USMLE Official 2019 Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread

[libertyyne]

Lets get this started.
M2. Mid Tier everything.
Entertaining some surgical sub-specialties.

Goal 270
Happy with 245

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[libertyyne]

Wow that’s a lot! I’ve been doing around 200 but I also only started anki for M2. I’m not part of the anki faithful core.

it is my only study tool at this point, still trying to work out how to integrate qbanks, so I have been hitting it hard.

 

[mybluedog]

Side note or if anyone can lead me to a better form to post this. Is there a spell check add-on in anki or for my computer in general?
I spell pretty badly honestly, and I'd like a function where a misspelled word is underlined when creating cards (like microsoft word).

 

[tf21594]

how long does it take you all to crank out 1000 reviews?

 

[libertyyne]

how long does it take you all to crank out 1000 reviews?

10s per card, i could do them in ~4hr if i had a fire under my ass, but realistically i take internet breaks inbetween so it evens out. so roughly 7 hoursish.

 

[tf21594]

wow, that's a commitment. are you doing lecture materials on top of that or is the zanki stuff your primary resource?

 

[libertyyne]

wow, that's a commitment. are you doing lecture materials on top of that or is the zanki stuff your primary resource?

this includes lecture reviews. so some of the cards are lecture specific that I have made. But im trying to leave lecture studying to the last few days before an exam.

 

[Lnsean]

Make sure you're good on the concepts as well. The problem with over relying on anki is that you get bits and pieces of facts that you often fail to connect together when given a specific vignette on the real exam. This was a feedback from some of the high scorers at my school.

 

[neurodjent]

can I get the feel for the number of anki reviews everyone is churning out this point in the game? Ive been averaging around 1k a day mostly on cards pertaining to the unit. Im wondering if I need to step it up. My thinking is by the time step rolls around i would have done 300k reviews.

I’m hitting about the same numbers. 1kish reviews per day, ~10 secs per card, 150+ new cards per day, and it’s taking me about 3 -4 hours of study time in 7-8 hours of actual time.

I’m actually trying to hit it even harder and trying to find a way to light a fire under my ass.

I also do qbanks and try to skim Robbins for class. I’m still trying to work on my study plan as getting back into school has been a slow process.

 

[libertyyne]

I’m hitting about the same numbers. 1kish reviews per day, ~10 secs per card, 150+ new cards per day, and it’s taking me about 3 -4 hours of study time in 7-8 hours of actual time.

I’m actually trying to hit it even harder and trying to find a way to light a fire under my ass.

I also do qbanks and try to skim Robbins for class. I’m still trying to work on my study plan as getting back into school has been a slow process.

yeah, we have been back for roughly a month and i finally feel acclimated again. If I could just get 1k in during 4 hours and spend 3 more doing flow charts or integrating that would be awesome.

 

[libertyyne]

Make sure you're good on the concepts as well. The problem with over relying on anki is that you get bits and pieces of facts that you often fail to connect together when given a specific vignette on the real exam. This was a feedback from some of the high scorers at my school.

I definately feel like that, i have been listening to goljan during my drives and honestly the integrations blow my mind !

 

[neurodjent]

yeah, we have been back for roughly a month and i finally feel acclimated again. If I could just get 1k in during 4 hours and spend 3 more doing flow charts or integrating that would be awesome.

I know exactly what you mean. I’m trying to get ankiing done is a smaller time window so I can integrate more resources. I just finished my first block and my effort was honestly pitiful. Hoping to turn it up starting tomorrow in my new block.

We’re in a good spot if we’re already modifying our work ethic and process for board studying.

 

[Diphyllobothrium latum]

I definately feel like that, i have been listening to goljan during my drives and honestly the integrations blow my mind !

I tried listening to Goljan at first but it didn't work for me, I found it too random and disorganised, couldn't follow him jumping from one topic to another. I decided to give it another try. I printed the audio transcripts and read them while annotating those little pearls you find in FA. Then I listened to him again, now the material was familiar and it works like a really really good revision on my way to the gym. Glad I didn't give up on him at first, his examples of classical presentations have stuck to my mind now.

