M1 NBME Subject Exam Prep

[DoctorLacrosse]

So I have NBME subject exam finals for anatomy and histology in less than a month, and will continue to have them throughout first year for each subject block. I'm starting to kind of freak thinking about how I'm going to prepare for these while still having tons of new info thrown at us every day up until that point.

I guess my question is... how do you prepare for these NBME subject exams? any advice or tips? thanks everyone

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[jqueb29]

Your school gets to select from the available bank which questions to use; that is, while they may not write the questions, they do get to choose which ones to use. Your school may be different, but mine has almost never used any questions that didn't include material we were already previously responsible for in lecture (got our first NBME subject final of 2nd year tomorrow and I'm hoping they don't change that up for 2nd year lol). So if I were you, I would first make sure you know your lecture material down as best as you can before looking at outside resources.

My top outside source I would recommend is First Aid. Unfortunately this doesn't have anatomy or histo sections, but it is great for every other NBME subject exam you will have in the future.

 

[pocillopora]

^ This is some great advice.

Having just taken my 1st round of NBME subject exam, First Aid was decently helpful in quickly reviewing the main concepts from each specific subject. I would HIGHLY recommend BRS for studying for anatomy. BRS's practice tests at the end of each chapter are extremely high yield, in my opinion, and if you go through your incorrect answers at the end it really helps you make sure you have your material down.

 

[DoctorLacrosse]

great advice. I haven't gotten the impression my school does any selecting of the questions but I hope you're right! thanks

 

[DoctorLacrosse]

what are the best source of practice questions for the histology NBME?

 

[WedgeDawg]

Question, do certain schools choose to administer these exams, or are they required for all schools?

 

[Dinbin2]

I heard my school pays for the NBME tests during your 3rd year. I guess I shall seee

 

[DocWinter]

We do the same thing at my school. This might not work as well for histo or Anatomy, but for your other courses I tend to read through the BRS section and do the USMLE-RX questions on that organ system. After going through those 2x, you are ready to take any NBME just fine.

 

[Señor S]

For anatomy, BRS, Lippincott's Q&A, Pre-test in that order. I think the Pre-test book may also have a Histology section.

 

[medicalstadent]

BRS is a must have for 1st year

 

[ERDOC555]

Hey @DoctorLacrosse! I've seen your threads about your experiences with NBME exams and plan to use the information from them when I get to each unit. My school also uses NBME exams and I'll be starting anatomy pretty soon.

Would you be willing to elaborate on the Anatomy NBME experience with what books you recommend, how you studied, what you would have done differently, and any other general advice? If you're willing please reply to this thread or message me if you'd prefer!

Thanks so much!

 

[iscream4icecream]

Pre-test and BRS are great for anatomoy, you shouldn't need any extra review. Pre-test has really long explanations that are great if you are willing to take the time to actually read through it all. There is also a pre-test for histology. If you are wanting/willing to pay money, firecracker has been a good review tool, and I like sketchy micro for learning the different pathogens. Pathoma has also been good for going along with each system. Basically, the main thing about having NBME tests is to just use step 1 review resources as your mode of testing yourself. The learning aspect of med school is still the same.

 

[ERDOC555]

Pre-test and BRS are great for anatomoy, you shouldn't need any extra review. Pre-test has really long explanations that are great if you are willing to take the time to actually read through it all. There is also a pre-test for histology. If you are wanting/willing to pay money, firecracker has been a good review tool, and I like sketchy micro for learning the different pathogens. Pathoma has also been good for going along with each system. Basically, the main thing about having NBME tests is to just use step 1 review resources as your mode of testing yourself. The learning aspect of med school is still the same.

Thanks for the tips! I was definitely planning on using BRS anatomy, but I had never heard of pretest. I looked on Amazon and is the most recent one the 4th edition from 2010?

When it came to anatomy what was your routine with these resource?

 

[iscream4icecream]

Thanks for the tips! I was definitely planning on using BRS anatomy, but I had never heard of pretest. I looked on Amazon and is the most recent one the 4th edition from 2010?

When it came to anatomy what was your routine with these resource?

i have no clue about the edition, but anatomy doesn't really change often so it shouldn't matter. We had a midterm and a final each about a month apart, so I spent the first 3 weeks just learning the anatomy/essentially memorizing everything. I used youtube videos and anatomy lab to do this since I prefer the 3D, but find however you memorize best (it could be drawing everything over and over or staring at netters for a million hours). The last week of the month I then only did BRS and pretest practice questions to help integrate the knowledge/apply it clinically.

 

[ortnakas]

If you make it through your school's anatomy course, you should be fine on the NBME (when I was a first year our course director said nobody who had ever passed the rest of the class had ended up failing the shelf).

In my opinion the best question book is "green Gray's" (the Gray's Review Book).