Official 2016 Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread

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Transposony

Transposony

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tasar1898 said:
@walakin25 Order of importance imho : Micro = Pharm > Immuno > Path >>>> all others so try to do these first and maybe tables-equations from Repro/Behavioral Sci-statistics

biochem / resp etc should be ingrained to your brain now , one extra pass wont save you if you havent mastered stuff like that already so if you skip them , no big deal.. In my prep I didnt have time for MSK/Repro/Psychiatry/Ethics review but it didnt cost me any q's

Good luck!!
Click to expand...
What! Immuno > Path....

Everyone that I've talked to said the order of importance is more like: Path >>> Micro = Pharm > Biochem/Genetics > Immuno >>>> all others...
 
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feel like i dont remember anything, not sure if this is normal, currently contemplating whether I should carry on reviewing incorrects or just start poppin bottles and drink myself silly, exam in 48 hrs legoooooo
 
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hi everyone,
big-grin.gif
big-grin.gif
I got my score last night. I'm very happy with my score report. Through this post, would like to thank to everyone on this forum who has been a guide for students like myself. Posts on this forum have been extremely helpful during my prep. I'll be more than happy to help anyone who is preparing for step 1 and guide them thru their difficult time.
NBME 13 online: 243
NMBE 17 online: 249 (quite predictable)
Usmle Step 1: 247 Exam month: December

Total prep time: 7-8 months (13-14 hrs of study/day)

Study material: Kaplan (except Goljan for pathology), Dr. Najeeb lecture notes (it took me extra 2 months to see all 400 hrs of lecture notes and make written notes
rolleye.gif
), first aid, Uworld q bank

Study plan: Started with neuroanatomy from Dr. Najeeb videos, made notes from Dr. Najeeb (for revision)+ did Kaplan neuroanatomy side by side.
Followed same plan for subjects like biochemistry, immunology, Physiology.

Goljan: Total three reads, also did CNS (most students tend to skip it), Chapters like immunopathology and genetics were really helpful while doing their respective Uworld questions.
Some people prefer pathoma, its a great book i would say. i didnt read it cuz i had already gone thru goljan and didnt want to waste time on a new book. Goljan has soooo much information that On first read, u end up confused that "do i actually remember what I just read". Thats the reason why i had to go through goljan three times
sweat-embarrassed.gif

So if u like to grasp more info (which might prove helpful) go for goljan. Otherwise Pathoma is a choice of book for students who have less time and want to get maximum out of a book in 1-2 reads.

Behavioral/ biostats: Kaplan + FA + Uworld. Some people prefer BRS but I had already gone thru kaplan videos and lecture notes. and didnt have time go thru another book.

Ethics: Most tested on my exam. I did Conrad fischers ethics book. Go thru it atleast twice. I wish i had read it twice
stickouttongue.gif


Pharmacology: Kaplan videos and lecture notes. + ANS from Dr. Najeeb. + FA+ uworld

Microbiology: Kaplan + FA+ Uworld

Embryology: Kaplan + Dr Najeeb + FA + UW. Uworld has now added many new illustrations in embryology and they are quite helpful in memorising stuff.

Anatomy: kaplan (must do) + FA + UW. most difficult part of my exam. Although i had a higher performance in my score report in gross anatomy and embryology
confused.gif
but i can't believe it lol.
biglaugh.gif

upper limb and lower limb are a must from kaplan (FA doesnt really explain every injury, Not sure about the 2016 edition)

I also referred Netters anatomy for better understanding of nerves of upper limb and lower limb.
Arteries of upper and lower limb are also important.

If u really want to score good in anatomy, choose a good book (not kaplan) that has explainations in a little more detail than kaplan. For that ofcourse, you need more time.
big-grin.gif


First revision: After I was done ONCE with kaplan and dr.NAJEEB, I started a second read of My notes that i made from Dr. Najeeb + Kaplan books itself, this time along with FA and Uworld.
I would do one unit e.g. Neurology, do its FA and then uworld.
and so on for all the other subjects

uworld score was ~70-75%

Second revision : Only First Aid and Uworld online.
So I Did uworld online twice, second time score was ~90% (idk if that matters but just for your reference)

by this time, it was end october. My next step was revision of uworld.
for that, i made uworld notes while I did it online, Although i still had a uworld subscription but i preferred reading my notes cuz they included notes from ques that were new to me and The ques i DID wrong. Revising uworld proved VERY VERY HELPFUL
I would advise each one of you to make ur own uworld notes for revision. ( i know some people who dont
stickouttongue.gif
)

November: revised uworld notes and First aid, Took NBME 13 online in last week of november: 243 (extended feedback)

repeated same in december: Uworld notes + First aid 4th revision,
Took NBME 17 online 1 week before exam- 249 (extended feedback)

during the last week: Last and fifth revision of First aid only (although I couldnt go thru Psychiatry and one more unit).
Final EXAM: 247.

