Official 2016 Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread

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Transposony

Transposony

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ahmad sharawneh said:
the Big Constanzo is Incredible in every sense
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Are you following the thread? Memorizing big Costanzo and big robbins is not the point. You have the time to use these fluffier resources to build a foundation. When it comes down to the grind as your test date approaches, then work on memorization of high yield resources. No one here not even the highest scorers have big robbins memorized on the day of their exam
 
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ahmad sharawneh said:
so no basic knowledge no decent score ? right? and BTW how are you going to remember every detail in Robbins book or Grays for example?
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Absolutely right. No basic knowledge = no decent score/fail.

You are not reading textbooks to memorize. You are reading textbooks to gain knowledge i.e understand the concept/mechanisms.
USMLE no longer tests your memory skills but your ability to apply the knowledge you gain during medical school which is exactly what you are supposed do in real life as a doctor.
This is the reason why some IMG who did very well in their medical school where the ability to memorize is tested have difficulty in even passing USMLE.
Typical statement they make once they get their results " I read FA 10 times and memorized every word of it but still did not pass/got a low score....what did I do wrong?"
 
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Transposony said:
Absolutely right. No basic knowledge = no decent score/fail.

You are not reading textbooks to memorize. You are reading textbooks to gain knowledge i.e understand the concept/mechanisms.
USMLE no longer tests your memory skills but your ability to apply the knowledge you gain during medical school which is exactly what you are supposed do in real life as a doctor.
This is the reason why some IMG who did very well in their medical school where the ability to memorize is tested have difficulty in even passing USMLE.
Typical statement they make once they get their results " I read FA 10 times and memorized every word of it but still did not pass/got a low score....what did I do wrong?"
Click to expand...
exactly man and i am an IMG ok . so yeah the basic education sucks . you will be a memorizing machine at the end of the basic years . without any exposure to any clinical scenario and that is really problematic . but i think question banks and books will help you to think out of the box and not in a linear way .
 
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thnx guys for the advice . i might have been a little annoying but your advice is much respected and i will apply it when i prepare for the exam
 
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Opinions about going thro UWorld a second time differ to an extent; my experience, having completed it a few days ago and now having started going over it a second time >>> so much more learning, so much more insight... especially now that I am more relaxed, I realize that I am noticing with greater depth why the other options were wrong, identifying with greater ease the key clues needed to get the answers right, and integrating the reasoning much better... for me, this is perhaps the best decision i.e. to comb thro it along with FA review. Fruitful in a myriad of ways!! And no, it's not about the familiarity with the questions... it's the deliberate decision to look at something familiar with unfamiliar eyes, if at all that makes sense :-D
 
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Transposony said:
Absolutely right. No basic knowledge = no decent score/fail.

You are not reading textbooks to memorize. You are reading textbooks to gain knowledge i.e understand the concept/mechanisms.
USMLE no longer tests your memory skills but your ability to apply the knowledge you gain during medical school which is exactly what you are supposed do in real life as a doctor.
This is the reason why some IMG who did very well in their medical school where the ability to memorize is tested have difficulty in even passing USMLE.
Typical statement they make once they get their results " I read FA 10 times and memorized every word of it but still did not pass/got a low score....what did I do wrong?"
Click to expand...

my dude knows whatsup
 
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Don't need to do textbooks, review books like HY, BRS, Kaplan etc have most of the explanations you'll need. You'll get the rest from qbanks + wikipedia/internet. You won't need to open books like robbins or grays.
 
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Thanks for your insight! Did you reset it and do them all over or just review previous tests?





GyraseBeta said:
Opinions about going thro UWorld a second time differ to an extent; my experience, having completed it a few days ago and now having started going over it a second time >>> so much more learning, so much more insight... especially now that I am more relaxed, I realize that I am noticing with greater depth why the other options were wrong, identifying with greater ease the key clues needed to get the answers right, and integrating the reasoning much better... for me, this is perhaps the best decision i.e. to comb thro it along with FA review. Fruitful in a myriad of ways!! And no, it's not about the familiarity with the questions... it's the deliberate decision to look at something familiar with unfamiliar eyes, if at all that makes sense :-D
Click to expand...
 
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DoctorInTheMaking14 said:
Thanks for your insight! Did you reset it and do them all over or just review previous tests?
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Nope, I didn't reset it. My subscription was only two months. After going over all my WRONGS, I marked all the questions. Marking them is another way to 'reset' it; it allows you to see all questions. As you go through them a second time, they become unmarked, enabling you to separate those you have reviewed from those you haven't. NB: I purchased a one week extension to allow me enough time to complete it.
 
