Official 2014 Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread

[900829]

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Too early? Pff nah it's not.
It's our time to shine bright like a diamond!
It's our time to make step 1 our Goliath.

. . . and may the odds be ever in your favor.
WE GOT THIS!

 

[1dayatatime]

biochem? physio? neuroanatomy and neurophysio?

i am paranoid.

 

[tantacles]

biochem? physio? neuroanatomy and neurophysio?

i am paranoid.

They exist, but I felt they weren't too represented on my exam. There was one lysosomal storage disease question.

 

[Handinhand]

Bah, I hope I don't get your test. I rely on cardio and other physiology type questions to pull me up after I get all my behavior questions wrong haha.

 

[1dayatatime]

how about "safety science"? w/ever that is.

 

[Apoplexy__]

Overall, I didn't feel too bad. I felt like I really got slammed on my first block and my fourth block, but on all of the other ones, it seemed like what I expected:

Congrats on being done! Interestingly, I also had the hardest time with my first and fourth blocks.

 

[tantacles]

Bah, I hope I don't get your test. I rely on cardio and other physiology type questions to pull me up after I get all my behavior questions wrong haha.

I'm exactly the opposite. The behavioral science and epidemiology questions tend to be free points for me.

Speaking of that, there was a question that basically asked why we do the ELISA first and then a western blot for HIV diagnosis. Easiest question in the world.

 

[togaedere]

Hey y'all. Long time-ish lurker and I wanted to say that i really appreciate everyone's comments. I am taking my exam on the 17th and have been preparing by trying hard at school for the past two years, plus some extra stuff with Pathoma, First Aid Cases, and some extra questions starting 3 months out. Our dedicated study time started a few weeks ago giving me 5 whole weeks to prepare. I've been re-doing Pathoma, finished Uworld a few days ago with roughly a 70%, and have been going through first aid and my incorrects subject by subject every day as well as doing a random block in the morning to start me off and get a more comprehensive picture.

I am getting to the point where i am kind of crushed by the routine. The things i always hate studying -- anatomy, drug side effects -- are still the things i hate so there's kind of a limit to how much my brain is allowing me to cram into it. Regardless, i took UWSA1 two Saturdays ago, got a 245, took NBME 16 last saturday, got a 232, and I plan on just continuing my routine but i have to say I am just so BORED. I try to focus my study time by doing UsmleRx questions that at least focuses me on something (and forces me to think about drug side effects).

My career goals are pretty modest as I am pretty dedicated to family medicine, but it would be nice to break into the 240 mark on the real deal. I am having some motivation issues this stage in the game so consider me a buddy in that if that is happening to you as well. Looking forward to more advice on how to tackle weaknesses.

Thanks!

 

[Ionian]

Why are there hundreds of posts that start off with "long time lurker"

 

[tantacles]

Why are there hundreds of posts that start off with "long time lurker"

Long time lurker here, but my guess is that there are probably a lot of people who have been lurking for a long time and are now starting to post.

 

[HatWobble]

Going through the "Clinical Correlates" boxes in BRS Gross Anatomy now, thanks to the anatomy paranoia engendered IIT.

 

[tantacles]

Going through the "Clinical Correlates" boxes in BRS Gross Anatomy now, thanks to the anatomy paranoia engendered IIT.

For what it's worth, upper and lower extremity were hot topics on my exam. The other stuff was all easy. One question literally had letters on two organs and said, "The patient has injuries on these two organs. WHAT ARE THEY?" It was pretty clearly the spleen and the kidney.

 

[notbobtrustme]

For what it's worth, upper and lower extremity were hot topics on my exam. The other stuff was all easy. One question literally had letters on two organs and said, "The patient has injuries on these two organs. WHAT ARE THEY?" It was pretty clearly the spleen and the kidney.

that's how they trick you

 

[dat240]

Just to add a few more things based on some of the other replies. Anatomy is probably not a high yield use of your last few days. There is going to be enough basic FA stuff on there to do well, and the handful of things deeper than that are going to be impossible to predict anyway. That said, brush up on vascular (anastomoses, etc) and neuroanatomy if you absolutely must do more anatomy. Those were by far the most represented subtopics. I personally spent my last few days looking at micro, pharm, and other topics that are basically just trivia. Those questions are very easy quick hits on step 1 if you've taken the time to commit all the details to memory (unlike pathophysiology, etc that can still be tricky even if you've studied it).

