interesting strategy...

[anesthesiarocks]

talked to someone today taking the test in two days and their strategy has been to:

1) know ALL the immunology(he's practically memorized parham)
2) know ALL the biochem including genetics
3) know ALL the cell biology
4) know ALL the microbiology including antimicrobials

He's really into the molecular genetics/immuno side of things moreso than clinical stuff and pathology, pathophys, and pharm. He says if he can get 90% of the cell bio/immuno/biochem questions right while the rest of the students get 65-70% on average, that will be enough of a safety zone so that if he struggles relative to everyone else on pathology, physiology, and pharmacology he will still get a 225 or so.

I think it's a dicey proposition and would feel a little awkward going into the test knowing the urea cycle and DNA replication down to every little detail but not knowing path and physio well, but he's confident.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[m1forever]

I've heard step1 is becoming more and more a test of molecular biology and biochemistry and less about the three P's. If that's the case then your friend may have a good plan.

 

[anesthesiarocks]

What % of the test is staight pharm, pathology, pathophysiology, and physiology? He knows antimicrobial pharmacology, but that's it. 35% maybe?

Microbiology- 15%
Immunology- 8%
Biochemistry- 12%
Cell Biology- 10%

that's 45% of the test right there he figures.

 

[m1forever]

I take step1 in about 2 months. A little less actually. I don't remember any Neuro. Neither neuroanatomy or the pathways or the pathology or clinical or anything. what % of the test do you think neuro is, pharm included.

 

[anesthesiarocks]

10% or so. You need to learn it. Read first aid for it.

 

[blz]

sounds like a stupid strategy. just study everything.

 

[anesthesiarocks]

in an ideal world sure. However many people don't have sufficient time to study everything. This person learns/enjoys biochem and molecular biology more than pathology and pharm, so he chooses to do it instead.

 

[domer621]

lol, I'd pay to see a picture of his face when he gets a path-intensive exam. Luck of the draw.

 

[KNightInBlue]

in an ideal world sure. However many people don't have sufficient time to study everything. This person learns/enjoys biochem and molecular biology more than pathology and pharm, so he chooses to do it instead.

lol u kidding me? no time? thousands of med students do this every year, this guy cant find the time to study all 9 subjects?

seriously, its not just risky, but plain old stupid - what if he gets an exam where 80% of the ques deal with path? yes, I know, what are the odds of that happenening........but would he really wanna be the guy that got assraped by a statistical improbability?

I mean I absolutely hate anatomy/neuro and biochem, but that doesn't mean I am gonna skip them to study path and pharm


btw, the idea that getting 90% of the cell/mol bio question right while others hitting only 65-70% will put him in a 'safety zone' even with bombing the pathophys/pharm parts is completely ludicrous because NOONE knows how the exam is graded.........ppl just have theories thats all............



either way, please keep us posted on ur friend's performance........I would LOVE to see how this turns out!............an experiment of sorts as it were..........

 

[lumbering]

sounds like a stupid strategy. just study everything.

Seconded. This guy could probably score ~5 points higher by distributing his study time in proportion to representation on the test.

 

[anesthesiarocks]

and he could care less about those 5 points. A 215 is just as good as a 220 to him. He wouldn't trade an extra value meal for 5 extra points, much less all the time stressing out to make sure he "covers everything"

 

[SkylineMD]

ill agree and state that its a dumb strategy. He's hoping that not only does he crush most people on the subjects that he will be studying hardcore for but also that he will do almost as well as those same students on other topics. Either he is suicidal or he is gunning you.

 

[KNightInBlue]

and he could care less about those 5 points. A 215 is just as good as a 220 to him. He wouldn't trade an extra value meal for 5 extra points, much less all the time stressing out to make sure he "covers everything"

again, I don't understand why this 'stress' is such a bad thing - this is a test that measures your knowledge as a doctor in training - thousands go thru the SAME thing every year, why is it such a big deal to work ur ass off for a test like this? this is one test in my life, that I'd be totally ok with stressing so it'll make me push myself that much farther

anyway lol you seem to be adamant about defending your friend's strategy

just make sure you keep us posted after he gets his result

 

[anesthesiarocks]

I think he simply feels that he is far more likely to get questions on operons, purine metabolism, and cholesterol transport than glomerulonephritis, diuretics, and emphysema.

 

[blz]

I think he simply feels that he is far more likely to get questions on operons, purine metabolism, and cholesterol transport than glomerulonephritis, diuretics, and emphysema.

wth kind of doctor is he trying to be? he should have gotten a PhD if that is all he wants to study.