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Guys, can someone check on their recent official score report from USMLE. What is the current mean score do they give right now? I took my Step1 in June and they reported that in Jule the mean for Step 1 was 230 and deviation 20. Wondering here, if there were any changed since? Thx.
 
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There is no reporting of mean and SD.. They just say that most scores fall between 200 amd 260.

EDIT : mean - 230 , sd- 20 . Its on the report..
 
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Ophthoseidon said:
Another question, did anyone flag any step 2 content for step 1 exam? There are topics in UWorld that are covered (osgood-schlatters, syncope, etc.) that don't have any cards for step 1.
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Great question .. but wrong thread ?
Is this directed to firecracker users ? I guess it is..
I am looking into flagging a bit.. have already done so..

Lets create a thread or start a conversation on this ? I think it may be fruitful..
 
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tasar1898 said:
There is no reporting of mean and SD.. They just say that most scores fall between 200 amd 260.

EDIT : mean - 230 , sd- 20 . Its on the report..
Click to expand...

Thanks so much Tasar for your inputs. While not asking you to divulge a lot.. please could you tell me the following:

How many questions would you say were step 2CK-ish on you test that you didn't know about.
 
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SeahawksFan said:
Great question .. but wrong thread ?
Is this directed to firecracker users ? I guess it is..
I am looking into flagging a bit.. have already done so..

Lets create a thread or start a conversation on this ? I think it may be fruitful..
Click to expand...
My bad! Thought I was in the firecracker thread this morning. Too early I guess lol! I will post it there
 
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@SeahawksFan I can't really remember man , its like 2 months since my test.. On the other hand almost nothing seemed out of the ordinary in my test(apart from some crazy WTF q's in unheard of diseases )..

If there were Step 2 Ck like q's , they could be answered by extropolating from Step 1 knowledge
 
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SeahawksFan said:
Thanks so much Tasar for your inputs. While not asking you to divulge a lot.. please could you tell me the following:

How many questions would you say were step 2CK-ish on you test that you didn't know about.
Click to expand...
I was among the first test takers of the " May 2015 updated Step 1", when we all were raving here about how different it had become compare to the older version. So, as for your question, yes, they added questions from Step 2CK. It is hard to say how many, but I remember struggling to answer one question about the choice of antibiotics, which was definitely the concept of Step 2 ( I am taking it next month), another one, actually I had 2 questions about the incontinence, which again was a Step 2 concept. Whether these are experimental additions to Step 1 , or they count them, no one knows. Another thing I remember from doing webinars with Becker and Dr. Lionel Raymon, where he said the new format of Step 1 now incorporates Step 2 questions as well. But again, in my opinion, if you are well familiar with the concepts of Step 1, you would be able to answer those questions. They won't probably ask you what will be the next step in managing this patient, but more like treatment wise or diagnostic style of questions. To conclude, I think you are fine taking the Step 1 without studying the Step 2, as long as you are well rounded in concepts of Step 1. Of course, your personal luck, would matter as well, pertaining what kind of questions you will be granted randomly on your Step 1. By the same token, now Step 2CK has up to 20% Step 1 questions ( again, according to the Becker), which is confirmed by recent test takers. So it is worth to keep in mind a broad picture of Biochem, remember details from the Pharm etc
 
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Took Step 1 yesterday and I want to just say--- just go in there and do it.
For some reason I had this idea in my mind that most of the questions would be out of my ballpark, that I would have nausea just going through the test because it was so hard, and that it would be impossible to crack. Reading SDN and from students experiences at my school (and my advisors advice), the test was made into my biggest fear and seemed unapproachable.