Also, you people are all gonna be fine based on your prac test scores. Just for comparison, I took UWSA1 four days out and got a 258 on it. Got a 255 on the actual test. So all of you dropping over 260 on UWSA1 will probably end up killing it. Good luck folks. It will be over soon!

 

[tartrate]

Just to add a few more things based on some of the other replies. Anatomy is probably not a high yield use of your last few days. There is going to be enough basic FA stuff on there to do well, and the handful of things deeper than that are going to be impossible to predict anyway. That said, brush up on vascular (anastomoses, etc) and neuroanatomy if you absolutely must do more anatomy. Those were by far the most represented subtopics. I personally spent my last few days looking at micro, pharm, and other topics that are basically just trivia. Those questions are very easy quick hits on step 1 if you've taken the time to commit all the details to memory (unlike pathophysiology, etc that can still be tricky even if you've studied it).

Also, you people are all gonna be fine based on your prac test scores. Just for comparison, I took UWSA1 a week out and got a 258 on it. Got a 255 on the actual test. So all of you dropping over 260 on UWSA1 will probably end up killing it. Good luck folks. It will be over soon!

Thanks! I love you guys. And your name tickles me.

 

[notbobtrustme]

Just to add a few more things based on some of the other replies. Anatomy is probably not a high yield use of your last few days. There is going to be enough basic FA stuff on there to do well, and the handful of things deeper than that are going to be impossible to predict anyway. That said, brush up on vascular (anastomoses, etc) and neuroanatomy if you absolutely must do more anatomy. Those were by far the most represented subtopics. I personally spent my last few days looking at micro, pharm, and other topics that are basically just trivia. Those questions are very easy quick hits on step 1 if you've taken the time to commit all the details to memory (unlike pathophysiology, etc that can still be tricky even if you've studied it).

Also, you people are all gonna be fine based on your prac test scores. Just for comparison, I took UWSA1 four days out and got a 258 on it. Got a 255 on the actual test. So all of you dropping over 260 on UWSA1 will probably end up killing it. Good luck folks. It will be over soon!

thanks for that shot of sanity. Hard to see the forest for the trees sometimes.

 

[scrappylemur]

Hey guys, I have a question: How do you guys minimize dumb mistakes, easy FA recall misses, misreading questions/answers mistakes?

I just took NBME 15, got 245/24 Q's wrong. However, on further review it usually seems that the mistakes breakdown are something like:

30% I had no idea what that factoid or concept was - just gotta let these go.
20% Easy fact recall I had not burned into my brain yet - just gotta hit the FA/annotations harder
50%! Simply misreading questions/brain farts (specificity instead of sensitivity, thinkin they are looking for the exception, you give them the cause) - these are the really frustrating questions to miss, since you already have everything you need to get it right.

Really feel like the knowledge/capacity to hit my goal of 260, but its becoming more and more evident that my brain just refuses to listen and not wander or get tired for even a few hours at a time. If I could just cut this mistakes even in half, I would definitely feel better going into my Step 1 (in 3 weeks).

Anything experienced test takers here have on limiting the stupid misses? Caffeine, some ritual to clear your mind before the test, meditation? Amphetamines, Masturbation?

 

[gasknight]

Hey y'all. Long time-ish lurker and I wanted to say that i really appreciate everyone's comments. I am taking my exam on the 17th and have been preparing by trying hard at school for the past two years, plus some extra stuff with Pathoma, First Aid Cases, and some extra questions starting 3 months out. Our dedicated study time started a few weeks ago giving me 5 whole weeks to prepare. I've been re-doing Pathoma, finished Uworld a few days ago with roughly a 70%, and have been going through first aid and my incorrects subject by subject every day as well as doing a random block in the morning to start me off and get a more comprehensive picture.

