Official 2014 Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread

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notcool said:
I missed a lot of questions even though USMLE-Rx is supposed to be "easier" than UW...
Click to expand...
Rx is not always easier than UW. There are times where I have gotten 90 or near perfect on a UW block but then botched a Rx block. Rx will sometimes ask really weird questions or stuff saying "I don't have a damn clue!" or certain things that are worded differently. Also Rx is more path based; which is great but can get annoying sometimes where you recognize the disease but can't remember a certain feature of it.
Keep at it and your scores will improve!
 
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notcool said:
Hi everyone,

I'm new here, but I've been reading SDN for a while now. Thanks for this great thread!

I'll be taking my Step 1 later this year. But I foolishly (!!!) didn't study very well for this last year and a half, give or take, and so I feel extremely weak on my basic sciences. I've passed, but barely. I know, stupid, not cool, I totally regret my crap study habits.

Most of this thread seems to be focused on people who have a solid basic science background. But any advice for someone like me who is coming from a very weak one? I have no illusions about getting a super high score. My goal is a 230 which is already more than high enough for me and a score that I would be extremely happy with! But maybe 230 is out of my reach too given my weak performance so far where I feel like I have tons of holes or gaps in my knowledge? My question is if I start now on First Aid (I'll be using DIT too) + USMLE-Rx, and then closer to the exam focusing on UW, will this be sufficient to help me not only overcome my weak basic sciences background, but also make it realistic for me to hopefully reach my target of 230?

Thanks again!
Click to expand...

Hey, welcome to the fam!
Okay, here's my advice for u. Since u are weak in ur basic sciences, I would suggest watching Kaplan videos for all the subjects except pathology. For pathology, watch pathoma (Some people would suggest goljan, but if u are more of a visual learner, pathoma is great. If u don't mind audio, goljan is awesome.)
Instead of spending thousands of dollars for the Kaplan subscription, u could buy the books PLUS the Kaplan CDs from eBay or Amazon for dirt cheap (in comparison to what u would pay if u were to subscribe). You may have friends who have the videos and are willing to let u have them, in that case, u would only need to buy the books. Whatever saves u a dollar.
I don't know if u've heard of Dr. Najeeb. The man is a goddamn beast. The only disadvantage is that he would spend 800 hours on a 10 minute concept (hyperbolism, but u get my point). I was having a hard time with physiology, and a friend of mine who's an IMG suggested the videos. He is god at what he does (and a turtle). If u want to learn a concept and never forget it, Najeeb is ur man. He uses a white board and draws everything out from scratch. Genius, I know.
Subscribe to uworld as well, u cld perhaps do 25-50 randomized questions everyday, and study the answer choices (a great way to study as well).

Hmm what else . . . I think that's it.

Yup, so before reviewing for ur boards aka using FA and DIT, Kaplan + pathoma/goljan should be done first.

Bon chance!
 
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notcool said:
Hi everyone,

I'm new here, but I've been reading SDN for a while now. Thanks for this great thread!

I'll be taking my Step 1 later this year. But I foolishly (!!!) didn't study very well for this last year and a half, give or take, and so I feel extremely weak on my basic sciences. I've passed, but barely. I know, stupid, not cool, I totally regret my crap study habits.

Most of this thread seems to be focused on people who have a solid basic science background. But any advice for someone like me who is coming from a very weak one? I have no illusions about getting a super high score. My goal is a 230 which is already more than high enough for me and a score that I would be extremely happy with! But maybe 230 is out of my reach too given my weak performance so far where I feel like I have tons of holes or gaps in my knowledge? My question is if I start now on First Aid (I'll be using DIT too) + USMLE-Rx, and then closer to the exam focusing on UW, will this be sufficient to help me not only overcome my weak basic sciences background, but also make it realistic for me to hopefully reach my target of 230?

Thanks again!
Click to expand...

I'm in a similar boat, having coasted through most of first and second year. I took the Kaplan diagnostic (came w/ the qbank) back in December to identify my weaknesses, and now I take monthly practice tests to gauge my progress and re-evaluate my approach. I've used a combination of the Kaplan 2010 videos, wikipedia, FA General Principles, and Pathoma to fill in my knowledge gaps. I annotate clarifying information directly into FA2014 from these resources. I use both Kaplan and USMLE-Rx qbanks to solidify what I learn in class and on my own. I've also been creating my own Anki flashcard deck (using FA as a guide) since summer, which I try to get +70% adherence and +90% correct. It's slow going, but it seems to be working for me thus far.

Edit: Oh, and I'll also be picking up UWorld in a few days, but I'm planning on doing most of it during dedicated time.
 
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notcool said:
Thanks for your advice, Transposony! I really appreciate it!

If I understand correctly, you mean I should start doing questions (QBanks) as a way to find out where my weaknesses are and then read various books or other resources around my weaknesses to gain knowledge? But isn't it too early for me to start with a QBank now since I don't really know much, maybe I need to build a foundational amount of knowledge in the basic sciences first? (I tried a little bit of USMLE-Rx and found I missed a lot of questions even though USMLE-Rx is supposed to be "easier" than UW... Ouch.)

