I saw that there was a similar thread for 2011 that had plenty of useful info so I figured its best to start one for 2012. 👍
Official 2012 Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread
- Thread starter amavir281
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12 was the hardest for me as well. Just move forward and stay positive, but make sure to study and learn the questions you guessed/got wrong.
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hi guys, my permit link disappeared which means my score will probably be coming out this wednesday. when the permit link disappears, I've heard that means that people have passed, does anybody know if there it truth to this?
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No. Its NOT true. Permit link has nothing to do with pass/fail. My friend's scheduling permit link disappeared 3 days after he took the exam. It doesnt mean that you passed. It means that you took the exam and permit is not required anymore.
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There's no way your friend's link disappeared three days after the exam, that's way too fast! Some people's link are still there 2 weeks after the exam. Your friend probably lied to you.
May be he did. I took my exam on 9th and my link disappeared before 25th(i checked it on 25th and it wasn't there). I am sure they didnt have my result with in 15 days
Just checked with couple of other friends who took CK and they told me the same thing. Their permit disappeared after a week and they were able to reapply for ck one week after they took the test.
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so If I took my exam on Tuesday July 10th I should definately get it tomorrow Wednesday August 1, I checked the past threads but than I received txt from a friend and he said he heard it was now 4weeks instead of based on wednesdays. Do you guys happen to know if anything has changed lately?
I took mine July 11th so am hoping tomorrow is the release as well, and the website still says it's on Wednesdays.
From the USMLE website FAQs: http://www.usmle.org/frequently-asked-questions/
I just took a computer-delivered Step. When will I get my scores?
A. Step 1, Step 2 CK, or Step 3:
Scores for Step 1, Step 2 CK and Step 3 are released each Wednesday. Generally these will include scores for examinees who tested three to four weeks before the release date. However, there are many factors that may delay an individual score release. Usually these will be quickly resolved and the score released in the next weekly cycle.
Your registration entity will notify you via email when your score becomes available. When released, your scores will be posted to your registration entitys secure website: for Step 1 and Step 2, either NBME or ECFMG; for Step 3, FSMB.
If you have not received your score within eight weeks of your test date, please contact us to determine the status of your score report. Please note that new scores are not released during the week of 4th of July or the week after Christmas.
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Thanks for the reply! I think I am going to take your advice and hammer out FA in these next ten days. I'd be really annoyed about missing straight recall questions. So FA and questions over and over for the next few days!
Mine disappeared pretty quickly, within about a week I believe. I'm not sure it has anything to do with passing, but I guess the only real evidence would be someone who says their link disappeared and they didn't pass. Unfortunately, few people with a score below 270 ever post their score
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any clue what time scores usually come out?
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nervous as well, my link disappeared a few hours ago... i hope that means we are getting something tomorrow, i.e. today
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This differs between IMGs and AMGs.
USMLE score calculator uses data from both and groups everything together. Read the bottom of their page for more information on the data they have used to get their gaussian distribution curve.
USMLE score calculator uses data from both and groups everything together. Read the bottom of their page for more information on the data they have used to get their gaussian distribution curve.
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please. no one. buy kaplan videos. waste of money. don't even waste your time torrenting them for free
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Except Raymond and pharm. They are good. Everything else a waste of time.
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FYI the USMLE Step 1 score has no percentile, never has and never will. The 2 digit score is a score derived from the 3 digit score because there are some states that require a 2 digit score for licensing. The "percentile" score stopped being reported to residencies in 1999.
Straight from the source: USMLE website
I just received my score report for a computer-delivered Step. Why are there two different scores on the front of the report?
Both scores reflect your overall performance on the examination. The number of test items you answered correctly is converted to two equivalent scores, one on a 3-digit score scale and one on a 2-digit score scale. Both scales are used for score reporting purposes. State medical boards will receive both the 2-digit and 3-digit scores. When you request that your results be reported to other score users, only the 3-digit score will be reported.
What does the 3-digit score mean?
On the 3-digit scale, most scores fall between 140 and 260. The mean score for first-time examinees from accredited medical schools in the United States is in the range of 215 to 235, and the standard deviation is approximately 20. Your score report includes the mean and standard deviation for recent administrations of the Step. Score information for each Step, including performance data by group, is posted each year for the previous year's examinees.
What does the 2-digit score mean?
The 2-digit score is not a percentile.The 2-digit score is derived from the 3-digit score. It is used in score reporting to meet requirements of some medical licensing authorities that the passing score be reported as 75. The 2-digit score is derived in such a way that a score of 75 always corresponds to the minimum passing score.
What is my percentile?
Percentiles are not provided in connection with USMLE scores. The calculation and provision of data to be used to rank or make comparisons among examinees is inconsistent with the primary goal of USMLE, which is to provide a series of assessments and recommendations for minimum passing requirements to the state licensing authorities to support decisions about initial licensure. Furthermore, normative data such as percentiles are easily misinterpreted because, as the examinee group changes across time, the correspondence between percentile values and examinee ability can change. For these reasons, USMLE does not report percentiles.
Under current procedures, the scores for each administration of a USMLE Step are equated so that a given 3-digit score represents essentially the same level of examinee performance for that Step, and this holds true across years. In other words, a score of 200 on one administration of a Step indicates a comparable level of examinee performance as a score of 200 on any other administration of the same Step. This equivalence holds even if the pass-fail standard is changed, which permits comparing performance across time.
It is important also to remember that the 2-digit score, also reported for USMLE, is not a percentile and is not fully equated like the 3-digit score. The 2-digit score is a total test score that is designed to meet the requirements of some state licensing authorities. The 2-digit score scale is one on which a 75 is always the minimum passing score. A given 2-digit score may represent a different level of performance if the two administrations were subject to different pass/fail standards.
Straight from the source: USMLE website
I just received my score report for a computer-delivered Step. Why are there two different scores on the front of the report?
