USMLE Official 2020 Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread

[EMDoc22]

Since one hasn't been started, figured I'd start this for all us M2s and M3s taking Step this coming year.

DO student interested in EM. Estimated test date is mid June.

Goal is 230+ but I'd be happy with 225+.

Good luck everyone!

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[Cranjis McBasketball]

Since one hasn't been started, figured I'd start this for all us M2s and M3s taking Step this coming year.

DO student interested in EM. Estimated test date is mid June.

Goal is 230+ but I'd be happy with 225+.

Good luck everyone!

Same, except interests in FM. Good luck guys and lets keep each other motivated and grindin

 

[OrinIncandenza]

Testing in March. Mid-level MD school with trash curriculum. Interested in ortho
Goal: 250
Progress so far: 20,000 of Zanki mature, Kalplan Q-bank and USMLERX Q-bank complete.
Let's get this bread

 

[TheIllusionist]

Testing in March. Mid-level MD school with trash curriculum. Interested in ortho
Goal: 250
Progress so far: 20,000 of Zanki mature, Kalplan Q-bank and USMLERX Q-bank complete.
Let's get this bread

as someone in your exact position, who got a 247 and just missed it, I wish you good luck. Avenge me bro

 

[EMDoc22]

So what are everyone's plans? I'm using the standard UFAPS + B&B + Zanki. We'll be done with content for the most part at my school by the end of this semester so I'll really start hitting it hard over winter break. I've been using B&B and Pathoma to follow along with classes and am just starting to get into Sketchy, have worked my way through ~40% of Zanki and plan to have it done by May, and am using Kaplan this semester and will start UWorld in January. I plan to really hit micro and pharm hard next semester since we will mostly be (hopefully) reviewing content already learned.

 

[Gilakend]

as someone in your exact position, who got a 247 and just missed it, I wish you good luck. Avenge me bro

Congrats on an amazing score!

 

[fldoctorgirl]

Oh god, can't believe I'm commenting on this thread already...time flies!

DO student, planning on taking Step 1 in early July with COMLEX 3-4 days after.
Currently interested in IM, FM, and potentially ob/gyn (had a phase during M1 where I was obsessed with it, but am pretty much over it now-- leaving it as an option, though).

Goal: 230+
Happy with: 220+

Chugging along with Zanki, hoping to have everything matured before dedicated. Planning on incorporating Rx into my schedule this semester, but haven't been able to thus far. Pathoma and Sketchy throughout this year. Dedicated plan will likely be UWorld and another pass through Pathoma, plus keeping up with Zanki. Lets do thisssss

 

[Type2Fiber]

USMD
Goal: 250 step, 350 bench
Ortho or bust

Zanki, Lolnotacop, & Q-banks PRN

Lets get it

 

[Steve_Zissou]

DO student interested in anesthesia

Goal is 240+, but I’ll be happy with 230+

Nowhere near as many zanki done as some of you guys but I’m making progress slowly.

Thinking about getting a personal tutor. Currently using UFAPS minus the U, B&B and zanki.

 

[Dantes]

Testing in March. Mid-level MD school with trash curriculum. Interested in ortho
Goal: 250
Progress so far: 20,000 of Zanki mature, Kalplan Q-bank and USMLERX Q-bank complete.
Let's get this bread

Holy **** that's impressive. How much free time does your curriculum allow? I feel like I'm doing all I can and I'm only 13k into Zanki with barely any Qbank questions done.

 

[OrinIncandenza]

Holy **** that's impressive. How much free time does your curriculum allow? I feel like I'm doing all I can and I'm only 13k into Zanki with barely any Qbank questions done.

Thanks! Sounds like you're making good progress as well.

My school's lectures are completely worthless (state school with average entrance stats with absolutely abysmal mean Step1 score) so I abandoned them entirely several months back and currently spend the entire work day using outside resources (zanki, and qbanks). A few days before the in-house exams I will cram the lectures enough to pass.

 

[Dantes]

Thanks! Sounds like you're making good progress as well.