Sorry, just trying to clarify as I'm probably slow at grasping things! Thanks again for your help.
Click to expand...
This is exactly the mistake many people make i.e. they think that they need to to prepare well before start doing QBanks. The psychological basis behind this reasoning is that they don't want to come out of their "Comfort zone". They are comfortable reading books (inefficient/passive learning) and afraid of doing QBanks (efficient/active learning) for the fear of getting questions wrong.
I also had the same approach initially but realized that sooner or later I have to face the beast and the fear of getting questions wrong on QBank is not going to help me on the real deal. I'll rather get the questions wrong on a QBank and do something about it then get them wrong on the real test where nothing can be done.
Once I got a question wrong, I used every available resource (FA, Kaplan lecture notes/Videos, Medscape, Wikipedia, Review books, Textbooks, Articles) to understand the concept even if it took me an entire day.
As Chessmaster3000 said getting questions wrong is part of the learning process.

Bottomline: You can either get questions wrong on the QBank or on the real test. Which one do you prefer!
 
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Transposony said:
This is exactly the mistake many people make i.e. they think that they need to to prepare well before start doing QBanks. The psychological basis behind this reasoning is that they don't want to come out of their "Comfort zone". They are comfortable reading books (inefficient/passive learning) and afraid of doing QBanks (efficient/active learning) for the fear of getting questions wrong.
I also had the same approach initially but realized that sooner or later I have to face the beast and the fear of getting questions wrong on QBank is not going to help me on the real deal. I'll rather get the questions wrong on a QBank and do something about it then get them wrong on the real test where nothing can be done.
Once I got a question wrong, I used every available resource (FA, Kaplan lecture notes/Videos, Medscape, Wikipedia, Review books, Textbooks, Articles) to understand the concept even if it took me an entire day.
As Chessmaster3000 said getting questions wrong is part of the learning process.

Bottomline: You can either get questions wrong on the QBank or on the real test. Which one do you prefer!
Click to expand...

This +1. There is a reason people say you should expect to spend an hour doing a block of 46 questions, and 2-3 hours reviewing those questions. Remember that when you are doing 4000 questions it is to learn, not just to gauge how you are doing (although it helps you do that, too).
 
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ulikedaggers said:
Gout crystals are usually thinner and more needle-like. Pseudogout crystals are rhomboid shaped.
Click to expand...


Lightbulb! Just looked at the end of the crystals and noticed what you were saying. Thank you! I knew that pseudogout was rhomboid, but never noticed it until I looked at the end of the crystal.
 
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targ489 said:
Lightbulb! Just looked at the end of the crystals and noticed what you were saying. Thank you! I knew that pseudogout was rhomboid, but never noticed it until I looked at the end of the crystal.
Click to expand...

Clinical context is of course important. I recently learned hemochromatosis, hyper/hypoparathyroidism were all associated with CPDD. If the patient has any of these, chances are +++ that it's pseudo gout. IN addition, if it's podagra, changes are +++ that its gout. If it's knee, it could be either really. (I imagine a step 1 patient would be presenting w/ knee pain)

edit--cpdd=calcium pyrophosphate deposition disease=pseudogout
 
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ChessMaster3000 said:
Clinical context is of course important. I recently learned hemochromatosis, hyper/hypoparathyroidism were all associated with CPDD. If the patient has any of these, chances are +++ that it's pseudo gout. IN addition, if it's podagra, changes are +++ that its gout. If it's knee, it could be either really. (I imagine a step 1 patient would be presenting w/ knee pain)

edit--cpdd=calcium pyrophosphate deposition disease=pseudogout
Click to expand...

Yeah, I guess it's all in context. I remember coming across a question a while back when I was first learning gout and probably missed the context the question was being asked in. Thought it was solely based on the image; typical rookie move.
 
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ChessMaster3000 said:
Clinical context is of course important. I recently learned hemochromatosis, hyper/hypoparathyroidism were all associated with CPDD. If the patient has any of these, chances are +++ that it's pseudo gout. IN addition, if it's podagra, changes are +++ that its gout. If it's knee, it could be either really. (I imagine a step 1 patient would be presenting w/ knee pain)

edit--cpdd=calcium pyrophosphate deposition disease=pseudogout
Click to expand...

For some reason, it's really HY for 2CK that hemochromatosis and hyperparathyroidism are associated with increased risk of CPDD. I'm pretty sure Wilson disease, hypothyroidism and diabetes also increase the risk.
 
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kcb37 said:
NAC can also be used like Acrolein to prevent some of the cystitis side effects of ifosfamide (cyclophosphamide). In DIT they like to use the mnemonic Eradicate Ball Cancer for Etoposide, bleomycin and Cisplatin.
Click to expand...

I thought that acrolein was the cyclophosphamide metabolite that CAUSED hemorrhagic cystitis, and NAC or mesna prevent it.
 
