Old ITE Questions...

[sevoman777]

Preparing for my Written Part 1 (old format, basic and clinical combined).. took a look at the 1991 old/retired questions. 175 of them for Book A only. Got 65% taking it cold with no prep. Just wanted to see where I stand. IMO the questions were poorly written and it seems they were deliberately written to confuse. Not really a test of knowledge per-se but of test taking ability.

Has anyone recently taken the part 1 exam, and if so, were the question similar to the retired questions available from the ASA? Currently exams from 1990-1996 are available, nothing more recent.

Also I noticed that the current part 1 exam is 200 question total, whereas the old exams were 350 total. Anyone know why the drop in number of questions? Also they have done away with the K-type questions and only single best answer. This makes me wonder if the questions are any better written.

Any insight from recent test takers would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance.

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[Lecithin5]

Don't bother too much with the old ite's- I did a fair amount of them in prep for my basic a couple years ago, and there wasn't much overlap. You're better off with truelearn etc

 

[sevoman777]

Don't bother too much with the old ite's- I did a fair amount of them in prep for my basic a couple years ago, and there wasn't much overlap. You're better off with truelearn etc

Thanks. Did you have 200 or 350 questions on your exam? When did they switch to 200 questions only?

 

[Lecithin5]

Thanks. Did you have 200 or 350 questions on your exam? When did they switch to 200 questions only?

I think it was around 200. Certainly not 350. Questions were very short for the most part- 1 sentence questions. 4 options for most questions. U either know it or you don't. Pretty straightforward

 

[sevoman777]

That is good to hear. I think in the past their questions have been much too 'fancy'. Obstructing the testing of knowledge.

A 55 year old man, with diabetes, HTN, 100 pack year history of smoking was on a ladder, spray painting his house. Outside temperature was 72f. He fell from the 4th rung on his ladder and states that he did not hit his head but landed flat on his back. BP 145/95, HR 90, spo2 97% on room air. He complains of pain between his shoulders. Moves all 4 extremities. CT scan would most likely show which vertebrae to be abnormal?

vs

The most commonly fractured cervical vertebrae is:


Some docs try too hard to justify their stipend and time off from the OR to write questions.

I think it was around 200. Certainly not 350. Questions were very short for the most part- 1 sentence questions. 4 options for most questions. U either know it or you don't. Pretty straightforward

 

[Pharmado]

I tried to go through old ITEs for my advanced exam, but the material is simply too outdated. The "newest" exam is 1996. Things have changed in the 2+ decades since then.

 

[sevoman777]

I tried to go through old ITEs for my advanced exam, but the material is simply too outdated. The "newest" exam is 1996. Things have changed in the 2+ decades since then.

Thanks for the info... I was actually meaning for my MOC, but it seems there may be alternatives. There is a new movement trying to circumvent the need for MOC.

 

[Pharmado]

In Texas an anti-MOC bill just passed. Unfortunately it was a significantly watered down version of the original, but the movement is there.