Official 2014 Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread

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Enzymes said:
I did some google searches and what not, and I cannot figure out what in heck the Free 150 is. I found some free practice questions on the Step 1 site, but there are like 138...where/what is this glorious free 150 that you all are talking about. Thanks friends.
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My understanding is that in the past the NBME provided 150 practice questions, but now they provide a free set of 138. People still refer to it as the "free 150".
 
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Polymyxin said:
I recall you had earlier commented on not doing UWorld twice. Are you planning on doing Rx after UWorld to hammer in FA concepts. I might like this approach bc I have a hard time reading FA (I have a short attention span...questions keep me engaged).
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I found questions to be the most productive use of my time as well and so made FA + QBanks my only resources. I did Kaplan QBank during M2 along with classes on timed, random but only including 2-3 organ systems at a time as we covered them in classes. Once dedicated studying started I bought USMLERx and used that to solidify FA. I've just started UWorld this past week (exam on June 1st) and plan to finish with enough time to take some NBMEs and solidify any weaknesses. Also, feel free to use NBMEs throughout your dedicated study period as a gauge of how you're doing.

I think QBanks are best done in the following order: Kaplan → USMLERx → UWorld for a few reasons. First, Kaplan is a great intro to USMLE questions, but not high yield enough to bother going through during a short, dedicated study period. I used Kaplan as a way to make sure I was understanding the bigger picture and was able to apply what I learned in class. Because they have FA page references, it also allowed me to become familiar with FA and the information it did and didn't contain. This gave me a sense of what was high yield and how I should frame my thinking both when approaching questions, and when learning new information during classes. As I have a low tolerance for minutiae, this was invaluable. All of that being said however, I didn't bother to annotate anything from Kaplan and never looked at those questions again after I was finished with them. When I started dedicated, I did USMLERx before UWorld, and I think it should be done in this order because you want to solidify as much of FA as possible before you work on applying that information to UWorld-style questions. This will also show you how those one-liners in FA can be framed into questions, and point out any areas of FA you may have skipped. As I've just started UWorld and obviously haven't taken my step 1 yet, that's as far as I can comment, but I'd be happy to keep you all updated with my practice scores and test results in the next few weeks.

TL;DR: Ideal QBank order: Kaplan → USMLERx → UWorld. Finish with NBMEs and shoring up weaknesses.
 
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After reading the last few posts, I'm starting to have second thoughts about my plan, which is:
DIT + Rx to get me through a thorough reading of FA and solidifying it.

I absolutely agree that questions are much better (active) learning, but now I'm starting to think that maybe Rx alone is enough? Anyone who has used both have any advice about this?
 
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Witobb said:
Nice!! How long is it? or how long did it take you to get through?
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I had a terribad stats/epidemiology background, so it took me a long time. <10 hours I'd say for sure, but maybe expect 5-7. I read the explanations and spend the time annotating as if it was normal UWorld. All in all, I'd attribute 1-2 Q's that I got right between my 3 NBME's due to this extra set of questions.
 
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kirbymiester said:
I had a terribad stats/epidemiology background, so it took me a long time. <10 hours I'd say for sure, but maybe expect 5-7. I read the explanations and spend the time annotating as if it was normal UWorld. All in all, I'd attribute 1-2 Q's that I got right between my 3 NBME's due to this extra set of questions.
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Other than these questions what else did you do?
 
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Vexare said:
I found questions to be the most productive use of my time as well and so made FA + QBanks my only resources. I did Kaplan QBank during M2 along with classes on timed, random but only including 2-3 organ systems at a time as we covered them in classes. Once dedicated studying started I bought USMLERx and used that to solidify FA. I've just started UWorld this past week (exam on June 1st) and plan to finish with enough time to take some NBMEs and solidify any weaknesses. Also, feel free to use NBMEs throughout your dedicated study period as a gauge of how you're doing.