 

[heech]

I think he simply feels that he is far more likely to get questions on operons, purine metabolism, and cholesterol transport than glomerulonephritis, diuretics, and emphysema.

He's either a prophet or a madman. History tells us there's a very fine division between the two.

Let us know how he does!

 

[Idiopathic]

I think he simply feels that he is far more likely to get questions on operons, purine metabolism, and cholesterol transport than glomerulonephritis, diuretics, and emphysema.

*****.

so the title of this thread should be, "interesting strategy...to waste $600"

 

[domer621]

wth kind of doctor is he trying to be? he should have gotten a PhD if that is all he wants to study.

I agree, especially since anesthesiarocks said that he's "into the molecular genetics/immuno side of things moreso than clinical stuff". He's in the wrong field.

 

[KNightInBlue]

I think he simply feels that he is far more likely to get questions on operons, purine metabolism, and cholesterol transport than glomerulonephritis, diuretics, and emphysema.

and why does he think this? does he have some kind of inside info on NBME than the rest of us? how can anyone possible decide that thats what his test will be like?


I just think that both of the reasons given - one, thats all he likes to study (in which case, he should consider a different field because pathology (glomerulonephritis) is medicine, not purine metabolism) and two, thats where he can 'outscore' other test-takers and gain an edge (ridiculously ignorant) are gonna land him in hot water



if he's a good friend who will listen to you, you should tell him he's setting himself up for a very unpleasant surprise and that he should rethink his strategy

 

[pdz]

Is he sure that by getting lot questions right (that presumably most people will get wrong) will give him lot of points (while at the same time getting path q's wrong)? But actually, how can he be sure that he'll get 90% of the q's in the subjects you mentioned right?

His strategy sounds very very risky, unless he's dping so based on other people's experience. In any case, at least he should read path once.

 

[nasdr]

wth kind of doctor is he trying to be? he should have gotten a PhD if that is all he wants to study.

best comment yet

 

[lord_jeebus]

Keep us posted on how he does.

If he is very smart, he may have good enough retention of 2nd year material to make the focus on 1st year material worthwhile. I doubt this will work though.

Regardless, he will suffer 3rd year when his knowledge of the 3 P's will form a foundation for further learning.

 

[GOGETA]

How do you differiantiate, IMG from AMG?

Basics sciences, you just stress those bioch, molecular biol, and basic stuff, and the IMG wil be , but for you guys it will be basic.

What the IMG has that the AMG does not have? clinical experience, so the tree P are easy for them, and the clinical scenerios to.

my 2 cents

 

[Idiopathic]

How do you differiantiate, IMG from AMG?

Basics sciences, you just stress those bioch, molecular biol, and basic stuff, and the IMG wil be , but for you guys it will be basic.

What the IMG has that the AMG does not have? clinical experience, so the tree P are easy for them, and the clinical scenerios to.

my 2 cents

And maybe, just maybe, somewhat of a language barrier.

 

[blz]

And maybe, just maybe, somewhat of a language barrier.

lol, i love your posts.

 

[lrobin15]

I think he simply feels that he is far more likely to get questions on operons, purine metabolism, and cholesterol transport than glomerulonephritis, diuretics, and emphysema.

Anesthesiarocks, please do not waste all your hard work and continue on this path. I know you said this was your "friend", but I sure most of us can see that you know your "friend" and "his" strategies a little too well.

I would hate for you to have to retake the USMLE.

 

[anesthesiarocks]

Keep us posted on how he does.

If he is very smart, he may have good enough retention of 2nd year material to make the focus on 1st year material worthwhile. I doubt this will work though.

Regardless, he will suffer 3rd year when his knowledge of the 3 P's will form a foundation for further learning.

he was a good student first year(A's) and second year didn't do as well because he didn't like pathology or pharm very much. At this point I doubt he could even tell you what kind of symptoms would be present in UMN disease vs lower motor neuron disease. Or how coarctation of the aorta would present. But he's been studying biochem and immuno nonstop so I really see him getting most all those questions right. micro too.

 

[beastmaster]

1) know ALL the immunology(he's practically memorized parham)
2) know ALL the biochem including genetics
3) know ALL the cell biology
4) know ALL the microbiology including antimicrobials

lol... idiot

 

[lumbering]

and he could care less about those 5 points. A 215 is just as good as a 220 to him. He wouldn't trade an extra value meal for 5 extra points, much less all the time stressing out to make sure he "covers everything"

I was suggesting that he would score about 5 points less given equal effort with both strategies. I don't know about him, but I would be far more stressed out walking into that test without having had prepared for several important subjects. If he genuinely doesn't care about five points, why not just study less total time but more efficiently?