Both scores reflect your overall performance on the examination. The number of test items you answered correctly is converted to two equivalent scores, one on a 3-digit score scale and one on a 2-digit score scale. Both scales are used for score reporting purposes. State medical boards will receive both the 2-digit and 3-digit scores. When you request that your results be reported to other score users, only the 3-digit score will be reported.
What does the 3-digit score mean?
On the 3-digit scale, most scores fall between 140 and 260. The mean score for first-time examinees from accredited medical schools in the United States is in the range of 215 to 235, and the standard deviation is approximately 20. Your score report includes the mean and standard deviation for recent administrations of the Step. Score information for each Step, including performance data by group, is posted each year for the previous year's examinees.
What does the 2-digit score mean?
The 2-digit score is not a percentile.The 2-digit score is derived from the 3-digit score. It is used in score reporting to meet requirements of some medical licensing authorities that the passing score be reported as 75. The 2-digit score is derived in such a way that a score of 75 always corresponds to the minimum passing score.
What is my percentile?
Percentiles are not provided in connection with USMLE scores. The calculation and provision of data to be used to rank or make comparisons among examinees is inconsistent with the primary goal of USMLE, which is to provide a series of assessments and recommendations for minimum passing requirements to the state licensing authorities to support decisions about initial licensure. Furthermore, normative data such as percentiles are easily misinterpreted because, as the examinee group changes across time, the correspondence between percentile values and examinee ability can change. For these reasons, USMLE does not report percentiles.
Under current procedures, the scores for each administration of a USMLE Step are equated so that a given 3-digit score represents essentially the same level of examinee performance for that Step, and this holds true across years. In other words, a score of 200 on one administration of a Step indicates a comparable level of examinee performance as a score of 200 on any other administration of the same Step. This equivalence holds even if the pass-fail standard is changed, which permits comparing performance across time.
It is important also to remember that the 2-digit score, also reported for USMLE, is not a percentile and is not fully equated like the 3-digit score. The 2-digit score is a total test score that is designed to meet the requirements of some state licensing authorities. The 2-digit score scale is one on which a 75 is always the minimum passing score. A given 2-digit score may represent a different level of performance if the two administrations were subject to different pass/fail standards.
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He isnt using the 2 digit score as a percentage.
He is using the bottom curve on this website http:// clinicalreview .com/ClinicalReview/resources/usmle-score-calculator.html to check out his percentile.
He is using the bottom curve on this website http:// clinicalreview .com/ClinicalReview/resources/usmle-score-calculator.html to check out his percentile.
My previous post (I've edited and added a little more info):
"Background: I'm not a prodigy. I'm not too crazy or "motivated" or whatever it is you want to call it to get a 260+ score. I didn't totally bust my balls off for the first 1.5 years `and mostly had fun. Had 6 weeks of dedicated study time. Hoping for something in the 240s. For my last 5-6 classes I annotated first AID the day or two before my exam in the class which actually ended up being very helpful for those subjects.
Study Material:
First Aid 2012 (it was hell correcting all the errata. It was a decent book but I would definitely be open minded about the kaplan alternative)
Pathoma- GREAT. Wish I had used it during classes. He is way more talented than 90% of the lecturers anyone will encounter in med school. Went through everything once with the videos then read through my weaker sections one more time. Wish I had had enough time to run through it an extra time.
BRS Phys- read through most of it once. great and enjoyable book. Not sure how helpful it ended up being but I like physic.
BRS Behavioral Sci- good book, but really didn't seem too necessary. First AID has basically licensed (or stolen) the key tables and info from the book. It was useful in that it provided alternate examples/descriptions of some of the disorders. I definitely did not read this book cover to cover- but maybe I should have. Behav Sci was actually my weakest subject on my real exam.
HY Embryo- not super necessary but it was good to have as a casual supplement to FA
Road Map Anatomy- ONLY read the "clinical" bulletpoints. Was decent. I simply just didn't want to spend much time on anatomy.
Gunner training- I used and REALLY liked this for about a month or two. It just got too ridiculous though. I unfortunately prepaid for a year which was a mistake. You really don't realize how quickly questions pile up until it actually happens to you. Had I seriously used it it probably would have been a 4 hour/day commitment I suspect. I ended up using it as a study resource to clarify some points in FA which was actually pretty helpful. They organize their material very well.
Microcards (lippincott)- AMAZING.
Pharmacology cards (lange)- I guess they were good but they will NOT help drill into your mind the individual drug names. Each card is typically a "class" of drug and I never had problems with that aspect of memorizing pharmacology. Memorizing individual drug names will take a separate effort on your part. I didn't put too much effort into memorizing every drug name possible and it ended up costing me a whole 1 question- I don't care but maybe other people would.
Before dedicated study period: I used some of the kaplan Q bank and use gunner training very lightly (and then quit). Annotated 5-6 classes in FA.
Questions:
Kaplan Q bank- did 2/3 of it then quit. Was fairly useful. I really didn't find the questions too nit picky like others have mentioned. I liked using it along with my first pass in first AID.
U World- did all the questions and probably read the answer in full for about 2/3 of the questions then just read through the correct answer portion of the remaining questions. During the last 3 days or so I went through about half of the questions I got incorrect.
UWorld Results: 76% average for my final 8 blockers (random untimed unused)
Practice Exams:
NBME 7 219 (4 weeks)
NBME 12 228 (2 weeks out)
NBME 13 242 (1 week out)
Exam experience-
Anatomy- not too much. 1 or 2 muskuloskeletal. About 4 CTs which were fairly easy. Two of them were definitely from levels I have never seen sections from though so prepping wouldn't have helped there. Anatomy was definitely one of my weaker subjects in class but I think I did fine here.
Behav/Biostats- 2-3 VERY straightforward "calculate the PPV with these numbers we are spoon feeding you" questions.
