Step 1 During/After Rotations?

[DrMommy]

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Hi Everyone,

I have Step 1 scheduled for August 16 and Im thinking of postponing it for a later to be determined date. I did poorly 1st and 2nd year, cramming, and just passing. Im scoring low on NBME exams and QBank I have 40% correct. I don't want to take the exam and risk failing or getting a low passing score. I know people are going to say don't study for boards during rotations, its too hard, etc but I think this is my only option. I already took my first block of 3rd year off to study, but family issues and life in general interferred with my study schedule, so Im way behind. I figure that I studied for the MCAT for 7 months during my junior year of college while working 2 jobs, doing research, and leading 2 academic clubs, so it is possible for me. But, Im wondering if anyone who has taken the boards during or after 3rd year could tell me how they studied while on rotations and also describe their prolonged study schedule?

Thanks in advance

 

[amyl]

don't take it. tomorrow i take the usmle and i am at the beginning of fourth year. there are rotations that you can't study during, like im and surgery... then there are rotations that you can study during. i also found that it was super hard for me to sit down and read something at the end of the day so here is what i did. I did questions on usmleworld.com. they are hard but the explanations are awesome! there is a couple paragraphs about why the right answer is right, an explanation of why the others are wrong and then at the end there is a one or two sentence synopsis of what fact you didn't know. so i took notes after taking a practice test about what i didn't know or if there was something i got right but didn't completely understand. being a little more interactive kept my attention over just reading after a long day. i also read most of the brs series of books and listened to goljan as i drove places. i decided to take the usmle about half way through third year so you have a jump on me (i am a DO and wasn't planning on an md residency). goljan is an absolute necessity. i got 247 on the free 150 questions on the usmle website and a 221 on the nbme first practice test (no time to do more) and the score estimator said 226. pm me in a few weeks and i'll let you know how i did on the real thing.

 

[Buckeye(OH)]

Buckle down for 5 weeks and take it before rotations start. there is a reason that the majority of people take it after third year.

It is a basic science class. Why would you want to move further and further away from your basic sciences?

Do NOT take it on 8.16.07 - there is to much work to be done.

 

[DrMommy]

Amyl - how will taking step 1 at the beginning of 4th year affect your residency application?

Buckeye - I agree way too much work to be done, however, I start rotations August 20. The funny thing is that Im scoring well on my 1st year topics which I took in 2004 and 2005 and poorly on my second year topics that I just finished in June.

 

[Trooth]

idk much..some would argue i dont know anything but
i would ask the 4th years what the slack rotations are - i.e psych, family med, or in general something you know you dont want to do
and then schedule those 1st and take the max weeks off you have left - our school gives 12 floating through years to use as we wish
but yeah it is doable - if you can get rotations that dont have calls & are 9-5 i.e ambulatory clinic, family med
and get out by 4 30/5 daily

also if you have kids - getting some extra help is nice even though i know it is probabbly not realistic. weekends should be study only NOT CHORES!!!- if you have a husband you have a dishwasher * dodges man-spitballs *
would be good if you could stay at a library and study atleast 2 weekday evenings
make them creative meal days for your family or just do what i do every 3rd day cook like you have a huge italian family.

bets of luck!

 

[Trooth]

ps: obviously my stand is that better to take it slow and once and PASS and PASS WELL
than risk failing or passing barely and being stuck with that score...looks like you had a tough 2nd year and this summer - i would NOT take it august 16th. you need to relax and regroup - schedule yourself so you can manage atleast 4 study days a week and you will be ready.

 

[amyl]

Amyl - how will taking step 1 at the beginning of 4th year affect your residency application?

Buckeye - I agree way too much work to be done, however, I start rotations August 20. The funny thing is that Im scoring well on my 1st year topics which I took in 2004 and 2005 and poorly on my second year topics that I just finished in June.

taking it EARLY in fourth year won't affect it. takes about 4 weeks to get scores back so i will be right in time for september first. i would NOT take it any later than the absolute beginning of August, other wise it may affect interview invitations.
this also so depends on what specialty you want -- if you are interested in any of the competitive specialities it is in your best interest to have everything ready to go sept first or a matter of days there after. from talking to my friends from last year programs started down loading applications within the first few days of september -- your scores need to be in my then. hope this helps.
pm me after tomorrow (i have to go study) if you want more info about how to study during rotations and study sources

 

[PeepshowJohnny]

I recommend matching first, then taking Step 1.