However, I can truly say that almost everything that came across my screen was something I had seen on Uworld, USMLE-Rx, or in class. (doesn't mean I remembered it all!) FA does NOT cover everything. Some nit-picky details would either just have to be memorized from somewhere like a comprehensive review book or guessed. Also, there were tough things that someone with clinical experience would have no problem with (like hospital safety and patient admission and prevention) that most medical students like myself are clueless about. The questions are mostly do-able though.
TIME was my biggest issue- normally I have no problem finishing with minutes left over and I consider myself a fast test taker. However, this was different. I was pretty much racing the whole time, because even though they give you some shorter questions even those are still thought provoking. I found myself having to really THINK THROUGH the things that I knew. Also, the heart sounds take up some time, and analyzing full ECG's takes time unless you're a pro.
There were also some freebies thrown in that are easy and make you feel good (unless you psyche yourself out and miss them, which did happen to me bc of the time crunch!).
The most challenging questions seemed to involve lab values similar to ones on UW. The style of questions is the vignette with columns and arrows. Those damn arrows go both directions for every column and its very easy to get confused. Also, it sucks when you don't even know how to interpret one of the columns. So I highly recommend getting very familiar with labs in common clinical situations (ex. ESRD, DKA etc) so that you don't get messed up on the test and waste time going back and forth. Surprisingly, I also thought there was a fair amount of anatomy on my exam.
My bf took the test on the same day in a different state- we had some of the exact same questions, but not all. He said his test was heavier in neuro than mine seemed to be. Neither of us really felt like we got to use all that micro knowledge we memorized... 🙁

Anyway, this post is really for the people like me who had anxiety before the exam. If you are performing decently well on UW and NBME's, just do it. You know more than you think and the test is designed to allow you to show that.
 
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doctorbunny said:
Took Step 1 yesterday and I want to just say--- just go in there and do it.
For some reason I had this idea in my mind that most of the questions would be out of my ballpark, that I would have nausea just going through the test because it was so hard, and that it would be impossible to crack. Reading SDN and from students experiences at my school (and my advisors advice), the test was made into my biggest fear and seemed unapproachable.

However, I can truly say that almost everything that came across my screen was something I had seen on Uworld, USMLE-Rx, or in class. (doesn't mean I remembered it all!) FA does NOT cover everything. Some nit-picky details would either just have to be memorized from somewhere like a comprehensive review book or guessed. Also, there were tough things that someone with clinical experience would have no problem with (like hospital safety and patient admission and prevention) that most medical students like myself are clueless about. The questions are mostly do-able though.
TIME was my biggest issue- normally I have no problem finishing with minutes left over and I consider myself a fast test taker. However, this was different. I was pretty much racing the whole time, because even though they give you some shorter questions even those are still thought provoking. I found myself having to really THINK THROUGH the things that I knew. Also, the heart sounds take up some time, and analyzing full ECG's takes time unless you're a pro.
There were also some freebies thrown in that are easy and make you feel good (unless you psyche yourself out and miss them, which did happen to me bc of the time crunch!).
The most challenging questions seemed to involve lab values similar to ones on UW. The style of questions is the vignette with columns and arrows. Those damn arrows go both directions for every column and its very easy to get confused. Also, it sucks when you don't even know how to interpret one of the columns. So I highly recommend getting very familiar with labs in common clinical situations (ex. ESRD, DKA etc) so that you don't get messed up on the test and waste time going back and forth. Surprisingly, I also thought there was a fair amount of anatomy on my exam.
My bf took the test on the same day in a different state- we had some of the exact same questions, but not all. He said his test was heavier in neuro than mine seemed to be. Neither of us really felt like we got to use all that micro knowledge we memorized... 🙁

Anyway, this post is really for the people like me who had anxiety before the exam. If you are performing decently well on UW and NBME's, just do it. You know more than you think and the test is designed to allow you to show that.
Click to expand...


Thank you for your post and sharing your insight for those of us waiting to take the exam. I wish you the best of luck!
 
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doctorbunny said:
Took Step 1 yesterday and I want to just say--- just go in there and do it.
For some reason I had this idea in my mind that most of the questions would be out of my ballpark, that I would have nausea just going through the test because it was so hard, and that it would be impossible to crack. Reading SDN and from students experiences at my school (and my advisors advice), the test was made into my biggest fear and seemed unapproachable.

