USMLE Official 2019 Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread

[libertyyne]

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

Goal 270
Happy with 245

 

[redsox93]

One thing I wonder when people say “there were a couple WTF questions” is what kind of questions these were, and what made them “WTF” status?

For instance, were they really esoteric subject based questions (physiology, immunology, etc) or were they Multisystem type questions that really tested your ability to connect multiple systems.

I got a question that was straight out of MCAT sociology that I had no idea about. Some anatomy that asked about things idk if I’ve ever heard of. But for the most part the hard questions were concepts I’d heard of just asked in difficult ways.

 

[Gurby]

Conventional wisdom is that uworld, FA, Pathoma is sufficent for 240, hopefully with a little bit of test taking skill one can push that to 245+. But who knows? everyone is different.

Pretty interesting post on Reddit today related to this.

OP managed a 261 via UFAP + "2 passes of Zanki" (just looking at each card twice, and not bothering about spaced repetition at all):
reddit.com/r/step1/comments/b14q4l/step_1_thoughts_261/

One confounding factor here is that this person took Step 1 after a year of clinical experience... so maybe they had more exposure to things and more foundation to draw from. There's also of course no guarantee that OP isn't just lying.

Even so, many people have managed >260 with completing UW as their only QBank. Really has gotten me thinking that maybe I'm wasting a ton of time by trying to memorize so many details as I go through Kaplan.

 

[TRPMinus]

Is the only solution to this more practice questions? I can't see myself watching all of boards and beyond or reading rapid review to eek out esoteric questions for a 240. How can I most likely guarantee that?

IMO doing questions is the only way to combat this. You need to see questions asked in a variety of ways and by doing thousands I think you improve your chances of knowing the correct answer or guessing correctly through finely tuned test taking skills. It's more about knowledge application and test taking ability than the actual knowledge itself. I did Zanki VERY religiously and while it did help, it can't prepare you to apply the knowledge. Just gotta do all the questions you can find.

 

[TRPMinus]

Conventional wisdom is that uworld, FA, Pathoma is sufficent for 240, hopefully with a little bit of test taking skill one can push that to 245+. But who knows? everyone is different.

245 is 76th percentile, so I'm inclined to say that you don't need esoteric knowledge to achieve this level of success. If you can't get to 245 or even 250 with UFAP you probably won't get there at all TBH. Beyond that, yes, you probably need that to distinguish yourself.

 

[libertyyne]

Pretty interesting post on Reddit today related to this.

OP managed a 261 via UFAP + "2 passes of Zanki" (just looking at each card twice, and not bothering about spaced repetition at all):
reddit.com/r/step1/comments/b14q4l/step_1_thoughts_261/

One confounding factor here is that this person took Step 1 after a year of clinical experience... so maybe they had more exposure to things and more foundation to draw from. There's also of course no guarantee that OP isn't just lying.

Even so, many people have managed >260 with completing UW as their only QBank. Really has gotten me thinking that maybe I'm wasting a ton of time by trying to memorize so many details as I go through Kaplan.

Makes me feel better about not maturing zanki, I have probably seen all the cards 3x only.

 

[libertyyne]

245 is 76th percentile, so I'm inclined to say that you don't need esoteric knowledge to achieve this level of success. If you can't get to 245 or even 250 with UFAP you probably won't get there at all TBH. Beyond that, yes, you probably need that to distinguish yourself.

I mean a 250 is probably all you really need to match into any concievable specialty, after that you are probably better off putting effort in other aspects of your application.

 

[751866]

I mean a 250 is probably all you really need to match into any concievable specialty, after that you are probably better off putting effort in other aspects of your application.

What do you mean by 'any conceivable" specialty? Do you mean any specialty? Any specialty we could make up? Do you mean most excluding plastics, neurosurg, etc?

 

[libertyyne]

What do you mean by 'any conceivable" specialty? Do you mean any specialty? Any specialty we could make up? Do you mean most excluding plastics, neurosurg, etc?

Neurosurg had a step median of 245. I meant all specialties.

 

[FindersFee5]

Neurosurg had a step median of 245. I meant all specialties.