 

[Epicurusall]

can I get the feel for the number of anki reviews everyone is churning out this point in the game? Ive been averaging around 1k a day mostly on cards pertaining to the unit. Im wondering if I need to step it up. My thinking is by the time step rolls around i would have done 300k reviews.

I think whether you step it up or keep the same or back off should be on how you’re learning and feeling.

If anki works great and you don’t feel burnt out keep it or push it, but if you like to read or watch lectures or do questions or draw flow charts then back off cards and add those things in.

I think people get bogged down in ‘needing’ to do x, y, or z, and forget in that stress of trying to complete that specific plan that if you’re overall working/studying for 8-12 hours a day, you’re gonna do well.

TL;DR Just do whatever works for you


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[coldcase331]

Cross reference with Boards and Beyond to make sure I was covering everything.

I cannot stress this strategy enough. Combo B/B with FA and that will cover ~80% of the test, the rest will be in the hands of sketchy/pathoma

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

I cannot stress this strategy enough. Combo B/B with FA and that will cover ~80% of the test, the rest will be in the hands of sketchy/pathoma

No joke...for the science stuff that was on Step 1, literally 90-95% of it was in one of the resources (BB, Sketchy, UW, Kaplan, RX). Most the stuff on the real test that I hadnt seen before were weird ethics questions and off the wall genetics stuff.

 

[GrignardsReagent]

Is there any consensus with PasTest? I am about to get the free trial to see.

Edit: Also taking a look at AMBOSS if anyone has an opinion on their step 1 q bank

 

[coldcase331]

Is there any consensus with PasTest? I am about to get the free trial to see.

Edit: Also taking a look at AMBOSS if anyone has an opinion on their step 1 q bank

UFAPS+B/B is a tried and true method for board success. Why do people keep looking at sources outside of that?

 

[GrignardsReagent]

Have you finished both RX and Kaplan? I wouldn't waste my time with any other q-banks during pre-dedicated.

If you have finished both RX and Kaplan and still have plenty of free time, then you are probably blowing through the questions too quickly and need to slow down.

I was looking for a question bank that I can do right now along with our classes. My school gave us Kaplan which I wanted to save those relevant questions until the 2-3 days before our exam.

I was going to start Kaplan questions over M1 material soonish. Rx is an option but it is 160 per 6 months. Then my question about AMBOSS and Pastest were both from the fact that Pastest price is reasonable at 90 for 6 months and I will get a significant discount on it when they come talk to our class.

If Rx is just a bit too expensive for me rn.

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[GrignardsReagent]

On AMBOSS that is. The discount will be on AMBOSS. Sorry cant figure out how to edit it from my phone.

Money is just an issue for me and I have no outside help.

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[dushash]

I was looking for a question bank that I can do right now along with our classes. My school gave us Kaplan which I wanted to save those relevant questions until the 2-3 days before our exam.

I was going to start Kaplan questions over M1 material soonish. Rx is an option but it is 160 per 6 months. Then my question about AMBOSS and Pastest were both from the fact that Pastest price is reasonable at 90 for 6 months and I will get a significant discount on it when they come talk to our class.

If Rx is just a bit too expensive for me rn.

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Hey man, Kaplan Qbank is not worth saving imho. It's an average resource compared to UW. Just do it and don't worry about saving it. Also, I do get your financial restraints etc. but aren't you going to buy UW anyway come dedicated? I mean dude, you are paying $300k for a med.school and trying to save $160 or whatever on something that will help you score more on step1 is kinda... you know.... (I'll restrain from calling names lol). Step1 will probably be #1 deciding factor (along with LORs) for matching. i mean it will in a sense determine your future specialty and basically your future 40-50 years of career. This is probably last thing to save on, but hey - it's your life man.