I am getting to the point where i am kind of crushed by the routine. The things i always hate studying -- anatomy, drug side effects -- are still the things i hate so there's kind of a limit to how much my brain is allowing me to cram into it. Regardless, i took UWSA1 two Saturdays ago, got a 245, took NBME 16 last saturday, got a 232, and I plan on just continuing my routine but i have to say I am just so BORED. I try to focus my study time by doing UsmleRx questions that at least focuses me on something (and forces me to think about drug side effects).

My career goals are pretty modest as I am pretty dedicated to family medicine, but it would be nice to break into the 240 mark on the real deal. I am having some motivation issues this stage in the game so consider me a buddy in that if that is happening to you as well. Looking forward to more advice on how to tackle weaknesses.

Thanks!

Have you considered moving your test date up?

You're close to your goal, and you seem to be on the brink of burnout.

 

[gasknight]

Can anyone help me understand the difference between these two terms:

noncompetitive antagonist
irreversible competitive antagonist

thanks!

 

[tantacles]

Can anyone help me understand the difference between these two terms:

noncompetitive antagonist
irreversible competitive antagonist

thanks!

A noncompetitive antagonist is one that binds to a site that is NOT the binding site for the substrate and changes the conformation of the enzyme such that it can't bind the substrate as effectively, thus decreasing Vmax but leaving Km alone. Phenoxybenzamine is the prototypical example.

An irreversible competitive agonist? No clue, but to me it's always seemed like a red herring. Just judging by the name, it would be something that binds irreversibly to the binding site and can not be removed. I don't have a good example for you.

 

[Witobb]

I've been doing the Uworld biostats subject review this morning and this is bugging me;
So, 30/60 industrial workers who smoke develop cough vs 10/40 industrial workers who are non-smokers develop cough.
It says that attributable risk percent to smoking= [30/60 - 40/100 (population with disease)] / 30/60 = 0.2
Then it says that it can also be calculated as =(RR-1)/RR; but when I do it this way it gives me =0.4
RR=(30/90)/(10/50)= 1.67-1 = 0.67/1.67= 0.4

Am I missing something here?
@kirbymiester

 

[togaedere]

Ive thought about it but i think i am going to just stick with my date just to allow myself to slow down and settle in to my last couple weeks. Posting here was actually my attempt at venting some burn out mojo... Reaching out to some like minded and similarly experienced folks and all that. What i think i will do, though, is give myself an actual full day of not doing anything step related. I have a tendency to just keep my head down and power through (went through school like this too) and then not being able to take it anymore.

Have you considered moving your test date up?

You're close to your goal, and you seem to be on the brink of burnout.

 

[Handinhand]

I've been doing the Uworld biostats subject review this morning and this is bugging me;
So, 30/60 industrial workers who smoke develop cough vs 10/40 industrial workers who are non-smokers develop cough.
It says that attributable risk percent to smoking= [30/60 - 40/100 (population with disease)] / 30/60 = 0.2
Then it says that it can also be calculated as =(RR-1)/RR; but when I do it this way it gives me =0.4
RR=(30/90)/(10/50)= 1.67-1 = 0.67/1.67= 0.4

Am I missing something here?
@kirbymiester

Why are you using 40/100?

AR = a/(a+b) / c(c+d)

That's not what you have in your equation above. Your table should look like this:

30(a) 10(c)
30(b) 30(d)

 

[Morzh]

Hey guys, I have a question: How do you guys minimize dumb mistakes, easy FA recall misses, misreading questions/answers mistakes?

I just took NBME 15, got 245/24 Q's wrong. However, on further review it usually seems that the mistakes breakdown are something like:

30% I had no idea what that factoid or concept was - just gotta let these go.
20% Easy fact recall I had not burned into my brain yet - just gotta hit the FA/annotations harder
50%! Simply misreading questions/brain farts (specificity instead of sensitivity, thinkin they are looking for the exception, you give them the cause) - these are the really frustrating questions to miss, since you already have everything you need to get it right.