The 251 - 260 scorers had a significantly higher match rate in plastics than the 240 - 250 scorers. I agree that above a 255, there are definitely diminishing returns. But I'd like to be safely above 250 by test day.

It's so dumb that a 249 and a 250 are basically the exact same thing, but because humans have ten fingers and love tens, it's equivalent to a much larger decrease in desirability than a 251 to a 250.

 

[kb1900]

Had a dream last night that I got a 255. Why is my brain kidding myself after not getting above 70% once this week in Kaplan and my exam isn’t for another 2.5 months

 

[Epicurusall]

Had a dream last night that I got a 255. Why is my brain kidding myself after not getting above 70% once this week in Kaplan and my exam isn’t for another 2.5 months

I had a dream that I opened my score report to a 30. Yes, a 30

 

[JooceMan137]

I got a question that was straight out of MCAT sociology that I had no idea about. Some anatomy that asked about things idk if I’ve ever heard of. But for the most part the hard questions were concepts I’d heard of just asked in difficult ways.

Oh god... Those god damn MCAT psych/soc questions. I appreciate the input, that’s a great way of illustrating it.

My brain was so fried by the time I got to that section, I literally blacked out. If I wasn’t a psych major in college I would have been a goner.

 

[libertyyne]

The 251 - 260 scorers had a significantly higher match rate in plastics than the 240 - 250 scorers. I agree that above a 255, there are definitely diminishing returns. But I'd like to be safely above 250 by test day.

It's so dumb that a 249 and a 250 are basically the exact same thing, but because humans have ten fingers and love tens, it's equivalent to a much larger decrease in desirability than a 251 to a 250.

I agree with you and the standard error for the exam is like 8 points. But if you take a deeper look at most competitive specialties you will see people match with 230+ for the most part, it just becomes riskier. So not everyone is just number whoring. And unfortunately it is the world and game we live in.

Had a dream last night that I got a 255. Why is my brain kidding myself after not getting above 70% once this week in Kaplan and my exam isn’t for another 2.5 months

just consider it a premonition, or an actualization technique.

 

[JooceMan137]

Pretty interesting post on Reddit today related to this.

OP managed a 261 via UFAP + "2 passes of Zanki" (just looking at each card twice, and not bothering about spaced repetition at all):
reddit.com/r/step1/comments/b14q4l/step_1_thoughts_261/

One confounding factor here is that this person took Step 1 after a year of clinical experience... so maybe they had more exposure to things and more foundation to draw from. There's also of course no guarantee that OP isn't just lying.

Even so, many people have managed >260 with completing UW as their only QBank. Really has gotten me thinking that maybe I'm wasting a ton of time by trying to memorize so many details as I go through Kaplan.

My reaction to just seeing "2 passes of Zanki" Film GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY

 

[libertyyne]

My reaction to just seeing "2 passes of Zanki" Film GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY

To be fair, it seems like he was using it in cram mode, or the equivalent.

 

[MakeLifeHappen13]

That person who just went through Zanki without doing reviews and got a 261 probably already had a pretty high baseline level of knowledge and was just using it to make sure he at least saw everything. Also, some people are just inherently better at memorization than most, they can just see something a couple of times and not forget it for months. That is definitely not me, if I don't keep up with my reviews I end up forgetting high yield facts within a pretty short time span.

 

[JooceMan137]

I had a dream that I opened my score report to a 30. Yes, a 30

This reminds me of the multiple nights lately where i've been "studying" in my dreams. The dreams consist of me just flipping through Anki cards or doing UWorld, and I feel my "brain juices" working. Feels like i'm consolidating information.

 

[JooceMan137]

So i've been annotating UWorld notes into FA, but it takes me a very long time. I feel that just typing notes into word docs would be more efficient, but I like having a nice and pretty FA beefed up with UWorld. Any input?

 

[NecrotizingFasciitis]

So i've been annotating UWorld notes into FA, but it takes me a very long time. I feel that just typing notes into word docs would be more efficient, but I like having a nice and pretty FA beefed up with UWorld. Any input?