Genetics- had two questions on this that really stumped me. Most of it was basic recall of inheritance patterns for specific diseases though.
Phys- Pretty meh. Not a ton of "arrows questions" but there were 2 questions that had about 10 answer choices that I had no clue on and the topics were not in FA or BRS. Physio has never been a very difficult topic for me though.
Path- Not too terrible. I think Pathoma prepared me well. I didn't use Goljan at all and really think it would have been a waste of my time to do it. There were surprisingly very few path images on my exam and really only one question that needed a basic understanding of histology to answer.
Micro- lots of diarrhea questions. 1 question on some bacteria I have never heard of or seen before. ~2-3 parasitology questions that I probably got wrong. In retrospect, parasitology would have been a pretty high yield topic for me since there is really not too much material to cover here.
Pharm- mostly a joke. Seeing people post on here about minutia of drugs I had never heard of had me a little worried but my exam pretty much confirmed my suspicion: people on here are mostly-bat **** insane. I disappointing had zero questions on pharm kinetics. Most of my questions were on mechanisms.
Repro- I actually had a lot of repro stuff. It wasn't very hard but there was lots for me.
Other tips:
I do not believe I had a single question that mentioned the patient's race while that seemed an important aspect to many UWorld questions.
Question length was pretty variable and generally on the LONG side compared to UWorld. I would always finish UWorld blocks with 10 min to spare with very little effort. On the real exam I had about 3 blocks which had many long questions and after working as hard as possible to finish quickly I only ended up with 3-4 minutes to spare at the end. Note that the questions were NOT long because of extensive amount of lab values but rather just lots of text to read. Note that I am not a fast reader though- I struggled pretty hard on the MCAT verbal section lengths if that gives you some comparison.
I did NOT heed the warning to "relax and do nothing the day before your exam". Do whatever you are most comfortable with. For most of my school exams I crammed and pulled all-nighters before taking them. For Step 1 I did some very rapid review the last day- I allotted ~1.5 hours on the topics I thought were the weakest and probably quickly reviewed 2/3 of first aid during that day. I'm glad I did it too. I really helps me to have as much stuff fresh on my mind as possible.
Anyways, I thought I walked out knowing I missed about 10-12 stupid questions and additionally had marked (was very unsure of) about ~5 questions per block. Overall though, my exam felt very fair. I didn't feel like a single one of my questions was verbatim from UWorld or any of the NBMEs but most of the concepts were definitely there.
Other thoughts: although UWorld and all the other review material was great, it still felt surprisingly different than the real exam and I would have been in trouble had I not done decently during my first 2 years of med school- I could tell I was definitely pulling on a decent amount of information from my lectures that wasn't directly stated in any of the other review resources.
Also, I'm having trouble putting it into words, but I'm beginning to suspect the review material pool is feeding off itself- in other words, each resource is not to truly independent. FA especially seems to have just jacked material from other resource."
Actual score 245. Not super-crazy excited but I'm happy and very relieved.I don't think I've shut any doors for myself as my goal is currently to go to a top IM/research program. I was prepared to get anything from a 220 to a 255ish. Again, my UWorld averages were high/mid 70s for untimed random blocks at the end which seemed to produced 250s for others so I was hoping to squeak into the 250s but I'm not suprsied I didn't.
One final note here: I and many others here are pretty good proof that if Goljan RR isn't your style don't waste your time with it. I didn't start using pathoma until my dedicated study time and it helped me immensely.
"Background: I'm not a prodigy. I'm not too crazy or "motivated" or whatever it is you want to call it to get a 260+ score. I didn't totally bust my balls off for the first 1.5 years `and mostly had fun. Had 6 weeks of dedicated study time. Hoping for something in the 240s. For my last 5-6 classes I annotated first AID the day or two before my exam in the class which actually ended up being very helpful for those subjects.
Study Material:
First Aid 2012 (it was hell correcting all the errata. It was a decent book but I would definitely be open minded about the kaplan alternative)
Pathoma- GREAT. Wish I had used it during classes. He is way more talented than 90% of the lecturers anyone will encounter in med school. Went through everything once with the videos then read through my weaker sections one more time. Wish I had had enough time to run through it an extra time.
BRS Phys- read through most of it once. great and enjoyable book. Not sure how helpful it ended up being but I like physic.
BRS Behavioral Sci- good book, but really didn't seem too necessary. First AID has basically licensed (or stolen) the key tables and info from the book. It was useful in that it provided alternate examples/descriptions of some of the disorders. I definitely did not read this book cover to cover- but maybe I should have. Behav Sci was actually my weakest subject on my real exam.
HY Embryo- not super necessary but it was good to have as a casual supplement to FA
Road Map Anatomy- ONLY read the "clinical" bulletpoints. Was decent. I simply just didn't want to spend much time on anatomy.
Gunner training- I used and REALLY liked this for about a month or two. It just got too ridiculous though. I unfortunately prepaid for a year which was a mistake. You really don't realize how quickly questions pile up until it actually happens to you. Had I seriously used it it probably would have been a 4 hour/day commitment I suspect. I ended up using it as a study resource to clarify some points in FA which was actually pretty helpful. They organize their material very well.
Microcards (lippincott)- AMAZING.
Pharmacology cards (lange)- I guess they were good but they will NOT help drill into your mind the individual drug names. Each card is typically a "class" of drug and I never had problems with that aspect of memorizing pharmacology. Memorizing individual drug names will take a separate effort on your part. I didn't put too much effort into memorizing every drug name possible and it ended up costing me a whole 1 question- I don't care but maybe other people would.
Before dedicated study period: I used some of the kaplan Q bank and use gunner training very lightly (and then quit). Annotated 5-6 classes in FA.
Questions:
Kaplan Q bank- did 2/3 of it then quit. Was fairly useful. I really didn't find the questions too nit picky like others have mentioned. I liked using it along with my first pass in first AID.