I think QBanks are best done in the following order: Kaplan → USMLERx → UWorld for a few reasons. First, Kaplan is a great intro to USMLE questions, but not high yield enough to bother going through during a short, dedicated study period. I used Kaplan as a way to make sure I was understanding the bigger picture and was able to apply what I learned in class. Because they have FA page references, it also allowed me to become familiar with FA and the information it did and didn't contain. This gave me a sense of what was high yield and how I should frame my thinking both when approaching questions, and when learning new information during classes. As I have a low tolerance for minutiae, this was invaluable. All of that being said however, I didn't bother to annotate anything from Kaplan and never looked at those questions again after I was finished with them. When I started dedicated, I did USMLERx before UWorld, and I think it should be done in this order because you want to solidify as much of FA as possible before you work on applying that information to UWorld-style questions. This will also show you how those one-liners in FA can be framed into questions, and point out any areas of FA you may have skipped. As I've just started UWorld and obviously haven't taken my step 1 yet, that's as far as I can comment, but I'd be happy to keep you all updated with my practice scores and test results in the next few weeks.

TL;DR: Ideal QBank order: Kaplan → USMLERx → UWorld. Finish with NBMEs and shoring up weaknesses.
Click to expand...

Is there enough time to do Rx and UWorld during dedicated time? I've been doing Rx when I can during MS1 (only done ~250 questions) because I didn't think I would have time for it next year. I was planning to do Kaplan Qbank during MS2 and then UWorld during dedicated time (~6 weeks for me).
 
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RandomHero117 said:
I don't know about calcification, but I believe diabetic nerve damage is the result of microvascular glycosylation. The nerves die because they lose their blood supply. There may be some osmotic component to the nerve damage too, can't remember the details right now though.
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Mostly osmotic (sorbitol).
 
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Has anybody that took Step 1 on Wednesday, April 25th gotten their results back yet? Today is the 3rd Wednesday from the exam.
 
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I have a classmate who took it on Saturday the 19th and had not heard back as of this past weekend (i.e. he'll probably hear today, the 4th Wednesday) I don't know when the weekday cut-off is for making it 3rd vs. 4th Wednesday... I hope you hear today though! I find it a bit frustrating that a MCQ exam should take a month to grade.
 
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NeuroLAX said:
My understanding is that in the past the NBME provided 150 practice questions, but now they provide a free set of 138. People still refer to it as the "free 150".
Click to expand...

That's what you think. You can pay an extra $200 and sacrifice your First Aid on the altar of almighty Goljan and the NBME gives you 12 extra questions that are guaranteed to be on your real exam.

Only REAL gunners know this.

JK, NeuroLAX is right, it's just an old name that has stuck.
 
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urbanclassic said:
Hey everyone, I need some advice. I have about 4.5 weeks until my step exam. My *goal* for step 1 is 260.
On CBSE:215 (End of March)
NBME 11: 234 (End of April)

I've gone through FA about 2x. I've done pathoma 2x. I'm about to finish Uworld in the next few days. I've been doing DIT for the last two days, and while some of it has been helpful, I feel like it's not going over things certain things in FA like I thought it would. Maybe I'm too quick to judge.
I plan to do Uworld and pathoma again. I'll also do Microcards about 1 hour a day, and some random anki cards that I made to memorize things that aren't sticking. Is it worth staying with DIT or should I just go over FA myself? Thanks.
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[/QUOTE]

Anymore opinions?
 
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luckyducky87 said:
I have a classmate who took it on Saturday the 19th and had not heard back as of this past weekend (i.e. he'll probably hear today, the 4th Wednesday) I don't know when the weekday cut-off is for making it 3rd vs. 4th Wednesday... I hope you hear today though! I find it a bit frustrating that a MCQ exam should take a month to grade.
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Thanks! I hear you on the seemingly unnecessary wait time.

I am going by this link: http://www.usmle-forums.com/general...smle-exam-results-third-fourth-wednesday.html

I obviously don't have first-hand evidence of its accuracy, but from what I've read, it seems to be a fairly accurate guideline to go by.
 
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Fingers crossed for everyone getting their scores today.

Has anyone taken the practice USMLE at Prometric? Are the questions identical to the Free 150 available online? If so, I'd like to know so I can cancel my registration. I've heard "yes it's completely identical" and "4 or 5 are the same and the rest are different".
 
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NeuroLAX said:
My understanding is that in the past the NBME provided 150 practice questions, but now they provide a free set of 138. People still refer to it as the "free 150".
Click to expand...

Are there copies of previous sets of the Free 150s any where? Would they be worth doing?

Delacroix22 said:
That's what you think. You can pay an extra $200 and sacrifice your First Aid on the altar of almighty Goljan and the NBME gives you 12 extra questions that are guaranteed to be on your real exam.

Only REAL gunners know this.