If you're an Anki user you can make a "UWorld" deck with sundecks divided by system. I've been doing this & it has worked out really well so far.

FA is too small & un-comprehensive to contain pathoma, sketchy, AND UWorld (or whatever you use.) When I go back through it in dedicated I'm either going to have a specific UWorld notebook or continue to make Anki cards.

 

[NeuResurgens]

Had a dream last night that I got a 255. Why is my brain kidding myself after not getting above 70% once this week in Kaplan and my exam isn’t for another 2.5 months

Kaplan isn't terribly predictive and 2.5 months is a long time to get ready. Don't count yourself out

 

[JooceMan137]

So is the preferred order of practice exams: NBME 15, 16, UWSA1, NBME 19, NBME 17,18, UWSA2, Free 120 week of your exam? I noticed there's 7 here (took this from a guide), so is this for a 7 week schedule? Also, given I have 8 weeks, would you recommend doing another one?

I've taken one CBSE already, and have my second one this Friday.

 

[stgt9202]

So is the preferred order of practice exams: NBME 15, 16, UWSA1, NBME 19, NBME 17,18, UWSA2, Free 120 week of your exam? I noticed there's 7 here (took this from a guide), so is this for a 7 week schedule? Also, given I have 8 weeks, would you recommend doing another one?

I've taken one CBSE already, and have my second one this Friday.

i think you have the order right? at least take the newer ones later. But since they're coming out with new exams after March 25, maybe try to schedule at least one or two of the newly released ones? I'm trying to figure out myself how to work in all the practice exams too with the new ones coming out and I'm also doing an 8 week dedicated so any advice on this would be appreciated !

 

[JooceMan137]

i think you have the order right? at least take the newer ones later. But since they're coming out with new exams after March 25, maybe try to schedule at least one or two of the newly released ones? I'm trying to figure out myself how to work in all the practice exams too with the new ones coming out and I'm also doing an 8 week dedicated so any advice on this would be appreciated !

That's a great point. I actually meant to ask about the new ones coming out but I completely forgot as I was typing the post. I'm going to have to figure out which ones to replace with the new NBMEs.

 

[aldol16]

The 251 - 260 scorers had a significantly higher match rate in plastics than the 240 - 250 scorers. I agree that above a 255, there are definitely diminishing returns. But I'd like to be safely above 250 by test day.

It's so dumb that a 249 and a 250 are basically the exact same thing, but because humans have ten fingers and love tens, it's equivalent to a much larger decrease in desirability than a 251 to a 250.

I'm not sure this is an actual difference. The tens thing just has to do with how people group the data, i.e. comparing everybody with 241-250 to 251-260. Obviously if there's going to be a difference if you have a 241 versus a 260 but such an analysis can't tease that apart. What's more likely is that somebody with a 249 is going to match very similarly as someone with a 250 if you were to actually break down the data into more granular detail.

That being said, it's always good to aim higher.

 

[NecrotizingFasciitis]

Update for the heck of it:

Spring Break 2k19 (litty city #TurnUp #4TheBoiz *air horns*): Re-did all of renal path/pharm over spring break (Pathoma + Sketchy Pharm + Zanki + FA), did a couple hundred UWorld questions, & struggled through some biochemistry review. Still need to establish a baseline NBME score; plan to do so (at least) 7 weeks before I sit for USMLE. I'll find a (relatively) free weekend to take one at some point.

Anki: main goal is to have all path/pharm completed before dedicated. I only have GI path/pharm & neuro pharm left to go (been hackin' away at them as much as I can; 1/3 through GI path and maybe 1/4 into neuro pharm.) I'm also working in biochemistry whenever it pops up. Still have derm/MSK & psych to get through in our school curriculum (doing associated Zanki alongside per usual.) I prioritize getting through reviews/new cards over everything else right now; zanki = my lord & savior.

QBanks: Took a few weeks off UWorld (school became a needy girlfriend I couldn't get rid of; ya feel?) but got back into it during spring break. My UWorld won't open at the moment but I'm sitting somewhere around 44% completed at 67% correct. Making Anki for everything I can't find in Zanki to un-suspend. My goal here is to have UWorld completed a couple weeks before dedicated to allow myself to catch up with any Anki I need to (whether it be my UWorld decks or other units I need to finish.) This will be the only QBank I'll have done before dedicated; takin' it slow & steady fam.