Really feel like the knowledge/capacity to hit my goal of 260, but its becoming more and more evident that my brain just refuses to listen and not wander or get tired for even a few hours at a time. If I could just cut this mistakes even in half, I would definitely feel better going into my Step 1 (in 3 weeks).

Anything experienced test takers here have on limiting the stupid misses? Caffeine, some ritual to clear your mind before the test, meditation? Amphetamines, Masturbation?

Just like you "gotta let go" the Q's you're simply not gonna know, you also have to accept that there will be a few easy Q's that you will miss, too. Remember you are human and this test is so long for a reason. The stupid mistakes that you realize you made during your breaks after a block are high-risk for demoralizing and distracting you. Everyone walks away kicking themselves a bit.

The best way, IMO, to minimize these mistakes:

• Practice (NBMEs)
• Good pacing so you have time to read carefully; also having plenty of time to re-visit marked questions because they often make more sense the second time around
• Good question-approach strategy: a lot of people recommend reading the final sentence of a long stem and skimming the answer choices. Sometime this alone is enough to answer the Q, but even if it's not at least you can read the history with focus now.
• Being well-rested on D-Day
• Having good snacks; also caffeine-I prefer Excedrin b/c you should also expect a headache in the later blocks; drink enough water to stay hydrated (there's usually a restroom right outside if you need it on your breaks)
• Having good mental-refocus techniques; close your eyes and do breathing exercises for 45 seconds every 10 questions, meditation during breaks, prayer, whatever... find a way to keep your mind a fresh slate and off previous blocks

 

[GadRads]

I've been doing the Uworld biostats subject review this morning and this is bugging me;
So, 30/60 industrial workers who smoke develop cough vs 10/40 industrial workers who are non-smokers develop cough.
It says that attributable risk percent to smoking= [30/60 - 40/100 (population with disease)] / 30/60 = 0.2
Then it says that it can also be calculated as =(RR-1)/RR; but when I do it this way it gives me =0.4
RR=(30/90)/(10/50)= 1.67-1 = 0.67/1.67= 0.4

Am I missing something here?
@kirbymiester

I think your numbers are off. [30/60]/[40/100] = 5/4.

Then applying (RR-1)/RR = [(5/4)-(4/4)]/[5/4] = (1/4)/(5/4) = 0.2

 

[Witobb]

Why are you using 40/100?

AR = a/(a+b) / c(c+d)

That's not what you have in your equation above. Your table should look like this:

30(a) 10(c)
30(b) 30(d)

Let me explain: there are 100 people. 60 smokers and 30 of them develop cough. 40 non-smokers and 10 develop cough.
The explanation on the exercise said to use incidence in the total population who developed cough. Therefore 40/100. Then calculate the difference between the smokers and the population as a whole. So, .50-.40=0.10. then divide it by the incidence in smokers .1/.5= 0.2 Thats all good but, using the RR

the table would be
Cough + -
Smokers 30(a) 60(b)
Non-smokers 10(c) 40(d)

RR=(30/90)/(10/40)=1.67
Attributable Risk Percent=(RR-1)/RR; did the math get .4

 

[Witobb]

**** never mind
Now I get it... lol

B and D are supposed to be 30. Maybe I need a nap

 

[vdoc23]

the ppl in this forum helped me figure out how I would do, how to best study, and provided moral support for when i was desperately freaking out, so I figured i'd post how I did and how I studied. 🙂

first, my school has us take step 1 after third year. It definitely helps (i imagine) because I was able to recognize clinical scenarios quickly, but at the same time it had been a while since I had gone over the basic sciences.

I started studying in March (I chose to have psych last to have more time) and had already had 1 pass (at least) through FA.
Our dedicated studying period was 5 weeks (although really it was 4 because of OSCEs). I used DIT, annotating with FA (most of the time), Pathoma, UWORLD 1.5x, some kaplan qbank (more towards the beginning). DIT helped me stay on track and remember high yield details.
My step 1 goal was to get a score between 230-240. I'm going into family medicine so I wasn't too worried about the score itself, I just wanted to as well as I could. When I got out of the exam I was not sure if I had passed or not. My problem was that I looked up a few answers that I hadn't been sure of and I got both of them wrong. So don't look up answers!! Also I marked about 11-15 in each section, which also made me worry. Here's the breakdown of my progress.