U World- did all the questions and probably read the answer in full for about 2/3 of the questions then just read through the correct answer portion of the remaining questions. During the last 3 days or so I went through about half of the questions I got incorrect.
UWorld Results: 76% average for my final 8 blockers (random untimed unused)
Practice Exams:
NBME 7 219 (4 weeks)
NBME 12 228 (2 weeks out)
NBME 13 242 (1 week out)
Exam experience-
Anatomy- not too much. 1 or 2 muskuloskeletal. About 4 CTs which were fairly easy. Two of them were definitely from levels I have never seen sections from though so prepping wouldn't have helped there. Anatomy was definitely one of my weaker subjects in class but I think I did fine here.
Behav/Biostats- 2-3 VERY straightforward "calculate the PPV with these numbers we are spoon feeding you" questions.
Genetics- had two questions on this that really stumped me. Most of it was basic recall of inheritance patterns for specific diseases though.
Phys- Pretty meh. Not a ton of "arrows questions" but there were 2 questions that had about 10 answer choices that I had no clue on and the topics were not in FA or BRS. Physio has never been a very difficult topic for me though.
Path- Not too terrible. I think Pathoma prepared me well. I didn't use Goljan at all and really think it would have been a waste of my time to do it. There were surprisingly very few path images on my exam and really only one question that needed a basic understanding of histology to answer.
Micro- lots of diarrhea questions. 1 question on some bacteria I have never heard of or seen before. ~2-3 parasitology questions that I probably got wrong. In retrospect, parasitology would have been a pretty high yield topic for me since there is really not too much material to cover here.
Pharm- mostly a joke. Seeing people post on here about minutia of drugs I had never heard of had me a little worried but my exam pretty much confirmed my suspicion: people on here are mostly-bat **** insane. I disappointing had zero questions on pharm kinetics. Most of my questions were on mechanisms.
Repro- I actually had a lot of repro stuff. It wasn't very hard but there was lots for me.
Other tips:
I do not believe I had a single question that mentioned the patient's race while that seemed an important aspect to many UWorld questions.
Question length was pretty variable and generally on the LONG side compared to UWorld. I would always finish UWorld blocks with 10 min to spare with very little effort. On the real exam I had about 3 blocks which had many long questions and after working as hard as possible to finish quickly I only ended up with 3-4 minutes to spare at the end. Note that the questions were NOT long because of extensive amount of lab values but rather just lots of text to read. Note that I am not a fast reader though- I struggled pretty hard on the MCAT verbal section lengths if that gives you some comparison.
I did NOT heed the warning to "relax and do nothing the day before your exam". Do whatever you are most comfortable with. For most of my school exams I crammed and pulled all-nighters before taking them. For Step 1 I did some very rapid review the last day- I allotted ~1.5 hours on the topics I thought were the weakest and probably quickly reviewed 2/3 of first aid during that day. I'm glad I did it too. I really helps me to have as much stuff fresh on my mind as possible.
Anyways, I thought I walked out knowing I missed about 10-12 stupid questions and additionally had marked (was very unsure of) about ~5 questions per block. Overall though, my exam felt very fair. I didn't feel like a single one of my questions was verbatim from UWorld or any of the NBMEs but most of the concepts were definitely there.
Other thoughts: although UWorld and all the other review material was great, it still felt surprisingly different than the real exam and I would have been in trouble had I not done decently during my first 2 years of med school- I could tell I was definitely pulling on a decent amount of information from my lectures that wasn't directly stated in any of the other review resources.
Also, I'm having trouble putting it into words, but I'm beginning to suspect the review material pool is feeding off itself- in other words, each resource is not to truly independent. FA especially seems to have just jacked material from other resource."
Actual score 245. Not super-crazy excited but I'm happy and very relieved.I don't think I've shut any doors for myself as my goal is currently to go to a top IM/research program. I was prepared to get anything from a 220 to a 255ish. Again, my UWorld averages were high/mid 70s for untimed random blocks at the end which seemed to produced 250s for others so I was hoping to squeak into the 250s but I'm not suprsied I didn't.
One final note here: I and many others here are pretty good proof that if Goljan RR isn't your style don't waste your time with it. I didn't start using pathoma until my dedicated study time and it helped me immensely.
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Thanks MDPhDyeah, your post has been very useful.
It has been a few weeks since I took my exam but I figured I'd tell you guys what I thought was helpful. Let me start off by saying that I took my first two years seriously and honored most classes, however I scored fairly low (210) on the practice exam given by my school about 2 months before my actual Step 1 date. That low score scared me, along with reading horrifying posts on this website, to get my butt in gear.
i took about 6-7 weeks to study. 15-16 hour days.
uworld: ended up with about 68% overall avg on random. was initially starting off with 54%.
NBME 11 238
NBME 7 246
NBME 13 257
I used the following sources
1. first aid (cover to cover 3x)
2. brs physio** very helpful
3. brs physio problems and cases** helpful
4. first aid q and a
5. med micro made ridiculously easy
6. kaplan videos for physio, med micro, immuno, and biochem.
7. i found the rest of the NBMEs offline and did those. unfortunately there was no way to score them, but the exposure to different questions was very valuable.
8. every night before i slept i did about 30 minutes worth of micro and pharm flashcards** extremely helpful.
my weakest subject has always been physio, so i was determined to get it down before my test. it made a huge difference in my score.
took at the end of june: actual step 1 score 256/88
best advice is to make a schedule for yourself and stick to it.
i took about 6-7 weeks to study. 15-16 hour days.
uworld: ended up with about 68% overall avg on random. was initially starting off with 54%.
NBME 11 238
NBME 7 246
NBME 13 257
I used the following sources
1. first aid (cover to cover 3x)
2. brs physio** very helpful
3. brs physio problems and cases** helpful
4. first aid q and a
5. med micro made ridiculously easy
6. kaplan videos for physio, med micro, immuno, and biochem.