Dedicated: I plan to take the NBMEs to be released (20, 21, 22), NBME 15 (baseline), 18 (late dedicated), UW1/UW2 & the free 120. I plan to K/O Kaplan QBank, then do a second (very thorough) pass of UWorld during dedicated. I'm still brainstorming the nitty gritty day to day details. Also depends on when NBMEs 23/24 come out; I'll likely change my schedule to try to work those in too if they drop in time for my date (late June USMLE//early July COMLEX.)

Goal Score: still 240+ or bust.

 

[mcat_taker]

Got crushed on nbme 19. Still under predictive? of course I saved it for last.

 

[aymar]

Got crushed on nbme 19. Still under predictive? of course I saved it for last.

I take step later this week so no score as of yet, but I took 19 ~3.5 weeks out from my test date and it was 30-40 points lower than my last three NBME's lol

 

[mcat_taker]

I take step later this week so no score as of yet, but I took 19 ~3.5 weeks out from my test date and it was 30-40 points lower than my last three NBME's lol

Good to know although you figure you would have improved with subsequent tests (I went backwards and went down on 19 a week out. My test is basically the day the new nbmes come out. How is that for confidence? All the practice exams I've taken are about to be "retired" for new shiny ones the day I take.

 

[aymar]

Good to know although you figure you would have improved with subsequent tests (I went backwards and went down on 19 a week out. My test is basically the day the new nbmes come out. How is that for confidence? All the practice exams I've taken are about to be "retired" for new shiny ones the day I take.

good point, I can understand why you're bummed. Almost everyone I have talked to says that 19 was an outlier for them, so I wouldn't worry about it if I were you! maybe take Uworld 1 for the confidence boost if you haven't taken it already?

 

[mcat_taker]

good point, I can understand why you're bummed. Almost everyone I have talked to says that 19 was an outlier for them, so I wouldn't worry about it if I were you! maybe take Uworld 1 for the confidence boost if you haven't taken it already?

Might retake UW2 instead of 1.

 

[kb1900]

Trying to get the majority of rx and Kaplan done before dedicated. Scheduled myself for > 160 endo/Repro questions per day for the next 4 days leading up to my endo final. Then watching 30 hours of lectures before the final.

Posting for pure solidarity as I completely shun the rest of my life’s obligations

 

[FindersFee5]

Trying to get the majority of rx and Kaplan done before dedicated. Scheduled myself for > 160 endo/Repro questions per day for the next 4 days leading up to my endo final. Then watching 30 hours of lectures before the final.

Posting for pure solidarity as I completely shun the rest of my life’s obligations

OOOOFFFF that's a touch schedule. Good luck!

Started dedicated this week - let me tell you all, it's the promised land. I'm studying 9-10 hours a day, but it's efficient studying and I don't have school obligations so I actually feel like I have way more free time! I actually read a book in the last few days.

 

[Epicurusall]

OOOOFFFF that's a touch schedule. Good luck!

Started dedicated this week - let me tell you all, it's the promised land. I'm studying 9-10 hours a day, but it's efficient studying and I don't have school obligations so I actually feel like I have way more free time! I actually read a book in the last few days.

Did you finish the Kaplan Qbank? Any update on pre-dedicated stats with %s / NBMEs?

 

[kb1900]

OOOOFFFF that's a touch schedule. Good luck!

Started dedicated this week - let me tell you all, it's the promised land. I'm studying 9-10 hours a day, but it's efficient studying and I don't have school obligations so I actually feel like I have way more free time! I actually read a book in the last few days.

This is so motivational to me. No eye fatigue from reading as a break on top of staring at words 10 hours a day?

 

[FindersFee5]

Did you finish the Kaplan Qbank? Any update on pre-dedicated stats with %s / NBMEs?

Kaplan finished a few days before predicated at 88% overall. Amboss half finished at 78% overall.

