Official ABIM Exam/study tools thread!

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Hey guys
do you have a study plan for those who have a year? Those who have 3-6 months?
 
anyone have a sample study schedule? like a 6 month daily routine schedule with list of chapters/questions to complete each day from MKSAP?
 
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Question:

I had attempted ABIM initial certification exam in 2018, and failed.

At the time I had just completed IM residency and was entering HPM fellowship. I didn't really study, honestly.

I had bought Uworld Qbank, MKSAP 18 (which came iwth board basics for MKSAP 18), and my residency gave us the MedStudy 16th edition books (core).

I am planning to sit for the exam this year 2022, and was wondering, do I need to order new edition books for MedStudy for the exam this year. I am honestly thinking about there video review series.

Also - would MKSAP 19 be the best source for this years exam. It appears to be the latest edition. I imagine my BB that came with MKSAP 18 is fine, though, was planning to get the Qbank.

Long story short, am I doing my self a disservice if I utilize my MedStudy core print books from 2018, studying for the 2022 exam? Also, what about the Board Basics book from 2018 with MKSAP 18?



Once again, I do plan to do the video lecture series, as I am a hybrid learner and think the visual component will help


Thanks for any input
 
mj2323 said:
Anyone also take the AOBIM Initial certification exam as a back up just in case they fail ABIM? I heard it’s easier. The AOBIM is in September
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I took both last year. Passed both respectably but AOBIM by a wider margin. Felt like ABIM was more difficult, but AOBIM had more “gotcha” questions.
 
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Awesome review vs Medstudy videos?
Which one is more helpful in the real deal?
 
Hi there: I'm studying for the ABIM Aug 2022 also - is anyone interested in regular Zoom study sessions to keep each other accountable and quiz or teach each other? Send me a private message if interested with info including where you are physically located, what exam prep material you are using, and what your ideal study partner set up would be. Good luck on the test everyone!
 
Hi everyone
I have recently purchased the full oakstone ABIM prep including the books and flash disks but I have not been able to use as I have a very busy schedule. It is an excellent review and UpToDate guide on most IM branches and the videos are 40 mins max covering high yield topics and practice related questions.
Please let me know if anyone is interested
 
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Hello,
I am looking for a study partner to do ABIM uworld. Please let me know if interested.
 
I would focus on using Uworld Qbank and MKSAP questions.
Uworld seems to be dead on.
 
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Does anyone know if there is a 'practice test' for the ABIM that accurately predicts if one will pass the exam? Like for Step 1 they had NBME exams and one of them was right on. And again for Step 2, the NBME exams predicted your final score. Anything like that for ABIM?
 
vdawg2010 said:
Does anyone know if there is a 'practice test' for the ABIM that accurately predicts if one will pass the exam? Like for Step 1 they had NBME exams and one of them was right on. And again for Step 2, the NBME exams predicted your final score. Anything like that for ABIM?
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As a general rule, if you're scoring >70% on practice exams from any of the popular QBanks out there, you'll be fine.

But no, there's no true NBME analog for ABIM.
 
gutonc said:
As a general rule, if you're scoring >70% on practice exams from any of the popular QBanks out there, you'll be fine.

But no, there's no true NBME analog for ABIM.
Click to expand...

Darn. I’m no where close to 70% on mksap. Should I even consider taking it? I’m doing first pass thru mksap now while watching medstudy videos.
 
I am thinking of taking the ABIM Recertifying Exam in October 2022 after a loooonnnggg lapse .

In these 3 months, I plan to do

1) UWorld Q Bank, go over the Board Basics 18 for wrong answers, ( which I am sure there will be lot of,)
2) Board Basics 18
3)& maybe screening the Awesome Board Review.

Any pointers, any suggestions, thankyou in advance
 
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If the goal is to pass, MKSAP really is all you need. I completed 30% MKSAP over 4 months in my final year of residency and two weeks dedicated time after the residency. I was only able to finish 90% of the qbank but passed with a decent score. Not stellar, but passing score is all you need! Focus your time and save money for just one question bank.
 