However, I can truly say that almost everything that came across my screen was something I had seen on Uworld, USMLE-Rx, or in class. (doesn't mean I remembered it all!) FA does NOT cover everything. Some nit-picky details would either just have to be memorized from somewhere like a comprehensive review book or guessed. Also, there were tough things that someone with clinical experience would have no problem with (like hospital safety and patient admission and prevention) that most medical students like myself are clueless about. The questions are mostly do-able though.
TIME was my biggest issue- normally I have no problem finishing with minutes left over and I consider myself a fast test taker. However, this was different. I was pretty much racing the whole time, because even though they give you some shorter questions even those are still thought provoking. I found myself having to really THINK THROUGH the things that I knew. Also, the heart sounds take up some time, and analyzing full ECG's takes time unless you're a pro.
There were also some freebies thrown in that are easy and make you feel good (unless you psyche yourself out and miss them, which did happen to me bc of the time crunch!).
The most challenging questions seemed to involve lab values similar to ones on UW. The style of questions is the vignette with columns and arrows. Those damn arrows go both directions for every column and its very easy to get confused. Also, it sucks when you don't even know how to interpret one of the columns. So I highly recommend getting very familiar with labs in common clinical situations (ex. ESRD, DKA etc) so that you don't get messed up on the test and waste time going back and forth. Surprisingly, I also thought there was a fair amount of anatomy on my exam.
My bf took the test on the same day in a different state- we had some of the exact same questions, but not all. He said his test was heavier in neuro than mine seemed to be. Neither of us really felt like we got to use all that micro knowledge we memorized... 🙁

Anyway, this post is really for the people like me who had anxiety before the exam. If you are performing decently well on UW and NBME's, just do it. You know more than you think and the test is designed to allow you to show that.
Click to expand...

Best Post! Thanks a lot for your input. Few questions. How was immuno,derma in ur exam and any advice on how to spend the last 10 days before exam?
 
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Any thoughts on why the trend is occurring?

UWSA1 - 247 (6 weeks out)
NBME Basic Science Shelf (school-administered) - 257 (5 weeks out)
NBME 15 - 251 (4 weeks out)
UWSA 2 - 250 (3 weeks out)

Edit: I also asked about if UW changed their grading scheme bc my percentage correct lead to a lower score than I've seen on these threads for a particular percentage. FWIW, i was at about a 79 percent correct, and it led to a 250 on UWSA2.
 
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Tri723 said:
Any thoughts on why the trend is occurring?

UWSA1 - 247 (6 weeks out)
NBME Basic Science Shelf (school-administered) - 257 (5 weeks out)
NBME 15 - 251 (4 weeks out)
UWSA 2 - 250 (3 weeks out)
Click to expand...
I wouldn't count on the UWorld programmers to have modified their algorithm just because of a rumor that their simulated examinations over-predict. Either way, unless an announcement had been made no one can really reassure you that that is the case, unfortunately.

You're doing fine. Just keep at it. When do you take the exam?
 
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plasmodium said:
I wouldn't count on the UWorld programmers to have modified their algorithm just because of a rumor that their simulated examinations over-predict. Either way, unless an announcement had been made no one can really reassure you that that is the case, unfortunately.

You're doing fine. Just keep at it. When do you take the exam?
Click to expand...
3 weeks out man. Thanks for the reply. Hoping to break 250.
 
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Tri723 said:
3 weeks out man. Thanks for the reply. Hoping to break 250.
Click to expand...
I'm 4 weeks out, myself. You're definitely on track, good stats, solid consistency. Keep it up!

EDIT: @Tri723 I can totally relate to the feelings of uncertainty pre-exam. Don't let it eat you alive. I'll tell you what I was told when I stayed the exact same for my last three NBMEs - work out your kinks now and figure out where you feel you are going wrong on practice exams. Stay strong, and stay positive, because when it really comes down to it all that matters is test day.
 
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4 months out and already freaking out!!!!

What do you guys think would be the best diagnostic test to take would be in a few weeks? I want to gauge my strengths/weakness without wasting a more predictive test that I would take at a later date?
 
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Guys I'm facing the same problem, exam in 10 days, uwsa 1 and 2 263, nbme 13 offline 186/200 still I feel I dont have complete grip over FA, everytime I read it I feel theres something new. Should I be worried or is it normal at this stage? Will do nbme 15, 16 and 17 in coming days. Plus I dont have time to go through Uworld marked Qs..any advice as what should be my preference? 1 more FA read or should I go through UWorld?
 
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If you only have 10 days to go, whats the point of doing 3 nbmes? Aren't those used only for assessment? And you already have a fair idea where you are. Maybe skip 1-2 nbmes and sink that time into revising UWorld marked questions?

(I haven't taken the exam yet, but I think this is what I would do...)
 
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Oh wait, you listed nbme as 186/200, I thought you meant the predicted score was 186. I think you're sitting in the 260 range, aren't you? I think you could probably do anything and be ok, although I'd personally want to take a look at my UWorld marked questions.
 