NBME 15 1 week predicated 257. Planning on taking NBME 17 this coming week, wouldn't be surprised to drop a bit from my score 15. I got lucky with a few of the WTF questions which probably inflated my score.

I'm basically just doing 2 UWorld blocks with intense review (about 1.5 - 2 hours per block), all my review cards, and about 3-5 boards and beyond videos every day in weak areas.

 

[Epicurusall]

Kaplan finished a few days before predicated at 88% overall. Amboss half finished at 78% overall.

NBME 15 1 week predicated 257. Planning on taking NBME 17 this coming week, wouldn't be surprised to drop a bit from my score 15. I got lucky with a few of the WTF questions which probably inflated my score.

I'm basically just doing 2 UWorld blocks with intense review (about 1.5 - 2 hours per block), all my review cards, and about 3-5 boards and beyond videos every day in weak areas.

How do you feel about the Amboss qbank, compared to Rx and Kaplan?

Not that I'll even have the time to add that in, but just in case

 

[Gurby]

Kaplan finished a few days before predicated at 88% overall. Amboss half finished at 78% overall.

NBME 15 1 week predicated 257. Planning on taking NBME 17 this coming week, wouldn't be surprised to drop a bit from my score 15. I got lucky with a few of the WTF questions which probably inflated my score.

I'm basically just doing 2 UWorld blocks with intense review (about 1.5 - 2 hours per block), all my review cards, and about 3-5 boards and beyond videos every day in weak areas.

You're my hero.

88% on Kaplan is inspirational. I need to step up my Zanki/QBank game. Bummed that I'm so far behind, but I'm taking Step at end of June so there is time to catch up yet.

Will be watching your career with great interest.

 

[FindersFee5]

How do you feel about the Amboss qbank, compared to Rx and Kaplan?

Not that I'll even have the time to add that in, but just in case

I think there are some helpful aspects - they do a good job with giving you a question that you're pretty sure you know the answer too, but then obfuscating the answer choices until you're pretty unsure, which, from what people have said about Step, is going to be a helpful skill.

That said, they're also inconsistent (I've literally gotten two questions about transferrin levels in hereditary hemochromatosis with opposite answers), test some super SUPER low yield things (like kaplan^2), and frequently have poor answer explanations. Maybe add it if you have some free time and free passcodes, but definitely don't pay for it.

 

[4-cyclohexene]

hi! any march 2nd test takers lurking on SDN wondering if our scores will be released tomorrow? is it typically 3 weeks or four weeks after that we receive scores if we took it on a Saturday? Just needing someone to ease the massive amounts of anxiety i am experiencing thinking about opening up my score while at the hospital tomorrow morning AJHKSDJHASDJKASLHDKJ

 

[TheVagüs]

Pretty sure USMLERx and Kaplan added new problems since January. Why do they want me to feel unaccomplished? I had a schedule dammit. I'm trying to get. ****. done.

That said I definitely fell behind on my schedule the past month. Between trying to finish research (it just won't go away), classes, and keeping up with anki it's been easy to blow off the daily problem sets. Oh well. Just some extra practice problems during dedicated. Or maybe I'll lose my mind for a couple weeks and slam questions like kb1900 to get back on track. Fighting the burnout pretty hard right now though. I've been going ham since late December, and I'm desperate to reach dedicated so that I only have to study for step.

Respect to everyone out there still grinding. We are going to make it, and we're going to wreck this exam.

 

[Gurby]

Pretty sure USMLERx and Kaplan added new problems since January. Why do they want me to feel unaccomplished? I had a schedule dammit. I'm trying to get. ****. done.

That said I definitely fell behind on my schedule the past month. Between trying to finish research (it just won't go away), classes, and keeping up with anki it's been easy to blow off the daily problem sets. Oh well. Just some extra practice problems during dedicated. Or maybe I'll lose my mind for a couple weeks and slam questions like kb1900 to get back on track. Fighting the burnout pretty hard right now though. I've been going ham since late December, and I'm desperate to reach dedicated so that I only have to study for step.

Respect to everyone out there still grinding. We are going to make it, and we're going to wreck this exam.