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Hey guys,
Im starting to freak out. Exam is by end of august.
Started doing MKSAP during 3rd year but honestly didnt like their explanations so much. Finished about 40% of qbank scoring 59% correct. Switched to uworld as ive always used it for board exams and almost done with first pass with about 58% correct (54th percentile).
Granted I also had to move cross country and started fellowship which has made it really hard to study.
At this point, what should I focus on?
What are my chances of passing exam with only 4 weeks left to study and these qbanks averages
 
Cookie2225 said:
Hey guys,
Im starting to freak out. Exam is by end of august.
Started doing MKSAP during 3rd year but honestly didnt like their explanations so much. Finished about 40% of qbank scoring 59% correct. Switched to uworld as ive always used it for board exams and almost done with first pass with about 58% correct (54th percentile).
Granted I also had to move cross country and started fellowship which has made it really hard to study.
At this point, what should I focus on?
What are my chances of passing exam with only 4 weeks left to study and these qbanks averages
Click to expand...
FWIW, I think that I scored in the low 60s on my first pass, and I passed comfortably.
 
For those that have taken the exam, how should I feel about passing the exam with 61% UWorld first pass and 71% MKSAP first pass? Still have 3 weeks to review. Thanks in advance.
 
srlbrown17 said:
For those that have taken the exam, how should I feel about passing the exam with 61% UWorld first pass and 71% MKSAP first pass? Still have 3 weeks to review. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
You should be okay. Look at your in-service exam performance and spend the next three weeks working on those topics
 
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Is there any reliable full practice exam to simulate real deal? Apart from usual qbanks?
 
iamironman said:
Is there any reliable full practice exam to simulate real deal? Apart from usual qbanks?
Click to expand...
If you're asking for an NBME-alike for ABIM, the answer is no. The various QBanks serve the same purpose and in general are good enough for the situation. Just pick one or two and go for it.
 
gutonc said:
If you're asking for an NBME-alike for ABIM, the answer is no. The various QBanks serve the same purpose and in general are good enough for the situation. Just pick one or two and go for it.
Click to expand...
Thanks for reply. I am done with UW and MKSAP so a lot questions I feel like repeats and I remember them so can't actually simulate. Needed a new pool so I can simulate exam.
 
I'm registered for the exam 8/29/22 and looking to switch with someone in the midwest for the week of August 22nd. PM if interested in a switch since no openings seems to exist on the website
 
Help please :(
I have only done uworld as the picture below and my exam is Monday. ITE as a pgy2 was 75% (percentile 83). ITE as a pgy3 was 76% (percentile 78). Should I reschedule/delay? From reading here uw >60% is the safe spot?
Thank you 🙏🏻
 

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Hi. Anyone who already finished MKSAP but wanna do a rapid review for subjects before the board exam? Let me know, please.
[email protected]
 
AAVP said:
Help please :(
I have only done uworld as the picture below and my exam is Monday. ITE as a pgy2 was 75% (percentile 83). ITE as a pgy3 was 76% (percentile 78). Should I reschedule/delay? From reading here uw >60% is the safe spot?
Thank you 🙏🏻
Click to expand...

Honest question; why would you wait until August to post this or ask this question? Not only is it going to hurt you reimbursement if you decide to cancel but people should know where they fall months before they take this exam unless you're getting re-certified.
 
AAVP said:
Help please :(
I have only done uworld as the picture below and my exam is Monday. ITE as a pgy2 was 75% (percentile 83). ITE as a pgy3 was 76% (percentile 78). Should I reschedule/delay? From reading here uw >60% is the safe spot?
Thank you 🙏🏻
Click to expand...
how do you feel about it? i only did mksap so cant comment, but your ITE scores are significantly better than mine and I couldnt even finish one round of MKSAP before the real thing. Did just fine on the exam.
I would say, if your gut says you would be okay, go for it.
 