My school's lectures are completely worthless (state school with average entrance stats with absolutely abysmal mean Step1 score) so I abandoned them entirely several months back and currently spend the entire work day using outside resources (zanki, and qbanks). A few days before the in-house exams I will cram the lectures enough to pass.

Thanks. Yeah I feel you on the lectures, I've stopped going too. Problem is we have around 15-18 hours of required small group stuff each week. Though I hear it gets tapered down later on so hopefully I can make a big dent on this stuff then.

 

[DrStephenStrange]

Here goes nothing.

DO student with ultimate goal being Cardiovascular diseases. So University IM or bust, a good community IM could probably work too.

Step 1 goal: 240+
I would be happy with a 230+
Meh... with a 220+

The plan is UFAPS + BnB. Currently using Kaplan and Rx Qbanks, and doing well on them so far. I've never used Zanki though because it never actually worked for me, but I'm willing to give it another try though. However, it might be a little too late to mature all these cards in time. Maybe I'll use it for my weakess areas.

 

[Frontsquats]

Super excited to post in one of these threads! I always followed these threads when I was studying for the MCAT but never posted, and I followed last years' Step 1 thread. It's always super helpful and fun to follow these threads and now am excited to actually be able to post and follow my and everyones progress!

-USMD Testing in March
-Goal score is 250 (I think I would be content with a 245+ though)
-Have been going through B&B, Pathoma, Sketchy Micro/Pharm and First Aid with classes, and hoping to get 1 pass through all of these resources by dedicated. No Anki
-Have been also using Kaplan and USMLE RX Qbanks alongside classes, about 750 questions into each (1/3 of the way done). Really hoping to complete them by the start of dedicated in January, but am finding it awfully difficult to get my usual 35 questions a day that would be required of me to reach this feat because of all the extra stuff I have going on (i.e mandatory classes, and other BS my school has us doing). Any advice on that?

 

[Type2Fiber]

Super excited to post in one of these threads! I always followed these threads when I was studying for the MCAT but never posted, and I followed last years' Step 1 thread. It's always super helpful and fun to follow these threads and now am excited to actually be able to post and follow my and everyones progress!

-USMD Testing in March
-Goal score is 250 (I think I would be content with a 245+ though)
-Have been going through B&B, Pathoma, Sketchy Micro/Pharm and First Aid with classes, and hoping to get 1 pass through all of these resources by dedicated. No Anki
-Have been also using Kaplan and USMLE RX Qbanks alongside classes, about 750 questions into each (1/3 of the way done). Really hoping to complete them by the start of dedicated in January, but am finding it awfully difficult to get my usual 35 questions a day that would be required of me to reach this feat because of all the extra stuff I have going on (i.e mandatory classes, and other BS my school has us doing). Any advice on that?

I would just start the day off with questions. Obviously works best if you're a morning person, but I do my Anki reviews first thing in the morning and it is a good workflow to start the day. 35 questions a morning would put you in a strong position come dedicated

 

[Frontsquats]

I would just start the day off with questions. Obviously works best if you're a morning person, but I do my Anki reviews first thing in the morning and it is a good workflow to start the day. 35 questions a morning would put you in a strong position come dedicated

Thanks for the advice. I started off doing that, but found myself falling behind on other responsibilities when I did do that. It prob takes me around 4 hours to get 35 questions in and review them. Am I just really slow? Gonna try it again starting tomorrow though!

 

[Type2Fiber]

Thanks for the advice. I started off doing that, but found myself falling behind on other responsibilities when I did do that. It prob takes me around 4 hours to get 35 questions in and review them. Am I just really slow? Gonna try it again starting tomorrow though!

Yeah 4 hours is probably too big a commitment at this point. My plan is to start working in a couple questions every morning, going to do 10-15 questions a morning and increase until I've covered all systems at which point I'll swap to doing uworld

 

[ohmanwaddup]

DO student wanting to do IM/Peds. Did ass first year so using that to motivate me right now. about 1/5th of the way through zanki and have been doing pathoma along with classes. Goal is to finish Zanki by end of febuary/march, be matured by dedicated and to start Uworld over winter break. Hoping to take both exams by 4th of July. Using Kaplan as practice questions for exam and getting about 65% of the path, pathpysio corrent.

