How do you keep UWorld from killing your confidence!?

Started by Blondnuttyboy
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Blondnuttyboy

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Hey everyone,

I take my test in a week (awesome). Anyway, per popular advice, I'm planning on drilling 100-200q UWorld everyday. My only issue is: how on EARTH do you not let this thing kill your confidence!?

I can go 230-240 on an NBME no problem. But in world, I'm lucky to get a 70% on random. I usually land a good 55-65%. I'm trying my best to just use it as a 'learning' tool or whatever the website says.

Anyone have anything incredibly great to say about this mood-killing q-bank?

😱
 
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By reading the front page disclaimer over and over again... the part that mentions that this bank is meant to be a learning tool, not an assessment of your knowledge. Ingrain it to your mind as you work on it, and your scores will improve.
 
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I agree with Greg. Doing 100-200q without reading and learning the explanations is totally useless. It's better to do less number of questions and read more explanations because you're going to learn a lot.
 
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It took me 2 hrs to do 35 question the other day on UWorld.. it should take you a long time too if you are doing it properly (although maybe not that long haha)

make sure you read the answer explanations for all the choices even if the question was a no brainer for u. A lot of times I find that one of the wrong answers that I didnt even consider was a drug or something I've never even heard of before and then I flip to FA and bam, there it is. and I'm like, how did I miss this.

and that happens on questions people get 80% right sometimes too... so READ EVERYTHING.
 
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Uworld is a great learning tool. I probably could have just went through that qbank and read all the descriptions and done nothing else and done really well on step 1.

As for the confidence part I did 80% of world my final week before the exam and was consistently getting between 70-73% and practice exams were 247-255 so don't let it ruin your confidence, if you can get 65% right and you're still learning from it then you are in great shape.
 
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This is my strategy:

1. Don't be a poon
2. Keep doing UWorld

My first pass through UWorld, without any studying beforehand (i.e., I don't read a chapter and then go do questions... I just jump right in and do questions) was 45%. Now that I've been through it a couple more times, I'm consistently in the 70's, and I'm killing it on other Qbanks too. I have not done an NBME yet, but I don't care. I have learned a ton from UW.
 
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Blondnuttyboy said:
Hey everyone,

I take my test in a week (awesome). Anyway, per popular advice, I'm planning on drilling 100-200q UWorld everyday. My only issue is: how on EARTH do you not let this thing kill your confidence!?

I can go 230-240 on an NBME no problem. But in world, I'm lucky to get a 70% on random. I usually land a good 55-65%. I'm trying my best to just use it as a 'learning' tool or whatever the website says.

Anyone have anything incredibly great to say about this mood-killing q-bank?

😱
Click to expand...

I stopped using it for a couple days. It was demoralizing. I recognize its power as a learning tool but the constant missing questions contributed to burnout feeling for me. Gonna start again though..
 
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How much did you guys average on second run of UW?

Do you think this has any correlation to the actual thing or the first pass average correlates best?
 
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metalrex said:
How much did you guys average on second run of UW?

Do you think this has any correlation to the actual thing or the first pass average correlates best?
Click to expand...

I don't think there would be any real correlation.. I can remember questions I got wrong 6 months ago just by a hunch I can't even explain... i highly doubt I'll go through UW twice, unless i run out of things to do.
 
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Again something on a second run of UW :

Did you guys read like the whole page or did you stick to edu objectives and the answer exp alone on your second pass?

Which do you think works best? I am jamming in lots of qs everyday and thus doing only the edu obj and answer rationales so just wanted to make sure I am doing this the right way.
 
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How about this for killing confidence? I accidentally suspended a test that I made a while ago but never got to take (thinking I was just ending the block). My UWorld percentage dropped A LOT, and the questions are now in the 'omitted' category! 🙁

Is there any way to put those questions back in th unused group? It's such a waste of questions...
 
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"you are not your test scores"~my good old ap english teacher
lol...I got really low practice scores for the ap chem exam, but then killed the ap chem exam. I know aps are just pint sized compared to other tests, but I saw this thread on the main page and thought I would add my 2 cents. I think practice tests are sometimes harder than the actual test. Or some people just work better under pressure.
 
