everyone. I took it 3x to pass and met a few people at the Kauffman review course and others online for BTB who had done K&S , BTB, and still weren't passing. Some people are not good at standardized exams.

Do you feel that the exam was testing gaps in your knowledge/bizarre questions or that you arent a strong standardized exam test taker and that was the main reason?

 

[futuredo32]

Do you feel that the exam was testing gaps in your knowledge/bizarre questions or that you arent a strong standardized exam test taker and that was the main reason?

Not a good standardized test taker, largely due to anxiety and ADHD, knowledge gaps in neuro and bizarre questions, particularly vignettes. So multifactorial. Guessing anxiety is the biggest factor for me, did great on practice MCATs, PRITE where there was no downside to not doing well or upside to doing well.

 

[deleted1100659]

Did anyone else find the psych genius clinical vignettes to be ridiculously hard? My average on every other question bank was 10-20% higher..

 

[blueglassez]

I’ll start a new group for BTB beat the boards group discount. Send me your email and we ll see how many we can get by the end of this week.

 

[adaptation1]

Did anyone else find the psych genius clinical vignettes to be ridiculously hard? My average on every other question bank was 10-20% higher..

I seriously would not worry about percentages for pg vignettes. They are nothing like the real exam in content or form. I didn’t know any of those questions and still did well on the exam. The best way to study vignettes is just to know the material. I wish I had known that.

 

[Freddie Mercury]

There was very little neuro on my exam (September 2020,) and what little neuro there was, it was much more basic than K&S. No lateral medullary syndrome and stuff like that. Just "man left arm is weak. which side of brain has damage?"

 

[deleted1100659]

I seriously would not worry about percentages for pg vignettes. They are nothing like the real exam in content or form. I didn’t know any of those questions and still did well on the exam. The best way to study vignettes is just to know the material. I wish I had known that.

thank you, i feel like psych genius was a waste and ultimately impossible questions half the time..

 

[lockian]

thank you, i feel like psych genius was a waste and ultimately impossible questions half the time..

Thought I’d take my thread here since I realized it was redundant.

I am studying right now and have about 1 mos of dedicated study time set aside.

BTB is a bit too easy (80 plus scores), and psychiatry boards prep is too challenging with lots of details from studies and epidemiology (sometimes scores as low as 50). My K and S scores hover around 80, but I just have the question book and don’t really like that I can’t group questions by topic.

Not sure if I need to be freaking out or not.

 

[deleted1100659]

Thought I’d take my thread here since I realized it was redundant.

I am studying right now and have about 1 mos of dedicated study time set aside.

BTB is a bit too easy (80 plus scores), and psychiatry boards prep is too challenging with lots of details from studies and epidemiology (sometimes scores as low as 50). My K and S scores hover around 80, but I just have the question book and don’t really like that I can’t group questions by topic.

Not sure if I need to be freaking out or not.

Hey man, you can keep in touch with me on study progress. Im pretty open. To give you an idea: I did KS on online timed test mode, averaged low 80s with 2 outliers in the 70s.

BTB around 80% overall but i rushed through it and kinda glazed it half the time.

BV was around 74% overall

psychiatry boards prep, 100% agree with you. Nearly 500 questions in, wtf are these questions? I would say 1/2 of them are insanely obscure details, my avg there is 60% lol. Also some of their stuff is blatantly wrong. I guess ill finish it but I dont know if its even helpful..Also did you notice their QB has like nothing on diagnosis/treatment? The vast majority of their questions are just which percent is correct or something very minute/obscure.

I also made flash cards via anki of BTB lectures and I dont think ive seen any info for PBP questions on any of the BTB lectures..

 

[lockian]

Hey man, you can keep in touch with me on study progress. Im pretty open. To give you an idea: I did KS on online timed test mode, averaged low 80s with 2 outliers in the 70s.

BTB around 80% overall but i rushed through it and kinda glazed it half the time.

BV was around 74% overall

psychiatry boards prep, 100% agree with you. Nearly 500 questions in, wtf are these questions? I would say 1/2 of them are insanely obscure details, my avg there is 60% lol. Also some of their stuff is blatantly wrong. I guess ill finish it but I dont know if its even helpful..Also did you notice their QB has like nothing on diagnosis/treatment? The vast majority of their questions are just which percent is correct or something very minute/obscure.

I also made flash cards via anki of BTB lectures and I dont think ive seen any info for PBP questions on any of the BTB lectures..

Yeah, Psychiatry boards prep was recommended highly on SDN, so I thought I'd try it, but I'm glad I am not the only one with that experience.

I polled my residency, lol, since most people took the test last year, and everyone did BTB qbank +/- lectures. Everyone felt it was appropriate preparation and passed. One person did BV instead and thought it was pretty representative of the test too.

I just have K&S question book in PDF form that someone gave me, and that's what I used to take the tests. How do you get online access to K&S? Also, do they have a qbank or just the tests in online format?

Sure, I'd be happy to keep in touch.

 

[thomasina]

Does anybody have opinions on Rosh Review? The free questions seem pretty soild and I like their explanations more than boardvitals.

 

[deleted1100659]

i havent personally used it but isnt it a bit expensive, like 500 for the q bank?

 

[thomasina]

i havent personally used it but isnt it a bit expensive, like 500 for the q bank?

Yeah you are right. Board Vitals is more reasonably priced.

 

[blazer123]

I am about to renew my California Medical Board License this fall and passed the ABPN this year. I read somewhere on the forum that if you did pass the ABPN Board Certification, you get 100 CME credit that can be used to renew California Medical Board License? Is there anywhere that documents that or would I need do anything special to get this credit.

 

[BeornBear]

I'm planning on using the KS book and BoardVitals for boards prep. Would this be a good combination?