Here to motivate you: Large Step 1 to Step 2 score increases

[GatorDoc77]

I wanted to start this thread to give hope to those individuals who did poorly on step 1 and who people keep advising that scores dont increase much on step 2. I had an advisor tell me not to bother taking step 2 early as I had planned because I did poorly on step 1 even though I passed and I risked failing step 2. Well I didnt follow their advice and I'm glad I didnt. Check below.

Step 1- 185
Step 2- 237
Net- (+) 52 pts

I'm sure plenty of us have experienced similar situations. Good luck to all of you!

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[turkdlit]

I wanted to start this thread to give hope to those individuals who did poorly on step 1 and who people keep advising that scores dont increase much on step 2. I had an advisor tell me not to bother taking step 2 early as I had planned because I did poorly on step 1 even though I passed and I risked failing step 2. Well I didnt follow their advice and I'm glad I didnt. Check below.

Step 1- 185
Step 2- 237
Net- (+) 52 pts

I'm sure plenty of us have experienced similar situations. Good luck to all of you!

Congrats Gator! That's impressive....mind sharing you strategy/study plan?

 

[GatorDoc77]

Sure thing. Well, I learned a lot from my 3rd yr clerkships and always did right about above average on most of the shelf exams. So I feel like I learned and retained a decent amount from them. When I started studying for Step 2 I was reading crush step 2 while doing questions on UW. I was doing horrible on UW at first. The info on Crush was just not cutting it. I feel like I learned the most from UW and recognizing different patient presentations.

I also ended up reading step 2 secrets, which in hindsight I wouldn't have gone through Crush bc its the same author and basically the same info but written in a different format. I feel that the secrets book presented the info in a way that helped me remember stuff better.

I did UW questions all throughout and mostly random. Sometimes I did in the 70's sometimes in the 50's, but I focused on just learning from the answers whether I got them wrong or right. In the end I had about 61-62% correct.

The day of my exam I showed up and they wouldnt let me take it bc my Drivers license had expired at the beginning of that month! I was so stressed and ended up having to reschedule for 2 weeks later. And what killed me is that I had a vacation planned for the week after the original exam date. I went on vacation anyways and did not touch a book. I figured that not much info would leak out.

When I got back I decided to test the theory and took an NBME assessment and scored a 231. I found it to be fairly easy as I had so much time left and that caused me to be overconfident with 3 days till my exam. So those 3 days I did light review.

When I took my exam I felt so flustered at times but I told myself that I put in a good 5 weeks into this and there is no reason to feel bad. I did what I could and whatever I earned is what I deserved. So of course, after finishing I felt like crap. The questions were much more challenging than the NBME assessment but I guess in the end you know the info if you know it. 3 weeks later I got my score and I am so glad I put in the time.

To summarize I would do this:
1) 1 Review book (FA, Step up to Medicine, or Crush)
2) USMLE world!!!! (do ALL of the questions)
3) Step 2 secrets
4) NBME assessment a few days before the exam

 

[BushBaby]

Congrats man. I have to dance to the music next week. I just finished UW today and I hope to go thru my wrong answers and read my notes by next week.
I read crush and secrets but I will not re-read them again before the exam as I still haven't mastered the art of reading what I DON'T know. So to make things easier, I will just go over my wrong answers and read the notes I made with UW...

 

[kgal1]

Step 1 first attempt: Failed with 169
Step 1 second attempt: Passed with 194
Step 2: Passed with 228

Net +59 from first step 1 attempt; net +34 from second step 1 attempt

and i sucked on shelf exams - around 30%ile

 

[icare4u]

Step 1 - 191
Step 2 - 228

Not as great an improvement as some of the others, but still good for me. Only studied about 2 1/2 weeks. (Not something I would recommend) I know I could have done better if I had had more time.

 

[Salt Creep]

Step 1 - 191
Step 2 - 226
net +35

I consistently am a little less than average. (which, BTW, I consider an honor to be called even close to average among a highly selected group of very bright and hard-working people)

 

[Pixye1]

wow just got my score today

step I: 217
step II: 241

i studied for 3 weeks and just used usmleworld and FA CK memorized the USMLEworld answers...i am in shock!

 

[chocomorsel]

Thought I'd add my thoughts.
Step 1 - 210.
Step 2 - 242.

What can I say, I'm ecstatic. I was a below average student first and second year, and slightly above average third year shelfs on all rotations except medicine. I know this is gonna open more doors for me for anesthesia. Yeh!!!

 

[Terpskins99]

I wanted to start this thread to give hope to those individuals who did poorly on step 1 and who people keep advising that scores dont increase much on step 2. I had an advisor tell me not to bother taking step 2 early as I had planned because I did poorly on step 1 even though I passed and I risked failing step 2. Well I didnt follow their advice and I'm glad I didnt. Check below.

