Question for those who scored well on Step I or II

[community]

I am in the process of preparing for Step 2 and need to improve my score from Step 1 score significantly. When studying for Step 1, I completed 1600 practice questions. My goal this time around (for Step 2) is 3000 questions. My question is as follows: FOR ALL OF YOU OUT THERE THAT KICKED ASS ON STEP I OR II, DID YOU READ THE ANSWER EXPLANATIONS FOR ONLY YOUR WRONG ANSWERS, OR FOR BOTH YOUR RIGHT AND WRONG ANSWERS???? Please respond......I would really appreciate you input!

Thanks,
community

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[14022]

I am in the process of preparing for Step 2 and need to improve my score from Step 1 score significantly. When studying for Step 1, I completed 1600 practice questions. My goal this time around (for Step 2) is 3000 questions. My question is as follows: FOR ALL OF YOU OUT THERE THAT KICKED ASS ON STEP I OR II, DID YOU READ THE ANSWER EXPLANATIONS FOR ONLY YOUR WRONG ANSWERS, OR FOR BOTH YOUR RIGHT AND WRONG ANSWERS???? Please respond......I would really appreciate you input!

Thanks,
community

Every damn question.

The wealth of knowledge practice questions provides is not in the explanation for the correct answer choice, it is in the explanations of the incorrect answer choices. The incorrect choices are often commonly mistaken answers and the explanation will tell you what would make that choice correct in a different context. Also, in Kaplan QBank especially, the incorrect answer choices are often these odd zebras that you have never heard of. However, these zebras may show up on the exam and knowing these could provide you an extra few points.

Doing practice question without reviewing every explanation, in my opinion, is a complete waste of time. What did getting a question correct accomplish? You did not learn anything new from that question if you do not read the explanation. I strongly recommend always using practice questions as a learning tool, never an evaluation tool. The more questions you get correct, the more overconfident you become. The more you get wrong, the more anxious you become. Neither of these are very productive.

 

[12R34Y]

I am in the process of preparing for Step 2 and need to improve my score from Step 1 score significantly. When studying for Step 1, I completed 1600 practice questions. My goal this time around (for Step 2) is 3000 questions. My question is as follows: FOR ALL OF YOU OUT THERE THAT KICKED ASS ON STEP I OR II, DID YOU READ THE ANSWER EXPLANATIONS FOR ONLY YOUR WRONG ANSWERS, OR FOR BOTH YOUR RIGHT AND WRONG ANSWERS???? Please respond......I would really appreciate you input!

Thanks,
community

First of all you have to remember that MOST people do significantly better on step 2 than step 1. so remember that and it will lower your anxiety a little.

I personally think that after taking 7 shelf exams written by the NBME and doing pre-test questions for each subject throughout the third year. By the end of the year I no longer need to know how to take NBME type test questions.

My strategy.......read boards and wards twice, usmle secrets step 2 once. read the blue boxes in peds and ob blueprints (golden review) and then took the two online 45 dollar NBME practice exams.

Had at least 10 repeats on my real step 2 and they are identical to the actual step 2 as the are written by the same folks.

My school uses the NBME online exams as predictors for actual exam and have excellent correlation.

My step 1 and step 2 exam were identical to the score given to me by the NBME exams.

takes about 2-3 weeks and that's it.

good luck,
later

 

[neilc]

on practice question:
do every set in exam style blocks (random, unused 46 question timed blocks) and treat it like the real exam.
when reviewing, take time to review EVERY answer choice, right or wrong. take it one step further, and imagine how they could word the question differently to give you a different correct answer. if there is something you do not understand, read about it before moving on!

for step 1 i used the questions as a barometer of how my studying was going. i did horrible. for step 2 i used the questions as an active study tool, with the system i mentioned above. i did a lot better.

the questions you see in practice will not likely be exact replicas of exam questions. but, they will be similar, and have similar choices. that is why it is important to look at the wrong answers in practice, and understand them fully. because, on the real thing, they just may be the correct answer to a slightly different question.

 

[community]

Thank you all for your tips. I will surely be using them. I appreciate it. I hope this post helps others preparing for Step 2 as well.

community