 

[GrignardsReagent]

Hey man, Kaplan Qbank is not worth saving imho. It's an average resource compared to UW. Just do it and don't worry about saving it. Also, I do get your financial restraints etc. but aren't you going to buy UW anyway come dedicated? I mean dude, you are paying $300k for a med.school and trying to save $160 or whatever on something that will help you score more on step1 is kinda... you know.... (I'll restrain from calling names lol). Step1 will probably be #1 deciding factor (along with LORs) for matching. i mean it will in a sense determine your future specialty and basically your future 40-50 years of career. This is probably last thing to save on, but hey - it's your life man.

Thank you. I think I just look at the price tag of all this and want to cry.

I am on scholarship and get a 1100 month stipend. I wasn't trying to save money but there is physically very little money left after my bills etc so I was just trying to make choices.

For UW, I have saved up the cash by putting away 100 for the last few months.

You are right though about this whole thing. I will figure something out and just get it done.

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[Yorick]

Reminder to check usmle-rx.com for First aid errors and updates! Encountered some major errors, PSA to check for errors as you review so you don't commit wrong information to memory.

 

[FindersFee5]

Thank you. I think I just look at the price tag of all this and want to cry.

I am on scholarship and get a 1100 month stipend. I wasn't trying to save money but there is physically very little money left after my bills etc so I was just trying to make choices.

For UW, I have saved up the cash by putting away 100 for the last few months.

You are right though about this whole thing. I will figure something out and just get it done.

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You can take out some loans even with a stipend! You'll almost definitely need to be doing this during interview season fourth year. I know loans are scary, but basically all med students have loans, and you'll have significantly less than most.

 

[owenwilsonwoah]

Reminder to check usmle-rx.com for First aid errors and updates! Encountered some major errors, PSA to check for errors as you review so you don't commit wrong information to memory.

are you referring to the PDF they posted?

If so, that PDF is updated yearly correct?

 

[mehc012]

So, this is an odd question, I admit, but...where do we actually even go to check our Step scores? And how long does it usually take? My exam was almost 2wks ago, and I was figuring it'd take 4-6wks to post like the MCAT, so I have a while yet (if I'm right). However, the thought idly entered my mind today that I actually don't know where I'd even go to find my score when the time does come around, lol!

 

[Nucleophile1]

US MD M2 interested in surgery
Goal: >250

Current Plan:

• Focusing on doing well in classes (my school primarily teaches board material)
• About halfway through Zanki at this point
• Started Qbank

 

[GrignardsReagent]

US MD M2 interested in surgery
Goal: >250

Current Plan:

• Focusing on doing well in classes (my school primarily teaches board material)
• About halfway through Zanki at this point
• Started Qbank

Looks solid. I wish I started Zanki sooner.

And welcome brother. We are of the same cloth.

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[Jonato]

New here, if I manage anything over 240 I’ll get my score inked on my chest.

So from reading here, most people are doing Zanki + Q Bank this first M2 semester. When do I start to incorporate B&B? Do I play it along with class material or do I start with Biochem?

 

[mehc012]

New here, if I manage anything over 240 I’ll get my score inked on my chest.

So from reading here, most people are doing Zanki + Q Bank this first M2 semester. When do I start to incorporate B&B? Do I play it along with class material or do I start with Biochem?

You watch it if you don't understand something in particular once you've done your normal learning method. It's too slow/tedious to use for EVERYTHING.

 

[Phoodie]

Joining in!

Year: US MD M2
Goal: 240+
Test date: Early May 2019
Plan: UFAPs (SketchyMicro + SketchyPharm)

Have about 40% of Zanki matured right now and have been using it + PepperMicro + PepperPharm for classes. Supplementing with Pathoma and B&B when needed. Currently using Kaplan as my primary qbank but will include USMLERx in a unit or two and then will aim to start UWorld around January to finish a first pass of before dedicated. <--Still on the fence about this and I can be swayed in either direction.

 

[Jonato]

Is the Lightyear deck worth a try or should I just Zanki on?

 

[libertyyne]

Is the Lightyear deck worth a try or should I just Zanki on?

its is fairly good. I appreciate that it sometimes hits up different aspects of the same thing.