Thankyou everyone for bearing with me. I wish everyone good luck and pray for your good score on step 1.
please.gif
 
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walakin25 said:
feel like i dont remember anything, not sure if this is normal, currently contemplating whether I should carry on reviewing incorrects or just start poppin bottles and drink myself silly, exam in 48 hrs legoooooo
Click to expand...
Just trust yourself because nothing you do at this stage (study-wise) is going to have any effect on your performance but going through RR section of FA will help you to stay focused.
I strongly advise against poppin bottles and drinking yourself silly.
 
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Transposony said:
Just trust yourself because nothing you do at this stage (study-wise) is going to have any effect on your performance but going through RR section of FA will help you to stay focused.
I strongly advise against poppin bottles and drinking yourself silly.
Click to expand...

Thanks @Transposony . I appreciate the advice, will definitely read RR. what do you think should be written on the markerboard?
 
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walakin25 said:
Thanks @Transposony . I appreciate the advice, will definitely read RR. what do you think should be written on the markerboard?
Click to expand...
Anything which are not easy to recall like formula for Drug clearance, Volume of distribution, Filtration fraction, Physiologic dead space, Alveolar gas equation and 2x2 table etc
 
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walakin25 said:
feel like i dont remember anything, not sure if this is normal, currently contemplating whether I should carry on reviewing incorrects or just start poppin bottles and drink myself silly, exam in 48 hrs legoooooo
Click to expand...
Wish you luck for your exam. You have done the hard work , be content with it.
 
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I know this has been explored over and over. Nevertheless, I must ask.
I have my exam in early march.
What should I do about anatomy? I've noticed FA just doesn't cut it in answering Uworld questions, etc...
What's the most recent (2016) sentiments regarding anatomy?
 
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Tri723 said:
I know this has been explored over and over. Nevertheless, I must ask.
I have my exam in early march.
What should I do about anatomy? I've noticed FA just doesn't cut it in answering Uworld questions, etc...
What's the most recent (2016) sentiments regarding anatomy?
Click to expand...
There is nothing you can do about it in 4-5 weeks you have so focus on FA & UW and the subjects in the order noted in above posts.
 
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@walakin25 Just keep checking volatile stuff ( nerves , embryo tables ,generally anatomy from FA , cancers , equations, HY drugs+bugs etc... ) and relax . We all pass through this stage ( its kinda normal ) .
 
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does anyone have a quick and dirty list of important developmental milestones? no way i can memorize this table now, just a few key points for each age group?
 
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Anyone try the Becker Qbank recently as a supplementary one beyond the "Big Three" (UWorld, Rx, Kaplan)? I've read that many of the mistakes it had last year have been fixed and it's also very budget-friendly.
 
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How exactly is the UWSA scored? Just scored 265+ on UWSA 1, with an 800 scaled score. However, it says the scaled score is out of 800. Does it max out at 265?
 
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Don't think I'll have time to review the UWSAs. Does it matter? I haven't finished more than 50% of the actual QBank.
 
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Maximus7 said:
hi everyone,
big-grin.gif
big-grin.gif
I got my score last night. I'm very happy with my score report. Through this post, would like to thank to everyone on this forum who has been a guide for students like myself. Posts on this forum have been extremely helpful during my prep. I'll be more than happy to help anyone who is preparing for step 1 and guide them thru their difficult time.
NBME 13 online: 243
NMBE 17 online: 249 (quite predictable)
Usmle Step 1: 247 Exam month: December

Total prep time: 7-8 months (13-14 hrs of study/day)

Study material: Kaplan (except Goljan for pathology), Dr. Najeeb lecture notes (it took me extra 2 months to see all 400 hrs of lecture notes and make written notes
rolleye.gif
), first aid, Uworld q bank

Study plan: Started with neuroanatomy from Dr. Najeeb videos, made notes from Dr. Najeeb (for revision)+ did Kaplan neuroanatomy side by side.
Followed same plan for subjects like biochemistry, immunology, Physiology.

Goljan: Total three reads, also did CNS (most students tend to skip it), Chapters like immunopathology and genetics were really helpful while doing their respective Uworld questions.
Some people prefer pathoma, its a great book i would say. i didnt read it cuz i had already gone thru goljan and didnt want to waste time on a new book. Goljan has soooo much information that On first read, u end up confused that "do i actually remember what I just read". Thats the reason why i had to go through goljan three times
sweat-embarrassed.gif

So if u like to grasp more info (which might prove helpful) go for goljan. Otherwise Pathoma is a choice of book for students who have less time and want to get maximum out of a book in 1-2 reads.

Behavioral/ biostats: Kaplan + FA + Uworld. Some people prefer BRS but I had already gone thru kaplan videos and lecture notes. and didnt have time go thru another book.