Been doing a lot better than last year, wouldve actually gotten my first A if I hadnt slacked off on the last exam of our block. As someone who went into every block thinking they were going to fail and being a C students last year this is pretty encouraging.

Hoping for a 230+, but any score that wont close the IM/Peds door shut will make me happy. Any and all advice is appreciated.

 

[fldoctorgirl]

DO student wanting to do IM/Peds. Did ass first year so using that to motivate me right now. about 1/5th of the way through zanki and have been doing pathoma along with classes. Goal is to finish Zanki by end of febuary/march, be matured by dedicated and to start Uworld over winter break. Hoping to take both exams by 4th of July. Using Kaplan as practice questions for exam and getting about 65% of the path, pathpysio corrent.

Been doing a lot better than last year, wouldve actually gotten my first A if I hadnt slacked off on the last exam of our block. As someone who went into every block thinking they were going to fail and being a C students last year this is pretty encouraging.

Hoping for a 230+, but any score that wont close the IM/Peds door shut will make me happy. Any and all advice is appreciated.

We're literally the same person lol

 

[MAS91]

DO student, interested in Surgery (I think). Planning to take step mid-June. Still figuring out how to balance lectures and board studying

Goal 250

 

[DrStephenStrange]

What do you guys think of AMBOSS as a question bank? I found a 40% discount, so I was wondering if it was worth it or not.

 

[Type2Fiber]

What do you guys think of AMBOSS as a question bank? I found a 40% discount, so I was wondering if it was worth it or not.

I like it. I'm using Kaplan but I liked the trial of amboss and its not a bad deal at 40% off

 

[iforget2]

Wow this is happening!

Goal: 230+ and will more than gladly take anything above it. Chugging through Zanki right now and I've matured 18k, hoping to finish the deck before dedicated and mature as many cards as I can during dedicated. Interested in IM or Peds, but hoping a high score would be help me be more flexible with location and staying near family. Looking forward to this wild ride with y'all!

 

[Cranjis McBasketball]

Anyone struggling to focus on Zanki and UFAPS while also studying for class? I recently took a test for the system we are in and felt like half the questions were PhD random, "flex my knowledge on you" type questions.

 

[Blusky#1]

I like it. I'm using Kaplan but I liked the trial of amboss and its not a bad deal at 40% off

Well there is only really one way to find out , try it. Also to note is how much time do you have left before your exam?.. ultimately, I think nothing beats UWorld just know it inside out

 

[Frontsquats]

Anyone have a set study plan where you do x things per day (x amount of cards, reviews, questions etc) that puts you right on pace to finish by a certain target date, but then have days that completely f**** up your schedule? I had a lot of these days early on, but I got good at making sure I stuck to my schedule no matter what, but the other day I got bomb-shelled with a day of 3 hours of mandatory class and a 4 hour mandatory event and I basically could do no studying that day and am now a day behind. With how much I have to do, I feel like I can't catch up and will have to push everything back a day even though I don't want to. I know it seems crazy, but I'm on a schedule where I do 40 questions a day + certain amount of sketchy + school work + Pathoma/BB etc.

 

[JDDrCOX]

Can't believe its time. IMG, just finished Kapaln 14 week in september. Took NBME at a prometric center got 200. I haven't done Uworld yet, kaplan Qbank and Rx about 1/3rd each finished. Now its time for UFAP and practice NBME's/UWSA.
Planning on taking it in Feb or March. Good luck guys lets do this.

Goal:240+
will be happy with 230+.

 

[FindersFee5]

Dropping by to wish you all good luck!

Just remember, don't get discouraged by what anybody else is doing, what anybody else's scores are, how many questions other people have done. The only person you should be competing against is yourself from yesterday.

