Emergency help

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

FMGFTW

New Member
10+ Year Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2008
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
Hey guys, so I have 3 weeks to study for Step 1, and all I want to do is pass (185+). I have two options:

1st option
Complete all of USMLE World
Know BRS Path inside and out
Know FA Pharm inside and out

OR

2nd option
Complete all of USMLE World
Know First Aid inside and out

Please list other options I could do to help me simply PASS Step 1. Thanks 🙂.
 
Last edited:
Neither. They both have a fundamental problem - there is no need to 100% finish USMLE World! Review is really important too. Here's what I would do (and I only studied 3 weeks, BTW):

1. Do as much of USMLE World as you can reasonably do. 1-2 blocks a day, review the answers thoroughly (even the ones you got wrong). Figure 1 hour for each block of questions and 1 hour for review. I did about 50% of USMLE World, and that was plenty of practice.
2. Get through First Aid. You can do this in 3 weeks, very reasonably.
3. BRS Path - definitely! If you like this approach, you can read each section directly after you go over the corresponding section in FA. Then look back at FA to see if there are any spots you need to go over in BRS again. I spent 1-2 days per subject/system in my 3 week schedule.

I also added BRS Phys - it corresponded nicely with FA and BRS Path and was a pretty quick read.

But, lastly, since I don't know your background at all, I have no idea what you need to do to pass. I think what I listed above will give you a good comprehensive review and should be fine if you just need to brush up on things, but 3 weeks does not give you much time if you are truly weak in any subjects and need intensive review. It's really important to objectively evaluate your strengths and weaknesses (not just what subjects/systems you like or dislike) and budget your time accordingly.
 
The above are good advices.

If I were you, I would definitely prioritize to read the first Aid at least twice. Definitely do about 1 block of UWorld per day to get used to the reasoning and not so much the content. It is okay not to finish UWorld. You may wanna take NBME at least a week before the exam and hit hard on several subjects that the test indicates your weaknesses. Then cool down with another run of first Aid before the exam. You can double speed on Kaplan for path if you have extra time or listen to Goljan on go. Good luck!
 
Top