 

[Jonato]

its is fairly good. I appreciate that it sometimes hits up different aspects of the same thing.

Looking at B&B cards by video seems amazing. I’ll give it a try

 

[sunshinefl]

Looking at B&B cards by video seems amazing. I’ll give it a try

Honestly this is the whole reason I ended up incorporating the light year deck into my anki, and NOT Zanki. Boards and Beyond is my favorite resource, and the light year deck cards are clear and well-tagged. I’m personally a fan. Haven’t been specifically “board studying”, but more like “class studying” while adding supplemental resources. An M3 also passed down to us an anki set tailored to our school’s M2 curriculum which is pretty high yield. So I use that leading up to exams too. Overall I use Anki about an hour a day on average, sometimes more.

 

[libertyyne]

Honestly this is the whole reason I ended up incorporating the light year deck into my anki, and NOT Zanki. Boards and Beyond is my favorite resource, and the light year deck cards are clear and well-tagged. I’m personally a fan. Haven’t been specifically “board studying”, but more like “class studying” while adding supplemental resources. An M3 also passed down to us an anki set tailored to our school’s M2 curriculum which is pretty high yield. So I use that leading up to exams too. Overall I use Anki about an hour a day on average, sometimes more.

What an absolute hero.

 

[mehc012]

Alright, guess I'm finally gonna see how this whole Step thing played out; score should come back this week.
Honestly, despite having, on the whole, pretty good practice exam scores...I'm not that optimistic. I feel as if I underprepared. I never even read some portions of FA, I didn't finish FC, I only watched a few portions of Pathoma, and I didn't finish UW (though I did do about 2/3 of Kaplan and then 3/4 of UW, so overall I was doing OK). Nothing changed from the start of dedicated until the end, and my practice exam scores were inconsistent, with a 20pt spread between just my NBME scores, with UWSA1 coming in closer to the top of that spread.

On test day, I felt like absolute trash. So...we'll see?

 

[libertyyne]

Alright, guess I'm finally gonna see how this whole Step thing played out; score should come back this week.
Honestly, despite having, on the whole, pretty good practice exam scores...I'm not that optimistic. I feel as if I underprepared. I never even read some portions of FA, I didn't finish FC, I only watched a few portions of Pathoma, and I didn't finish UW (though I did do about 2/3 of Kaplan and then 3/4 of UW, so overall I was doing OK). Nothing changed from the start of dedicated until the end, and my practice exam scores were inconsistent, with a 20pt spread between just my NBME scores, with UWSA1 coming in closer to the top of that spread.

On test day, I felt like absolute trash. So...we'll see?

Where were your practice scores trending?

Im sure you did great, you go to a great school that probably prepared you well anyway. And if you didnt' no need to worry about it , just make up for it on step 2.

 

[mehc012]

Where were your practice scores trending?

Im sure you did great, you go to a great school that probably prepared you well anyway. And if you didnt' no need to worry about it , just make up for it on step 2.

Ahh, but I wasn't one of the good students at this school. I didn't work for it. And I don't trust my practice scores. They're not commensurate with how I felt, nor how well I prepared. And they were inconsistent. Like, Kaplan ≈ UWSA1 >> NBME15 (15pt drop) = NBME17 <<<< NBME 16 (20pt gain) and then I chickened out of taking UWSA2 because I'd heard UWSAs overpredict, NBMEs underpredict, and, well...the goal had been to have the UWSA ego boost before the exam, but the NBME 16 did that for me because it was a ridiculous fluke.

I just...I was OK with doing less well on Step than I'd hoped, because honestly I recognize that I didn't work hard enough to earn better. But the rotation I'm on has been REALLY challenging for me and I just really need a win right now.