 

[GOGETA]

And maybe, just maybe, somewhat of a language barrier.

LOL , You are very funny

 

[blz]

LOL , You are very funny

vegetto was cooler than gogeta btw.

 

[anesthesiarocks]

He called me and said he thinks he scored pretty close to the average score for US students either way. Says he got a bunch of questions on metabolic pathways in general with questions concerning what will be elvated if some enzyme in a pathway is inhibited. And stuff like that where you had to really know the pathway in general.

-Lots of DNA replication stuff.
-Not much clinical micro, which was a bummer for him because he really knew that stuff. The micro was more geared to things like plasmids, conjugation, viral replication.
-A lot of immunology. Sometimes related to a disease process like Multiple myeloma, and sometimes just asking what a specific interleukin did without a clinical vignette. He got all these right.
-a good bit of cell biology, but not as much as he had hoped. Same with molecular bio.
-Path or pathophs was emphasized in some areas and not in others. He thought path and pathophys was ~25% of the test overall, which is more than he was hoping for. Pulmonary and Respiratory path were overemphasized, and he said he saw at least 2 or 3 either pulmonary function type curves or vascular function type curves which he didnt know what to do with. Also there was a question in renal where they showed a nephron and wanted to know where some diuretic would work, which he didn't know because he didn't study renal pharm or phys.

He won't score 245 or anything, but he's sure he got over 200 and he really doesn't care about scoring real high so I think he's pleased with his strategy.

 

[Taus]

He called me and said he thinks he scored pretty close to the average score for US students either way. Says he got a bunch of questions on metabolic pathways in general with questions concerning what will be elvated if some enzyme in a pathway is inhibited. And stuff like that where you had to really know the pathway in general.

-Lots of DNA replication stuff.
-Not much clinical micro, which was a bummer for him because he really knew that stuff. The micro was more geared to things like plasmids, conjugation, viral replication.
-A lot of immunology. Sometimes related to a disease process like Multiple myeloma, and sometimes just asking what a specific interleukin did without a clinical vignette. He got all these right.
-a good bit of cell biology, but not as much as he had hoped. Same with molecular bio.
-Path or pathophs was emphasized in some areas and not in others. He thought path and pathophys was ~25% of the test overall, which is more than he was hoping for. Pulmonary and Respiratory path were overemphasized, and he said he saw at least 2 or 3 either pulmonary function type curves or vascular function type curves which he didnt know what to do with. Also there was a question in renal where they showed a nephron and wanted to know where some diuretic would work, which he didn't know because he didn't study renal pharm or phys.

He won't score 245 or anything, but he's sure he got over 200 and he really doesn't care about scoring real high so I think he's pleased with his strategy.

good for him.....but it should be interesting to see what his attendings think of his vast non-clinically-applicable knowledge base 3rd year....

 

[anesthesiarocks]

good for him.....but it should be interesting to see what his attendings think of his vast non-clinically-applicable knowledge base 3rd year....

from what I've heard, a lot of the stuff he's weak on isn't going to be important clinically. Talking to third years who are finishing up their core rotations, they say you come in and really don't know what you're doing...and then you learn from there. Of course a lot of the stuff he's good at won't be clinically important either.

He'll be fine. Im kinda jealous of him. He studied what he felt like, maxed that out, and is going to do fine whereas the rest of us feel forced to study subjects we don't like/are hard for us.

 

[Taus]

from what I've heard, a lot of the stuff he's weak on isn't going to be important clinically. Talking to third years who are finishing up their core rotations, they say you come in and really don't know what you're doing...and then you learn from there. Of course a lot of the stuff he's good at won't be clinically important either.

He'll be fine. Im kinda jealous of him. He studied what he felt like, maxed that out, and is going to do fine whereas the rest of us feel forced to study subjects we don't like/are hard for us.

fair enough....but I'm pretty sure a lack of knowledge in Path and Phys will come back to haunt him.....either way....good luck to him/you...whoever...

 

[Idiopathic]

from what I've heard, a lot of the stuff he's weak on isn't going to be important clinically. Talking to third years who are finishing up their core rotations, they say you come in and really don't know what you're doing...and then you learn from there. Of course a lot of the stuff he's good at won't be clinically important either.

He'll be fine. Im kinda jealous of him. He studied what he felt like, maxed that out, and is going to do fine whereas the rest of us feel forced to study subjects we don't like/are hard for us.

So heres why this is ridiculous. Maxing out in low yield subjects is just not smart, especially when they are subjects that you already feel you know. You wont see glomerulonephritis, thalassemia, leukemia, heart failure, emphysema, embryologic development problems, strokes, vascular occlusive disease, trauma and childbirth on the wards?