Step 1- 185
Step 2- 237
Net- (+) 52 pts

I'm sure plenty of us have experienced similar situations. Good luck to all of you!

Holy friggin cow... that is insane. Great job, man!

I'm always more impressed by people that can pull turnarounds from poor initial showings over those that score 250's/260's right off the bat. That takes a heck of a lot of determination, and its always inspiring to read stories like this.

 

[Becky]

congrats on the improvement. please tell us how you did it. thanks

Thought I'd add my thoughts.
Step 1 - 210.
Step 2 - 242.

What can I say, I'm ecstatic. I was a below average student first and second year, and slightly above average third year shelfs on all rotations except medicine. I know this is gonna open more doors for me for anesthesia. Yeh!!!

 

[chocomorsel]

Studied for 3.5 weeks. Arverage 7 hrs a day. 62% first time average on UW.
Did slightly above avg on all the shelfs except medicine (poor) and peds (extremely well)
Read FA almost twice. On second round I got to the last three sections and quit. It was getting redudant.
I did all UW, and took some notes in FA. I read all the answers to all the questions even when I got them right, because I wanted to know why the others where wrong.
Reviewed about 200/800 of the questions I missed concentrating on my weak areas of medicine and ob/gyn.
Prayed before the exam

Honestly I've always been a practical person who thinks of the big picture and not mindless minutia. Most of the questions were "what would you next" and diagnosis questions which make a lot of sense. All that crappy biochem and molecular bio involving pathways and chemicals in step 1 just doesn't make sense to me. How patients are treated makes almost perfect sence.

 

[phycician0716]

Does Not Always Happen The Same Way As You Think. My Score Is An Example.
I Got 96(231) On Step-1
But What A Rubbish Score Of 83(203)
On Step-2ck.
For Step-2ck I Had Also Done The Whole Of U. World. Also Studied The First Aid.studied Kaplan Notes And Q. Book As Well.
I Have An Outstanding Memory Power As All My Friends Acknowledge,but Of No Use Was It To Me In Step-2ck Exam.

 

[superoxide]

Does Not Always Happen The Same Way As You Think. My Score Is An Example.
I Got 96(231) On Step-1
But What A Rubbish Score Of 83(203)
On Step-2ck.
For Step-2ck I Had Also Done The Whole Of U. World. Also Studied The First Aid.studied Kaplan Notes And Q. Book As Well.
I Have An Outstanding Memory Power As All My Friends Acknowledge,but Of No Use Was It To Me In Step-2ck Exam.

You forgot to capitalize there

and in none of the messages is it claimed that it "does not always happen".

 

[ZekeMD]

You forgot to capitalize there

and in none of the messages is it claimed that it "does not always happen".

That was pretty uncalled for. The OP meant the message to bring people down to earth and not go in with the expectation of a stellar score....but to certainly try your best. Have tact

 

[superoxide]

That was pretty uncalled for. The OP meant the message to bring people down to earth and not go in with the expectation of a stellar score....but to certainly try your best. Have tact

I didn't mean to be tactless. If I was, I'm sorry.

No one should simply just expect that you will get a stellar score. That would just be foolish. The above posters didn't intend to give that impression and I think "phycician0716" thought that they did.

 

[ZekeMD]

I didn't mean to be tactless. If I was, I'm sorry.

No one should simply just expect that you will get a stellar score. That would just be foolish. The above posters didn't intend to give that impression and I think "phycician0716" thought that they did.

Fair enough

 

[Pyelonephritis]

Just wanted to let everyone know that it is possible....don't ever give up hope.

Step I - 204(83)
Step II - 241(99)
Net +37 points

I am absolutely thrilled with my score. After taking Step I, I felt horrible listening to my classmates who seemed to all get 240+. I really wanted to make up for my below average performance on Step I by doing well on Step II. I actually cried when I got my score, I was that happy. It can be done.

 

[zoomer peanut]

step 1-191
step 2 CK-226

 

[Medguy2008]

As someone above posted after I took step 1 I felt like crap and everyone I knew seemed to have gotten a 240 or better on step 1. ( I go to a top 20 med school). Needless to say I felt more than inadequate. Despite this I worked hard in my third year and scored usually a little better than average on the shelfs throughout the year. I knew if I studied hard I could do well. I took the first month off during my fourth year and studied my butt off for 3 weeks for about 10-12 hours a day. I used FA, Step 2 secrets (which is basically the same as doing CRUSH) and USMLE World (which is the best study source in my opinion). I ended up with about 64% correct on world. I also took 2 NBME exams. I took NBME test 1 3 days into studying and got a 210. I took NBME test 2 10 days into studying and got a 204. These scores made me nervous but I still had 1.5 weeks to study after taking my second test. It turns out it things worked in my favor.