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DrPicard said:
If you only have 10 days to go, whats the point of doing 3 nbmes? Aren't those used only for assessment? And you already have a fair idea where you are. Maybe skip 1-2 nbmes and sink that time into revising UWorld marked questions?

(I haven't taken the exam yet, but I think this is what I would do...)
Click to expand...

I haven't taken the exam either but I think the consensus is that UW questions seem to be tricky and make you think that there's more to the question than there actually is and the NBME style questions are more to the point (in a way) and similar to what you'll see on test day.

Again I may be wrong but that's what I've heard from many people on here.
 
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Thats true, I think the prevalent idea is to do only nbmes this close to the exam to calibrate yourself for USMLE questions.

Not sure what the solution in this case would be. Maybe just go over the info in the answer choices for marked questions?
 
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IMO if you score decently on Uworld ( >75% ) there is no point in going over it again , you already know how to apply the knowledge.. In my case , if something cost me points its just not remembering couple of drugs from FA + doing stupid mistakes due to anxiety . So in the final days just do a couple of NBME's and in the last week just keep going over FA
 
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Thank you for the replies, yes its 186/200 and since its offline I cant really say where it stands, so is it a normal to feel like you still dont know each and every line of FA? I will do 15, 16 and 17 online
 
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Brunner gland said:
Thank you for the replies, yes its 186/200 and since its offline I cant really say where it stands, so is it a normal to feel like you still dont know each and every line of FA? I will do 15, 16 and 17 online
Click to expand...

I think you're pretty set. You do realize 186/200 = 93% which is very likely 260+
 
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Yes ofc its normal , nobody can memorize 600pg's word for word.. If you are 10 days from your test just do 2 NBME's , review them , and all the other time focus on stuff from FA that you forget
 
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Brunner gland said:
Thank you for the replies, yes its 186/200 and since its offline I cant really say where it stands, so is it a normal to feel like you still dont know each and every line of FA? I will do 15, 16 and 17 online
Click to expand...

186/200 is striking range 260 for sure. im gonna second Tasars post above and tell you that its more than okay to not know every line in first aid, when you walk out of the exam you will feel surprised as to how much stuff wasn't on your exam.. it makes sense because 300+ questions in no way can cover all the stuff thats in FA and other high yield sources. so at this point i would recommend as others have said already to just keep going over FA. i wouldnt do all those nbmes, pick 1 at most and take it soon, most people do their last nbme within 2 weeks of the exam so dont bother doing all 3 since your exams closer, better to review stuff you feel needs improvement. goodluck!
 
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I got a 188/200 on NBME 13 and it was a 262, so you're right there. Your scores are good, just stay chill and do the best you can to review. Your plan sounds fine, although I would take any further NBMEs online - I think it's pointless to do them offline.
 
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Got a 244! Got my result on the 10th of Feb, took the exam on the 20th of Jan.

FMG of 2014. Took exactly 11 months to prep for the exam.

Studied for a 250+, but honest to God, my exam had a whole lot of random questions on stuff I had never encountered in FA 2015, Kaplan, or UW (All 3 my primary study resources), so i'm super happy I got the score I did. Question topics were evenly spread out by System and Discipline (some extra pharma and genetics had me a bit taken aback)

Took the NBME's to gauge my performance in the last month of my exam date.

NBME 11: 245 (5 weeks out)
UWSA 1: 248 (4 weeks out)
NBME 12: 235 (3 weeks out)
NBME 15: 251 (2 weeks out)
NBME 17: 245 (2 days before the exam; by far the best predictor IMO)
UW: 80 % (Unused + marked + incorrects)

So technically my final score was kind of in the middle of my NBME scores, super satisfied and grateful.

Hope to take Step 2 CK within 3 months, aiming for a 260 + (realistic goal is to score 6 points or more above my step 1 score!)

Cheers!
 
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Tri723 said:
Any thoughts on why the trend is occurring?

UWSA1 - 247 (6 weeks out)
NBME Basic Science Shelf (school-administered) - 257 (5 weeks out)
NBME 15 - 251 (4 weeks out)
UWSA 2 - 250 (3 weeks out)

Edit: I also asked about if UW changed their grading scheme bc my percentage correct lead to a lower score than I've seen on these threads for a particular percentage. FWIW, i was at about a 79 percent correct, and it led to a 250 on UWSA2.
Click to expand...
Not sure if this helps you understand the grading scheme, but I just took UWSA 2.

265+/92.5%
 
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