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Keep up with UWorld even if you think it's killing you. I started doing Rx again yesterday so I didn't start memorizing UW questions, and I'm remembering very quickly why I never looked back after starting UW. The questions aren't written well, and the explanations are even worse. Rx is also infinitely more straightforward (read: requires much less thought) than UW and is thus not anywhere near as useful of a learning tool. The difference is staggering. "[Correct answer] is a type of [incorrect answer]..." So...don't have both as answer choices. :annoyed:
 
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metalrex said:
Again something on a second run of UW :

Did you guys read like the whole page or did you stick to edu objectives and the answer exp alone on your second pass?

Which do you think works best? I am jamming in lots of qs everyday and thus doing only the edu obj and answer rationales so just wanted to make sure I am doing this the right way.
Click to expand...

Anybody has something to say on this?😕
 
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mq123 said:
How about this for killing confidence? I accidentally suspended a test that I made a while ago but never got to take (thinking I was just ending the block). My UWorld percentage dropped A LOT, and the questions are now in the 'omitted' category! 🙁

Is there any way to put those questions back in th unused group? It's such a waste of questions...
Click to expand...

go to the previous tests tab and select "resume" for that test 😉
 
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yes it really kills the confidence!! however, when you relate your percentage to the score predictive curve at the clinical review website,, It makes you feel better 🙂
UW is definitely the best learning tool..
 
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FrickenhugeMD said:
go to the previous tests tab and select "resume" for that test 😉
Click to expand...

Thanks so much!! I totally didn't see that I could resume the test, since it was showing I had a 0% in it instead of ?%. I did the questions and they moved out from the omitted bank! 👍
 
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metalrex said:
Again something on a second run of UW :

Did you guys read like the whole page or did you stick to edu objectives and the answer exp alone on your second pass?

Which do you think works best? I am jamming in lots of qs everyday and thus doing only the edu obj and answer rationales so just wanted to make sure I am doing this the right way.
Click to expand...

I plan on going thru UW again in a period of 12-14 days and don't think I will read any more than the general explanation & EO. That would take way too long as I'd have to be able to make a pass thru FA & read what I've highlighted in RR Path as well.

Did you highlight any of the UW explanations the first time around? Do those automatically show up when you make your 2nd run thru the questions?
 
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natureboy said:
Did you highlight any of the UW explanations the first time around? Do those automatically show up when you make your 2nd run thru the questions?
Click to expand...

Yes, the highlighted parts show up, provided you don't reset the whole thing or create a new test block.

My sub was for 3 months,for the 2nd run - what I do is create new tests ,timed mode, 'all' and go ahead with like 4-5 blocks each day.I mark the ones I had trouble with or incorrect and do em again later. I keep highlights to a minimum since I did that on my first run, now it's more of a quick read through of the exp and edu obj.
 
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I read the explanations thoroughly on my repeat passes. You can't see this stuff enough, and the explanations are easy to understand.

I also don't care if I do a block of 48 and I miss every single one. Probably my best day of board studying to date came on a day where I got 29% on a block of 48.
 
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Blondnuttyboy said:
I can go 230-240 on an NBME no problem. But in world, I'm lucky to get a 70% on random. I usually land a good 55-65%. I'm trying my best to just use it as a 'learning' tool or whatever the website says.
😱
Click to expand...

I think that makes sense; it seems that the percent correct roughly correlates to percentile. So if you get a 66%, and are in the 66th percentile, that puts you at one STD from the mean (which is around 240 for the actual test?)
 
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Is it normal to see day-to-day variation in your UWorld percentages? I do two blocks every day, and some days I'm averaging 70s and some days I barely make the 60s. Also, within the 2 blocks I do per day, I'll get a 65% or 70% on one block and 55% on the other :scared: I was wondering if this is weird?

(FYI I'm almost half-way through my first pass of UWorld, and my overall average is the 60s, and fluctuates +/- 2-3 percent points every few days...)

Also... I just realized that my lower score of the 2 blocks is almost always my first one of the day... Any chance this might be part of the issue?
 
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if you are doing random blocks then its very normal to see wide variations, i have gotten a 48 followed by a 90 on two consecutive blocks, although most of my scores are in mid 60s to mid 70s. finished with a 68% a couple of days ago
 
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Fluctuations are pretty normal. I think towards the end it has evened out. I started off scoring between 60 and low 70%. By the middle of UWORLD, I was mid 60s-mid 70s. Now at the end, I am consistently over 70%, usually hitting 75% most of the time. All timed/random blocks. The thing is, UWORLD repeats itself, certain concepts they just beat into your head. If I see a hypertrophic cardiomyopathy question on Step 1, I will definitely be ready thanks to UWORLD, lol. I swear I think that was the most frequently tested topic.
 