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twolittlebears said:
I thought that acrolein was the cyclophosphamide metabolite that CAUSED hemorrhagic cystitis, and NAC or mesna prevent it.
Click to expand...

That's correct--I'm sure that is what kcb37 meant. Love the eradicate ball cancer mnemonic btw, it actually helps a lot. One of the better mnemonics Ive learned since I started.
 
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targ489 said:
Lightbulb! Just looked at the end of the crystals and noticed what you were saying. Thank you! I knew that pseudogout was rhomboid, but never noticed it until I looked at the end of the crystal.
Click to expand...

🙂 It helps that I'm an MS1 and only recently learned about Gout.. little details are still fresh in my mind.
 
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Just a quick note to say thanks to everyone who answered my questions and offered (much-needed!) encouragement (i.e., Transposony, ChessMaster3000, Fatalis, 900829, madcowz, Donald Juan)! Really good advice. I'll try to integrate it all. I signed up for USMLE-Rx (thanks also for the $99 discount), and will start doing questions, as well as look for Kaplan and other material to read as I work through the questions. Eventually I'll sign up for UW. Anyway I just wanted to say how much I appreciate everything. Thanks again everyone!!! 🙂
 
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Sorry, last question. I saw a new book called Crush Step 1: The Ultimate USMLE Step 1 Review. Anyone recommend that as another good resource to use while going through questions? Thanks in advance!
 
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900829 said:
Hey, welcome to the fam!
Okay, here's my advice for u. Since u are weak in ur basic sciences, I would suggest watching Kaplan videos for all the subjects except pathology. For pathology, watch pathoma (Some people would suggest goljan, but if u are more of a visual learner, pathoma is great. If u don't mind audio, goljan is awesome.)
Instead of spending thousands of dollars for the Kaplan subscription, u could buy the books PLUS the Kaplan CDs from eBay or Amazon for dirt cheap (in comparison to what u would pay if u were to subscribe). You may have friends who have the videos and are willing to let u have them, in that case, u would only need to buy the books. Whatever saves u a dollar.
I don't know if u've heard of Dr. Najeeb. The man is a goddamn beast. The only disadvantage is that he would spend 800 hours on a 10 minute concept (hyperbolism, but u get my point). I was having a hard time with physiology, and a friend of mine who's an IMG suggested the videos. He is god at what he does (and a turtle). If u want to learn a concept and never forget it, Najeeb is ur man. He uses a white board and draws everything out from scratch. Genius, I know.
Subscribe to uworld as well, u cld perhaps do 25-50 randomized questions everyday, and study the answer choices (a great way to study as well).

Hmm what else . . . I think that's it.

Yup, so before reviewing for ur boards aka using FA and DIT, Kaplan + pathoma/goljan should be done first.

Bon chance!
Click to expand...

Great advice.
 
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notcool said:
Sorry, last question. I saw a new book called Crush Step 1: The Ultimate USMLE Step 1 Review. Anyone recommend that as another good resource to use while going through questions? Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
No idea but you may want to check out First Aid for Basic Sciences & First Aid for Organ systems for Step 1.
However, It doesn't matter what resources you use but what you know.
But in order to know something you have to know what you don't know first (by doing QBanks).
So, pick the resources which suits your learning style.
 
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notcool said:
Sorry, last question. I saw a new book called Crush Step 1: The Ultimate USMLE Step 1 Review. Anyone recommend that as another good resource to use while going through questions? Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

Oh and please limit ur sources. It could get overwhelming.
 
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Just took it. Thought I'd throw in my 2 cents

NBME 13 (Jan 2013 at the end of 1.5 yrs pre-clerkship pre-study period): 228
NBME 12 (Sept 2013: decided to see where I was randomly during my clerkship year): 250
NBME 15 (Nov 2013): 257
UWSA#1 (3 wks out and 1.5 wks into dedicated studying): 257
UWSA#2 (2.5 wks out): 264
NBME 11 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 7 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 5 (1 wk out): 261

Real deal:

I was pretty nervous going in because it seems that everyone feels like they failed after they come out of the test. In my opinion the actual test was way easier than Uworld, the UWSAs, and the higher numbered NBMEs. Friends who just took it agree. So if you're going to take it soon, just relax.

All you need for this thing is what's been said before: First Aid, Pathoma, UWorld, +/- UsmleRx. I did my first pass of Uworld and Rx during my clerkship year, and did a second pass of Uworld during dedicated studying. Seriously though, there is absolutely no need to go searching for all kinds of crazy resources. If there was something I didn't know, it wasn't because I hadn't seen it before in the above resources.

After the test I felt pretty good. I ended up finishing each section with at least 15 minutes to spare. I felt like 80-90% of it was straight out of FA. So far, I know I missed at least 4 (couldn't help looking some things up afterwards). I ended up marking quite a few, but that's mainly because I mark the ones I want to take a closer look at since I tend to try to take the test as fast as possible to reduce over-thinking questions.

