By now, some of you probably already find out your score for the USMLE or COMLEX... (Good luck, and you are one step closer of being a doctor!). My questions (as a incoming 2nd year) are... 1. how did you prepare for the board exam. 2. (and more important) which materials you used for preparation? Kaplan? NMS? BRS? First Aid? Etc... 3. With those materials, was you happy with your score? Thanks
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
Preparation for USMLE and COMPLEX
- Thread starter tommy
- Start date
- Joined
- Dec 1, 1998
- Messages
- 348
- Reaction score
- 0
YES I PASSED! It was too cool to finally have that weight off me!
My class hired Northwestern Review to come out and do a review for us. The books are okay, but the lectures were awful. I don't highly recommend them. I used First Aid for the USMLE. That is GREAT! I plan to use it for Part II. I also had a series called Underground Clinical Vignettes (spelling). They were okay, but I didn't really find them helpful. I used just the Northwestern review books and the First Aid book.
Billie
My class hired Northwestern Review to come out and do a review for us. The books are okay, but the lectures were awful. I don't highly recommend them. I used First Aid for the USMLE. That is GREAT! I plan to use it for Part II. I also had a series called Underground Clinical Vignettes (spelling). They were okay, but I didn't really find them helpful. I used just the Northwestern review books and the First Aid book.
Billie
My class had Youel's Prep come to our campus for 8 lectures lasting 8 hours each. About half of my class signed up for it. I didn't. I figured that if I didn't go to our regular classes, I would never be able to sit and listen for that long.
I used First Aid as a study guide. I took the topics that were in First Aid and looked up more information on those topics in the following board review books:
BRS Pathology
BRS Physiology
Microbiology Made Ridiculously Simple
Lippincott's Biochemistry
I bought all of my books in the winter quarter and started studying for boards during spring quarter. I did really well on boards, so I guess my method worked for me. The key is finding the method that works for you!
I also highly recommend getting the BRS Path and Micro Ridiculously Simple for your Path and Micro courses.
Good luck!
I used First Aid as a study guide. I took the topics that were in First Aid and looked up more information on those topics in the following board review books:
BRS Pathology
BRS Physiology
Microbiology Made Ridiculously Simple
Lippincott's Biochemistry
I bought all of my books in the winter quarter and started studying for boards during spring quarter. I did really well on boards, so I guess my method worked for me. The key is finding the method that works for you!
I also highly recommend getting the BRS Path and Micro Ridiculously Simple for your Path and Micro courses.
Good luck!
FirstAid is a must and if all you use is firstaid and you study it well, you will at least pass. I recommend pharmcards as well as well as the BRS, but dont get too many books...you will never use them all. Lastly Underground Clinical Vignettes were excellent. I suggest you buy the set of 9 vignettes
- Joined
- Apr 5, 1999
- Messages
- 41
- Reaction score
- 0
First Aid, First Aid, First Aid!!!!! Know this book inside and out and you will do great! Get familiar with it your first and second year and read it through 3 or 4 times come time for boards. If you have a study group, get together and go over each section by reading and discussing the topics-this helped me out big time.
You also need to do practice questions. I recommend NMS questions(just ask the bookstore and they will know). There are 6 full length practice exams, I tried to do 25-50 a night(had 2.5 wks to prepare). These questions suck and are hard so don't get discouraged.
I also skimmed the Underground Clinical Vignettes when I was sick of studying. This helped tremendously on the COMLEX and will help on the USMLE. The COMLEX loves those "busswords". Working hard in path also helped. Hope this helps.
Joe
You also need to do practice questions. I recommend NMS questions(just ask the bookstore and they will know). There are 6 full length practice exams, I tried to do 25-50 a night(had 2.5 wks to prepare). These questions suck and are hard so don't get discouraged.
I also skimmed the Underground Clinical Vignettes when I was sick of studying. This helped tremendously on the COMLEX and will help on the USMLE. The COMLEX loves those "busswords". Working hard in path also helped. Hope this helps.
Joe
- Joined
- Jan 27, 1999
- Messages
- 172
- Reaction score
- 0
Start with First Aid, and get one top rated review book for each category as listed in the back. Use these as you go through your classes, and do practice questions from Kaplan, NMS and if you are really up for a challenge you can get the Body Systems questions(real butt kickers). Do this and you will do well on COMLEX and USMLE.
The Kaplan questions were the closest to the real thing.
The Kaplan questions were the closest to the real thing.
- Joined
- Nov 23, 1998
- Messages
- 357
- Reaction score
- 0
Well, I took the USMLE and the COMLEX. They both are different tests and though you may study the core subjects the same, there are subtle diffences that lend themselves to using different books.
First of all I did well on both exams, but far better on the COMLEX. THe COMLEX has farrrr less genetics, biochemistry, ethics, and stats than the USMLE. And because of this, FIRST AID for the USMLE is an absolute necessity if you wish to score the mean. ANd aiming for the mean is something that you will probably will want to do.
The COMLEX has far more pharm, musculoskeletal and microbiology...as well as silly nit-picky questions that are good only for medical jeopardy.
I personally think that STEP-UP for the USMLE lends itself to better preparation for the COMLEX due to its integrated approach and excellent chapters on musculoskeletal, respiratory, and cardiovascular systems.
Unfortunately, it is exceptionally weak in pharm, because of that, i would use the following:
1. Pharm Cards
2. High Yield pharm
3. First Aid
Other books that supplement both exams are BRS Path, all in the High Yield Series, and Clinical Vignettes.
In particular, I found medschool.com to be a great web site as well as the webpath website from the university of utah.
Do MANY questions and if you are taking both exams...I would take them no more than a week or two apart.
good luck
First of all I did well on both exams, but far better on the COMLEX. THe COMLEX has farrrr less genetics, biochemistry, ethics, and stats than the USMLE. And because of this, FIRST AID for the USMLE is an absolute necessity if you wish to score the mean. ANd aiming for the mean is something that you will probably will want to do.
The COMLEX has far more pharm, musculoskeletal and microbiology...as well as silly nit-picky questions that are good only for medical jeopardy.
I personally think that STEP-UP for the USMLE lends itself to better preparation for the COMLEX due to its integrated approach and excellent chapters on musculoskeletal, respiratory, and cardiovascular systems.
Unfortunately, it is exceptionally weak in pharm, because of that, i would use the following:
1. Pharm Cards
2. High Yield pharm
3. First Aid
Other books that supplement both exams are BRS Path, all in the High Yield Series, and Clinical Vignettes.
In particular, I found medschool.com to be a great web site as well as the webpath website from the university of utah.
Do MANY questions and if you are taking both exams...I would take them no more than a week or two apart.
good luck
To all of the responder,
Thank you for the valuable info. From the sounds of things, I gather all of you did well on the board. Congradulation... now, you are off to your rotations (yahoo! I am jealous!). Again, thanks for the inputs... love to hear more.
------------------
Thank you for the valuable info. From the sounds of things, I gather all of you did well on the board. Congradulation... now, you are off to your rotations (yahoo! I am jealous!). Again, thanks for the inputs... love to hear more.
------------------