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I was going to post the EXACT same thing. I sh-t you not, I will go 50's on a block of 48, then 85 on the next, then 45 on the following, then another 85.

I'm trying to just shake it off - you guys?

Hell I just got a 238 on nbme 6 yesterday...USMLE WORLD IS EVIL! But in a good way. Like the evil villainess that's hotter than the princess.
 
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I guess I should keep reminding myself that I should be using UWorld to learn, and I think I am learning (quite a lot actually) from it. It's just daunting to come on SDN and see people posting UW averages that are astronomical.🙂 I guess I had unrealistic expectations of myself, but I'm still on my first run through UW so there's still hope (hopefully).
 
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I didn't know you could restart tests with omitted questions! I bet doing something about that test I accidentally ended with only 5 questions answered will help my average. 🙂
 
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Quick question: I've constantly heard that using world is "cheating" for the boards (because you see so many questions that resemble world), and people seem to stomp the boards after finishing world 2X or so.

Is it because the QUESTIONS are similar?

OR because the underlying concepts are similar?

The reason I ask is b/c world questions are so insanely difficult, I cannot imagine the same question types appearing on step 1.

i can however see something like this: world = a child with _____ (describe OTC def.) has cells analyzed and ______ (describe mitochondria) are isolated. which of the following is most likely impaired: answer DESCRIBES O-tcarbomlyase

BOARDS: Where is the enzyme deficiency?

anyone catch my drift? Can you tell I'm annoyed with this q-bank?
 
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This is excellent advice. Doing 100 questions but not reading on the topics in addition to the answers is useless because the questions are just pieces of information(fragmented) and the books help you get the big picture of the topics and put the details into perspective.

Here is a strategy for UW:

1. Do 44 questions in morning and review until noon. Make notes.
2. Do 44 questions and review until evening and then make notes.
3. At night review your notes.
 
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radiodoc99 said:
Here is a strategy for UW:

1. Do 44 questions in morning and review until noon. Make notes.
2. Do 44 questions and review until evening and then make notes.
3. At night review your notes.
Click to expand...

Precisely.This is what I've been upto until last month with UW, made a diff book with annotations and all'.Took me whole 2 months to finish the darn thing.2nd pass still on.

Gonna give those 'super' notes one last read before goliath day next week.Hopefully they prove to be worth the sweat n' blood in making em.:xf:
 
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Blondnuttyboy said:
Quick question: I've constantly heard that using world is "cheating" for the boards (because you see so many questions that resemble world), and people seem to stomp the boards after finishing world 2X or so.

Is it because the QUESTIONS are similar?

OR because the underlying concepts are similar?

The reason I ask is b/c world questions are so insanely difficult, I cannot imagine the same question types appearing on step 1.

i can however see something like this: world = a child with _____ (describe OTC def.) has cells analyzed and ______ (describe mitochondria) are isolated. which of the following is most likely impaired: answer DESCRIBES O-tcarbomlyase

BOARDS: Where is the enzyme deficiency?

anyone catch my drift? Can you tell I'm annoyed with this q-bank?
Click to expand...

I don't know, I seem to be the only one who ever says this, but I thought the boards was just as hard as UW (and maybe even harder at times). This could be because I tend to do terrible at predicting how I did (I ended with an 85% average in UW, timed/random, but always thought I did worse when finishing a block than I actually did), and thus it really was not as hard as I thought. In either case, I did not think the actual exam was a whole lot easier than UW.
 
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Say someone is in a situation when you don't have a 6 month UW sub.

On your second run ,would you simply re-do the questions by selecting 'random' 'all' every time or would you just go back to those blocks you have completed from first pass and read them over intently?

I just found out doing the second method is proving to be more time-saving, was just wondering what you guys think about this.:idea:
 
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metalrex said:
Say someone is in a situation when you don't have a 6 month UW sub.

On your second run ,would you simply re-do the questions by selecting 'random' 'all' every time or would you just go back to those blocks you have completed from first pass and read them over intently?

I just found out doing the second method is proving to be more time-saving, was just wondering what you guys think about this.:idea:
Click to expand...

Well my plan is to just redo the questions I got wrong. Part of doing the questions vs. just reading the explanations forces you to think and actively recall. I think this is better than just passive reading.
 