I'm on that research grind too. It's a struggle because deep down I know spending time on research is probably higher yield than studying for Step at this point. Almost certainly better to have a 250 with a couple papers than to have a 260 with nothing else. But I want that shiny >260 so bad though...

Can't wait for dedicated - it's going to be so chill compared to this classes + research + Zanki + QBank bull****.

 

[sunshinefl]

Pretty sure USMLERx and Kaplan added new problems since January. Why do they want me to feel unaccomplished? I had a schedule dammit. I'm trying to get. ****. done.

That said I definitely fell behind on my schedule the past month. Between trying to finish research (it just won't go away), classes, and keeping up with anki it's been easy to blow off the daily problem sets. Oh well. Just some extra practice problems during dedicated. Or maybe I'll lose my mind for a couple weeks and slam questions like kb1900 to get back on track. Fighting the burnout pretty hard right now though. I've been going ham since late December, and I'm desperate to reach dedicated so that I only have to study for step.

Respect to everyone out there still grinding. We are going to make it, and we're going to wreck this exam.

Lol Uworld adds questions too. One day they added more than I got done.... I was like umm okay I’m behind again.

 

[Frogger27]

Started doing UWorld untimed/random the other week. Currently 8 blocks in and sitting at 60%. I'm 3 months from test date and ~6 weeks until dedicated... is this a decent starting point given I am still 3 months out? I was hoping to be closer to 70% so a little bit discouraged

 

[wanderingorion]

Started doing UWorld untimed/random the other week. Currently 8 blocks in and sitting at 60%. I'm 3 months from test date and ~6 weeks until dedicated... is this a decent starting point given I am still 3 months out? I was hoping to be closer to 70% so a little bit discouraged

Keep chipping away. My percentages have gotten better the more blocks I've done. I wouldn't obsess about it too much. I think the main point is getting them wrong so you know what you don't know.

 

[sunshine02]

This might be a dumb question but at Prometric how do they check your glasses? Mine are broken (there's a crack at the arms) so they need to be handled with care and I'm legally blind without them. They're the only pair I have and I haven't had time to go out and search for new glasses during dedicated. They won't have a problem with broken glasses right?

 

[mcat_taker]

If anyone needs to feel better about themselves, my uworld first pass test average was 50%. Second pass is currently 65%.

 

[YoungDoc25]

Decided to pass on the rest of Rx and Kaplan (maybe 900 left between the two) and start UWorld instead. I now see why everyone loves UWorld.. those explanations and questions are so dang good. Sitting at 77% after 10 blocks on random. NBME 18 is still set for Friday for a baseline. ~7ish weeks until test day!

 

[wanderingorion]

Decided to pass on the rest of Rx and Kaplan (maybe 900 left between the two) and start UWorld instead. I now see why everyone loves UWorld.. those explanations and questions are so dang good. Sitting at 77% after 10 blocks on random. NBME 18 is still set for Friday for a baseline. ~7ish weeks until test day!

I've been doing more or less the same thing. Did 18 last weekend. I wonder how much the new NBMEs will change

 

[JooceMan137]

Hey guys, quick question on NBME's:

My planned order as of now is 15 (about a half week before dedicated to see where i'm at), 16, 19 , 17, 18, UWSA 1, UWSA 2 , Free NBME 120 (possibly at the prometric center? Thought I heard this was possible). I was wondering which one's would be worth dropping given that the new NBME's are coming out soon. Also, my exam is in early June, starting dedicated mid April, will all (I think) 4 be released by then, or just the first 2?

Also, i'm thinking of taking the NBME 15 at the prometric just for ****'s and giggles. I figured it won't hurt, since it'll be a nice quiet study space anyway, and it's in the town where I grew up as a child (for them nostalgia vibes) so it'll get me in the mindset. If I take them there, would I be still able to see my corrects/incorrects?

 

[Scrubs101]

For those taking step after the new nbmes come out, which old ones will you be taking?

Thinking ill get all the new ones and three old ones. Was thinking 16 17 fore sure and not sure on the third one. I know ill get my hopes and dreams crushed by 19, but at the same time i may need a lil fire under my butt at the beginning lol.

Thoughts?