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Well? Is that enough time (4 months and 10 hours/day)
Hercules said:I assume that's a joke?
peach4me said:Well? Is that enough time (4 months and 10 hours/day)
GiJoe said:its enough time to take a 3 month vacation and then study for step 1 for 10 hrs a day
notatriagenurse said:I agree. I mean you'd probably start forgetting what you learned in the first two months if you waited this long to take the test. But hey everybody (almost) seems to be getting >250 in the SDN forums anyways so maybe peach4me is aiming for the same. Nothing wrong with that! Good luck to you.
peach4me said:Well? Is that enough time (4 months and 10 hours/day)
Harrie said:Even if you want 250+, 4 months is too long in my opinion. Study hard for 4-6 weeks and you will probably do as well as you're gonna do.
Sheral said:HI, I'm reading thru the posts and I'm trying to understand this...
How can more time for learning not help you on the boards? Isn't your score based on how many practice questions you do and how well you know FA and other board books? So the more the better right....I'm sorry it just seems uncommonsensical (a word, who knows? ) to me. I'm just an MS 2 anyways so what do I know.... someone set me straight.
kappasigMD41 said:At a certain point, you will start to get burned out. Your brain will shut down and you will stop retaining new material. At this point you have done all you can do, and you just need to take the d@mn thing. Our school has always given about 6 wks off to take step 1, but most people take it after 4 wks of studying then go on a trip. For me, Step 1 April 14, Costa Rica April 17.
Pox in a box said:I disagree. By your theory, you should be burnt out of all your classes by the second exam of each semester course. Doing questions and changing the way you study could transcend into months (or even years) of study that could prepare you better.
GiJoe said:wrong. studying for your classes is 10X less intense than studying for step I. Burnout is real...its kinda like the law of diminishing returns... as you hit the end, the return you get for the time invested decreases as you psychologically get worn out. Don't take more than 1.5 months to study for this test...u'll be going nuts near the end
Sheral said:HI, I'm reading thru the posts and I'm trying to understand this...
How can more time for learning not help you on the boards? Isn't your score based on how many practice questions you do and how well you know FA and other board books? So the more the better right....I'm sorry it just seems uncommonsensical (a word, who knows? ) to me. I'm just an MS 2 anyways so what do I know.... someone set me straight.
notatriagenurse said:Sheral, it's not necessarily the quantity of practice questions that you do (ie. the more the better is not really true) that will help your score. It's more how well you understand the "core content" of the basic science years and a little bit of test-taking ability. Personally, I have classmates who score >250 who only studied 4 weeks and some classmates who score in the 220s who studied for 6 weeks and did much more questions that the ones that got >250. You really can "burn out" studying for Step I and not learn anymore material after a certain amount of time and risk forgetting material you learned in Week 1 if you prolong the agony of taking more time to study. This comes from personal experience and from feedback from the classmates I'm close to. Ask around from people ahead of you.
Pox in a box said:How can you say it's less intense? If anything, it could be MORE INTENSE because for class exams, you are forced to learn the most obscure minutia at times and be able to regurgitate it onto an exam. Sure, Step 1, you can argue, has much more material. However, it's suppose to be material you've already learned once. Step 1 isn't suppose to be a "learn for the first time exam." It's about review. Some people take longer than others to review. Some burn out and some don't. Yes, some people burn out. But, wouldn't you rather burn out 2 months before your exam, take a week or two to relax a bit, and then regrip and continue for the exam? It all depends on the person and how he/she studies. I've seen people who are "burntout" for weeks at a time and I've seen people who are "burntout" for only a day or even a couple of hours. It depends on your psyche. If you take 1.5 months and you are burntout for the last 2 or 3 weeks, that's what I call diminishing returns. I'm sure you might disagree but to say that taking a couple of months to study is stupid is pushing it if you do not know the person, the knowledge background, and study habits.
peach4me said:I thought the longer you study something, the more likely you retain it by reviewing it over and over. . . Isn't that right?? You can't help but to get a better score . . . If you're burnt out, take a break, visit some friends, go see a movie, etc. then get back to studying
vanelo said:Man, are you way off track in this matter????
All the posts in this thread are correct, except yours. Go on, take 4 months to study and then write back the score you got.
vanelo said:Man, are you way off track in this matter????
All the posts in this thread are correct, except yours. Go on, take 4 months to study and then write back the score you got.
Pox in a box said:How did you do on the MCAT Verbal section? You completely misread what I posted. I never said I was going to study like this. I do, however, see nothing wrong with someone wanting to do it. So what if you are tired and need a break. I definitely see nothing wrong with the approach. Who said the OP was not going to do exactly what you do in 1 or 2 months the last 1 or 2 months of his/her studying? To say that someone definitely will burn out spending more time studying than you would or do is stupid. You don't know that. Alright, take my opinion and read it, regurgitate it, and vomit it out if you don't agree.
GiJoe said:plese dont tell me you just used the "mcat verbal section" to gauge someone's reading ability on a public message board
doc05 said:listen fools, there's no reason to study for more than 5 weeks if you're a US-MD student. Many of my classmates (myself included) scored over 250 with about 4 weeks study time. Burnout is real, and study is MUCH more intense.
notatriagenurse said:The drawback is we can't know for sure because this forum only allows for self-report of scores... that probably explain partly why the average STEP 1 score in this forum is a 241..