4/1 CBSSA 16: 211
4/11 Kaplan test 1: 63% (234)
4/18 UWorld test: 236
4/25 CBSSA 12: 228
5/2 free 150: 83%
5/5 CBSSA 13: 234
5/7 CBSSA 15: 243

5/9 Step 1: 240!
🙂
PS: The predictors online were on point - one predicted I'd get between 235-245, another said 238. Needless to say I was very happy when I saw my score.
Good luck to those taking it soon!!
- v

 

[Freddie Mercury]

Guess I'll throw in here. Had my STEP 1 this morning.

2/24 Kaplan Diagnostic 61%
5/24 Finished first (and only) pass UWorld, random/timed 46q blocks: 77%
5/26 USMLE "Free150" 86%
5/27 NBME 12 offline 186/200
5/28 NBME 13 offline 182/200
5/30 STEP1: will update with score... maybe!

Didn't do any of the UWSA, or official NBMEs. Studied mainly UFAP, and a few Kaplan 2010 videos (mainly pharm with Lionel Raymon, who rocks!!)

My exam was moderately difficult. I'd rate it roughly like a slightly harder than average UWorld block overall. A good number of hilariously easy questions (to the point where I had to stare at the question for like a minute because I couldn't believe it), to a quite a few which were completely WTF and I had no idea how to answer, even if I had First Aid in front of me. But I'd say over 90% of the exam was doable based on First Aid facts and UWorld reasoning.

EDIT - to clarify - the NBME scores are raw point totals (# correct / total), not scaled score.

 

[YeahNoMind]

2 questions. Why would you not write any online nbmes? How do you get a 77% on the first pass of Uw and only barely pass the two nbmes that you did take?

Whoa i read that wrong. 188/200 means you probably destroyed it. My bad

 

[AlmostAnMD]

Too many posts in here from +1, +2 standard deviation users. Bad for the moral of the majority of people that view this thread.

Representing an average medical student with average grades at an average US MD school, here's the progress w/ today's update

School administered NBME 11 5/2: 213
NBME 15 on 5/21: 217 (this was sad, 2.5 weeks go by and only went up 4 points!! Very hard on my morale)
NBME 13 today, 5/30: 232

Doing a systems-based review so I haven't even touched GI or biochem/genetics, all of which were far into the "lower performance" category. I'm hoping by my next and final NBME on June 7 I'll have those recovered without losing much anything else.

Taking the real thing June 10. Wish me luck! Not aiming for 250/260/270...just trying to stay north of 230, if possible.

 

[Bojack Horseman]

2 questions. Why would you not write any online nbmes? How do you get a 77% on the first pass of Uw and only barely pass the two nbmes that you did take?

They didn't "barely pass"--- they just don't have their score scaled.

# of questions correct / # of total questions (200)

They probably have a score in the 250-265 area

 

[YeahNoMind]

They didn't "barely pass"--- they just don't have their score scaled.

# of questions correct / # of total questions (200)

They probably have a score in the 250-265 area

Edited. Lol my bad Freddie Mercury

 

[Freddie Mercury]

2 questions. Why would you not write any online nbmes? How do you get a 77% on the first pass of Uw and only barely pass the two nbmes that you did take?

Whoa i read that wrong. 188/200 means you probably destroyed it. My bad

No worries - I should have been more clear. These weren't "official" so I didn't get an official score output, so I just offered the raw numbers for anyone who wants to make estimates. I didn't do any of the online NBMEs because I wanted to save $$$, UFAP all the way baby haha

 

[Duon89]

-There was a straight up anatomy question......it was like how would this muscle look if you see it on cross-section? I was like..me no do anatomy.......I think i was definitely weak on anatomy, and I got busted lol.
-few questions from child development stuff..I was hoping to not get one..got busted.
-there was a straight up hardy-weinberg question...but I think I got it wrong cuz..I got like 0.078 % (i calculated over and over) only option available were 0.78%, 7.8%, 0.11%,..and some other. I ended up choosing 0.78%, maybe I misread the question oh well.
-there was this weird question on P450, it was like choose between following names of P450: and followed by bunch of alphabets and numbers. like CYC20(I am making **** up here) but, I was like, hmmm which alphabet do I like?

