Discrepancy between UWorld QBank Performance and NBMEs

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anonymous56

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I’m currently at 74% correct for UWorld, and my last 6 blocks were averaging 76.6% with only mild variability. However, my last NMBE a week ago was a 231. I’ve been using Gunner Training mostly, and First Aid, with only a small amount of UWorld until this past NBME showed me that I wasn’t where I wanted to be. Since last week I’ve been doing a block a day to see if doing questions would help out my score more than pure content, and I’ve gone from 20% --> 30% completion (650 questions completed).

Using those online formulas for UWorld percentages and scores I should be sitting in the high 250’s, and though I understand they are inaccurate, shouldn’t I at least be around 240 by now?

Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks

PS: This is kind of a silly question, but can anyone confirm that during the actual exam the timer counts backwards from 60 mins? I’m trying to memorize time-posts for where I should be at time-wise on certain questions.

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I wouldnt place much weight on anything other than nbmes. The percentage that you need to get correct on Uworld practice exams to get into the 250 are low 80s, for the same thing on the nbmes you need >90%. To be honest I didnt find the uworld practice exams to be much harder than the nbmes to justify the discrepancy. Even if the questions are easier on the nbmes, it becomes really difficult to miss a really low number of questions, just due to the fact that your bound to misread a few and make stupid mistakes on other questions... I think thats really the barrier to scoring into the 260s on the real thing.
 
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Well I scored 226 on NBME 11 today. What the hell.... I'm sooo distraught over my performance. How can I be doing so relatively well on Uworld but sucking on the NBMEs..... HELP!!!!
 
Is this your second pass in UWorld?

Are you doing all questions or based on whatever subject you are reviewing that day?
 
Well I scored 226 on NBME 11 today. What the hell.... I'm sooo distraught over my performance. How can I be doing so relatively well on Uworld but sucking on the NBMEs..... HELP!!!!

If you're scoring that high on UWorld on a consistent basis, your knowledge of the material is there. Odds are it's your test taking that needs work. Did you review your answers? If so, did you have a lot of stupid mistakes?
 
If you're scoring that high on UWorld on a consistent basis, your knowledge of the material is there. Odds are it's your test taking that needs work. Did you review your answers? If so, did you have a lot of stupid mistakes?

Completely, completely agree with this. Every time I review one of my NBMEs, I find that often times I missed the question because of an error in my thought process and not necessarily the content itself. It makes me feel a little better knowing that I could have done better.
 
If you're scoring that high on UWorld on a consistent basis, your knowledge of the material is there. Odds are it's your test taking that needs work. Did you review your answers? If so, did you have a lot of stupid mistakes?

I quickly went over them and most of them were slight gaps in knowledge where I had it down to 2 answers. Im konda of in an emotional funk though so ill look closer tonight
 
The problem is how do you alleviate that...slowing down? or just practicing more questions? I've noticed the same problem with my NBMEs also...

...I have similar stats with the OP - it can get a lil annoying.
 
Completely, completely agree with this. Every time I review one of my NBMEs, I find that often times I missed the question because of an error in my thought process and not necessarily the content itself. It makes me feel a little better knowing that I could have done better.

UWorlds awesome, but their questions make me incredibly over-think every freaking detail.

For example, a question about Thiopental's re-distribution. Chose skeletal muscle, then I talked myself out of it and put the pancreas due to the peripancreatic fat. Like ridiculous stuff. Atleast 6% of other answerers went with the same thing, so it's a common mistake. Haha.
 
Completely, completely agree with this. Every time I review one of my NBMEs, I find that often times I missed the question because of an error in my thought process and not necessarily the content itself. It makes me feel a little better knowing that I could have done better.

The problem is how do you alleviate that...slowing down? or just practicing more questions? I've noticed the same problem with my NBMEs also...

...I have similar stats with the OP - it can get a lil annoying.

I was in the same place as you, and honestly still might be. I got a 228 on NBME 7 last Saturday, then I got a 247 on NBME 11 yesterday, but who knows if that was a fluke.
The thing that really helped me yesterday was reading every answer and thinking of a specific detail that makes that answer incorrect. Don't just jump at something right away. Re-read both the question and ALL the answers.
 
UWorlds awesome, but their questions make me incredibly over-think every freaking detail.

For example, a question about Thiopental's re-distribution. Chose skeletal muscle, then I talked myself out of it and put the pancreas due to the peripancreatic fat. Like ridiculous stuff. Atleast 6% of other answerers went with the same thing, so it's a common mistake. Haha.

This is an absolutely perfect example of how UW is sucking the life out of me.
 
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