IMG Preparing for the Step I

[porkchop]

Hi all!

First of all thank you to everyone here who posted their tips and experiences. I've been trying to read as many as I can,but I'm overwhelmed by the abundance of information! I'm an IMG in Malaysia and my school does not really gear its students towards the USMLE. I would like to take the Step 1 sometime later this year, and it's going to be a bit more difficult than for the rest of you guys as we won't have as much support, access to info, etc.

I'm just wondering, as an IMG..
1) what are the absolute essential books and exam prep I need to get a good score on Step 1?
2) I have only a one month break in July, then a one week break in September and another week's break over Christmas. Would it be better then to schedule my exam for August, just after my break, or later on in the year?
3) How much solid studying, and for how long, do candidates usually undertake before the exam?

Thanks for any help.

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[Captopril]

Hi all!

First of all thank you to everyone here who posted their tips and experiences. I've been trying to read as many as I can,but I'm overwhelmed by the abundance of information! I'm an IMG in Malaysia and my school does not really gear its students towards the USMLE. I would like to take the Step 1 sometime later this year, and it's going to be a bit more difficult than for the rest of you guys as we won't have as much support, access to info, etc.

I'm just wondering, as an IMG..
1) what are the absolute essential books and exam prep I need to get a good score on Step 1?
2) I have only a one month break in July, then a one week break in September and another week's break over Christmas. Would it be better then to schedule my exam for August, just after my break, or later on in the year?
3) How much solid studying, and for how long, do candidates usually undertake before the exam?

Thanks for any help.

From one IMG to another:

Books:
Kaplan Set, First Aid, Rapid Review Pathology, HY Neuroanatomy, CMMRS + Lange Micro/Immuno Review for Immunology

Accessories:
Micro and Pharm flashcards, Goljan Audio, Images from WebPath and HY Neuroanatomy

Qbank:
USMLEWorld

• Read the Kaplan set through 3 times; first read:familiarize, second read: memorize, third read: pick up on low yield stuff you might want to hang onto

• Replace the Micro Kaplan book with CMMRS + Lange, replace the Path book with RR Path

• Start UWorld with your second read, try to do 50q a night, annotate your First Aid with points of interest from your UWorld sessions

• Do Goljan Audio + Bugs/Drugs Flashcards every evening for 1-2 hours (1 lecture of Goljan is typically an hour, then add in an hour of flashcards)

• Spend your last 1-1.5 months memorizing your FA, reviewing images, doing another Qbank if you like.

It's a lot of material, and a lot of revision, so it can take anywhere from 4-6 months. One of the perks of being an IMG, however, is that you have that kind of time so why not use it? Put in about 5-6hrs a day with the above and I don't think you can score less than a 230.

This is my battle plan. I haven't given the test yet, but I don't think an individual can do much more than the above.

 

[cgscribe]

If you can do what the above poster is, you'll do AWESOME. Having said that, that's a lot to do for anyone. I'll throw my advice in the ring:

1. First Aid for Step 1 is the only truly essential book. You can do a mix/match of other books for subject specific disciplines, but almost everyone uses FA as the skeleton from which to build. Having said that, other good books from my experience (though I don't have a score yet) and word of mouth: Goljan Path, BRS phys, CMMRS for micro. Also, q-bank is essential, this is really a toss-up between USMLEworld and Kaplan, they've both been highly reviewed, I don't think you can go wrong, just depends on your style. Further q's/assessments you can get from the NBME self-assessments which are $45 a piece through the website.

2. I think you'd be fine taking the exam in August. Obviously, pushing it back would allow you more time to figure out your study schedule, etc. and would allow you to enjoy that break in July. That's a personal choice.

3. This definitely varies by person. I took about 3-4m, but we were still in classes for most of it, so I was splitting time. People with 1m of total committed study time could probably pull it off. I'd say 3m is totally sufficient.

Feel free to ask any other q's. Like I said, the above poster's strategy is foolproof, follow that lead and you'll be golden.

 

[Captopril]

If you can do what the above poster is, you'll do AWESOME. Having said that, that's a lot to do for anyone. I'll throw my advice in the ring:

1. First Aid for Step 1 is the only truly essential book. You can do a mix/match of other books for subject specific disciplines, but almost everyone uses FA as the skeleton from which to build. Having said that, other good books from my experience (though I don't have a score yet) and word of mouth: Goljan Path, BRS phys, CMMRS for micro. Also, q-bank is essential, this is really a toss-up between USMLEworld and Kaplan, they've both been highly reviewed, I don't think you can go wrong, just depends on your style. Further q's/assessments you can get from the NBME self-assessments which are $45 a piece through the website.

2. I think you'd be fine taking the exam in August. Obviously, pushing it back would allow you more time to figure out your study schedule, etc. and would allow you to enjoy that break in July. That's a personal choice.

3. This definitely varies by person. I took about 3-4m, but we were still in classes for most of it, so I was splitting time. People with 1m of total committed study time could probably pull it off. I'd say 3m is totally sufficient.

Feel free to ask any other q's. Like I said, the above poster's strategy is foolproof, follow that lead and you'll be golden.