But I think overall, the exam was fair. only couple of out of nowhere questions per block.

I was aiming for 240......but after the exam I am kinda discouraged. definitely marked 7-15 questions/block.

my stats:
(Feb 28) NBME 11: 207
(April 14) NBME 16: 228, UWA1: 240
(May 25) NBME 15: 251, UWA2: 261

Actual (May 30): 249

 

[JeetKuneDo]

Too many posts in here from +1, +2 standard deviation users. Bad for the moral of the majority of people that view this thread.

Representing an average medical student with average grades at an average US MD school, here's the progress w/ today's update

School administered NBME 11 5/2: 213
NBME 15 on 5/21: 217 (this was sad, 2.5 weeks go by and only went up 4 points!! Very hard on my morale)
NBME 13 today, 5/30: 232

Doing a systems-based review so I haven't even touched GI or biochem/genetics, all of which were far into the "lower performance" category. I'm hoping by my next and final NBME on June 7 I'll have those recovered without losing much anything else.

Taking the real thing June 10. Wish me luck! Not aiming for 250/260/270...just trying to stay north of 230, if possible.

I'll join. If you want the definition of average (or below average) I'm it.

6 weeks out: NBME 12 185
6 weeks out: UWSA1 206
5 weeks out: NBME 11 202
4 weeks out: UWSA2 240
2 weeks out: NBME 13 217
1.5 week out: NBME 7 220
3 days out: NBME 15 241
Free 150: about 82.5%
UW first pass: 49% (Averaged about 60% for my last 10 blocks)

Test on monday, hoping these improvements mean something. I'd be glad with anything 225 and above at this point in time.

 

[Morzh]

I'll join. If you want the definition of average (or below average) I'm it.

6 weeks out: NBME 12 185
6 weeks out: UWSA1 206
5 weeks out: NBME 11 202
4 weeks out: UWSA2 240
2 weeks out: NBME 13 217
1.5 week out: NBME 7 220
3 days out: NBME 15 241
Free 150: about 82.5%
UW first pass: 49% (Averaged about 60% for my last 10 blocks)

Test on monday, hoping these improvements mean something. I'd be glad with anything 225 and above at this point in time.

Wow, if your NBME 15 was indeed taken under test-like conditions then your final two weeks of study have been clutch! I think you have a great shot at significantly surpassing your 225 goal. Rest well and stay confident!

 

[lp430]

Took the exam yesterday. Overall, I didn't think the path/pharm/phys was too bad. I did have a few WTF phys questions, asking about a normal process in some way I had never even thought of before. However, most of it was stuff I had seen in some way, shape, or form through my preparation.
I definitely had an anatomy heavy version, probably 3-5 questions per block. Had a good amount of behavioral too, but not a lot of biochem or molecular. I was kind of pissed cause I spent a lot of time on biochem, as it was one of my weaker areas, but it happens. I probably could have gotten away with not looking at biochem for my entire study period, except for a week before the test (don't recommend that though).
It's difficult for me to gauge how the test went since I feel like there are a good number of questions where you think of an answer, but aren't 100% on it. I think UWORLD prepared me well, but we'll see. Goal was 240, but I'll take anything in the mid-230's. I'll post on my scores/prep when I get the results back.

 

[Polymyxin]

I definitely had an anatomy heavy version, probably 3-5 questions per block.

How much of that anatomy do you think was covered in FA? Thanks for the info!

 

[lp430]

How much of that anatomy do you think was covered in FA? Thanks for the info!