JK, NeuroLAX is right, it's just an old name that has stuck.
Click to expand...

Thou shalt have no gods before Sattar.
 
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Fox800 said:
Has anyone taken the practice USMLE at Prometric? Are the questions identical to the Free 150 available online? If so, I'd like to know so I can cancel my registration. I've heard "yes it's completely identical" and "4 or 5 are the same and the rest are different".
Click to expand...

They are mostly identical. There were 2 or 3 multimedia questions that obviously can't translate into paper. Very Kaplan-esque. A neuro exam video I think. And a heart sound question where you can see the carotid pulse and move the stethoscope around, and see them breathe.
 
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258! Overjoyed by this Step 1 score.:soexcited:

Here's a rough breakdown of my scores during my dedicated prep time in case anybody is interested in comparing that hasn't taken the test yet:

UWorld 1st pass: 74.1%
UWorld 2nd pass: 91.2%
NBME 7 @ 7 weeks out: 220
NBME 11 @ 4 weeks out: 245
NBME 12 @ 3 weeks out: 241
NBME 13 @ 2 weeks out: 254
NBME 15 @ 1 week out: 256
NBME 16 @ 3 days out: 256
'Free 150' @ 2 days out: 95%

Be confident! Hard work truly does pay off with this exam. :horns::nod::horns:
 
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Metallica1936 said:
258! Overjoyed by this Step 1 score.:soexcited:

Here's a rough breakdown of my scores during my dedicated prep time in case anybody is interested in comparing that hasn't taken the test yet:

UWorld 1st pass: 74.1%
UWorld 2nd pass: 91.2%
NBME 7 @ 7 weeks out: 220
NBME 11 @ 4 weeks out: 245
NBME 12 @ 3 weeks out: 241
NBME 13 @ 2 weeks out: 254
NBME 15 @ 1 week out: 256
NBME 16 @ 3 days out: 256
'Free 150' @ 2 days out: 95%

Be confident! Hard work truly does pay off with this exam. :horns::nod::horns:
Click to expand...

Congrats! What did you use besides uworld?
 
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Delacroix22 said:
They are mostly identical. There were 2 or 3 multimedia questions that obviously can't translate into paper. Very Kaplan-esque. A neuro exam video I think. And a heart sound question where you can see the carotid pulse and move the stethoscope around, and see them breathe.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I decided to just take it anyways. Moved it to 3 days before the real deal. I can get a feel for the testing center, check-in/out, breaks, etc.
 
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Metallica1936 said:
258! Overjoyed by this Step 1 score.:soexcited:

Here's a rough breakdown of my scores during my dedicated prep time in case anybody is interested in comparing that hasn't taken the test yet:

UWorld 1st pass: 74.1%
UWorld 2nd pass: 91.2%
NBME 7 @ 7 weeks out: 220
NBME 11 @ 4 weeks out: 245
NBME 12 @ 3 weeks out: 241
NBME 13 @ 2 weeks out: 254
NBME 15 @ 1 week out: 256
NBME 16 @ 3 days out: 256
'Free 150' @ 2 days out: 95%

Be confident! Hard work truly does pay off with this exam. :horns::nod::horns:
Click to expand...

Where can I find 'free 150' ? Can anyone write the link, please?
 
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urbanclassic said:
Congrats! What did you use besides uworld?
Click to expand...

Thank you! In addition to UWorld, I used First Aid, Pathoma, and Lange's Pharmcards. I used some microcards for a short while, but I realize that First Aid's micro section suited me better. I've always been of the philosophy that things need to be kept simple. So, I only used a few very high yield resources.
 
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Metallica1936 said:
Thank you! In addition to UWorld, I used First Aid, Pathoma, and Lange's Pharmcards. I used some microcards for a short while, but I realize that First Aid's micro section suited me better. I've always been of the philosophy that things need to be kept simple. So, I only used a few very high yield resources.
Click to expand...

Is lange's pharmcards helpful?
 