Biochem: SUPER easy, FA is more than enough
Anatomy: no wtf questions. Felt like you could reason through most of the weird ones
Behavioral science: I had a ton of these including a ton of ethics questions. FA is still more than enough
Embryo: Maybe 2 questions. Both easy
Phys: some arrow questions.
Path: some required some extra thought but not too bad

Overall, I think the best thing you can do to prepare is relax the afternoon/night before and get sleep. I can't recommend enough the benefit of having a late start time.
 
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Coug said:
Just took it. Thought I'd throw in my 2 cents

NBME 13 (Jan 2013 at the end of 1.5 yrs pre-clerkship pre-study period): 228
NBME 12 (Sept 2013: decided to see where I was randomly during my clerkship year): 250
NBME 15 (Nov 2013): 257
UWSA#1 (3 wks out and 1.5 wks into dedicated studying): 257
UWSA#2 (2.5 wks out): 264
NBME 11 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 7 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 5 (1 wk out): 261

Real deal:

I was pretty nervous going in because it seems that everyone feels like they failed after they come out of the test. In my opinion the actual test was way easier than Uworld, the UWSAs, and the higher numbered NBMEs. Friends who just took it agree. So if you're going to take it soon, just relax.

All you need for this thing is what's been said before: First Aid, Pathoma, UWorld, +/- UsmleRx. I did my first pass of Uworld and Rx during my clerkship year, and did a second pass of Uworld during dedicated studying. Seriously though, there is absolutely no need to go searching for all kinds of crazy resources. If there was something I didn't know, it wasn't because I hadn't seen it before in the above resources.

After the test I felt pretty good. I ended up finishing each section with at least 15 minutes to spare. I felt like 80-90% of it was straight out of FA. So far, I know I missed at least 4 (couldn't help looking some things up afterwards). I ended up marking quite a few, but that's mainly because I mark the ones I want to take a closer look at since I tend to try to take the test as fast as possible to reduce over-thinking questions.

Biochem: SUPER easy, FA is more than enough
Anatomy: no wtf questions. Felt like you could reason through most of the weird ones
Behavioral science: I had a ton of these including a ton of ethics questions. FA is still more than enough
Embryo: Maybe 2 questions. Both easy
Phys: some arrow questions.
Path: some required some extra thought but not too bad

Overall, I think the best thing you can do to prepare is relax the afternoon/night before and get sleep. I can't recommend enough the benefit of having a late start time.
Click to expand...

Awesome review! Thanks, Coug! And a huge congrats not only on passing, but most likely on scoring very well indeed whenever you get your score!

It seems like you started out in your pre-study period pretty strong though (228)? I'm in my pre-study period now too, and as others have advised me I should start with a Qbank to gauge where I'm at, but I highly doubt I'm anywhere near a 228. Probably closer to 200 to be entirely honest if not in fact lower, maybe even failing. Too much coasting for me, and now I have a lot to make up.
 
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Coug said:
Just took it. Thought I'd throw in my 2 cents

Real deal:

I was pretty nervous going in because it seems that everyone feels like they failed after they come out of the test. In my opinion the actual test was way easier than Uworld, the UWSAs, and the higher numbered NBMEs. Friends who just took it agree. So if you're going to take it soon, just relax.

All you need for this thing is what's been said before: First Aid, Pathoma, UWorld, +/- UsmleRx. I did my first pass of Uworld and Rx during my clerkship year, and did a second pass of Uworld during dedicated studying. Seriously though, there is absolutely no need to go searching for all kinds of crazy resources. If there was something I didn't know, it wasn't because I hadn't seen it before in the above resources.


Overall, I think the best thing you can do to prepare is relax the afternoon/night before and get sleep. I can't recommend enough the benefit of having a late start time.
Click to expand...

Congrats on being done! So there were things that you didn't see from FA, Pathoma, UW, Rx?
 
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Coug said:
Just took it. Thought I'd throw in my 2 cents

NBME 13 (Jan 2013 at the end of 1.5 yrs pre-clerkship pre-study period): 228
NBME 12 (Sept 2013: decided to see where I was randomly during my clerkship year): 250
NBME 15 (Nov 2013): 257
UWSA#1 (3 wks out and 1.5 wks into dedicated studying): 257
UWSA#2 (2.5 wks out): 264
NBME 11 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 7 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 5 (1 wk out): 261

Real deal:

I was pretty nervous going in because it seems that everyone feels like they failed after they come out of the test. In my opinion the actual test was way easier than Uworld, the UWSAs, and the higher numbered NBMEs. Friends who just took it agree. So if you're going to take it soon, just relax.

All you need for this thing is what's been said before: First Aid, Pathoma, UWorld, +/- UsmleRx. I did my first pass of Uworld and Rx during my clerkship year, and did a second pass of Uworld during dedicated studying. Seriously though, there is absolutely no need to go searching for all kinds of crazy resources. If there was something I didn't know, it wasn't because I hadn't seen it before in the above resources.

