nbme diagnostic

[Joker88]

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Hey Guys,
I just took a diagnostic nbme to see how I would do without studying. I got really slammed. 160 cbse (140 usmle score). I was going to start studying in jan. what should i do? Am I in really bad shape for this? Sorry for the freak out in advance. im aiming for a 240 but i have no idea how i can get there with this score

 

[Porfirio]

We have to have Step 1 complete by March 6th. So far, I have only completed Pathoma, and about 200 questions in Uworld (started this Tuesday). Today, I am starting DIT, and that will be finished by the first week of Feb. I will continue to do Uworld questions while taking DIT. I am marking all the Uworld questions that I get wrong or that I get right based only on an "educated" guess. I figure I will go back through all those questions by Mid-Feb. My school held an afterhours event to have us try an NBME exam for fun.

The style of questions were very straight forward compared to normal medical school exams (professional test question writers > random medical school PhD professors). Granted, I had been doing Uworld prior to this event, so I was use to the style of questions. I would say that a 160 cbse and 140 usmle score is a good starting place.

I have heard from upper classmen that the month before your exam is the "critical mass" point, and that was when things started to come together for them. They said that everything before that month was kind of a shot in the dark, and mostly trying to find your groove.

Best of luck, and do not worry if you do not get a 240. Life will go on, and you will match just fine.

 

[Anastomoses]

Or you'll die before all that and your problems will be solved.

 

[J ROD]

You only got a lot of room to improve......get to work!

 

[Ismet]

Hey Guys,
I just took a diagnostic nbme to see how I would do without studying. I got really slammed. 160 cbse (140 usmle score). I was going to start studying in jan. what should i do? Am I in really bad shape for this? Sorry for the freak out in advance. im aiming for a 240 but i have no idea how i can get there with this score

When is your test? Did you expect to pass without any studying or practice questions whatsoever?

Take my advice with a grain of salt because I'm also an MS2 starting to study for boards (test mid-April), but you need to figure out a study plan and go from there. Go through the diagnostic and figure out your weak areas. Talking to upperclassmen and getting different tips and ideas really helped me figure out what I want to do. Most people recommended at least doing 2-3 passes through FA and Pathoma, supplementing along the way with various extras depending on your strengths/weaknesses (Goljan, Lilly's, BRS) and going through all of UWorld (with explanations!).

 

[Joker88]

Our test is in June. I have done some Uworld questions to see how they are. I started studying a bit last week but not much. Ill keep at it! I've been asking around and have heard similar things. Thanks for the advice everyone!

 

[DRM62]

First you need to ask yourself, how focused were you during the NBME practice? Second, you need to realize that you haven't seen a majority of this material in over a year or longer. As you go through FA and pathoma, it will all start coming back and you'll start making connections. I am one week into studying, and I too had a freak out moment after my NBME diagnostic. I did okay, but not what I thought I would have gotten. This basically lit a fire under me and got me really focused on studying. Don't worry, you'll be fine. 🙂
Also, you need to make a schedule of what you want to cover each day, and you need to stick to it.

 

[Dr joji]

What's the best strategy to prepared for Usmle step 1 and how to prepare a schedule for it?

 

[Anastomoses]

What's the best strategy to prepared for Usmle step 1 and how to prepare a schedule for it?

Learning English would be the first step. After that it's just gravy.