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Metallica1936 said:
258! Overjoyed by this Step 1 score.:soexcited:

Here's a rough breakdown of my scores during my dedicated prep time in case anybody is interested in comparing that hasn't taken the test yet:

UWorld 1st pass: 74.1%
UWorld 2nd pass: 91.2%
NBME 7 @ 7 weeks out: 220
NBME 11 @ 4 weeks out: 245
NBME 12 @ 3 weeks out: 241
NBME 13 @ 2 weeks out: 254
NBME 15 @ 1 week out: 256
NBME 16 @ 3 days out: 256
'Free 150' @ 2 days out: 95%

Be confident! Hard work truly does pay off with this exam. :horns::nod::horns:
Click to expand...
Wow, Congrat! How far in advance from the exam did you finish UWorld. And what did you do between that and test day? Also, any other advice of the final 1-2 weeks?
 
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dyspareunia said:
Is there enough time to do Rx and UWorld during dedicated time? I've been doing Rx when I can during MS1 (only done ~250 questions) because I didn't think I would have time for it next year. I was planning to do Kaplan Qbank during MS2 and then UWorld during dedicated time (~6 weeks for me).
Click to expand...
It took me ~3 weeks to finish USMLERx but that was with taking most weekends off and working hard during the week. Your speed is probably going to be dictated by how familiar you are with FA and how much further you want to go beyond their explanations. Since I see USMLERx mainly as an extension of FA, I made sure to spend the extra time going over my wrong answers because I knew anything from FA was fair game for step 1. In a 6 week study period however, that leaves just 3 weeks to finish UWorld and any NBMEs or other weaknesses you wanted to hit, which is less than ideal. Since I'm currently in a 7 week dedicated study, hitting USMLERx was manageable. If you really do find yourself running short on time during your dedicated study, my advice would be to do as much of USMLERx as you can, then focus on UWorld only.

I can't really comment on using USMLERx during M1, but I suppose question exposure is never a bad thing if you know you won't have time to see those questions during your dedicated study. I will say though that doing well in M2 is the best way to develop a strong foundation coming into your dedicated study, and will prepare you to tackle a good portion of the questions on step 1.
 
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Vexare said:
It took me ~3 weeks to finish USMLERx but that was with taking most weekends off and working hard during the week. Your speed is probably going to be dictated by how familiar you are with FA and how much further you want to go beyond their explanations. Since I see USMLERx mainly as an extension of FA, I made sure to spend the extra time going over my wrong answers because I knew anything from FA was fair game for step 1. In a 6 week study period however, that leaves just 3 weeks to finish UWorld and any NBMEs or other weaknesses you wanted to hit, which is less than ideal. Since I'm currently in a 7 week dedicated study, hitting USMLERx was manageable. If you really do find yourself running short on time during your dedicated study, my advice would be to do as much of USMLERx as you can, then focus on UWorld only.

I can't really comment on using USMLERx during M1, but I suppose question exposure is never a bad thing if you know you won't have time to see those questions during your dedicated study. I will say though that doing well in M2 is the best way to develop a strong foundation coming into your dedicated study, and will prepare you to tackle a good portion of the questions on step 1.
Click to expand...

Hey thanks for the advice. I've found Rx really helpful for micro because it gives me more opportunities to associate s/sx patterns with their bug. I did plan on doing Rx along with Kaplan next year if possible, but I've read so many times that UW > Kaplan > Rx, so it's definitely my lowest priority as far as qbanks go. Truthfully I bought it this year because you can extend the 12 month subscription to 24 months, which means I didn't lose any money by paying for it now rather than waiting.
 
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Really pleasantly surprised with a 253! I was secretly hoping for a >250, but that didn't necessarily seem realistic given my practice exam scores, and I felt that I had done terribly walking out of the exam. But here it is!

NBME 12 (3 weeks out): 228
NBME 7 (2 weeks out): 245
NBME 13 (11 days out): 243
NBME 16 (10 days out): 237
NBME 15 (9 days out): 254
NBME 11 (8 days out): 245
--> Average NBME score for me was 242 (range: 228 to 254). It was a bit discouraging me because my score seemed all over the place with no clear improvement or a "peak".

I also took UW SA's 3-4 weeks out, and scores were 245 and 247.

So here is to say that for me, most of my practice scores were an underestimation (phew).

I had 5 weeks dedicated to step 1 studying, and I only used FA, UW, and Pathoma, all of which I only got to go through systematically once. I referred to FA and Pathoma whenever I missed a UW question, so in that sense, I referred back to FA and Pathoma in small chunks a lot.