After the test I felt pretty good. I ended up finishing each section with at least 15 minutes to spare. I felt like 80-90% of it was straight out of FA. So far, I know I missed at least 4 (couldn't help looking some things up afterwards). I ended up marking quite a few, but that's mainly because I mark the ones I want to take a closer look at since I tend to try to take the test as fast as possible to reduce over-thinking questions.

Biochem: SUPER easy, FA is more than enough
Anatomy: no wtf questions. Felt like you could reason through most of the weird ones
Behavioral science: I had a ton of these including a ton of ethics questions. FA is still more than enough
Embryo: Maybe 2 questions. Both easy
Phys: some arrow questions.
Path: some required some extra thought but not too bad

Overall, I think the best thing you can do to prepare is relax the afternoon/night before and get sleep. I can't recommend enough the benefit of having a late start time.
Click to expand...

Solid performances. The NBMEs during the final two weeks tend to be very accurate, so you're poised to score 260s+. Given that most, but not all, of your exam felt like it was straight from FA, how would you say FA could have been better?
 
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I'm trying to figure out when to take my last 5 NBMEs. I want to do it as close to the exam as possible, but I also feel that if I don't leave any time for studying afterwards it's a little (not completely )bit of suboptimal use of those tests. Right now I'm looking at doing them 1 week, 6 days (2 tests), and 4 days (2 tests) out from my exam. I'm doing 2 tests in a row to build some mental stamina. I'm planning on not studying the last 1.5 days before the test, so I'd only have 1.5 days after the last practice exam to do any worthwhile studying. Does this sound like a reasonable plan?
 
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Coug said:
Just took it. Thought I'd throw in my 2 cents

NBME 13 (Jan 2013 at the end of 1.5 yrs pre-clerkship pre-study period): 228
NBME 12 (Sept 2013: decided to see where I was randomly during my clerkship year): 250
NBME 15 (Nov 2013): 257
UWSA#1 (3 wks out and 1.5 wks into dedicated studying): 257
UWSA#2 (2.5 wks out): 264
NBME 11 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 7 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 5 (1 wk out): 261

Real deal:

I was pretty nervous going in because it seems that everyone feels like they failed after they come out of the test. In my opinion the actual test was way easier than Uworld, the UWSAs, and the higher numbered NBMEs. Friends who just took it agree. So if you're going to take it soon, just relax.

All you need for this thing is what's been said before: First Aid, Pathoma, UWorld, +/- UsmleRx. I did my first pass of Uworld and Rx during my clerkship year, and did a second pass of Uworld during dedicated studying. Seriously though, there is absolutely no need to go searching for all kinds of crazy resources. If there was something I didn't know, it wasn't because I hadn't seen it before in the above resources.

After the test I felt pretty good. I ended up finishing each section with at least 15 minutes to spare. I felt like 80-90% of it was straight out of FA. So far, I know I missed at least 4 (couldn't help looking some things up afterwards). I ended up marking quite a few, but that's mainly because I mark the ones I want to take a closer look at since I tend to try to take the test as fast as possible to reduce over-thinking questions.

Biochem: SUPER easy, FA is more than enough
Anatomy: no wtf questions. Felt like you could reason through most of the weird ones
Behavioral science: I had a ton of these including a ton of ethics questions. FA is still more than enough
Embryo: Maybe 2 questions. Both easy
Phys: some arrow questions.
Path: some required some extra thought but not too bad

Overall, I think the best thing you can do to prepare is relax the afternoon/night before and get sleep. I can't recommend enough the benefit of having a late start time.
Click to expand...

Nice job, now you just got to hope the curve isn't brutal! But you are well on your way to getting 265+, you couldn't have prepared better.
 
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Coug said:
Just took it. Thought I'd throw in my 2 cents

NBME 13 (Jan 2013 at the end of 1.5 yrs pre-clerkship pre-study period): 228
NBME 12 (Sept 2013: decided to see where I was randomly during my clerkship year): 250
NBME 15 (Nov 2013): 257
UWSA#1 (3 wks out and 1.5 wks into dedicated studying): 257
UWSA#2 (2.5 wks out): 264
NBME 11 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 7 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 5 (1 wk out): 261

Real deal:

I was pretty nervous going in because it seems that everyone feels like they failed after they come out of the test. In my opinion the actual test was way easier than Uworld, the UWSAs, and the higher numbered NBMEs. Friends who just took it agree. So if you're going to take it soon, just relax.

All you need for this thing is what's been said before: First Aid, Pathoma, UWorld, +/- UsmleRx. I did my first pass of Uworld and Rx during my clerkship year, and did a second pass of Uworld during dedicated studying. Seriously though, there is absolutely no need to go searching for all kinds of crazy resources. If there was something I didn't know, it wasn't because I hadn't seen it before in the above resources.