Yet your 'friend' elects not to study these.

Just from a 'hey, Im going to be a doctor someday' perspective, thats a foolish course.

And if you study pathology/pathophys and learn it, youll find that its really about 70% of the test and will actually help you clinically, unlike the "lots" of DNA replication stuff

 

[lord_jeebus]

He'll be fine. Im kinda jealous of him. He studied what he felt like, maxed that out, and is going to do fine whereas the rest of us feel forced to study subjects we don't like/are hard for us.

Let's not jump to conclusions. We're talking about someone who can't identify where diuretics act on the nephron.

 

[beastmaster]

Let's not jump to conclusions. We're talking about someone who can't identify where diuretics act on the nephron.

Who cares? He knows where the endonuclease acts on the DNA strand.

 

[anesthesiarocks]

So heres why this is ridiculous. Maxing out in low yield subjects is just not smart, especially when they are subjects that you already feel you know. You wont see glomerulonephritis, thalassemia, leukemia, heart failure, emphysema, embryologic development problems, strokes, vascular occlusive disease, trauma and childbirth on the wards?

Yet your 'friend' elects not to study these.

Just from a 'hey, Im going to be a doctor someday' perspective, thats a foolish course.

And if you study pathology/pathophys and learn it, youll find that its really about 70% of the test and will actually help you clinically, unlike the "lots" of DNA replication stuff

ipathology and pathophys are nowhere near 70% of the test. They might be getting close to 45% of the test or so if you count things like a gout question attached to purine salvage pathway knowledge(when the question is really testing you on the purine salvage pathway and not that the large toe is involved in gout...which Im pretty sure my parents who never went to medical school probably know), but to count that as pathology just because the stem gives a clinical scenario and not biochem is pretty silly.

 

[Taus]

ipathology and pathophys are nowhere near 70% of the test. They might be getting close to 45% of the test or so if you count things like a gout question attached to purine salvage pathway knowledge(when the question is really testing you on the purine salvage pathway and not that the large toe is involved in gout...which Im pretty sure my parents who never went to medical school probably know), but to count that as pathology just because the stem gives a clinical scenario and not biochem is pretty silly.

dude..let it go....

 

[Idiopathic]

ipathology and pathophys are nowhere near 70% of the test. They might be getting close to 45% of the test or so if you count things like a gout question attached to purine salvage pathway knowledge(when the question is really testing you on the purine salvage pathway and not that the large toe is involved in gout...which Im pretty sure my parents who never went to medical school probably know), but to count that as pathology just because the stem gives a clinical scenario and not biochem is pretty silly.

The point is this. You learn about: gout, the enzymatic pathway, the enzyme responsible, the metabolite buildup, the treatments of choice, the diagnosis and the symptoms, all by studying pathology.

If your goal is to learn the purine salvage pathway, then well done. But that is something you will NEVER NEED AGAIN. Trust me.

You could only read books labaled 'Pathology' and destroy the USMLE, rather than focus on clinically unimportant minutiae and just be ordinary (who doesnt care about their scores???)

Oh, and I guess you could be the guy who gets that one pimp question right re: purine salvage on medicine rounds. But youd have to wait a while, and everybody ends up hating 'that guy', anyway...so, there you go.

 

[anesthesiarocks]

The point is this. You learn about: gout, the enzymatic pathway, the enzyme responsible, the metabolite buildup, the treatments of choice, the diagnosis and the symptoms, all by studying pathology.

When most people say "I'm studying pathology for step1" they are usually referring to the epidemiology, pathogenesis/pathophys behind it, histopath and gross features, clinical signs and symptoms, clinical markers, what the labs will show, etc.....

 

[KNightInBlue]

from what I've heard, a lot of the stuff he's weak on isn't going to be important clinically. Talking to third years who are finishing up their core rotations, they say you come in and really don't know what you're doing...and then you learn from there. Of course a lot of the stuff he's good at won't be clinically important either.

He'll be fine. Im kinda jealous of him. He studied what he felt like, maxed that out, and is going to do fine whereas the rest of us feel forced to study subjects we don't like/are hard for us.

lol I am sorry but there are so many things about this post that are making my bull*hit monitor go off but I won't bother

your attitude reminds me of this case I read about in behavioral - every single person on this thread has faulted ur 'friend's' strategy and yet every post you put up makes it seem like you think the rest of the test-takers are idiots for not figuring out the genius strategy that this guy did..........guys, help me out here, what do you call this?