7. i found the rest of the NBMEs offline and did those. unfortunately there was no way to score them, but the exposure to different questions was very valuable.
8. every night before i slept i did about 30 minutes worth of micro and pharm flashcards** extremely helpful.
my weakest subject has always been physio, so i was determined to get it down before my test. it made a huge difference in my score.
took at the end of june: actual step 1 score 256/88
best advice is to make a schedule for yourself and stick to it.
I was just making a general estimate based on the score report by USMLE.
The mean and standard deviation from the score report are only for US and canadian medical students.
" For recent administrations, the mean and standard deviation for first time examinees from U.S. and Canadian medical schools are approximately 224 and 2 respectively, with most scores falling between 140 and 260."
So one SD above the mean is 246, hence 84-85th percentile.
Edit: Never mind I get what you were trying to say, you used the USMLE Score calculator on clinical review which uses both IMG and US scores. Thanks
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Agreed! Thank you, MDPhDyeah.
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Would UWorld (I realize most people get this merely weeks before step ) be beneficial if used with coursework....I hope its not really wasting the questions since you use world as a learning tool/get multiple passes and to gauge performance...like do you think the probe in UWorld help you better understand course material and help you do well on exams...hey it'd be like killing 2 birds with one stone
Robbins QandA were my other choices and I think I'll do Kaplan QBank as well
Robbins QandA were my other choices and I think I'll do Kaplan QBank as well
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I'd be aware that it's still hard to know true percentiles based on the standard deviation. You can certainly determine your percentile an avg of 224 with a STD dev 22 within 1 standard deviation. But when you get above 1 std dev you can't accurately calculate your percentile from the numbers provided by the USMLE.
If you look at the NRMP data, especially at high ends, the percentiles calculated by avg 224 with a STD dev of 22 would suggest that there are way more people with 260+ than are actually applying to residency. Like if you assumed 260 was 1.64 STD deviations above the mean, then there should be 1350 people 260 and higher applying via NRMP (27,000 NRMP applicants times 5%) when in fact there were only 547 who were 260 or higher.
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Hey guys,
I just started my 2nd ish/3rd pass through uworld. I am averaging around 90% (timed, random). Should i be reading the entire thing (explanation, incorrect answers and then education objective)? I am barely annotating anything into fa anymore because its already in there. So what would be the most effective way to get thru it quickly and devote more time towards content review/other areas?
I am doing 70q a day. Thanks!
Also i have done uwsa 1 and 2. I was thinking about re doing those (2nd pass) just for practice rather than for assessment. Thoughts?
I just started my 2nd ish/3rd pass through uworld. I am averaging around 90% (timed, random). Should i be reading the entire thing (explanation, incorrect answers and then education objective)? I am barely annotating anything into fa anymore because its already in there. So what would be the most effective way to get thru it quickly and devote more time towards content review/other areas?
I am doing 70q a day. Thanks!
Also i have done uwsa 1 and 2. I was thinking about re doing those (2nd pass) just for practice rather than for assessment. Thoughts?
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Hi all,
I got my results back yesterday. I would like to start out by saying that I have never been much of a gunner and I never had very high expectations of myself. But I was able to figure out the way I learned and used some unique study methods which ultimately worked very well. I'm not sure how many will actually get to read this, but hopefully someone can benefit from this advice.
But before I get into any of that, I would like to say: Relax. Calm down. Breathe. Put everything into perspective and understand that in the very grand scheme of things, your Step 1 score is pretty insignificant. Avoid people and situations that stress you out. I went home to study just so I could get away from my gunner classmates and I did not dare open SDN forums because I knew it would just increase my anxiety (be wary of the trolls on SDN). Also, take a moment to appreciate what you are doing. You are understanding the mechanisms of diseases, physiology, and treatments. Appreciate their complexity and beauty. This is cool stuff! And one day, using what you learned, you're going to save someone's life. Not many people have that privilege.
Resources:
1. First Aid 2012
- My sole resource for anything nonsystems: Biochemistry, Embryology, Pharmacology etc.
- I took a highlighter and marked off anything that I already knew so that when I revisited that page, I could focus solely on that which I didn't know. I worked until the entire page was highlighted. This allowed me to learn everything in the book in the most efficient manner possible rather than reading through the entire book 10x.
2. USMLE World Qbank
- I did it by sections rather than random. This allowed me to focus my full attention on one particular system or subject and absorb each detail. I only read the entire explanation if I got the question wrong (saved time). I then redid every question that I got wrong.
3. Pathoma
- A superb resource. Dr. Sattar elucidates the mechanism of the disease so beautifully and this is absolutely crucial to long term memory. I watched every single lecture and incorporated any additional details into my typed notes
- It does take a bit of time, so I did half during the end of my school year and half during my study period
4. My own typed up notes and tables
- For every single disease, I created a table and listed out the etiology, pathophysiology, clinical findings, laboratory findings, and treatments. 95% of you will think this is overkill, but it helped me tremendously. By doing this, I was able to consolidate information from multiple resources (Pathoma, UWorld, FA) into one.
- The other benefit of typed notes is that they are very easily searchable by Ctrl+F.
- If you are interested in the finer details of my studying or want to see a sample of my notes, please ask.
5. Other resources I used purely as reference: (might have done just as well with Wikipedia): BRS Physiology, High Yield Neuroanatomy, High Yield Embryology. Did not touch Goljan.
The things I did that I felt helped me the most:
- Minimized my number of resources. Understand that there are many top notch resources, and somewhere someone will claim that something is "the best" and a "must have". Just because you don't own all the A rated resources, that doesn't mean you can't do well.
- Ignored the things I already knew. You have a limited amount of time to learn a vast amount of material. If you know something, cross it out so you don't have to spend time looking at it again.
- Created my own typed notes. See above.