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I have one issue with WORLD. I mean it is cool that they repeat concepts, so you have a second shot at getting it correct, plus it really drills it into your knowledge base... But seriously, some questions feel like straight up repeats because the answer choice is the same. I like how they ask me a question about congenital heart diseases, but dude, seriously, why does the answer have to be tetrology of fallot 3 times in a row.

And the freakin endless number of questions about hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

I like WORLD, I learned a lot, but this is one thing that just bothers me. Ok, back to my block of 48.
 
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rem6775 said:
I don't know, I seem to be the only one who ever says this, but I thought the boards was just as hard as UW (and maybe even harder at times). This could be because I tend to do terrible at predicting how I did (I ended with an 85% average in UW, timed/random, but always thought I did worse when finishing a block than I actually did), and thus it really was not as hard as I thought. In either case, I did not think the actual exam was a whole lot easier than UW.
Click to expand...


Pretty sure you've just scared everyone in this forum - i think we were all banking on UWworld being way harder. What did you think of the nbme's in comparison to the real?
 
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Blondnuttyboy said:
Pretty sure you've just scared everyone in this forum - i think we were all banking on UWworld being way harder. What did you think of the nbme's in comparison to the real?
Click to expand...

No, I don't mean to scare people. It's probably just that I am bad at guessing how many I got wrong in blocks of UW (and presumably the Step 1, too). Because there would be blocks where I swore I did terrible and ended up with a 91%, so it might just be me.

Anyway, the NBMEs were easier. I took numbers 4 and 6 and thought they were quite easy besides a few random questions scattered throughout. I think it's safe to say those are "easier," but it's also important to remember that comes into play in what they give you as a score, so it's a wash in terms of score. But expect the test to be harder.
 
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The worst feeling of Uworld is when I get it wrong, and the right answer turns out to be one of the choices I crossed out. I mean if it was a choice I didn't cross out, at least I was heading in the right direction. +pissed+
 
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TexasTriathlete said:
I read the explanations thoroughly on my repeat passes. You can't see this stuff enough, and the explanations are easy to understand.

I also don't care if I do a block of 48 and I miss every single one. Probably my best day of board studying to date came on a day where I got 29% on a block of 48.
Click to expand...

If Lance Armstrong took Step 1, this is exactly what he'd say.

You got me so jacked up right now Triathlete.
 
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rem6775 said:
No, I don't mean to scare people. It's probably just that I am bad at guessing how many I got wrong in blocks of UW (and presumably the Step 1, too). Because there would be blocks where I swore I did terrible and ended up with a 91%, so it might just be me.

Anyway, the NBMEs were easier. I took numbers 4 and 6 and thought they were quite easy besides a few random questions scattered throughout. I think it's safe to say those are "easier," but it's also important to remember that comes into play in what they give you as a score, so it's a wash in terms of score. But expect the test to be harder.
Click to expand...


Same here. Of the last 5 blocks I've done, 3 of them I was afraid to even look at the score because the whole time I felt like I was doing terribly, and they were all over 80% (two of them were high 80s). I just never know how I'm doing, and honestly I think sometimes I'm just a good guesser without really knowing what's going on in a question.

But at least this will (hopefully) help me stay calm after I leave the exam thinking I bombed it all. Just knowing that I always feel that way even before very good things happen.
 
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GuyWhoDoesStuff said:
Same here. Of the last 5 blocks I've done, 3 of them I was afraid to even look at the score because the whole time I felt like I was doing terribly, and they were all over 80% (two of them were high 80s). I just never know how I'm doing, and honestly I think sometimes I'm just a good guesser without really knowing what's going on in a question.

But at least this will (hopefully) help me stay calm after I leave the exam thinking I bombed it all. Just knowing that I always feel that way even before very good things happen.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I know what you mean. I have somehow managed to stay somewhat sane. I remembered a few questions that I debated about (like a 5 year-old with an overdose of loperamide, what do you give? With only two answers making sense: naloxone and bethanechol. I went with naloxone which was right). There are some I realized I got wrong (most important side effect of someone starting irenotecan and an EGFR-mab) and some I got right. The nice thing is I think I forgot a lot of the "out-there" questions, which is helping. That should be your goal to staying sane, forget the ones that were ridiculous.
 
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hi everyone
Maybe I am writing this in a kind of a panic driven state. I have been doing UW all random timed blocks of 48 I have done 25 blocks alway had a score in between 80 TO 85 %. But the last block I did got me 70 %. I know i shouldnt panic but you know this really got me down.i started another block but was so bummed that I just suspended the test.
 
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