 

[theonlytycrane]

Alright, guess I'm finally gonna see how this whole Step thing played out; score should come back this week.
Honestly, despite having, on the whole, pretty good practice exam scores...I'm not that optimistic. I feel as if I underprepared. I never even read some portions of FA, I didn't finish FC, I only watched a few portions of Pathoma, and I didn't finish UW (though I did do about 2/3 of Kaplan and then 3/4 of UW, so overall I was doing OK). Nothing changed from the start of dedicated until the end, and my practice exam scores were inconsistent, with a 20pt spread between just my NBME scores, with UWSA1 coming in closer to the top of that spread.

On test day, I felt like absolute trash. So...we'll see?

I bet you broke 250

 

[mehc012]

I bet you broke 250

God, I hope so. Thanks for the vote of confidence!

 

[libertyyne]

Have any other people been taking NBME subject exams at their school? How are the results influencing your studying ?

 

[Epicurusall]

Have any other people been taking NBME subject exams at their school? How are the results influencing your studying ?

I’ll let you know after we take ours.

It’s gonna be a balancing act between local exams and board stuff for sure.

Definitely curious what everyone else thinks as well!

 

[mehc012]

Have any other people been taking NBME subject exams at their school? How are the results influencing your studying ?

Completely ignored them. Didn't even go back to check what my grades were on any of them. I found them a waste of time, personally, since at my school we have to take them, but our grade is based on the school-made non-NBME exams, which aren't even MCQ format and have completely different emphasis.

 

[Gurby]

can I get the feel for the number of anki reviews everyone is churning out this point in the game? Ive been averaging around 1k a day mostly on cards pertaining to the unit. Im wondering if I need to step it up. My thinking is by the time step rolls around i would have done 300k reviews.

I'm living that pure Zanki, 1k reviews/day life right now. No class (aside from required stuff), no videos, no slides, no FA or whatever, I just look things up on wikipedia when I get a card about a concept I don't know.

Just finished Zanki for the current courses we're covering in school. Started in on Kaplan and am scoring ~80% on first pass. I add an average of ~5 new cards per Kaplan question, filling in knowledge gaps. Feeling pretty good about this approach for now.

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

I'm living that pure Zanki, 1k reviews/day life right now. No class (aside from required stuff), no videos, no slides, no FA or whatever, I just look things up on wikipedia when I get a card about a concept I don't know.

Just finished Zanki for the current courses we're covering in school. Started in on Kaplan and am scoring ~80% on first pass. I add an average of ~5 new cards per Kaplan question, filling in knowledge gaps. Feeling pretty good about this approach for now.

I'll be joining you the moment we get through neuro, it's heavily PhD based and I'll fail if I am not substituting my cards with heavy doses of lectures lol. The rest of the semester slows down a bit and I'll be jumping head first into the full time Zanki life.

 

[Nucleophile1]

I'm living that pure Zanki, 1k reviews/day life right now. No class (aside from required stuff), no videos, no slides, no FA or whatever, I just look things up on wikipedia when I get a card about a concept I don't know.

Just finished Zanki for the current courses we're covering in school. Started in on Kaplan and am scoring ~80% on first pass. I add an average of ~5 new cards per Kaplan question, filling in knowledge gaps. Feeling pretty good about this approach for now.

I'll be starting that life soon once my current class is done because the rest of the semester is more chill.

I want to get through all of the Zanki subjects besides the system that we are doing next semester as well as getting through a micro deck. I've been keeping up with my Zanki reviews everyday so I think this should be do-able. I also need to decide which Q-bank I want to add in alongside Zanki.

 

[medicineman1234]

I'm living that pure Zanki, 1k reviews/day life right now. No class (aside from required stuff), no videos, no slides, no FA or whatever, I just look things up on wikipedia when I get a card about a concept I don't know.

Just finished Zanki for the current courses we're covering in school. Started in on Kaplan and am scoring ~80% on first pass. I add an average of ~5 new cards per Kaplan question, filling in knowledge gaps. Feeling pretty good about this approach for now.

What are your intervals and total unlocked cards? I've got 10k cards but already have like 1k a day. May have too small of intervals because my % correct is pretty high .