- Talked out loud. I would have an active dialogue with myself and for each disease, I would attempt to rattle off (from memory) the etiologies, pathophysiology, clinical findings, lab findings, and treatments. I would always ask myself why and how. For example: why do you get megaloblasts with Vitamin B12 and Folate deficiency? Because inadequate B12 and folate --> decreased synthesis of DNA pecursors --> decreased cell divisions --> larger cells. Doing this really forced me to understand mechanisms. Sometimes it even became enjoyable, almost like a game.
- Crammed as much as possible right before the test. Most will not agree with this, but you will be surprised at the number of questions you will get right on the test from having memorized a few nonintuitive things the day before (for example, CYP450 inhibitors/inducers, rate limiting enzymes, pharyngeal arch components). This is how you get the lower yield questions.
- Did not compare my study methods to others'. There were tons of things that my classmates (and people on this forum) will swear by that I did not do: create flashcards, listen to Goljan audio, etc. and if I had freaked out about that stuff, I would have been miserable. There are always multiple paths to success.
- Got prescribed sleep medication. If you have a problem, address it. My problem was anxiety and insomnia and thankfully I was able to sleep soundly the night before my test with the help of Zolpidem.
Total time spent: 7 weeks
- I did NOT use a daily schedule. I only used rough guidelines: 5 weeks learning and understanding everything once,1.5 weeks quickly blazing through everything again and really hammering things down, and a few days at the end to cram and memorize nonintuitive and lower yield stuff.
Goal: 250
School administered test: 210
NBME 12: 245 (1 week out)
Result: 261/89. I am very happy with my score and felt that all of the effort I put in finally paid off. Please PM me or reply if you have any questions.
I got my results back yesterday. I would like to start out by saying that I have never been much of a gunner and I never had very high expectations of myself. But I was able to figure out the way I learned and used some unique study methods which ultimately worked very well. I'm not sure how many will actually get to read this, but hopefully someone can benefit from this advice.
But before I get into any of that, I would like to say: Relax. Calm down. Breathe. Put everything into perspective and understand that in the very grand scheme of things, your Step 1 score is pretty insignificant. Avoid people and situations that stress you out. I went home to study just so I could get away from my gunner classmates and I did not dare open SDN forums because I knew it would just increase my anxiety (be wary of the trolls on SDN). Also, take a moment to appreciate what you are doing. You are understanding the mechanisms of diseases, physiology, and treatments. Appreciate their complexity and beauty. This is cool stuff! And one day, using what you learned, you're going to save someone's life. Not many people have that privilege.
Resources:
1. First Aid 2012
- My sole resource for anything nonsystems: Biochemistry, Embryology, Pharmacology etc.
- I took a highlighter and marked off anything that I already knew so that when I revisited that page, I could focus solely on that which I didn't know. I worked until the entire page was highlighted. This allowed me to learn everything in the book in the most efficient manner possible rather than reading through the entire book 10x.
2. USMLE World Qbank
- I did it by sections rather than random. This allowed me to focus my full attention on one particular system or subject and absorb each detail. I only read the entire explanation if I got the question wrong (saved time). I then redid every question that I got wrong.
3. Pathoma
- A superb resource. Dr. Sattar elucidates the mechanism of the disease so beautifully and this is absolutely crucial to long term memory. I watched every single lecture and incorporated any additional details into my typed notes
- It does take a bit of time, so I did half during the end of my school year and half during my study period
4. My own typed up notes and tables
- For every single disease, I created a table and listed out the etiology, pathophysiology, clinical findings, laboratory findings, and treatments. 95% of you will think this is overkill, but it helped me tremendously. By doing this, I was able to consolidate information from multiple resources (Pathoma, UWorld, FA) into one.
- The other benefit of typed notes is that they are very easily searchable by Ctrl+F.
- If you are interested in the finer details of my studying or want to see a sample of my notes, please ask.
5. Other resources I used purely as reference: (might have done just as well with Wikipedia): BRS Physiology, High Yield Neuroanatomy, High Yield Embryology. Did not touch Goljan.
The things I did that I felt helped me the most:
- Minimized my number of resources. Understand that there are many top notch resources, and somewhere someone will claim that something is "the best" and a "must have". Just because you don't own all the A rated resources, that doesn't mean you can't do well.
- Ignored the things I already knew. You have a limited amount of time to learn a vast amount of material. If you know something, cross it out so you don't have to spend time looking at it again.
- Created my own typed notes. See above.
- Talked out loud. I would have an active dialogue with myself and for each disease, I would attempt to rattle off (from memory) the etiologies, pathophysiology, clinical findings, lab findings, and treatments. I would always ask myself why and how. For example: why do you get megaloblasts with Vitamin B12 and Folate deficiency? Because inadequate B12 and folate --> decreased synthesis of DNA pecursors --> decreased cell divisions --> larger cells. Doing this really forced me to understand mechanisms. Sometimes it even became enjoyable, almost like a game.
- Crammed as much as possible right before the test. Most will not agree with this, but you will be surprised at the number of questions you will get right on the test from having memorized a few nonintuitive things the day before (for example, CYP450 inhibitors/inducers, rate limiting enzymes, pharyngeal arch components). This is how you get the lower yield questions.
- Did not compare my study methods to others'. There were tons of things that my classmates (and people on this forum) will swear by that I did not do: create flashcards, listen to Goljan audio, etc. and if I had freaked out about that stuff, I would have been miserable. There are always multiple paths to success.
- Got prescribed sleep medication. If you have a problem, address it. My problem was anxiety and insomnia and thankfully I was able to sleep soundly the night before my test with the help of Zolpidem.
Total time spent: 7 weeks
- I did NOT use a daily schedule. I only used rough guidelines: 5 weeks learning and understanding everything once,1.5 weeks quickly blazing through everything again and really hammering things down, and a few days at the end to cram and memorize nonintuitive and lower yield stuff.