Good luck to everyone! You can do it! Here's to hoping that more people are pleasantly surprised by the real score 🙂

PS - also, I blatantly ignored the advice of "resting" the day before the exam. The day before, I blasted through a lot of material hoping something will stick, and even as I walked to the testing center on the morning of the exam I had flash cards that I reviewed on red lights... So depending on your personality I don't think it's necessarily detrimental to study up until the last minute! Nothing I studied that morning was on the exam, but it made me feel better.
 
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luckyducky87 said:
Really pleasantly surprised with a 253! I was secretly hoping for a >250, but that didn't necessarily seem realistic given my practice exam scores, and I felt that I had done terribly walking out of the exam. But here it is!

NBME 12 (3 weeks out): 228
NBME 7 (2 weeks out): 245
NBME 13 (11 days out): 243
NBME 16 (10 days out): 237
NBME 15 (9 days out): 254
NBME 11 (8 days out): 245
--> Average NBME score for me was 242 (range: 228 to 254). It was a bit discouraging me because my score seemed all over the place with no clear improvement or a "peak".

I also took UW SA's 3-4 weeks out, and scores were 245 and 247.

So here is to say that for me, most of my practice scores were an underestimation (phew).

I had 5 weeks dedicated to step 1 studying, and I only used FA, UW, and Pathoma, all of which I only got to go through systematically once. I referred to FA and Pathoma whenever I missed a UW question, so in that sense, I referred back to FA and Pathoma in small chunks a lot.

Good luck to everyone! You can do it! Here's to hoping that more people are pleasantly surprised by the real score 🙂

PS - also, I blatantly ignored the advice of "resting" the day before the exam. The day before, I blasted through a lot of material hoping something will stick, and even as I walked to the testing center on the morning of the exam I had flash cards that I reviewed on red lights... So depending on your personality I don't think it's necessarily detrimental to study up until the last minute! Nothing I studied that morning was on the exam, but it made me feel better.
Click to expand...
I guess you really are a luckyducky. Congrats!
 
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Risus said:
I've been following this thread for a few months now and take my test in 2 days. I've pretty much reached my peak as of 2 weeks and my only goal right now is to prevent from hemorrhaging more information. My practice tests:

CBSSE (school administered at start of study period): 240
Uworld: 88%
NBME 12: 264 (2 weeks from test)
NBME 13: 264 (1 week from test)
NBME 15: 262 (last Saturday)
Uworld 1, Uworld 2 (back-to-back, last Sunday): 265+

At this point, I'm going to trust my NBME scores no matter how crappy I feel after the test. I'll follow up with my thoughts and impressions of the test. I'll be happy with anything over 250, and would be really happy if I can somehow match my practice NBMEs. Good luck everyone!
Click to expand...

Real deal: 265. Looks like the NBMEs were highly predictive for me.
 
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001100010010011 said:
Thanks for the writeup, @luckyducky87. Do you have any thoughts bout how the exam compared to NBME's/UWorld/UWSAs?
Click to expand...

Content-wise and feeling-wise, I personally thought it was closest to the NBME's in a sense that I had timing issues and thought that some questions truly came out of the blue (whereas I think on the UW I could kinda guess where many of the Qs were coming from or getting at, even if I didn't ultimately know the answer). Also, I thought both the NBME and the real exam had harder behavioral science Qs than UW, at least for me. When I reviewed the Qs I got wrong on the practice NBME's, I felt that 90% of those questions were things I wouldn't have known to study for in the first place. Part of that is probably because I really only studied FA, UW, and Pathoma. But that's how I felt on the real exams - there were Qs I felt like I could reason through vs others that I didn't even know where to even begin. However, I did learn a lot of content by doing UW for sure, so I wouldn't say my UW experience was any less high yield!
 
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Here's a breakdown of my practice tests:

School administered NBME (5 weeks out): 190
NBME 11 (3.5 weeks out): 220
UWSA 1 (2.5 weeks out): 240
UWSA 2 (1 week out): 264
Final score: 251

When I left my exam, I felt it was a mix of UWSA 1 and UWSA2. As much as I would've loved a 260+, I had a feeling my score would end up being in the 250 just like my UWSA average.

Overall, I'm happy. I worked hard and glad it payed off. Biggest advice is to stick with how you study and don't listen to what anyone says. You have first aid, pathoma, and uworld. Use them how you see the best. I did random stuff during my study time like watching the first aid express, kaplan, and pathoma videos. I'm not that smart. I feel my dedication got me to this score so anyone can conquer this beast.
 
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