Also, don't get so caught up in completing things that you do them half-assedly. Don't lie to yourself about your anki. Don't guess on questions and then skim answers. Really, truly try to understand concepts right now - it'll save you so much time later.

 

[Type2Fiber]

Beginning to see the rewards of the Anki grind. 80%+ on Kaplan/Rx over the last month on timed random. 21k unlocked, 18k mature. Doing questions is much more enjoyable than grinding out news and reviews

 

[Steve_Zissou]

Beginning to see the rewards of the Anki grind. 80%+ on Kaplan/Rx over the last month on timed random. 21k unlocked, 18k mature. Doing questions is much more enjoyable than grinding out news and reviews

When do you take step 1?

 

[Type2Fiber]

When do you take step 1?

We have to take it by the end of May at my school, haven't scheduled my exam yet. I should be able to have Zanki done well before dedicated, which feels great to say

 

[Mtskies]

is anyone here NOT doing zanki?

 

[DrStephenStrange]

is anyone here NOT doing zanki?

Im doing it only for sketchy and pathoma essentially. So...

Sent from my SM-G973U using SDN mobile

 

[JDDrCOX]

is anyone here NOT doing zanki?

I am not doing zanki, although i did susbcribe to USMLErx flash cards

 

[DrStephenStrange]

This IMO is the way to go with Anki. I 100% would’ve done this + more questions if I had to do it all over again. Wasted a lot of time and energy trying to memorize every single detail from Zanki. I think the sections you’re doing are the “highest yield”. I approve.

This is good to hear. I consistently have doubts about the way I approach this because everyone I know here seems to be using zanki as the bible maturing 30K-50K cards. Also, I do focus more on questions as I feel I learn more from them than anything else.

 

[fldoctorgirl]

This is good to hear. I consistently have doubts about the way I approach this because everyone I know here seems to be using zanki as the bible maturing 30K-50K cards. Also, I do focus more on questions as I feel I learn more from them than anything else.

Do you, drown out everyone else. #1 thing that has helped me do better in school.

 

[DrStephenStrange]

Do you, drown out everyone else. #1 thing that has helped me do better in school.

I've been able to do good in my classes without it. And I'm doing well on practice questions so far. I guess we'll see how I do on Uworld starting next semester.

Sent from my SM-G973U using SDN mobile

 

[OrinIncandenza]

Have any of y'all taken a practice test yet to get a baseline?

 

[Type2Fiber]

Have any of y'all taken a practice test yet to get a baseline?

I'm planning on it over winter break. Just started respiratory with one more system left, I'm going to get ahead over the break and then take a baseline test. Is there a consensus on the order to take them?

 

[EMDoc22]

I'm planning on it over winter break. Just started respiratory with one more system left, I'm going to get ahead over the break and then take a baseline test. Is there a consensus on the order to take them?

There was a thread earlier this year I think with a suggested order though I think you can do them in any order you want. The general consensus seems to be that UWA2 and the free 120 should be the last ones you do before the exam. I'm planning on doing 16 over winter break and 17 over spring break then the newer NBMEs and the UWorld practice tests during dedicated.

 

[OrinIncandenza]

I'm planning on it over winter break. Just started respiratory with one more system left, I'm going to get ahead over the break and then take a baseline test. Is there a consensus on the order to take them?

From what I've heard from my peers, it is a good idea to take a predictive NBME first (ex: form 17 or 18) that is well-known to be highly predictive of your actual score, then take one of the more challenging NBMEs (form 19) that will motivate you and keep you realistic about your baseline. Definitely saving UWA2 and Free120 until a week or two before the exam, like GoCards05 mentioned above.

Think I'm going to attempt my first NBME the day after Thanksgiving to get a baseline b/c testing in early March. Will report back results...

 

[iforget2]

From what I've heard from my peers, it is a good idea to take a predictive NBME first (ex: form 17 or 18) that is well-known to be highly predictive of your actual score, then take one of the more challenging NBMEs (form 19) that will motivate you and keep you realistic about your baseline. Definitely saving UWA2 and Free120 until a week or two before the exam, like GoCards05 mentioned above.