After the test I felt pretty good. I ended up finishing each section with at least 15 minutes to spare. I felt like 80-90% of it was straight out of FA. So far, I know I missed at least 4 (couldn't help looking some things up afterwards). I ended up marking quite a few, but that's mainly because I mark the ones I want to take a closer look at since I tend to try to take the test as fast as possible to reduce over-thinking questions.

Biochem: SUPER easy, FA is more than enough
Anatomy: no wtf questions. Felt like you could reason through most of the weird ones
Behavioral science: I had a ton of these including a ton of ethics questions. FA is still more than enough
Embryo: Maybe 2 questions. Both easy
Phys: some arrow questions.
Path: some required some extra thought but not too bad

Overall, I think the best thing you can do to prepare is relax the afternoon/night before and get sleep. I can't recommend enough the benefit of having a late start time.
Click to expand...

:claps:Bravo on that 250+
 
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Notcool: 2 of my buddies started <200 pre-study and are now >240 on NBMEs

Ulikedaggers: Everything was in FA/Pathoma/Uworld. The exact fact might not have been, but the knowledge to reason through it was

Pholston: FA could use brain slices (like everyone already says), and a cut down on some of the ridiculous mnemonics. I love mnemonics, but some of these were a waste of time and were kind of a distraction. I will say that I really liked the 2014 version though.

BlueArc: By late start time, I meant trying to schedule your exam in one of the later time slots. I took mine at 11. With the inevitable nervousness the night before the test, I didn't want to risk not getting enough sleep.
 
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Coug said:
Notcool: 2 of my buddies started <200 pre-study and are now >240 on NBMEs

Ulikedaggers: Everything was in FA/Pathoma/Uworld. The exact fact might not have been, but the knowledge to reason through it was

Pholston: FA could use brain slices (like everyone already says), and a cut down on some of the ridiculous mnemonics. I love mnemonics, but some of these were a waste of time and were kind of a distraction. I will say that I really liked the 2014 version though.

BlueArc: By late start time, I meant trying to schedule your exam in one of the later time slots. I took mine at 11. With the inevitable nervousness the night before the test, I didn't want to risk not getting enough sleep.
Click to expand...

Thanks again, Coug. I just sent you a PM by the way.
 
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Coug said:
Just took it. Thought I'd throw in my 2 cents

NBME 13 (Jan 2013 at the end of 1.5 yrs pre-clerkship pre-study period): 228
NBME 12 (Sept 2013: decided to see where I was randomly during my clerkship year): 250
NBME 15 (Nov 2013): 257
UWSA#1 (3 wks out and 1.5 wks into dedicated studying): 257
UWSA#2 (2.5 wks out): 264
NBME 11 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 7 (1.5 wks out): 268
NBME 5 (1 wk out): 261

Real deal:

I was pretty nervous going in because it seems that everyone feels like they failed after they come out of the test. In my opinion the actual test was way easier than Uworld, the UWSAs, and the higher numbered NBMEs. Friends who just took it agree. So if you're going to take it soon, just relax.

All you need for this thing is what's been said before: First Aid, Pathoma, UWorld, +/- UsmleRx. I did my first pass of Uworld and Rx during my clerkship year, and did a second pass of Uworld during dedicated studying. Seriously though, there is absolutely no need to go searching for all kinds of crazy resources. If there was something I didn't know, it wasn't because I hadn't seen it before in the above resources.

After the test I felt pretty good. I ended up finishing each section with at least 15 minutes to spare. I felt like 80-90% of it was straight out of FA. So far, I know I missed at least 4 (couldn't help looking some things up afterwards). I ended up marking quite a few, but that's mainly because I mark the ones I want to take a closer look at since I tend to try to take the test as fast as possible to reduce over-thinking questions.

Biochem: SUPER easy, FA is more than enough
Anatomy: no wtf questions. Felt like you could reason through most of the weird ones
Behavioral science: I had a ton of these including a ton of ethics questions. FA is still more than enough
Embryo: Maybe 2 questions. Both easy
Phys: some arrow questions.
Path: some required some extra thought but not too bad

Overall, I think the best thing you can do to prepare is relax the afternoon/night before and get sleep. I can't recommend enough the benefit of having a late start time.
Click to expand...

*************

thanks...excellent post-- apropos, literate, cognitive, comprehensive...nice contribution to others who must brave the Beast 🙂
 
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Hi,

Sorry guys I posted this on a similar thread just now but realised this thread is more active as of late and I might get decent replies from people who have actually taken the test recently. So here goes:

If you had to choose between Goljan RR and Pathoma, which would it be and why? My test is in the coming few weeks and I'm really looking to narrow down my resources. I already have the RR 3rd edition, would have to print the Pathoma if I was going to do that. Started listening to Goljan audios in my car today as well. But what really is the difference between Pathoma and RR? Can someone who's used Pathoma and RR both really break it down for me? RR used to be the "gold standard" in Pathology, but lately I've been hearing students rave about Pathoma. So what's it really all about?
 
