How I went from barely passing my first shelf to scoring in the 90s on every exam

[drmednotes]

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When I first started third year, the Shelf exams wrecked me. I thought just doing UWorld and Anki would be enough — but I kept forgetting small details and struggling to connect topics across rotations. Eventually, I started condensing everything I learned from UWorld, NBME practice forms, and class notes into one organized high-yield document.

By the end of the year, that system changed everything. My scores jumped from the 60s to consistent 90s, and Step 2 felt way easier because of it.

A few quick strategies that made the biggest difference for me:

• Don’t just passively read UWorld or Anki — rewrite key concepts in your own words so you’re forced to process them.
• Group topics by systems and presentations (e.g., Chest pain → MI, PE, Dissection, Pneumothorax). You’ll start recognizing patterns on test day.
• Review algorithms and differentials every week. Shelf exams love management steps and next-best actions more than pure recall.
• Focus on weak rotations. I spent extra time on Peds and Surgery since they have unique question styles that don’t overlap much with Step 1.

Using that system, I ended up with honors in all my shelves — and it made Step 2 prep way smoother later on.

If anyone’s interested, I put all of my condensed high-yield notes (about 350+ pages) into one resource so you don’t have to start from scratch. I’ll drop the link in the comments for anyone who wants to check it out.

 

[drmednotes]

Step 2 CK High-Yield Notes (Scored 260+): Free Excerpt + Full Pack | Notion

Step 2 CK High-Yield Notes — 260+ Score Framework

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