Step 1 - 198 (81)
Step 2 - 246 (99)
Net increase +48

It can happen. If you don't do well on step 1 its not the end of the world. Work hard in 3rd year and do what is necessary to put your best foot forward for step 2. Best of luck to you all!

 

[zinc]

step I 210
step 2 232

 

[Serendipity100]

For those of you who scored low on step 1 and high on step 2, your stories are truly inspirational and thank you for sharing them. I recently got my Step 1 score and although I PASSED (thank God I did) I scored low (198).

With a low Step 1 and a high Step 2 score, what do you think are one's chances of getting in an IM (finally GI or Cardio), ER, Neuro, Anest.,...?

Do high step 2 scores make up for low step 1 performance given US graduate and research/publications.

 

[Ypo.]

For those of you who scored low on step 1 and high on step 2, your stories are truly inspirational and thank you for sharing them. I recently got my Step 1 score and although I PASSED (thank God I did) I scored low (198).

With a low Step 1 and a high Step 2 score, what do you think are one's chances of getting in an IM (finally GI or Cardio), ER, Neuro, Anest.,...?

Do high step 2 scores make up for low step 1 performance given US graduate and research/publications.

From what I have read the main reason step 1 is rated more highly is because all applicants will have taken it by the time they apply for residency. I don't know if there are other reasons.

Does it make up for low step 1 scores? No, but I'm sure it helps.

 

[thackl]

Congrats to all who had big score increases. I hope it help your app's and will carry over to In-Training-Exams and future boards. I just got my CK back and can say that I need to study and do practice Q's to do well. I went from a 99 to an 89 but only read through FA for CK

 

[jpro]

step 1: 228
step 2: 253

 

[Terpskins99]

For those of you who scored low on step 1 and high on step 2, your stories are truly inspirational and thank you for sharing them. I recently got my Step 1 score and although I PASSED (thank God I did) I scored low (198).

With a low Step 1 and a high Step 2 score, what do you think are one's chances of getting in an IM (finally GI or Cardio), ER, Neuro, Anest.,...?

Do high step 2 scores make up for low step 1 performance given US graduate and research/publications.

You can look it up yourself.

http://www.nrmp.org/data/matchoutcomes2006.pdf

Of the residencies you listed, the majority of candidates that applied with below-average Step I scores still matched into their specialty of choice (even ER and anesthesia). As long as you do well on rotations (particularly during your visiting rotations), you should do just fine. Good luck.

 

[Serendipity100]

Thanks

You can look it up yourself.

http://www.nrmp.org/data/matchoutcomes2006.pdf

Of the residencies you listed, the majority of candidates that applied with below-average Step I scores still matched into their specialty of choice (even ER and anesthesia). As long as you do well on rotations (particularly during your visiting rotations), you should do just fine. Good luck.

 

[orthogenes]

anyone have more recent inspirations to add?

 

[valid username]

Maybe Wednesday.

 

[deleted875240]

Step 1: 204
Step 2: 240
+ 36 points

I wanted to write this because I was in the position several months ago where I wasn't sure I could do it myself. After reading through all the forums it seemed like everyone who tended to improve did very well in 3rd year on their shelf exams and seemed to somehow pull out a high score magically. My experience was very different and one that shows that if you work hard and study for this test in isolation you can make some significant improvements even if you did not do well prior to this. All throughout my third year, I scored below average on almost all of my shelf exams and then failed the exam prior to entering my STEP 2 study period. Needless to say, I was very discouraged when I started but was driven to prove myself.

Strategies that worked:
1. Allot a significant amount of time to build a solid foundation (I took 2 full months to study for this) and studied about 10-12 hours a day. I was quite regimented in my approach, but also gave myself time to exercise and cook to maintain my sanity. That last part is important, I actually ended up enjoying the studying process this way.

2. Use only a few resources, with UWORLD questions being the most important one. In my research the biggest flaw that many students who consider themselves "poor test takers" had was poor recall. So its not only important to DO the UWORLD questions but review them (ie take notes on things you missed, make flashcards and review those periodically so you see these things over and over again).For books, I used MTB for subjects that were not medicine and STEP UP TO MEDICINE as the book specific to medicine. Remember, I had a poor foundation overall and had to build that back up. Then I used the Memorang STEP 2CK Flash Cards to review concepts that I did not understand. I did everything in unison and split things up by subjects and took about 2-3 days per subject.

3. Practice Tests- I did 1 NBME half way through which was encouraging because it showed that I did not fail (228) and then took a UWSA 3 days before my actual test and scored very close to the real thing (about 7 points more). This was helpful because I was able to go into the test with confidence knowing that I did the best I could to prepare.

4. The week of- I slept early and woke up early to make sure that I would have enough sleep on the day of. Its a LONG test and easy to get tired. Pack snacks and coffee that don't make you crash go in there with a positive mentality. I felt terrible after I left but when I got my score I cried out of happiness because of all the self-doubt that led me to that moment.