Goal: 250
School administered test: 210
NBME 12: 245 (1 week out)
Result: 261/89. I am very happy with my score and felt that all of the effort I put in finally paid off. Please PM me or reply if you have any questions.
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Hello, thanks for the post. You didn't mention any embryology. Was wondering how many questions u recall having on it, and how many dealing with biochemistry enzymes/pathways. I have 3 days left so i want utilize them well. I rather use them to go over parisitology now than going through embryo because embryo just isn't sticking.
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Thanks IridescentNight your post has been very useful. Great job.
No one ever said the scores form a normal curve, but given that tens of thousands of people take the exam you can assume it comes close to a normal curve.
If the curve wasn't normal there would be no point in them giving us the std deviation becuase it would be meaningless
EDIT:
Heres a link to a thread I made a while back that shows the score distribution for those applying to last years match.
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=909946
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I just moved my test date up a week (to December 14th) specifically because I found a 12:30pm time slot for the exam.
I would think waking up for the USMLE at 6:30am for an 8am slot, feeling fully rested, would be harder to do than prep for the exam itself.
Nevertheless, solid outcome. Thanks for the post.
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Since when is a 261 "solid"!!! I would vote stellar! People on SDN make me feel bad about myself sometimes
😀
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This isnt occupy medschool, this is the country of the 1% not the 99%.
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That's not true. I scored 269 in March this year and only used Kaplan resources. Kaplan is the best. Heil Kaplan.
QED
hello everyone!
I just joined this forum but I took step 1 yesterday and it was something else...I read this forum all the time,but since I finally took the boards, I thought I would post my experience. A little more anatomy than I expected, lots of neuroanatomy, and weird microbio questions. If you have not studied anatomy, pleaseee a little time to do so! Even if its just looking at some X-rays/CTs/MRIs of common stuff. I made some silly errors too toward the end, so just make sure to pace yourself and take your time. These are my NBMEs/World assessments so far, and I will be sure to post my results in 3 weeks. 🙂
NBME 6: 189 (about 1.5 months out)
NBME 12: 200 ( about 7 weeks out)
NBME6: 207 (about 3 weeks out)
NBME13: 228 (about 2.5 weeks out)
World 1: 224 ( about 3 days after NBME 13, a little on the tired ready to go side)
Step 1: ???
I just joined this forum but I took step 1 yesterday and it was something else...I read this forum all the time,but since I finally took the boards, I thought I would post my experience. A little more anatomy than I expected, lots of neuroanatomy, and weird microbio questions. If you have not studied anatomy, pleaseee a little time to do so! Even if its just looking at some X-rays/CTs/MRIs of common stuff. I made some silly errors too toward the end, so just make sure to pace yourself and take your time. These are my NBMEs/World assessments so far, and I will be sure to post my results in 3 weeks. 🙂
NBME 6: 189 (about 1.5 months out)
NBME 12: 200 ( about 7 weeks out)
NBME6: 207 (about 3 weeks out)
NBME13: 228 (about 2.5 weeks out)
World 1: 224 ( about 3 days after NBME 13, a little on the tired ready to go side)
Step 1: ???
i would say you definitely should go back through world again and actually READ the explanations and pay attention to pictures as well as things you got correct. I took the exam yesterday and there were 2 pictures directly from world and 1 question directly from one of the world assessments. Not including some of the questions that kinda sounded like world questions. I went through world 3x..one time just answering without reading, and 2 times trying to absorb and critically think about the big picture points. I think that is a mistake that people make not to read everything, obviously you wont remember everything but the concepts are most important..Also, it would be a good idea to use your assessments to decide what you should be reviewing closest to the exam. Try to go through first aid and type out everything you are unsure about/kinda cant remember..it will help. If you have the time I would definitely invest in NBMEs 11, 12, or 13.
Hope that helps! If you have any other questions let me know, since I just took it yesterday everything is still fresh but I dont know how long that will last because I want to forget it all!
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I was in the upper 240's and feel like a ***** on these boards, lol.
Lurked through this forum on my final days before my exam, thought I would post my results since they followed an upward trend. I was asked to provide some insight on my study schedule, so here goes.
Not the best student, not the worst. Usually scored right over mean on all of our school exams.
First pass was done slowly over the last 7 weeks of class. I just reviewed 1-2 chapters per week and did about 10-46 Kaplan questions a day. Used some Rapid Review Path, BRS Physio, High-Yield Embryo, and High-Yield Behavioral Science to fill in the gaps.
Followed that with 2.5 weeks of DIT as a second pass through First-Aid.
3rd pass through First-Aid over 2 weeks. During this time I started UWorld, doing anywhere from 1-3 blocks per day. I wasn't a huge fan of the qbank and spent the majority of my time reading and annotating First-Aid. I also was using BRS Mirco and BRS Pharm flash cards. I found the BRS Pharm to be slightly more helpful.
Edit: did multiple passes through Immuno, Biochem, and pretty much memorized the Path chapter during this time. I found that invaluable.
4th pass through First-Aid the week before my exam. Did about 100-150 pages per day, and 2-3 blocks of UWorld per day (only reviewed wrong answers). I also went through the mounds of Anki flash cards I made.
Only studied for 2 hours the day before my test, then I went to the movies, the mall, and ran some errands.
Figured I passed after the test, but not with anything good. I ran out of time on two sections and just barely squeezed out the answers. My fifth block was torture (3 heart sounds questions), and I was sure I missed all 46 in that block. The testing center was right next to a fire station and you could hear the engines go by every 25 minutes.
I'll comment on the DIT since it seems controversial around these parts. I tend to lose my focus once I pass through information once. DIT helped me because I needed that structure and guidance to get through my second pass. I also had a few questions on my test where the info wasn't in any other review book for what it's worth. It worked for me, but I know just as many people that it worked for that it didn't work for and they quit a few lectures in. If you're not a self-starter, it might be worth considering.
