I did not use Micro Made Easy because I did not like the format of the book, this is a personal preferance. I read Rapid Review Micro and Immune. It is a relatively easy read that includes both Immune and Micro and some good questions with explanations. In my opinion, this is enough for COMLEX. While this exam is probably full of bugs and drugs, I would not expect questions to ve overly difficult, so use an easy read, do not reach for Lange or any textbooks. Rapid Review Path by Goljan is good, but BRS Path is shorter and more abbreviated, which should be perfect for COMLEX. Do not forget that COMLEX is all about buzz words, and Goljan tries to emphasize understanding, which is not necessary for COMLEX. For Pharm I would probably go with BRS Pharm, Rapid Review Pharm, or even good Pharm cards would do. If you are to pick up cards, do not pick up ones that have mechanisms and diagrams on them, pick up ones that have colors and brief descriptions. Neuro, I ve heard that High Yield Neuroanatomy is good, and it is short. I do not really know what to use for OMM, luckily our OMM department prepared us well for this exam, so I may just look at some board reviews that were done in our OMM class. Anatomy, I really do not know, concentrate more on Neuroanatomy, I would probably even skip anatomy all together, I know this sounds risky and crazy, but it should be fine. Above all, make a schedule and stick to it. I have not used FA thus far, I would probably use this book 1 week before the exam with questions. FA is one of those things that everyone has and everyone does, so I feel like I should do it too. It is not an impressive read. Maybe u could study anatomy from FA.
follow the mad russian's advice. though he does do a fair amount of heavy drinking and is probably posting in his underwear with a cigarette dangling from his lip.
seriously, though, four weeks should be plenty of time to prepare for this exam, if you do things correctly. you need:
1) a schedule. this is absolutely critical. it is how you'll ensure you'll cover everything efficiently.
2) motivation and dedication. four weeks is sufficient time, but you need to be willing to dedicate your life to this test during these four weeks. it's a small sacrifice considering the potential consequences of not passing (bad) or doing well (good!)
3) books. i would recommend a) first aid, b) rapid review physiology, c) brs pathology, d) rapid review micro and immuno, e) hy neuro. you'll also need an OMM source, though i cannot recommend one because i believe your money would be better spent on fine wine or good sushi. alas, while i do believe this, you'll probably have to sacrifice and pick an omm text. which one is up to you. use the search function to find what others have used, and see if you can find a cheap copy online (you can wait til the latter part of your study block to review omm, leaving enough time for shipping).
4) a question bank. i'd suggest UW, because i hear it's the shizzle. and it's reasonably-priced, perhaps its best feature.
5) confidence. the most important component in your preparation armament. this is true for anyone, but especially you. i don't know you, but from your posts, your lack of confidence is obvious. look, you've made it through two years of medical school, so there's no question that you have the ability to pass this exam. but you need to KNOW, not BELIEVE, that you'll pass this exam. i cannot stress this enough. take 5 minutes every day before you begin studying to ensure that you know that you'll pass this exam. whether you meditate or write "i will pass this exam" 500 times, it doesn't matter. does this sound stupid? maybe. will it work? definitely. what you do consciously will translate to your unconscious, and become part of who you are. find your confidence, and you'll be amazed at how far it will take you.
you'll use FA as your guide. it's actually a beautiful resource, as it is organized by system. follow it. re: biochem, i disagree with those who've suggested that you ignore it. why? re-read what i've written about confidence. what happens when you're faced with several biochem q's on the real exam and you haven't bothered to at least give a cursory glance over some fundamental biochem concepts? you'll likely panic, and this will affect your ability to conquer the rest of your exam. you need to be confident that you can deal with any subject that appears on the exam. any biochem on complex will be basic (basic storage ds, enzyme deficiencies, etc.) and FA will be sufficient for these. but you need to look at it, and know the basics.
moving forward. . . .i would suggest you establish your schedule by system in the same format as FA. begin by reading the corresponding section of FA. for systems such as cardio, endo, GI, neuro, renal, and respiratory, follow FA with RR phys, and follow that with BRS path. while reading these sources, identify the concepts in FA, and take notes where you feel FA does not provide adequate information for your understanding. you may also need to consult a primary source where the review books are insufficient. then, re-read FA, or, at the very least, re-read the drugs in FA (these are all you'll need for complex pharm). the reasoning behind reading FA twice is that FA distills the most salient, HY concepts out of a chaotic mass of information. reading it prior to diving into your phys and path will tell you what to focus on while reading these sources. re-reading FA after phys/path will solidify the information.
i would suggest attacking FA chronologically. begin with behavioral science, biochem, and embryo. then do the corresponding questions from your qbank. READ THE EXPLANATIONS. anything you don't understand goes where? into your FA. then what? re-read FA. this should take a day. two at most.
micro and immuno is next. FA first. then pick up RR micro/immuno. then, do questions. then. . . .re-read FA. this should take about three days, depending upon your comfort level and reading speed.
then, begin systems. each system can reasonably be covered in a day, with the possible exception of neuro. and this is only because i suggest you read HY neuro, which will take a day. same routine, though. FA neuro, then HY, questions, then FA. so about two days.
if you follow this rough outline, it should take you 14-16 days to complete. following this, your focus will shift to doing questions and re-reading FA. you'll be doing questions randomly, rather than by system. perhaps spilt your day in half, with equal parts going to reading FA and doing questions. make sure the concepts tested in the questions are in your FA. if not, add them. and pay special attention to pharm and micro. these subjects are allegedly heavily tested on complex, and can be mastered with simple repetition. leave two days or so near the end of your schedule to review omm.
this schedule will be demanding, but doable if you're truly motivated.
remember, the most important asset you'll have at the end of your 28 days is your confidence. above all else, strive to achieve confidence. it's your biggest ally on test day.
good luck, and let us know when you get your passing score so we can congratulate you.