I really think that if I can improve this much after doing terribly all throughout third year and on my STEP 1, than anyone can. Good luck guys!

 

[valid username]

210 to 242.

+32.

 

[Sciengee]

.

 

[Anicetus]

Reading disability here. Didn't use accommodations.

Step 1: low 230's
Step 2ck: 255. >20point increase.

 

[valarmorghulis1]

Wanted to contribute to this thread in hopes that it will keep some hope alive for some of you who don't feel good about their Step 1.

My stats:
Step 1: 219 (don't know if this will screen me out for EM)
- UWSA 1: 254
- UWSA 2: 251
- real Step 2 CK: 257
- studied for 3 weeks only using UW. Went though first pass during third year, a second pass during dedicated, then incorrects over the last few days.
- I felt like I had failed after I left the testing center. Flagged about 80% of questions in each block. Cannot believe my score. Thought the real test was much harder than UWSAs.

 

[Blazor28]

Step 1: 204
Step 2: 240
+ 36 points

I wanted to write this because I was in the position several months ago where I wasn't sure I could do it myself. After reading through all the forums it seemed like everyone who tended to improve did very well in 3rd year on their shelf exams and seemed to somehow pull out a high score magically. My experience was very different and one that shows that if you work hard and study for this test in isolation you can make some significant improvements even if you did not do well prior to this. All throughout my third year, I scored below average on almost all of my shelf exams and then failed the exam prior to entering my STEP 2 study period. Needless to say, I was very discouraged when I started but was driven to prove myself.

Strategies that worked:
1. Allot a significant amount of time to build a solid foundation (I took 2 full months to study for this) and studied about 10-12 hours a day. I was quite regimented in my approach, but also gave myself time to exercise and cook to maintain my sanity. That last part is important, I actually ended up enjoying the studying process this way.

2. Use only a few resources, with UWORLD questions being the most important one. In my research the biggest flaw that many students who consider themselves "poor test takers" had was poor recall. So its not only important to DO the UWORLD questions but review them (ie take notes on things you missed, make flashcards and review those periodically so you see these things over and over again).For books, I used MTB for subjects that were not medicine and STEP UP TO MEDICINE as the book specific to medicine. Remember, I had a poor foundation overall and had to build that back up. Then I used the Memorang STEP 2CK Flash Cards to review concepts that I did not understand. I did everything in unison and split things up by subjects and took about 2-3 days per subject.

3. Practice Tests- I did 1 NBME half way through which was encouraging because it showed that I did not fail (228) and then took a UWSA 3 days before my actual test and scored very close to the real thing (about 7 points more). This was helpful because I was able to go into the test with confidence knowing that I did the best I could to prepare.

4. The week of- I slept early and woke up early to make sure that I would have enough sleep on the day of. Its a LONG test and easy to get tired. Pack snacks and coffee that don't make you crash go in there with a positive mentality. I felt terrible after I left but when I got my score I cried out of happiness because of all the self-doubt that led me to that moment.

I really think that if I can improve this much after doing terribly all throughout third year and on my STEP 1, than anyone can. Good luck guys!

Hey did you match into internal medicine finally?
I am in the same boat now and am aiming for IM

 

[OlivesandChips]

Comlex level 1: 393 (F), 488 retake (probably a 210 on step; just took COMLEX)

Step 2 CK: 258, Comlex level 2 CE: 618

 

[train2]

Comlex level 1: 393 (F), 488 retake (probably a 210 on step; just took COMLEX)

Step 2 CK: 258, Comlex level 2 CE: 618

Hey big congrats on the amazing scores. If you can can you please elaborate on how u prepared for ck. Thanks

 

[OlivesandChips]

• UWorld (started in January 2019; sat for exam in June, made flashcards in their app on missed questions but only reviewed maybe a third of the ones I made)
• Online Med Ed
• Step Up to medicine, read during clerkship
• First aid for the psychiatry clerkship, read during clerkship
• First aid for the OBGYN clerkship, read during clerkship
  
  *Started scheduling “easier” rotations about two months out

One month out, had two weeks of an online pharm elective and two weeks of dedicated

• Had finished UWorld once (~2,800 Qs) and reset the question bank; on second pass finished half of the available questions before sitting for the exam
• Rewatched Online Med Ed only in weak areas (based on practice exam score reports)
• Reviewed Step Up to Medicine only in weak areas (based on practice exam scores) AND on any question i
• Took UWorld’s self assessment one (UWSA1) two weeks out (predicted 252)
• Took UWorld’s self assessment two (UWSA2) one week out (predicted 249)
• Took NBOME’s COMSAE D one week out (predicted 679)
• Took NBME 6 two days out (predicted 237; however score report indicates most students score about 10 points higher than this score)