Ethics: Most tested on my exam. I did Conrad fischers ethics book. Go thru it atleast twice. I wish i had read it twice
stickouttongue.gif


Pharmacology: Kaplan videos and lecture notes. + ANS from Dr. Najeeb. + FA+ uworld

Microbiology: Kaplan + FA+ Uworld

Embryology: Kaplan + Dr Najeeb + FA + UW. Uworld has now added many new illustrations in embryology and they are quite helpful in memorising stuff.

Anatomy: kaplan (must do) + FA + UW. most difficult part of my exam. Although i had a higher performance in my score report in gross anatomy and embryology
confused.gif
but i can't believe it lol.
biglaugh.gif

upper limb and lower limb are a must from kaplan (FA doesnt really explain every injury, Not sure about the 2016 edition)

I also referred Netters anatomy for better understanding of nerves of upper limb and lower limb.
Arteries of upper and lower limb are also important.

If u really want to score good in anatomy, choose a good book (not kaplan) that has explainations in a little more detail than kaplan. For that ofcourse, you need more time.
big-grin.gif


First revision: After I was done ONCE with kaplan and dr.NAJEEB, I started a second read of My notes that i made from Dr. Najeeb + Kaplan books itself, this time along with FA and Uworld.
I would do one unit e.g. Neurology, do its FA and then uworld.
and so on for all the other subjects

uworld score was ~70-75%

Second revision : Only First Aid and Uworld online.
So I Did uworld online twice, second time score was ~90% (idk if that matters but just for your reference)

by this time, it was end october. My next step was revision of uworld.
for that, i made uworld notes while I did it online, Although i still had a uworld subscription but i preferred reading my notes cuz they included notes from ques that were new to me and The ques i DID wrong. Revising uworld proved VERY VERY HELPFUL
I would advise each one of you to make ur own uworld notes for revision. ( i know some people who dont
stickouttongue.gif
)

November: revised uworld notes and First aid, Took NBME 13 online in last week of november: 243 (extended feedback)

repeated same in december: Uworld notes + First aid 4th revision,
Took NBME 17 online 1 week before exam- 249 (extended feedback)

during the last week: Last and fifth revision of First aid only (although I couldnt go thru Psychiatry and one more unit).
Final EXAM: 247.

Thankyou everyone for bearing with me. I wish everyone good luck and pray for your good score on step 1.
please.gif
Click to expand...

How helpful did you find the Najeeb Videos? Is it worth the time? Would you use them if you could go back? Thanks!
 
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plasmodium said:
Don't think I'll have time to review the UWSAs. Does it matter? I haven't finished more than 50% of the actual QBank.
Click to expand...

for you personally, no I don't think it matters. your scores are excellent at this stage. maybe just review the stuff you missed otherwise the qbank covers the material in uwsa (minus a few odd topics which you may know already)
 
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walakin25 said:
for you personally, no I don't think it matters. your scores are excellent at this stage. maybe just review the stuff you missed otherwise the qbank covers the material in uwsa (minus a few odd topics which you may know already)
Click to expand...
I really didn't want to miss out but I figured the rest of the material would be throughout the rest of the QBank. Thank you for the reassurance and clarification.
 
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Took the step today. Bloody hell, that was the hardest exam I've ever sat. Initial thoughts: focus on basics and master them. All the hype about crazy hard impossible questions are a myth. It's basically like doing 7 very tough Uworld blocks. F*** NBMEs - they're nothing like the exam - anyone can get 250/260 on NBME by knowing all of First Aid, but the actual step is way more integrated and conceptual. Don't bother with old nbmes at all. Know your bugs and drugs very well. Finally - heart sounds are f******* on the real exam.
 
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Fair few step 2 esque questions too requiring management and investigations - which is what I think they're adding in more now compared to the NBMEs
 
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ekonkaar said:
Fair few step 2 esque questions too requiring management and investigations - which is what I think they're adding in more now compared to the NBMEs
Click to expand...

Pretty much similar experience as my dude above. alot of 50/50s imo. ill post a more complete message when my result is out. i went all in on UFAP, so heres hopin it works out.
 
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ATypicalLymphocyte said:
Hey guys,

I got my score back (>270) and I'm currently doing a write-up. I haven't been able to post it because work has been hectic lately. If anyone has any questions aside from the usual (resources used, NBME/UW scores) feel free to post them and I'll try to add the information to the write-up.

I'd also like to thank everyone that has been of help here; reading the experiences really helped throughout the grind. Special thanks to @Phloston @kirbymiester @mcloaf and others whose advice was golden.
Click to expand...
Bump?
 
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Yeah heck loads of 50-50s. That's what's the difference between Uworld and the exam - what makes it harder I think. You'll get to the point where you narrow down to 2 then that's where the USMLE exam comes into its own. The ones who know their concepts clearly will select right, others will most probably fall into the trap of the other one.
 