I know my materials + study schedule seems like overkill, but you must understand that us IMGs aren't being trained at the medical powerhouses of the US (for example UCSF ,as is your case) so we pretty much have to re-teach ourselves the basic sciences. Another point is that IMGs typically take their Step 1 after graduating...a full 2-3 years since their last basic science course. This is why Kaplan is so highly regarded by foreign grads; it pretty much brings you up to speed so you are on at least close to being on a level playing field with the US grads who just completed their basic sciences a month or 2 before the exam.

 

[cgscribe]

Interesting, I hadn't considered those interesting issues IMG's face. Good luck, sounds like you have a really solid plan of attack.

 

[NRAI2001]

IMGs = US citizens at foreign schools (Carribean, Ireland, Australia) like myself; think "inter" as in between two countries (US and Carrib).

FMGs= true foreign graduates did undergrad, medical school and have citizenship in another country.

I go to SGU and our basic sciences courses are taught really well. I did my masters at RFU and compared to RFU our classes are taught better IMHO. The only class at SGU taht I thought has been taught poorly so far is microbiology.

 

[NRAI2001]

I know my materials + study schedule seems like overkill, but you must understand that us IMGs aren't being trained at the medical powerhouses of the US (for example UCSF ,as is your case) so we pretty much have to re-teach ourselves the basic sciences. Another point is that IMGs typically take their Step 1 after graduating...a full 2-3 years since their last basic science course. This is why Kaplan is so highly regarded by foreign grads; it pretty much brings you up to speed so you are on at least close to being on a level playing field with the US grads who just completed their basic sciences a month or 2 before the exam.

Ya FMGs and IMGs must do above average for whatever field they are looking to match into. For us having a stellar USMLE will get us what for most US grads would be an average to above average match (with the random really good match).

 

[Captopril]

IMGs = US citizens at foreign schools (Carribean, Ireland, Australia) like myself; think "inter" as in between two countries (US and Carrib).

FMGs= true foreign graduates did undergrad, medical school and have citizenship in another country.

I didn't know there was a difference...always thought the two terms were used interchangeably. I'm something in between IMG and FMG (I'm a US Citizen, but went to school in Asia). Our basic sciences there were actually very thorough...we learned anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, and pathology for 2 years each. Pharm and micro were one full year. Our text books were top of the line (KL Moore, Guyton, 'Big' Robbins, Lippincott Biochem, Jawetz, Katzung) but the problem with that is our minds were so saturated with erroneous info at the end of 2 years, that it is currently impossible to recall any of it.

From what I can tell, the US system teaches you stuff that matters (Rapid Review Path is a good example of this when you compare it to Big Robbins) and you are subsequently tested on this 'high yield' info on the USMLE. So another one of the problems FMGs face is learning to let go of the purely academic information they've learned, and focus on what is important practically and clinically.

 

[porkchop]

Thanks guys!

I have a stupid question to ask, and this is probably the stupidest question you'll see on any USMLE forum ever!!! This question is so simple, I notice nobody has ever asked it and I apologize... I'm an IMG and this forum is my only major source of help!

I have no idea what the NBME test (1, 2, 3, 4...the one everyone is doing) is about! I looked on the NBME website and they seem to have a variety of programs and services - self-assessment services, web-based exams and subject exams, etc. The SAS is further divided into
Comprehensive Basic Science
Comprehensive Clinical Science
Comprehensive Clinical Medicine

So what EXACTLY is the NBME 1, 2, 3, 4?

Are the NBME tests a book you can buy off the shelves or something done online via the website? I saw something on mininova.org, a file called USMLE NBME Step 1 tests, for download. Is this the same thing?

Would you all recommend the Kaplan Qbank too, or is Qbook enough?

Thanks! Great job guys!

 

[vegetto_456]

From one IMG to another:

Books:
Kaplan Set, First Aid, Rapid Review Pathology, HY Neuroanatomy, CMMRS + Lange Micro/Immuno Review for Immunology

Accessories:
Micro and Pharm flashcards, Goljan Audio, Images from WebPath and HY Neuroanatomy

Qbank:
USMLEWorld

• Read the Kaplan set through 3 times; first read:familiarize, second read: memorize, third read: pick up on low yield stuff you might want to hang onto

• Replace the Micro Kaplan book with CMMRS + Lange, replace the Path book with RR Path

• Start UWorld with your second read, try to do 50q a night, annotate your First Aid with points of interest from your UWorld sessions

• Do Goljan Audio + Bugs/Drugs Flashcards every evening for 1-2 hours (1 lecture of Goljan is typically an hour, then add in an hour of flashcards)

• Spend your last 1-1.5 months memorizing your FA, reviewing images, doing another Qbank if you like.

It's a lot of material, and a lot of revision, so it can take anywhere from 4-6 months. One of the perks of being an IMG, however, is that you have that kind of time so why not use it? Put in about 5-6hrs a day with the above and I don't think you can score less than a 230.

This is my battle plan. I haven't given the test yet, but I don't think an individual can do much more than the above.

By Kaplan Set, are you refering to the incourse books they give you or the home study course?

Thnx in advance