How predictive is NBME 18? For those who gave the exam after May 9th and have their scores in hand

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PowerDan

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I take my step 1 in a couple of weeks. I got a score of ~270 on form 18 today.

I am wondering how well it correlates with the real thing, because I got ~250 on form 12 just a couple of days ago.

(I got a 3-digit score of 262 on both forms 13 and 17 and 258 on form 15 - all taken within the last 10 days with not much change in my level of preparation).

I expected form 18 to be the hardest, because its the newest. Can anyone who's given the real thing with 40 question blocks (and have their scores in hand) share their experience on how predictive NBME 18 was for them?

What about the other NBMEs?

Thanks in advance.
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I scored 9 points lower on the real deal than I did on 18, unfortunately. NBME 18 was the most similar to the questions I had on Step 1.

The real test was kind of like doing nbme 18 questions in a program that looks like u-world.
 
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Atticum said:
I scored 9 points lower on the real deal than I did on 18, unfortunately. NBME 18 was the most similar to the questions I had on Step 1.

The real test was kind of like doing nbme 18 questions in a program that looks like u-world.
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Makes sense.

My NBME average is ~ 10 points lower than my score on form 18, so I'm inclined to think its an outlier and probably not predictive.
 
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Trust in your averages. NBME 18 was 100% "predictive" in the sense that I got a 262 on 18 and a 262 on the real thing. However, my average across NBME 15 - 18 was also a 262.

The actual exam felt very much like NBME 17 and 18.
 
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NBME 18 underpredicted my score by 16 points. I took it 1 week out from the real exam.

My real score was 2 points higher than the UWSAs predicted, if that helps anything. I took both 3 days before the real thing.
 
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PowerDan said:
I take my step 1 in a couple of weeks. I got a score of ~270 on form 18 today.

I am wondering how well it correlates with the real thing, because I got ~250 on form 12 just a couple of days ago.

(I got a 3-digit score of 262 on both forms 13 and 17 and 258 on form 15 - all taken within the last 10 days with not much change in my level of preparation).

I expected form 18 to be the hardest, because its the newest. Can anyone who's given the real thing with 40 question blocks (and have their scores in hand) share their experience on how predictive NBME 18 was for them?

What about the other NBMEs?

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

247 on NBME 18, 246 on the real thing. Honestly, the real thing felt considerably easier than NBME 18. I just didn't let myself say it until today because I didn't want to tempt fate.
 
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Maybe I'm weird, but I did significantly better on NBME 18 than the rest of them, and the real thing. Not sure if I had a random awesome day or if just tested things I happened to know. I ended up scoring about the average of all my NBMEs/UWSAs.
 
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Over-predicted by 10 for me, but I also got my average of 15, 16, 17, and 18.
 
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I took each NBME 2 weeks apart until the exam. Took NBME 18 5 days before my exam

NBME 12 - 2o2
NBME 15- 211
NBME 16- 211
NBME 17- 224
NBME 18- 211
UWSA 1 and 2- 221 and 220

Final - 226
 
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Yep I took pretty much all available nbme's- here is a previous post I wrote for your reference-


Bobcat18 said:
Hey guys just thought I would write up a quick summary on how I studied for step 1. My preparation consisted of UFAP + sketchy micro + sketchy pharm. In the end I went through first aid, pathoma and sketchy micro 3 times total and sketchy pharm twice. For me getting started with studying was the hardest part. I knew I wanted to go through everything 3 times but just didn't know where to start. One of the best decisions I made and one that many people don't mention in this forum is the use of Cramfighter. Cramfighter allowed me to focus on studying while not worrying about whether or not I would finish 3 passes in time. I liked how it planned my every day and allowed me to rebalance my schedule if I got behind- this definitely helped decrease my stress and made the USMLE seem manageable. In the end I agree with what everyone on this forum has been saying- the most important thing for the step 1 is a great foundation. Learning the information well during your first two years of classes is paramount to succeeding on the USMLE. Also, I would recommend incorporating Pathoma, FA, and Sketchy into your studying during the first two years of classes. It was nice studying for step1 from resources that I was already familiar with.

For those interested in seeing my practice scores:

NBME 15: 215- 5 weeks out
13: 239- 4 weeks out
12: 224- 3 weeks out
16: 245- 2 weeks out
17: 226- 11 days out
18: 237- 10 days out
Uworld average- 72% (only did 1 pass)
Real USMLE: 249

Good luck studying! Feel free to message me if you have any questions :)
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if you're scoring 270 on NBME 18 right now then why are you waiting to take STEP in a couple weeks? Take it now and be done.
 
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^yeah more preparation isn't going to help you at this point if you're getting those kinds of scores. Information will most likely start seeping out of your mind faster than you can put more in.

FWIW I scored a 251 on nbme 18 (which I took 2 days before the actual exam) and ended up getting a 258 on the real thing.
 
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I didn't think it was that predictive; I scored 20+ points higher on the actual exam than I did on 18; for reference 18 was a 232. I thought the exam was like u world, and I felt like 18 was just vague
 
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MackandBlues said:
if you're scoring 270 on NBME 18 right now then why are you waiting to take STEP in a couple weeks? Take it now and be done.
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TooFoolForCool said:
^yeah more preparation isn't going to help you at this point if you're getting those kinds of scores. Information will most likely start seeping out of your mind faster than you can put more in.

FWIW I scored a 251 on nbme 18 (which I took 2 days before the actual exam) and ended up getting a 258 on the real thing.
Click to expand...