Think I'm going to attempt my first NBME the day after Thanksgiving to get a baseline b/c testing in early March. Will report back results...

Is there a website where we can take/buy practice NBMEs? And how many questions is each one?

 

[DrStephenStrange]

Is there a website where we can take/buy practice NBMEs? And how many questions is each one?

On the NBME's website (google is your friend). Each 200 questions I think.

Sent from my SM-G973U using SDN mobile

 

[OrinIncandenza]

Is there a website where we can take/buy practice NBMEs? And how many questions is each one?

Go to the NBME website, make an account, go to Comprehensive Self-Assessments, and select "Comprehensive Basic Science Self-Assessment" (these are the Step1 assessments). There are currently selling six "forms" (200 questions each) on their website (5 of these are "new" as of earlier this year).

They "retired" several previous tests that they used to sell but you can find screenshots of the questions if you google NBME form X pdf (x=old form number). You can take these offline for free. I think there are somewhere around 19 NBME's in total

 

[Steve_Zissou]

How are you guys making your schedules for this?

 

[OrinIncandenza]

How are you guys making your schedules for this?

Still haven't physically written a schedule down but I plan on starting a three month "dedicated period" starting December 1st. So will formulate a plan within the next week or so. Want to work through two additional test banks, review an organ system/unit per week, and take one NBME every week to track progress.

 

[OrinIncandenza]

Just took NBME 17 timed, offline as a baseline 3 months out from test day.

Scored a 223.

Going to start dedicated on Monday. Hoping to increase my score about 10-15 points/per month.

I found the NBME questions MUCH easier than the UWorld stems (more straight-forward, not trying to "trick" you). Finished most of the sections with 20 minutes to spare. Overall, nice experience getting some exposure to NBME questions (my school doesn't have NBME questions for in-house exams).

Edit: Originally, thought I had a 213. But beware, the answer key that I found online had 5-10 answers that were incorrect. This corrected my score to 223

 

[Chelsea FC]

Just took NBME 17 timed, offline as a baseline 3 months out from test day.

Scored a 213.

Going to start dedicated on Monday. Hoping to increase my score about 10-15 points/per month.

I found the NBME questions MUCH easier than the UWorld stems (more straight-forward, not trying to "trick" you). Finished most of the sections with 20 minutes to spare. Overall, nice experience getting some exposure to NBME questions (my school doesn't have NBME questions for in-house exams).

That doesn't seem like a bad starting point. Did you use anything to prepare up to this point?

 

[DrStephenStrange]

Just took NBME 17 timed, offline as a baseline 3 months out from test day.

Scored a 213.

Going to start dedicated on Monday. Hoping to increase my score about 10-15 points/per month.

I found the NBME questions MUCH easier than the UWorld stems (more straight-forward, not trying to "trick" you). Finished most of the sections with 20 minutes to spare. Overall, nice experience getting some exposure to NBME questions (my school doesn't have NBME questions for in-house exams).

How much % correct got you a 213?

 

[OrinIncandenza]

That doesn't seem like a bad starting point. Did you use anything to prepare up to this point?

Thanks! I'm pretty happy with the baseline especially considering that NBMEs seem to slightly underestimate scores, if anything. I was a devout Zanki'er for about a year (20,000 matured) until the reviews become too much to handle with class commitments; however, I think that gave me a decent baseline!

In addition to the Zanki base, I'm about 50% done with UWorld (76% avg) and just about done with Kaplan QBank. I think the majority of my dedicated time will be spent trying to put a dent in the major QBanks (going to start working on Amboss and Rx). A lot of the users from the 2019 Step1 thread last year said that they wished that they had spent more time doing Step1 questions rather than focusing on Anki cards and reviews.

How much % correct got you a 213?

I got 161/200 correct so about 81% correct corresponded to a 213. The NBME curve is pretty brutal lol!