I'd say about half was in FA.
MSK - There were ~5 MSK questions that I hadn't run into in FA, but required you to recall from gross anatomy.
GI - I thought GI anatomy in FA was sufficient.
Neuro - I'd also flipped through some HY Neuroanatomy a few days before the exam, which I think helped (mostly because I don't like the neuro section in FA, but I also like the imaging pics in HY).
Repro - there were some female anatomy questions I don't think were in FA, but I was able to recall from my school's repro course
CV - 1-2 embryo tie-ins that I had never heard of before.

That's all I can think of right now.

 

[michow87]

you have all been very helpful. Thank you for sharing with us!

 

[NatD]

Can anyone comment on how the free 150 compare to questions on actual test day in terms of length/difficulty?

 

[bulldogmed]

I got a 242 on UWSA 2 today. It seems that the consensus is that UWSA 2 overpredicts, but by how much? 10 pts? 5 pts? I'm one week out and I'd love a 242. Realistically, my goal was in the mid-230s. Some background stats: I'm almost done w/ UW, 63% avg first-pass, random timed. Last 10 sets have been high-60s, 70s. Any thoughts on UWSA 2 prediction?

 

[gasknight]

I got a 242 on UWSA 2 today. It seems that the consensus is that UWSA 2 overpredicts, but by how much? 10 pts? 5 pts? I'm one week out and I'd love a 242. Realistically, my goal was in the mid-230s. Some background stats: I'm almost done w/ UW, 63% avg first-pass, random timed. Last 10 sets have been high-60s, 70s. Any thoughts on UWSA 2 prediction?

I think the consensus is that it isn't a good predictor for a score in that range.

Have you taken an NBME?

 

[notbobtrustme]

I got a 242 on UWSA 2 today. It seems that the consensus is that UWSA 2 overpredicts, but by how much? 10 pts? 5 pts? I'm one week out and I'd love a 242. Realistically, my goal was in the mid-230s. Some background stats: I'm almost done w/ UW, 63% avg first-pass, random timed. Last 10 sets have been high-60s, 70s. Any thoughts on UWSA 2 prediction?

The percentage right is a better indicator than the actual score.

 

[bulldogmed]

I think the consensus is that it isn't a good predictor for a score in that range.

Have you taken an NBME?

Yeah, several weeks ago. My school offered it, NBME 16. I scored a 210, i think. UWSA 1 a week ago was 236.

 

[bulldogmed]

The percentage right is a better indicator than the actual score.

Of UW questions? Okay, so if I'm hitting in the mid-60s, does that roughly correlate to 235?

 

[notbobtrustme]

Of UW questions? Okay, so if I'm hitting in the mid-60s, does that roughly correlate to 235?

oh, was referring more to the UWSA rather than Uworld.

I don't put much stock into Uworld % to Step 1 because of the myraid of ways you can use Uworld (eg someone doing tutor mode, single subject, will probably score higher than someone doing straight up random blocks).

FWIW, UWSA 1 seems to be a better correlator than UWSA 2.

 

[bulldogmed]

oh, was referring more to the UWSA rather than Uworld.

I don't put much stock into Uworld % to Step 1 because of the myraid of ways you can use Uworld (eg someone doing tutor mode, single subject, will probably score higher than someone doing straight up random blocks).

FWIW, UWSA 1 seems to be a better correlator than UWSA 2.

UWSA1 %'s were 78, 74, 59, 74.
I honestly just want to make sure I'm on the right track for the final week and not be fooling myself into thinking I can get in the 230s.

 

[gasknight]

UWSA1 %'s were 78, 74, 59, 74.
I honestly just want to make sure I'm on the right track for the final week and not be fooling myself into thinking I can get in the 230s.

Take NBME 15 if you really want to know where you are.

 

[notbobtrustme]

UWSA1 %'s were 78, 74, 59, 74.
I honestly just want to make sure I'm on the right track for the final week and not be fooling myself into thinking I can get in the 230s.

maybe, maybe not, the best way to check is to take an NBME. 15 or 16 seems to be the best predictator nowadays, so try one of those out

It's really all about consensus, not about any one individual test. If you are all over the place (eg 200s, then 230, then 215 then 200 then 240), then it means you have lots of strong points and lots of weak points. If you consistently hit 230s, then it shows you can handle w/e the test throws at you. etc etc.