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One thing that makes me livid is all those silly mistakes that keep popping into the head straight after the exam. Kills you knowing you've worked so hard and then make such silly errors. Oh well! Wonder how many you can get wrong for 240-250ish. NBME is like 90% for 250...Prob 85%+ on this
 
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Were the presentations of diseases typical cases or were they more atypical? Were there disease processes not discussed in UFAP that would make reading Goljan RR more worthwhile?
 
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ekonkaar said:
One thing that makes me livid is all those silly mistakes that keep popping into the head straight after the exam. Kills you knowing you've worked so hard and then make such silly errors. Oh well! Wonder how many you can get wrong for 240-250ish. NBME is like 90% for 250...Prob 85%+ on this
Click to expand...

whats done is done right. just chill out now cause really wont know / cant guess till results come out. im sure u did well!
 
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Maltoma said:
Hey @walakin25 and @ekonkaar , my exam is in 2 weeks. What things should i focus on at this stage?
Click to expand...

Focus on FA. Obv depending on ur own schedule but do quick review of organ systems this week then last week work on the earlier chapters in the book which are more memory based.

My test was really fair - had pretty much everything. Only thing I got lucky on was that I only got 3 physio questions in the whole exam. They were v tough - test your concepts to the core. Loads of people talk about the up and down arrows (only got 2 of those out of the 3 physio) - but of c every exam is different.
 
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walakin25 said:
First Aid and NBMEs if u havent taken the recent ones. but FA should be priority till exam day.
Click to expand...

ekonkaar said:
Focus on FA. Obv depending on ur own schedule but do quick review of organ systems this week then last week work on the earlier chapters in the book which are more memory based.

My test was really fair - had pretty much everything. Only thing I got lucky on was that I only got 3 physio questions in the whole exam. They were v tough - test your concepts to the core. Loads of people talk about the up and down arrows (only got 2 of those out of the 3 physio) - but of c every exam is different.
Click to expand...

Thank you both for your insight. If you don't mind my asking, how were you guys performing on practice exams leading up to the test? Which did you feel were most similar to the real deal?
 
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plasmodium said:
Thank you both for your insight. If you don't mind my asking, how were you guys performing on practice exams leading up to the test? Which did you feel were most similar to the real deal?
Click to expand...

Nothing is anything like the real thing. If there's anything that is close its the USWSAs. But the problem is having done Uworld many concepts are repeated so again it makes em less useful. Like I said above its like doing 7 very tough Uworld blocks.
NBMEs are not that alike to the real exam. 17 is the closest but even that is a fair bit easier. I got 260 and 254 on 16 and 17 respectively - doubt I'll get anything near that in the exam. I can already think of 15-20 I've got wrong plus all those other 50-50s - and it's tight
 
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yo if anyone wants 9 days of true learn weapon qbank free gimme a msg and ill sort u out (it's not that great qbank and i got bored like half way so there's half the qs left - around 1k+)
 
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ekonkaar said:
Nothing is anything like the real thing. If there's anything that is close its the USWSAs. But the problem is having done Uworld many concepts are repeated so again it makes em less useful. Like I said above its like doing 7 very tough Uworld blocks.
NBMEs are not that alike to the real exam. 17 is the closest but even that is a fair bit easier. I got 260 and 254 on 16 and 17 respectively - doubt I'll get anything near that in the exam. I can already think of 15-20 I've got wrong plus all those other 50-50s - and it's tight
Click to expand...

couldnt agree more with what @ekonkaar has said above. my nbmes were >250. will post more comprehensively once results are out.
 
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Maltoma said:
Thanks a lot for your input. Hope you people get a great score.
Click to expand...

thanks bro. make sure to do the free 137 (its called free 132 now but theres actually 137qs in total). the interface is exact same as real deal and most importantly, become comfortable with the interactive auscultation features.
 
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walakin25 said:
thanks bro. make sure to do the free 137 (its called free 132 now but theres actually 137qs in total). the interface is exact same as real deal and most importantly, become comfortable with the interactive auscultation features.
Click to expand...


Are there one of those interactive cardiac questions on the free 132?
 
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Hi all. Congrats to those of you who recently took Step. Looking forward to that feeling myself.

Could someone please share what UFAP and RR stand for? Also, where can I access the free 132? Just when I think I know all abbreviations and resources out there . . . thanks in advance.
 
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Dr. Retro said:
Hi all. Congrats to those of you who recently took Step. Looking forward to that feeling myself.

Could someone please share what UFAP and RR stand for? Also, where can I access the free 132? Just when I think I know all abbreviations and resources out there . . . thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

UFAP = Uworld, First Aid, Pathoma. These are a must!
RR = rapid review in Goljan. I prefer Pathoma.
Free 132 ... Not really sure lol
 
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