Also were you ever worried you couldn't connect dots using just zanki? Clearly you're doing fine with that Kaplan score though. I'm just wondering how "3rd level" questions are because at my school questions are very first order or regurgitation..

 

[libertyyne]

I'm living that pure Zanki, 1k reviews/day life right now. No class (aside from required stuff), no videos, no slides, no FA or whatever, I just look things up on wikipedia when I get a card about a concept I don't know.

Just finished Zanki for the current courses we're covering in school. Started in on Kaplan and am scoring ~80% on first pass. I add an average of ~5 new cards per Kaplan question, filling in knowledge gaps. Feeling pretty good about this approach for now.

The reason I ask is my NBME scores went to from 1.5+SD to +.7SD when i went full zanki. I am thinking of switching back to class stuff and just go over zanki cards to make sure I am not missing anything.


The concern I have is that Zanki cake might be a lie for me c0nsidering my performance on those tests was better when I focused on classes, and our school doesnt even teach to boards.

 

[Gurby]

I'll be joining you the moment we get through neuro, it's heavily PhD based and I'll fail if I am not substituting my cards with heavy doses of lectures lol.

I want to get through all of the Zanki subjects besides the system that we are doing next semester as well as getting through a micro deck. I've been keeping up with my Zanki reviews everyday so I think this should be do-able. I also need to decide which Q-bank I want to add in alongside Zanki.

My school bought us Rx so I started with that, but found that it was basically just Zanki with longer question stems -> too easy and basically a waste of time to do it right after finishing the corresponding Zanki decks. I plan to come back to it later when the Zanki knowledge isn't as fresh. Kaplan also has a lot of overlap but I find it to be a bit more challenging. YMMV though, and I'm not super deep into either qbank yet so who knows.

What are your intervals and total unlocked cards? I've got 10k cards but already have like 1k a day. May have too small of intervals because my % correct is pretty high .

Also were you ever worried you couldn't connect dots using just zanki? Clearly you're doing fine with that Kaplan score though. I'm just wondering how "3rd level" questions are because at my school questions are very first order or regurgitation..

I think my intervals tend to be longer than a lot of people I see posting on here and Reddit. I feel like if you're blasting through at 6 cards/min, maybe you're just memorizing by rote - I think if you don't have to stop and think about the answer pretty often, maybe the intervals are too short.

WRT connecting the dots: my school has a traditional M1=normal M2=abnormal curriculum, so I feel like I got a decent "big picture" view of things during M1. It's usually not that difficult to fit the MoA of a new drug or disease into that understanding. It's like I built the scaffolding of the building during M1 and now am filling in the pieces, or something. Here are my stats if it helps. Lately I've been around 600 scheduled reviews/day, then I do Kaplan questions while adding/reviewing new cards until I hit 1000, or until I run out of hours in the day.





Also fwiw my mature card accuracy rate is artificially deflated - I'll often hit "again" if I feel like the interval has gotten too long or if I want to make sure I see it again before dedicated.

The reason I ask is my NBME scores went to from 1.5+SD to +.7SD when i went full zanki. I am thinking of switching back to class stuff and just go over zanki cards to make sure I am not missing anything.


The concern I have is that Zanki cake might be a lie for me c0nsidering my performance on those tests was better when I focused on classes, and our school doesnt even teach to boards.

That's concerning yeah, don't know what to say - maybe focusing on class material suits your learning style better for whatever reason. Or maybe Zanki is just sub-par for some sections. Seems reasonable to focus on class material as long as you can keep up with the reviews. If you go through Rx and Kaplan and add cards as you go you should hit all the important info anyways, I think.

I also worry a little about the Zanki cake being a lie - Kaplan and Rx are both based directly on the same source material Zanki is pulled from so I wonder if those scores are artificially inflated. Your NBME scores kinda support that idea. UWorld will be the true test.

 

[theonlytycrane]

@Gurby

Are you doing Zanki pharm or Pepper or something different? I think I'm going with Pepper micro and Zanki pharm. Was just wondering about your approach to bugs / drugs?