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BlueArc said:
Can you please elaborate on that?
Click to expand...
NR2014 said:
Hi,

Sorry guys I posted this on a similar thread just now but realised this thread is more active as of late and I might get decent replies from people who have actually taken the test recently. So here goes:

If you had to choose between Goljan RR and Pathoma, which would it be and why? My test is in the coming few weeks and I'm really looking to narrow down my resources. I already have the RR 3rd edition, would have to print the Pathoma if I was going to do that. Started listening to Goljan audios in my car today as well. But what really is the difference between Pathoma and RR? Can someone who's used Pathoma and RR both really break it down for me? RR used to be the "gold standard" in Pathology, but lately I've been hearing students rave about Pathoma. So what's it really all about?
Click to expand...

Pathoma is like your personal boards prep course. Gojan RR is excellent in its own way but its just another text, which you already have a lot of FA and UW (UW is like 2000 pages if you think about it). Pathoma, in addition to being high yield and all that, varies your studying experience which allows you to stay engaged for longer.
 
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Pathoma = Visual
Goljan = Audio.

( I have a feeling some of u are gonna be like "no shiit Sherlock".)
 
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Hey All...started stalking this forum a few days ago; it's great you are so nice an helpful, but at the same time a tad intimidating to see how well all of you are doing! I was just wondering how much of a jump in NMBE score can you except in the last few weeks? I have taken two so far, #7 & #13 and am at the 240 range. I have been studying for about 3 weeks now and have 3 weeks to go to the exam. I know it totally depends on the person, but did any of you see a substantial jump in the last weeks? I mean it would seem that you would because at some point everything should kind of come together. Thanks so much! (On a side note, I think everyone posts their goals; originally, I just wanted above a 240 but, of course, there's that part of me that says the higher the better right 🙂 So why not set my sights on 250+!?)
 
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MissWilder said:
Hey All...started stalking this forum a few days ago; it's great you are so nice an helpful, but at the same time a tad intimidating to see how well all of you are doing! I was just wondering how much of a jump in NMBE score can you except in the last few weeks? I have taken two so far, #7 & #13 and am at the 240 range. I have been studying for about 3 weeks now and have 3 weeks to go to the exam. I know it totally depends on the person, but did any of you see a substantial jump in the last weeks? I mean it would seem that you would because at some point everything should kind of come together. Thanks so much! (On a side note, I think everyone posts their goals; originally, I just wanted above a 240 but, of course, there's that part of me that says the higher the better right 🙂 So why not set my sights on 250+!?)
Click to expand...

Bienvenue Mademoiselle,
With those scores on ur NBMEs, I'm pretty sure that you will be hitting ur target when it comes to the real deal.
From what I've read so far, a few weeks of intense studying between NBMEs could improve ur score by a few points. So who knows, by the time u take ur last 2 NBMEs, u could be at the 250 range.
All the best on ur exam! Make sure you murdah it!

P.S Could u please tell us what u used to prep?
 
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900829 said:
Hey, welcome to the fam!
Okay, here's my advice for u. Since u are weak in ur basic sciences, I would suggest watching Kaplan videos for all the subjects except pathology. For pathology, watch pathoma (Some people would suggest goljan, but if u are more of a visual learner, pathoma is great. If u don't mind audio, goljan is awesome.)
Instead of spending thousands of dollars for the Kaplan subscription, u could buy the books PLUS the Kaplan CDs from eBay or Amazon for dirt cheap (in comparison to what u would pay if u were to subscribe). You may have friends who have the videos and are willing to let u have them, in that case, u would only need to buy the books. Whatever saves u a dollar.
I don't know if u've heard of Dr. Najeeb. The man is a goddamn beast. The only disadvantage is that he would spend 800 hours on a 10 minute concept (hyperbolism, but u get my point). I was having a hard time with physiology, and a friend of mine who's an IMG suggested the videos. He is god at what he does (and a turtle). If u want to learn a concept and never forget it, Najeeb is ur man. He uses a white board and draws everything out from scratch. Genius, I know.
Subscribe to uworld as well, u cld perhaps do 25-50 randomized questions everyday, and study the answer choices (a great way to study as well).

Hmm what else . . . I think that's it.

Yup, so before reviewing for ur boards aka using FA and DIT, Kaplan + pathoma/goljan should be done first.