Not the best student, not the worst. Usually scored right over mean on all of our school exams.
First pass was done slowly over the last 7 weeks of class. I just reviewed 1-2 chapters per week and did about 10-46 Kaplan questions a day. Used some Rapid Review Path, BRS Physio, High-Yield Embryo, and High-Yield Behavioral Science to fill in the gaps.
Followed that with 2.5 weeks of DIT as a second pass through First-Aid.
3rd pass through First-Aid over 2 weeks. During this time I started UWorld, doing anywhere from 1-3 blocks per day. I wasn't a huge fan of the qbank and spent the majority of my time reading and annotating First-Aid. I also was using BRS Mirco and BRS Pharm flash cards. I found the BRS Pharm to be slightly more helpful.
Edit: did multiple passes through Immuno, Biochem, and pretty much memorized the Path chapter during this time. I found that invaluable.
4th pass through First-Aid the week before my exam. Did about 100-150 pages per day, and 2-3 blocks of UWorld per day (only reviewed wrong answers). I also went through the mounds of Anki flash cards I made.
Only studied for 2 hours the day before my test, then I went to the movies, the mall, and ran some errands.
Figured I passed after the test, but not with anything good. I ran out of time on two sections and just barely squeezed out the answers. My fifth block was torture (3 heart sounds questions), and I was sure I missed all 46 in that block. The testing center was right next to a fire station and you could hear the engines go by every 25 minutes.
I'll comment on the DIT since it seems controversial around these parts. I tend to lose my focus once I pass through information once. DIT helped me because I needed that structure and guidance to get through my second pass. I also had a few questions on my test where the info wasn't in any other review book for what it's worth. It worked for me, but I know just as many people that it worked for that it didn't work for and they quit a few lectures in. If you're not a self-starter, it might be worth considering.
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great scores everyone! should be getting mine this week or next...fingers crossed for a good outcome.
First off, I have a 2.98 GPA. So I figured I would be screwed. This is for my B/C student homies.
Took CBSE through school administration in March and got the equivalent of a 208. I was so happy I was already in passing range. Didn't think I would already be there with my poor coursework performance.
I had UWorld for the whole MS2 year, since I knew my GPA was terrible after MS1 year. I did questions by system for each coursework test we had. So by the time Step came, I had gotten through the whole bank twice and many questions I kept getting wrong several times over. I started off getting raped, but worked my way up before step to getting 75-80% correct on an average 46 block. I recommend this if you're not confident after MS1 year. It pays off in the end. Ignore getting 45% correct your first few months of MS2 year.
I started BRS Pathology in January and also worked through that along with course work pathology. It was pretty good.
After school ended, I hardcore white-boarded First Aid the whole way through for my first two weeks. Then did 19 day DIT. I did about 1-2 46 blocks of UWorld during this that matched up with what I was working on. For my last 8-9 days after that, I did practice exams and skimmed First Aid again. I watched my team in the NBA playoffs as evening breaks every now and then to break up the time and motivate me to work hard in between games. I also had a beer every night at 830 or 900. It's the little things in life.
School administered CBSE 3.5 months away: 207
Benchmark UW SA 1 when school ended: 214
DIT end of course exam converted using chart found on this forum: 239.5 (took the rest of the day off)
UW SA 2 two days later: 242 (confidence building)
Free 150 with downloaded FRED software: 245
NBME CBSE 12: 228 (cried like a little bitch. Not because of the score, but because I dropped 20 points four days before my real exam)
NBME CBSE 13: 230 (same as above)
Actual exam: 241. Had spontaneous solo dance party and scared MS4 roommate studying for Step 2.
Morals of story: A B/C student can do quite well. NBME 12 is an *******. Find something that you like to maintain throughout studying so you don't go insane. Don't deprive yourself of everything you like. Study hard. There are a non-representative amount of 240s, 250s, and 260s posting on this thread.
Good Luck class of 2015
Took CBSE through school administration in March and got the equivalent of a 208. I was so happy I was already in passing range. Didn't think I would already be there with my poor coursework performance.
I had UWorld for the whole MS2 year, since I knew my GPA was terrible after MS1 year. I did questions by system for each coursework test we had. So by the time Step came, I had gotten through the whole bank twice and many questions I kept getting wrong several times over. I started off getting raped, but worked my way up before step to getting 75-80% correct on an average 46 block. I recommend this if you're not confident after MS1 year. It pays off in the end. Ignore getting 45% correct your first few months of MS2 year.
I started BRS Pathology in January and also worked through that along with course work pathology. It was pretty good.
After school ended, I hardcore white-boarded First Aid the whole way through for my first two weeks. Then did 19 day DIT. I did about 1-2 46 blocks of UWorld during this that matched up with what I was working on. For my last 8-9 days after that, I did practice exams and skimmed First Aid again. I watched my team in the NBA playoffs as evening breaks every now and then to break up the time and motivate me to work hard in between games. I also had a beer every night at 830 or 900. It's the little things in life.
School administered CBSE 3.5 months away: 207
Benchmark UW SA 1 when school ended: 214
DIT end of course exam converted using chart found on this forum: 239.5 (took the rest of the day off)
UW SA 2 two days later: 242 (confidence building)
Free 150 with downloaded FRED software: 245
NBME CBSE 12: 228 (cried like a little bitch. Not because of the score, but because I dropped 20 points four days before my real exam)
NBME CBSE 13: 230 (same as above)
Actual exam: 241. Had spontaneous solo dance party and scared MS4 roommate studying for Step 2.
Morals of story: A B/C student can do quite well. NBME 12 is an *******. Find something that you like to maintain throughout studying so you don't go insane. Don't deprive yourself of everything you like. Study hard. There are a non-representative amount of 240s, 250s, and 260s posting on this thread.
Good Luck class of 2015
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