Step 1 comprehensive books (aside from FA basic science/organ system)?

[SxRx]

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Hi all,
I did a search on this topic but the only one I found was for the new full of error FA organ system/basic science books.

I'm looking for a all in 1 to 2 books to cover the 1st 2 yr courses. I'll purchase a UW question bank next year.

Are there any other books than the FA ones I mentioned? I have the traditional FA book which everyone uses. But, I feel it doesn't explain the concepts in depth which may require me to go back to my books..... I'm looking for a book or two that has all the explanations included in them.

Thanks.

PS. If there are none, are the new FA basic science ones that bad?

 

[defcon8]

Hi all,
I did a search on this topic but the only one I found was for the new full of error FA organ system/basic science books.

I'm looking for a all in 1 to 2 books to cover the 1st 2 yr courses. I'll purchase a UW question bank next year.

Are there any other books than the FA ones I mentioned? I have the traditional FA book which everyone uses. But, I feel it doesn't explain the concepts in depth which may require me to go back to my books..... I'm looking for a book or two that has all the explanations included in them.

Thanks.

PS. If there are none, are the new FA basic science ones that bad?

The only other comprehensive review book I would recommend is the Kaplan Home Study Program. It is 4 books, 2 covering general principles and 2 covering organ systems. Barring that, I could only suggest finding books for the individual subjects. The big FA books are riddled with errors and are poorly organized with crucial information omitted, making you question many things that you read. Having said that, I still use them (along with the Kaplan Home Study books) and think they are superior to the Kaplan series in certain areas.

Bottom line: Kaplan Home Study books are your best bet if you want a comprehensive all-in-one review without having to worry about significant errors. I would also recommend supplementing the pathology section of the series with RR or BRS Pathology.
Here is a link to the Kaplan series: http://store.kaptest.com/catalog/te...D=kprodOS4005C&CATID=T00200001&rcid=T00200000

 

[SxRx]

Thanks for the input.
In your opinion is the Kaplan one a bit too much info for Step 1 in your opinion? The reason I ask is that it's 4 books while FA is 2 (and FA that everyone uses is 1 and many say that's enough!). How many pages is each of the Kaplan book?
Thanks.

 

[jackets5]

Thanks for the input.
In your opinion is the Kaplan one a bit too much info for Step 1 in your opinion? The reason I ask is that it's 4 books while FA is 2 (and FA that everyone uses is 1 and many say that's enough!). How many pages is each of the Kaplan book?
Thanks.

the thing with FA is that it is just bare bones and dosent really explain anything. Kaplan will go into understanding and more mechanisms where as FA that is practically non-existent. For example i went through BRS Phys and added extra along with integrations and explanations to the FA phys sections.

 

[defcon8]

Thanks for the input.
In your opinion is the Kaplan one a bit too much info for Step 1 in your opinion? The reason I ask is that it's 4 books while FA is 2 (and FA that everyone uses is 1 and many say that's enough!). How many pages is each of the Kaplan book?
Thanks.

Whether Kaplan is too much for step 1 or not depends on:
-How much time you have
-The score you are aiming for
-Your level of preparedness prior to starting your board review.

If you have alot of time and want a good score, then I would recommend going through the set. With time, regardless of you level of prior preparedness, a thorough review would be useful. If you are unprepared, it should be more useful, whereas if you are prepared, you should need less time to scan through the books. Alternatively, you may prefer just doing extra questions rather than a more in-depth prep if you feel you have a good foundation.
If you don't have much time on hand, then a simple FA + RR + UW system may be more beneficial to you.
Book 1 is ~500 pages (Gen principles)
Book 2 is ~250 pages (Gen principles)
Book 3 is ~600 pages (Organ systems)
Book 4 is ~370 pages (Organ systems)

 

[SxRx]

Whether Kaplan is too much for step 1 or not depends on:
-How much time you have
-The score you are aiming for
-Your level of preparedness prior to starting your board review.

If you have alot of time and want a good score, then I would recommend going through the set. With time, regardless of you level of prior preparedness, a thorough review would be useful. If you are unprepared, it should be more useful, whereas if you are prepared, you should need less time to scan through the books. Alternatively, you may prefer just doing extra questions rather than a more in-depth prep if you feel you have a good foundation.
If you don't have much time on hand, then a simple FA + RR + UW system may be more beneficial to you.
Book 1 is ~500 pages (Gen principles)
Book 2 is ~250 pages (Gen principles)
Book 3 is ~600 pages (Organ systems)
Book 4 is ~370 pages (Organ systems)

Thanks for the info.
I just ordered a new Kaplan home study set, books 1-4 on Ebay for $170! They list for $499 from Kaplan. I either got really lucky or am going to bet burned on Ebay again (I once ordered Audio Osmosis for the MCAT and received one blank CD....the seller closed his/her account).

Anyway, as for the score I'd like to get 230+.
In terms of the time I have, I plan to start reviewing last year's material when I get the book. I'll also go over the material in the book as my second year continues on. I am clueless as to how much time I should spend per week on Step 1 prep and still manage minimum B's in my courses. Oh well, I guess I'll figure it out.

One question.....someone suggested that I go over clinical cases on top of the Kaplan home study books since these books have no clinical cases in them and that they are just concepts/theories from the first 2 yrs.
What are your thoughts?

 

[defcon8]

Thanks for the info.
I just ordered a new Kaplan home study set, books 1-4 on Ebay for $170! They list for $499 from Kaplan. I either got really lucky or am going to bet burned on Ebay again (I once ordered Audio Osmosis for the MCAT and received one blank CD....the seller closed his/her account).

Anyway, as for the score I'd like to get 230+.
In terms of the time I have, I plan to start reviewing last year's material when I get the book. I'll also go over the material in the book as my second year continues on. I am clueless as to how much time I should spend per week on Step 1 prep and still manage minimum B's in my courses. Oh well, I guess I'll figure it out.

One question.....someone suggested that I go over clinical cases on top of the Kaplan home study books since these books have no clinical cases in them and that they are just concepts/theories from the first 2 yrs.
What are your thoughts?

The books you bought on Ebay should be authentic, though they may be a year or 2 older. This is not an issue since there has really been no change in content over the past few years.

Learning the material in these books properly (remember to supplement path) along with a suitable question bank will almost certainly secure you a 99(>235).

Regarding the time you should allocate to your board review while still in classes, only you can make that decision. The amount of time you will need to get the grade you are aiming for in classes is something you will have to determine. Based on that, you may choose to split up your hours or days between classes and board review. It would also be useful to simultaneously review the topics being covered in class from your review books.

Regarding the clinical cases, I think it would be a more efficient use of your time if you purchased a question bank and used it throughout the year. I would suggest either Kaplan or USMLERx then purchase UW closer to board time. Alternatively you could try a cheaper option such as a question book.

Remember to take an NBME later in your prep to assess your weaknesses and get an idea of the score range you are falling in.