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Any advice/experiences for those who took the exam today? Wondering what to focus on for the last week.
 
sss2g2 said:
Any advice/experiences for those who took the exam today? Wondering what to focus on for the last week.
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Didn't take it today, but I heard it's very useful to review the endocrine and rheumatology, easy points if you know the arrows of endocrine and the autoantibodies for rheum
 
Took exam yesterday. It was a very hard exam - perhaps I felt it was harder than previous board exams such COMLEX and USMLE I have taken throughout my medical career. This is a beast. I do believe doing Uworld two weeks before exam helped with many questions. However, the difficulty of the exam cannot be underestimated. I have taken the COMLEX and USMLE. I felt like the wording for some questions were similar to COMLEX style in terms of its vageuness and that was part of the difficulty. MKSAP over the year helped solidify some finer details but you will get many questions on topics I generally think many internal medicine residencies are not strong on such as outpatient focused specialties such as endocrinology, rheumatology, allergy/pulmonology/reproductive health/preventive medicine were well represented. With that said, internal medicine topics are so vast they can literally test anything. I pray for everyone -present and future- including myself passes this exam as this exam does not reflect your abilities as a physician to practice medicine. Good luck all! Positive vibes!!!
 
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Is there any huge downside to taking the ABIM and failing? My scores on the MKSAP Qs are not great but everyone is encouraging me to take the test. For the Steps, it was better to not take them and fail because it would hurt your applications for residency. But for the ABIM, is there any negatives to failing and just taking it again next year? I am not interested in going to fellowship, I just want to be done with this exam and be a Hospitalist.
 
vdawg2010 said:
Is there any huge downside to taking the ABIM and failing? My scores on the MKSAP Qs are not great but everyone is encouraging me to take the test. For the Steps, it was better to not take them and fail because it would hurt your applications for residency. But for the ABIM, is there any negatives to failing and just taking it again next year? I am not interested in going to fellowship, I just want to be done with this exam and be a Hospitalist.
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If I were you I would just take it. I don’t Think that they will give you a refund If you don’t take it or cancel it at this point. If you take it then at least you have a chance to pass, which is decent as per statistics.
 
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Someone tell me that the MKSAP Oncology questions are nothing like the real thing.
 
vdawg2010 said:
Is there any huge downside to taking the ABIM and failing? My scores on the MKSAP Qs are not great but everyone is encouraging me to take the test. For the Steps, it was better to not take them and fail because it would hurt your applications for residency. But for the ABIM, is there any negatives to failing and just taking it again next year? I am not interested in going to fellowship, I just want to be done with this exam and be a Hospitalist.
Click to expand...

You have 7 years to remain board eligible regardless of if you take it or not. If you fail 3 times in a row you can't take it the next year so really you have 6 chances. Even a fail would still make you board eligible and won't hinder hiring. Really you're only doing yourself a disservice not going for it. Last year pass rate was 88%, but typically hovers around ~90% and after 3 attempts 98% of peopl pass it.

So yeah, its in your interest to just take it and see. Only harm a fail does is you have to study for it again.
 
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Taking the exam in 4 days, I've been doing MKSAP questions and reading the Board Basics review book, but now am hearing that MKSAP is simply not enough to prepare for the exam? Can anyone comment on this?
 
closertofamily1 said:
Taking the exam in 4 days, I've been doing MKSAP questions and reading the Board Basics review book, but now am hearing that MKSAP is simply not enough to prepare for the exam? Can anyone comment on this?
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Oh my god. I am doing Uworld and also hearing uworld isn’t enough. Taking the exam soon also!
 
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Heard Uworld is more similar to the exam because they also ask many questions in vague ways making you think vs straight forward like MKSAP.
 
Pa22 said:
how do you feel about it? i only did mksap so cant comment, but your ITE scores are significantly better than mine and I couldnt even finish one round of MKSAP before the real thing. Did just fine on the exam.
I would say, if your gut says you would be okay, go for it.
Click to expand...
Thanks so much for the encouragement! I ended up taking it and had doubts on like half the exam tbh but I don't think doing more qbanks would have made a huge difference. Praying it all goes well 🙏🏻
 
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fightthatebola said:
Didn't take it today, but I heard it's very useful to review the endocrine and rheumatology, easy points if you know the arrows of endocrine and the autoantibodies for rheum
Click to expand...
Agree with this! And healthcare maintenance too!
 
That's actually what I wanted to know as well? Can anyone share any input? Thank you
 
One of my co-residents took it today that did Awesome review with me and said it helped a ton. Felt like there were lots of questions that he knew immediately from the notes. I take it next Monday, and that makes me feel better about the exam.
 
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