Is FA comprehensive?

[am9451]

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Hi everyone,

I've gotten a lot of advice about studying for Step 1 (taking that bad boy in April) both from upperclassmen and from SDN. A lot of SDNers say that they used all sorts of supplements to FA, while a lot of upperclassmen I know said that in the end, FA was all they had room for in their brains and that it suited them well.

I feel like there are quite a few diseases/drugs/what-have-you that I've found in Goljan and other supplements that FA makes absolutely no mention of.

My question is this:
For those of you that felt like you needed supplements to FA to be prepared, were you looking ONLY at the extra details related to diseases and drugs already in FA? Or were you also studying the diseases and drugs that FA failed to mention completely?

Thanks!

 

[2012mdc]

Hi everyone,

I've gotten a lot of advice about studying for Step 1 (taking that bad boy in April) both from upperclassmen and from SDN. A lot of SDNers say that they used all sorts of supplements to FA, while a lot of upperclassmen I know said that in the end, FA was all they had room for in their brains and that it suited them well.

I feel like there are quite a few diseases/drugs/what-have-you that I've found in Goljan and other supplements that FA makes absolutely no mention of.

My question is this:
For those of you that felt like you needed supplements to FA to be prepared, were you looking ONLY at the extra details related to diseases and drugs already in FA? Or were you also studying the diseases and drugs that FA failed to mention completely?

Thanks!

I read RR in full, all other supplemental sources were used to enhance my understanding of weak subjects like Neuro and Anatomy in FA. I didn't break it down to the level of detail you are talking about. I used UW and practice tests as a guide to what I needed to look at outside of FA - I looked at stuff when the explanation wasn't sufficient or when something was completely foreign to me. When an entire area was a weakness (ex - pelvic anatomy) I would use a supplemental source.

In other words use the supplemental sources when there is a subject area you don't understand well and when UW doesn't explain it well. I think I had maybe 2 questions that weren't covered by FA+RR+UW.

 

[DrBowtie]

FA is the core that gets you comfortably passing. If you know everything in that book, you'll pass with ease. The supplements are for the SDN types going for 240+.

UWorld is the only other necessity to get you comfortable with the interface, question styles, etc.

 

[NoWayOut]

I read RR in full, all other supplemental sources were used to enhance my understanding of weak subjects like Neuro and Anatomy in FA. I didn't break it down to the level of detail you are talking about. I used UW and practice tests as a guide to what I needed to look at outside of FA - I looked at stuff when the explanation wasn't sufficient or when something was completely foreign to me. When an entire area was a weakness (ex - pelvic anatomy) I would use a supplemental source.

In other words use the supplemental sources when there is a subject area you don't understand well and when UW doesn't explain it well. I think I had maybe 2 questions that weren't covered by FA+RR+UW.

Do you mind sharing what score you got with this strategy? It sounds sufficient.