 

[smq123]

I did poorly 1st and 2nd year, cramming, and just passing. Im scoring low on NBME exams and QBank I have 40% correct. I don't want to take the exam and risk failing or getting a low passing score.

What are your scores like on NBME exams? And is that Kaplan QBank or UWorld?

I have Step 1 scheduled for August 16 and Im thinking of postponing it for a later to be determined date. ... I know people are going to say don't study for boards during rotations, its too hard, etc but I think this is my only option. I already took my first block of 3rd year off to study, but family issues and life in general interferred with my study schedule, so Im way behind. I figure that I studied for the MCAT for 7 months during my junior year of college while working 2 jobs, doing research, and leading 2 academic clubs, so it is possible for me. But, Im wondering if anyone who has taken the boards during or after 3rd year could tell me how they studied while on rotations and also describe their prolonged study schedule?

* First, will your school allow you to do this? Have you discussed this with the administration? I'm asking because my school requires that you must have taken Step 1 before starting your first rotation. You must pass Step 1 before starting your 2nd rotation. (I'm at an allopathic school. It will probably be different if you're at an osteo school.)

* Studying for boards while on rotations is going to be really difficult. I'm on psych now, which is an "easy" rotation - but after a full day of it, all I really want to do is watch TV. Even then, I can't - I have to look up articles, prepare presentations, study for the shelf exam, etc. And then, occasionally, I'm on call.

And what if you have to drive/commute to get to your rotation site? That will eat up a lot of time, and I don't think that trying to study for Step 1 while commuting is very helpful - particularly if you weren't a strong student in MS1 and MS2.

Even if you do manage to study for boards while on rotations, and then pass - then what? If you spend all your off-time studying for Step 1 (and not studying for your rotation or preparing your case presentations), then all your rotation evals might suffer. That is guaranteed to raise a red flag. And that's talking best-case-scenario - trying to study for two tests at the same time makes it likely that you'll fail one of the harder rotations, like surgery or OB. So I'm not sure how taking Step 1 at the end of 3rd year will help your residency app all that much.

* Honestly, we are not the best people to help you with this. You should definitely call your dean ASAP to figure out what to do, based on the school's rules.

I'm really sorry that you're trying to deal with so much. Good luck.

 

[Law2Doc]

* First, will your school allow you to do this? Have you discussed this with the administration? I'm asking because my school requires that you must have taken Step 1 before starting your first rotation. You must pass Step 1 before starting your 2nd rotation. (I'm at an allopathic school. It will probably be different if you're at an osteo school.)

* Studying for boards while on rotations is going to be really difficult. I'm on psych now, which is an "easy" rotation - but after a full day of it, all I really want to do is watch TV. Even then, I can't - I have to look up articles, prepare presentations, study for the shelf exam, etc. And then, occasionally, I'm on call.

Strongly agree with these two points. Many, if not most, allo schools won't let you progress far into your rotations without having sat for the test. Some make passing a pre-condition to third year. And during rotations, it's not like you don't have other "homework". Even on the lightest rotation, you will be reading articles on Uptodate (or whatever resource your school subscribes to) nightly to survive the morning pimping. You will likely have an overnight or weekend call now and then. You will be making periodic presentations, which are going to take some time until you get good at them, and you do have an exam at the end of each rotation in which you need to do well to get a decent grade, if not pass. I just don't see where the study time is going to come from -- an hour a night is not enough for the best student, and you (OP) indicated you struggled.

 

[peppy]

I know you dont want to hear this 🙂, but I would strongly recommend trying to get your school to let you delay just a bit more, if at all possible. I too had to delay my third year due to some family illness issues that threw off my study plan for the boards, and while it wasn't ideal I felt it was the least bad option. I felt I needed to able to give my all to studying for the tests and now I can focus on giving 100% to the hospital work, instead of trying to juggle them both at the same time and ending up doing worse on both of them because of it. With all the random facts you need to memorize for these kinds of tests, I think it is harder to prepare on a "small amounts spread out over a long time" schedule than one massive push over a short time, since you can easily forget the stuff you learned early on by the time you're going over stuff at the end and be back at square. If you're used to cramming, you can probably get through the material pretty efficiently and personally I think it is reasonable to think that even just an extra week would be enough time (I think there are some schools that only give students three weeks off to get ready).
Good luck to you!

 

[DrMommy]

Thanks for all the advice. I really appreciate the help especially since I know how busy you all are. I am still hesitant about what to do next. I am going to take NBME Form 3 next Wednesday before I definetly make a decision. However, I am leaning toward pushing step 1 back until after Family and Peds (my 1st 2 rotations), but not taking any more blocks off. My school allows for a delay of 1-6 week rotation before having to fall behind a whole year. There is no requirement as to when step 1 needs to be taken (but it needs to be done before graduating) and actually my class is the first who must pass step 1 as a requirement for graduation.