Again, the strategy is ludicrous - you can't just 'study what you feel like' for this test and I refuse to believe his test actually ended up in his favor of what he studied


p.s. as for you being jealous of him - he's not gonna be a real doctor 'cuz he doesn't have the foundation knowledge, hes gonna have a tough 3rd and 4th yrs (unlike the 3rd yrs you talked to, who must be from another planet, every 3rd yr I have talked to says you build on the knowledge you gain in your basic science years, especially patholoy), he's not gonna do well on the boards 'cuz, well, thats just impossible.........what exactly is there to be jealous of? 'cuz he doesn't have to study everything? again, the point is - we are going to be physicians, we SHOULD be trying to learn as much as we can

 

[anesthesiarocks]

lol I am sorry but there are so many things about this post that are making my bull*hit monitor go off but I won't bother

your attitude reminds me of this case I read about in behavioral - every single person on this thread has faulted ur 'friend's' strategy and yet every post you put up makes it seem like you think the rest of the test-takers are idiots for not figuring out the genius strategy that this guy did..........guys, help me out here, what do you call this?

Again, the strategy is ludicrous - you can't just 'study what you feel like' for this test and I refuse to believe his test actually ended up in his favor of what he studied


p.s. as for you being jealous of him - he's not gonna be a real doctor 'cuz he doesn't have the foundation knowledge, hes gonna have a tough 3rd and 4th yrs (unlike the 3rd yrs you talked to, who must be from another planet, every 3rd yr I have talked to says you build on the knowledge you gain in your basic science years, especially patholoy), he's not gonna do well on the boards 'cuz, well, thats just impossible.........what exactly is there to be jealous of? 'cuz he doesn't have to study everything? again, the point is - we are going to be physicians, we SHOULD be trying to learn as much as we can

1) Im not saying it was a genius strategy or it would be good for you guys who are mainly interested in going over 245. Obviously to make such a score you need to review pretty much everything.
2) yes you certainly can study what you feel like as long as you cover enough to pass the exam. Are you under the delusion that all medical students make sure they've covered everything before taking it? Most of the people I've run into have completely blown something off.....be it embryo or maybe instead of one subject area they just blow off one organ system because they never learned it good in the first place and didn't have enough time. Are these people scoring 254? No, but most of them are passing.

 

[polynikesdb]

your attitude reminds me of this case I read about in behavioral - every single person on this thread has faulted ur 'friend's' strategy and yet every post you put up makes it seem like you think the rest of the test-takers are idiots for not figuring out the genius strategy that this guy did..........guys, help me out here, what do you call this?

I believe you are referring to splitting, an immature defense mechanism.

note: this is solely in response to KnightInBlue and not meant in agreement or observation of the OP.

 

[blz]

1) Im not saying it was a genius strategy or it would be good for you guys who are mainly interested in going over 245. Obviously to make such a score you need to review pretty much everything.
2) yes you certainly can study what you feel like as long as you cover enough to pass the exam. Are you under the delusion that all medical students make sure they've covered everything before taking it? Most of the people I've run into have completely blown something off.....be it embryo or maybe instead of one subject area they just blow off one organ system because they never learned it good in the first place and didn't have enough time. Are these people scoring 254? No, but most of them are passing.

Your post did nothing but provide a false sense of security for some step 1 newbie. people are here to score well, so posting a strategy to just pass (most likely, fail) is useless. defending it is even worse.

 

[anesthesiarocks]

I believe you are referring to splitting, an immature defense mechanism.

it's not splitting.

 

[beastmaster]

Im kinda jealous of him. He studied what he felt like, maxed that out, and is going to do fine whereas the rest of us feel forced to study subjects we don't like/are hard for us.

On second thought, your friend is a trailblazer. Next year, unlike the rest of us suckers, he'll focus only on pediatrics and psychiatry, really max that out. Besides, kids are just small adults, and most surgical patients are malingering anyway.

 

[anesthesiarocks]

On second thought, your friend is a trailblazer. Next year, unlike the rest of us suckers, he'll focus only on pediatrics and psychiatry, really max that out. Besides, kids are just small adults, and most surgical patients are malingering anyway.

ummm...that's not the same thing because he can't carry over points from Pediatric to pass other rotations. You can carry over points from micro to compensate for def. in pharm on step1

 

[Taus]

ummm...that's not the same thing because he can't carry over points from Pediatric to pass other rotations. You can carry over points from micro to compensate for def. in pharm on step1

dude why are u spending your day defending your friends strategy....pat your boy on the back and let this go.....its not like people on here are all of a sudden gonna start agreeing w/ his plan...