Bon chance!
Click to expand...
Exactly what i was looking for but didn't know how to ask :soexcited:

👍👍👍👍👍👍


Thank you to both of you 😛
 
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MissWilder said:
Hey All...started stalking this forum a few days ago; it's great you are so nice an helpful, but at the same time a tad intimidating to see how well all of you are doing! I was just wondering how much of a jump in NMBE score can you except in the last few weeks? I have taken two so far, #7 & #13 and am at the 240 range. I have been studying for about 3 weeks now and have 3 weeks to go to the exam. I know it totally depends on the person, but did any of you see a substantial jump in the last weeks? I mean it would seem that you would because at some point everything should kind of come together. Thanks so much! (On a side note, I think everyone posts their goals; originally, I just wanted above a 240 but, of course, there's that part of me that says the higher the better right 🙂 So why not set my sights on 250+!?)
Click to expand...
agreed, I think a 250 is possible, as long as you study the right way. just keep it up and you have nothing to lose
 
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Thanks again!
To answer your question @900829 about what I using to prep..nothing original!
I've been doing 3 -4 blocks of uworld in a row to build some stamina! (How Rocky minus the raw egg part!) and then spending LOTS of time going through the explanations.
Weekly NBMEs- next week will be time to try out two in a row.
I listen to Goljan when I am in the car or whenever I am not sitting in from of the computer! I figured it can't hurt to have something float into the brain. I have already listen to his recordings when I was going through path.
I have been working my way through Pathoma this will be the second time as I went through once it as well when I was taking path.
Then there's First Aid. I need to make another go through that but passive learning is kind of hard for me so I have been using Rx as a cheat to get through First Aid. I have been doing Rx on the side to work on specific area with which I am not comfortable.
I have the Kaplan videos and have looked at some of those because Biochem seems like it was so long ago, and I needed some help dusting off all those cobwebs in my brain.
Then when I am feeling kind of blah I will just do some WebPath questions or look at CT's.
Wow that sounds messier than it really has been!
I suppose I can let you all know in a couple of weeks how effective my "technique" has been!
Like everyone seems to say here...since the exam is all questions, I figured better to get really good at answering questions. Plus the hardest thing in all of this madness is knowing what you don't know, and the best way to figure that out is to do questions!
 
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Ughh - studying is not going well :-/

Two-part problem:

1. Knowledge - I was weak in going through my classes, and now when I go through pathoma, it sticks and he explains it well but it is draining!
Going through pathoma is good though.

I suck at biochem, micro, and physio as well - I plan on using BRS for phys. Should I get the Kaplan videos for them? Are they that good? How long are they?

2. Motivation:

Sounds so stupid! I know this test will have a big part in deciding what I do in my future and where I can practice. I have high aspirations but...just can't get motivated! Anyone want to yell at me? Once I got into medical school I have been more 'complacent'
 
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pandoraone said:
Ughh - studying is not going well :-/

Two-part problem:

1. Knowledge - I was weak in going through my classes, and now when I go through pathoma, it sticks and he explains it well but it is draining!
Going through pathoma is good though.

I suck at biochem, micro, and physio as well - I plan on using BRS for phys. Should I get the Kaplan videos for them? Are they that good? How long are they?

2. Motivation:

Sounds so stupid! I know this test will have a big part in deciding what I do in my future and where I can practice. I have high aspirations but...just can't get motivated! Anyone want to yell at me? Once I got into medical school I have been more 'complacent'
Click to expand...

Do u know when u will be taking ur exam?
 
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Hey folks!

I have a Firecracker acct I'm selling. My classmates love Firecracker, but it doesn't fit my studying style - but maybe it'll work for you? The account expires on 05/11/14, and I'm selling access for $50, it cost me about $78. If you would like to purchase, PM me. Payment will be completed via PayPal.

The content I have is for USMLE Step 1 & USMLE Step 2 CK

Here's firecracker's website: http://www.firecracker.me/#features-section

Thanks!
 
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So I need help deciding what to do next. I'm about to finish UWorld and I still have a ton of time left (15 days).

Should I repeat UWorld, fly through Qbank, or something else? I've set aside the last 4 days (not included in the 15 days left) to do NBME 15&7, UWSA 1&2, Kap Sim Exam 2 and the free 150. I've already done NBME 13, 11 & 12. Also have done Kap Sim Exam 1.


Edit things I have done: FA 3x, rx 1, Goljan 1x, and pathoma 2x
 
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MissWilder said:
Hey All...started stalking this forum a few days ago; it's great you are so nice an helpful, but at the same time a tad intimidating to see how well all of you are doing! I was just wondering how much of a jump in NMBE score can you except in the last few weeks? I have taken two so far, #7 & #13 and am at the 240 range. I have been studying for about 3 weeks now and have 3 weeks to go to the exam. I know it totally depends on the person, but did any of you see a substantial jump in the last weeks? I mean it would seem that you would because at some point everything should kind of come together. Thanks so much! (On a side note, I think everyone posts their goals; originally, I just wanted above a 240 but, of course, there's that part of me that says the higher the better right 🙂 So why not set my sights on 250+!?)
Click to expand...
I would say you are well on your way to a 250 easily!
Ps. nice profile pic, it is always nice to see a fellow classmate on SDN!
 
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UWORLD first then RX, is it good idea?

friends,i need help...i have finished my review from first aid, kaplan's and step 1 secrets and would like to do qbanks now..but i am quiet confuse since i 'll be having my exam between march or may...i 've read many people use usmlerx first and save uworld when they are closer to the exam..now, i notice that i am a quiet slow learner so is it wise if i complete uworld first and then if i have more time do the RX qmax? please help...thx u very much
 
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