Im hoping that the experience of family and peds will help stick the path/micro/pharm topics into my brain.

This past year has been a big blur with a full course load and a new baby, as well as not one single family member (except hubby and baby) within a 100 mile range. I cannot recall half of what I learned 2nd year, so Im praying that seeing some stuff in a clinical "real-life" setting will bring it all back. I really don't want to push my graduation date any further because I don't want to keep my family out here any longer and the isolation is starting to drive me crazy. I need to finish med school, get a good residnecy, and get my butt back home.

 

[sga814]

I recommend matching first, then taking Step 1.

we all wish

 

[smq123]

However, I am leaning toward pushing step 1 back until after Family and Peds (my 1st 2 rotations), but not taking any more blocks off. My school allows for a delay of 1-6 week rotation before having to fall behind a whole year. There is no requirement as to when step 1 needs to be taken (but it needs to be done before graduating) and actually my class is the first who must pass step 1 as a requirement for graduation.

😕😕😕

* You just need to take Step 1 before graduation? And previous classes didn't have to pass Step 1 before graduating? Wow - I've never heard of anything like that before.

Im hoping that the experience of family and peds will help stick the path/micro/pharm topics into my brain.

I cannot recall half of what I learned 2nd year, so Im praying that seeing some stuff in a clinical "real-life" setting will bring it all back.

Um...I'm really sorry to say this, but I don't feel like you're taking a very realistic view of the situation. Family Med and Peds will NOT help the micro stuff stick very well - at least, not the micro stuff that you need to know for the boards. It might help you remember how to treat very basic stuff (influenza, RSV, measles, etc.) but the stuff on the boards is more complex. I had a lot of questions on how to culture gonorrhea, and a lot of questions on rare bacteria and parasites that you'll never see on your average 3rd year rotation.

EDIT: Actually, if you do your family med and peds rotations in the summer, you won't see a lot of influenza or RSV, so - it won't really help at all.

Same goes for path and pharm. The path stuff that you see on the boards is NOT the path stuff that you'll see in the clinics. And you won't see biopsy specimans very often on either rotation, and there were a lot of slides on my exam.

If you don't remember half of what you learned in 2nd year, then trying to RE-LEARN it while on rotations is kind of a bad idea. Do you remember how time-consuming it was to learn it during 2nd year? And now you don't remember any of it, so you'll have to (essentially) learn it again - it will be almost as time consuming this time around too. Added on to the time and energy demands of rotations...it's going to be very tough.

(P.S. Peds is often called an "easy rotation" but at my school, peds is in another state, and getting to the rotation site is a 45 minute drive away. Peds may also be inpatient, which can definitely be more demanding and will require being on-call.)

This past year has been a big blur with a full course load and a new baby, as well as not one single family member (except hubby and baby) within a 100 mile range. I cannot recall half of what I learned 2nd year, so Im praying that seeing some stuff in a clinical "real-life" setting will bring it all back. I really don't want to push my graduation date any further because I don't want to keep my family out here any longer and the isolation is starting to drive me crazy. I need to finish med school, get a good residnecy, and get my butt back home.

I'm sorry that you're having such a hard time by yourself, away from family. If you were to take a year off between 2nd and 3rd year, how feasible would it be for you to temporarily move back somewhere closer to your family? You can study for Step 1 and take the exam practically anywhere - it doesn't have to be near your school. Some of my classmates took Step 1 halfway across the country. If you took a year off, you can study for the exam, and maybe be closer to your family.

I don't know...I guess it depends on how you do on NBME 3. Good luck.

 

[LADoc84]

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[tia99]

I don't recommend studying for step 1 during your clerkship rotations. The last thing you want is to end up screwing up your clerkship performance, while still not having time to study for step 1.

You should consider focusing on third year and maybe taking the first month of your fourth year off to study for step 1. I thinl that it will help you understand some things better (e.g. path and pharm). However, subjects like immuno might be harder to remember after such a break, but you will be more motivated to deal with that. Just a suggestion.

The most important thing for you to do is to be honest with yourself. If you know deep down that you need the time, then follow your instinct.

 

[DOUCEKREOLE]

I was trying to find study groups for step 1 but somehow I never seem to find anybody studying for step 1 now! 🙁
Anybody need a study buddy!!! I'm in new york😕