MKSAP v. Medstudy (sorry to bring it up again)

[Zolpidem25]

hey guys-

i know this has been asked before, but i'm having a real hard time making the decision. i have heard that the Medstudy books are better written (ie: a smoother read), and that they do a really good job of covering everything that will be on the boards... i've also heard that the strength of MKSAP is it's Q&A sections, which is supposedly far superior to Medstudy's. so which one do i get? i'm looking for something that i can work on slowly, throughout my three years... like an hour a night, focusing on whatever rotation i'm doing... basically i need something that is thorough, readable, and ideally will help both on the wards and for the ABIM.

any advice would be greatly appreciated....
Z

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[APACHE3]

My PD said if you want to pass, medstudy is more than enough. If you want top 5%, then MKSAP is your way to go. Just what I heard....

 

[Renovar]

hey guys-

i know this has been asked before, but i'm having a real hard time making the decision. i have heard that the Medstudy books are better written (ie: a smoother read), and that they do a really good job of covering everything that will be on the boards... i've also heard that the strength of MKSAP is it's Q&A sections, which is supposedly far superior to Medstudy's. so which one do i get? i'm looking for something that i can work on slowly, throughout my three years... like an hour a night, focusing on whatever rotation i'm doing... basically i need something that is thorough, readable, and ideally will help both on the wards and for the ABIM.

any advice would be greatly appreciated....
Z

I went from cover to cover on the each of the section books (text version) of MKSAP 13, and got 90+ percentile on the in the ABIM in-service mock exam on my intern and second year exams. I highly recommend reading over each of the books at least once during residency. Not only does it make me do well on these tests, it makes me look good on rounds many times, as a lot of topics gives references to the seminal work done in that particular topic/field, and having read at least the abstract/conclusion/discussions of these key studies makes the 3-5 min presentations a snap during rounds. I am a big MKSAP fan, and cannot say enough good things about it. I also think MKSAP is "closer to the source" as it's published by ACP who undoubtedly has a hand in the actual contents of the real deal.

 

[Shah_Patel_PT]

My PD said if you want to pass, medstudy is more than enough. If you want top 5%, then MKSAP is your way to go. Just what I heard....

Do you mean the student version of the MKSAP ??

 

[AJM]

Do you mean the student version of the MKSAP ??

No, he/she's referring to the resident version of MKSAP. I believe it's been recently updated to MKSAP 14 now? The student version isn't nearly as detailed.

 

[APACHE3]

Yes, MKSAP 14

 

[treedoc]

Medstudy is definitely better for the boards since it is written just for the boards. ACP doesn't write the boards (this is a myth). Stay with one system. Study medstudy books 3 times and you will ace exam.

 

[Annette]

I heard mixed reviews from the resident class ahead of me. Seems that you should pick what works best for you.

I like MKSAP because of the questions. (I keep it in the ladies room- just enough time to do a question or two )