Well, I am still going over things I haven't reviewed yet, like all my incorrects in UW, Rx and Kaplan Q banks...which totals to 1000+ questions :lame:
 
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PowerDan said:
I take my step 1 in a couple of weeks. I got a score of ~270 on form 18 today.

I am wondering how well it correlates with the real thing, because I got ~250 on form 12 just a couple of days ago.

(I got a 3-digit score of 262 on both forms 13 and 17 and 258 on form 15 - all taken within the last 10 days with not much change in my level of preparation).

I expected form 18 to be the hardest, because its the newest. Can anyone who's given the real thing with 40 question blocks (and have their scores in hand) share their experience on how predictive NBME 18 was for them?

What about the other NBMEs?

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
 
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mymembernames said:
Can you do a write-up please :happy:
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Reperfused said:
I'm guessing that's around 260.
Yes pleasssseeee do a write up please :)
We poor souls still in the race really need it. Would appreciate much!
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Well, I am going to list a few points that (I think?) I did differently from a lot of people and helped me study more efficiently.

1) I did not read FA, except for the Microbiology and Neuroanatomy sections.

2) The only book that I felt warranted a cover to cover read, was Pathoma. Along with the videos, of course - the guy is an exceptional teacher.

3) My main learning tools - apart from Pathoma - were the Q banks. I did three of them - starting with UWorld, followed by Kaplan and finally Rx. Most people tend to do them in the reverse order, but I find that UWorld is best used as a learning, rather than a testing tool.

In terms of quality, I would rank them as UWorld > Kaplan > Rx.

4) I selectively watched Kaplan videos for a few topics that I felt needed more work (mainly the biochem metabolic pathways).

5) During practice as well as the real deal, I tried to make sure that I completed each block within 40 minutes, giving me plenty of time at the end to go over the sort of questions that need a bit of extra thinking.

Hope that helped!
 
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PowerDan said:
Well, I am going to list a few points that (I think?) I did differently from a lot of people and helped me study more efficiently.

1) I did not read FA, except for the Microbiology and Neuroanatomy sections.

2) The only book that I felt warranted a cover to cover read, was Pathoma. Along with the videos, of course - the guy is an exceptional teacher.

3) My main learning tools - apart from Pathoma - were the Q banks. I did three of them - starting with UWorld, followed by Kaplan and finally Rx. Most people tend to do them in the reverse order, but I find that UWorld is best used as a learning, rather than a testing tool.

In terms of quality, I would rank them as UWorld > Kaplan > Rx.

4) I selectively watched Kaplan videos for a few topics that I felt needed more work (mainly the biochem metabolic pathways).

5) During practice as well as the real deal, I tried to make sure that I completed each block within 40 minutes, giving me plenty of time at the end to go over the sort of questions that need a bit of extra thinking.

Hope that helped!
Click to expand...

Thanks for sharing your resources with us @PowerDan :) but what did you use instead of FA as a main source for subjects other than pathology???
 
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PowerDan said:
Well, I am going to list a few points that (I think?) I did differently from a lot of people and helped me study more efficiently.

1) I did not read FA, except for the Microbiology and Neuroanatomy sections.

2) The only book that I felt warranted a cover to cover read, was Pathoma. Along with the videos, of course - the guy is an exceptional teacher.

3) My main learning tools - apart from Pathoma - were the Q banks. I did three of them - starting with UWorld, followed by Kaplan and finally Rx. Most people tend to do them in the reverse order, but I find that UWorld is best used as a learning, rather than a testing tool.

In terms of quality, I would rank them as UWorld > Kaplan > Rx.

4) I selectively watched Kaplan videos for a few topics that I felt needed more work (mainly the biochem metabolic pathways).

5) During practice as well as the real deal, I tried to make sure that I completed each block within 40 minutes, giving me plenty of time at the end to go over the sort of questions that need a bit of extra thinking.

Hope that helped!
Click to expand...


Thanks a lot for sharing!! Really appreciate it.
I have just a couple of questions if you could please tell. How many times did you do UWorld? Did you take extensive notes from UW and if yes then do you think taking extensive notes helped you learn better?

Thanks again

Good luck for step 2!
 
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PowerDan said:
Well, I am still going over things I haven't reviewed yet, like all my incorrects in UW, Rx and Kaplan Q banks...which totals to 1000+ questions :lame:
Click to expand...


DO you think this was a solid strategy to do towards the end, or do you think in retrospect, you could have learnt other stuff? Cos i have a similar set of 1000+ questions too. And am confused whether to go through them or not.
 
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Reperfused said:
Thanks a lot for sharing!! Really appreciate it.
I have just a couple of questions if you could please tell. How many times did you do UWorld? Did you take extensive notes from UW and if yes then do you think taking extensive notes helped you learn better?

Thanks again

Good luck for step 2!
Click to expand...
I was pretty conservative in taking notes from the Q banks, since I was on a tight schedule. I did UWorld once, and went over the ones I had gotten incorrect, in the weeks before the exam.
 
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tarsuc said:
DO you think this was a solid strategy to do towards the end, or do you think in retrospect, you could have learnt other stuff? Cos i have a similar set of 1000+ questions too. And am confused whether to go through them or not.
Click to expand...

It was a solid strategy. I don't think cramming extra details in the last couple of weeks would have helped me perform any better.

If you are already hitting your target score in your NBMEs, then it will probably serve you better to go over your incorrects, rather than spend time learning new - possibly low yield content.
 
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