Good one.vanelo said:Thats right, I use the following formula:
Score Reported - 50 = Actual Score
Try it, it works every time.
delicatefade said:Every one of you missed the boat. You should have started day one of first year.
Harrie said:Even if you want 250+, 4 months is too long in my opinion. Study hard for 4-6 weeks and you will probably do as well as you're gonna do.
peach4me said:For those who made 250 and above, how long did you study?
Jalby said:from a different thread:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=108319
Meg... Phew!!! finally it is over!!!
I gave step 1 today (Febr 12 '04) , finished just an hour back. It was not bad. Not too terrific, but not terrible either.
Basically, I found my exam very similar to Kaplan online qbank and NMS qbank.
I studied for about 5 and half months. The materials I used:-
Kaplan notes
First aid 2004 (the recent one is really good- I had used 2000 and 2003 but I found 2004 really stand out esp with HLA information, some additional concepts in physio, biochem(genetics), behavioral. If you already have an older FA, try getting the new one at some bookstore and add the new concepts into the book you already have )
Step Up (by Samir Mehta)- real good system based approach. Great for neuro.
BRS Patho, Physio, Behavioral, Cell bio
NMS Genetics
HY Anat, but Kaplan anat and FA anat are more than enough
Online Kaplan qbank (I had few questions so much directly from it! I must say, take the current online version, it will help)
NMS qbank (though the questions are tough, they help you understand key concepts)
Goljan 100 pages (I got from a friend, real good)
Goljan audio lectures (terrific one, he is a great teacher)
I also did Blackwell online (blackwellmedstudent.com) score:81%, Kaplan simulated CD was 79%. Kaplan qbank I was getting about 75-78% initially. I will know how reflective they are of USMLE scores only after 4 weeks
Though there are so many materials /books, finally, I had to use First Aid as the main book and added all extra concepts into it and used it and Step up finally for the last month.
I want to thank alll the contributors of this forum (asmi, mjl1717, maty, yulia, mahendra, kalibonite, alice8 and so many others ) because I found a lot of questions similar to what we had discussed. One major recommendation I would give is to be active in the subjects-questions forums( I mean like anatomy, patho, behavioral etc..). It really helps in knowing what to focus on. And best of all, you will remember what you discuss.
Thanks to all and wish you all the very best. Take lots of eats (esp bananas I took breaks after every block). Now I am mentally exhausted and am going to chill out and keep praying for the scores
Take care all,
meg
Now Results....
March 6 '04
Post subject: 257/99!!
Praise God!
I got my score today. It was quite a joy to get it. It was 257/99
I cannot tell you how much I have to thank all in this forum, esp the folks with whom I used to regularly study/share/discuss. Honestly guys, I got a lot of questions just similar to the ones we had discussed.
Also I want to thank the authors and contributors to FA, Kaplan(notes and qbank), NMS, and last but never the least Dr. Goljan! And above all, God Almighty for His abundant love and Grace and guidance.
Some advice to share set your mind and keep it set. Be disciplined. study as much as you can. If you have a choice between studying and playing, STUDY. Many like to know how to organise time. It totally depends on your schedule of things. But just to sketch a bit of how my days were during those preparation.... My day began at about 5:30 AM and ended 11PM. I made it a point to get at least 6 hours sleep as it helps us register in our memory the facts we learnt that day (Kaplan advice). Initially I started studying by sitting at my school library( I am doing masters). Then I studied more at home. I kept adjusting schedule according to whether I had classes that day or work, but basically my number 1 priority was to study. I was also determined and enjoyed being active on several usmle forums. If I was walking on the road(on the way to school or morning walk sometimes), then I would be listening to goljan audio( I bought an MP3 player just for this). If I were at home, I would be reading. If I am cooking, then I am listening to goljan audio or webprep audio. And also I had taken print outs of the exam experiences and advice mentioned by those who had scored in high 90s and would read them whenever I needed some encouragement or motivation. Basically, I think it helps to remain focussed and set the distractions behind your mind.
all the best to all the others. Step 1 is not difficult as long as we remain on track.
God bless you all,
Meg
peach4me said:For those who made 250 and above, how long did you study?
And what if you're a US-citizen in an off-shore school where the standard of teaching may be a little low? (underlined "may be" so that people don't catch feelings and think I'm insulting off-shore schools , [they know who they are]).listen fools, there's no reason to study for more than 5 weeks if you're a US-MD student. Many of my classmates (myself included) scored over 250 with about 4 weeks study time. Burnout is real, and study is MUCH more intense.
digging up an old thread here, but its curious to see the difference between views a few years back. seems like everyone now is on the 5-6 month study plan.
I dunno, May or June?For what its worth I studied hardcore for 8 weeks. During my basic science curriculum I had a grand total of 1 heme, 1 mol. bio, 1 immuno lectures (this is not a joke), anatomy was the big emphasis at my school which is a surgery mecca in the UK.
The only things I used outside of my hardcore study time was the goljan audio and rapid review. 4 months is a long long time think of all the things you can do: vacation, volunteering, chilling out, living life, sooo much can be done in 4 months!
ps. Knicks when are you taking your exam?
I dunno, May or June?
I could've taken it a while ago, just never registered for it.
I dunno, May or June?
I could've taken it a while ago, just never registered for it.