"Step 1 is mostly M2 material"

[DCBFan]

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Hello there, after searching for a bit I couldn't find this question specifically addressed.

I'm trying to decide how to prepare for Step 1 during M2 year, and I've often heard that the best way is just to do well in your classes, maybe reading FA a little bit along the way or doing a lower tier qbank if you're feeling gunnish. The reason focusing on classes is emphasized is because a normal school does anatomy/physiology first year and pathology second year.

Does this logic change at all if you go to a school that does integrated organ blocks? At my school, we do anatomy, physiology and pathology of each organ/system as we learn it, so we have already done half of our "M2 year" material in the traditional sense.

Anyone who went to a school with similar curriculum able to comment on how this affects step 1 prep during the year? Thanks!

 

[Ebola4Breakfast]

Hello there, after searching for a bit I couldn't find this question specifically addressed.

I'm trying to decide how to prepare for Step 1 during M2 year, and I've often heard that the best way is just to do well in your classes, maybe reading FA a little bit along the way or doing a lower tier qbank if you're feeling gunnish. The reason focusing on classes is emphasized is because a normal school does anatomy/physiology first year and pathology second year.

Does this logic change at all if you go to a school that does integrated organ blocks? At my school, we do anatomy, physiology and pathology of each organ/system as we learn it, so we have already done half of our "M2 year" material in the traditional sense.

Anyone who went to a school with similar curriculum able to comment on how this affects step 1 prep during the year? Thanks!

I'm right there with you, dude. I'd love to know the answer to this as well.

 

[Kal EI]

Hello there, after searching for a bit I couldn't find this question specifically addressed.

I'm trying to decide how to prepare for Step 1 during M2 year, and I've often heard that the best way is just to do well in your classes, maybe reading FA a little bit along the way or doing a lower tier qbank if you're feeling gunnish. The reason focusing on classes is emphasized is because a normal school does anatomy/physiology first year and pathology second year.

Does this logic change at all if you go to a school that does integrated organ blocks? At my school, we do anatomy, physiology and pathology of each organ/system as we learn it, so we have already done half of our "M2 year" material in the traditional sense.

Anyone who went to a school with similar curriculum able to comment on how this affects step 1 prep during the year? Thanks!

In this case you can feel free to do qbanks like Uworld or Rx during the year. If you're on cardio, then complete all those cardio questions. Rinse and repeat.

Or you can just wait until the last 6 months and start doing random questions on all the subjects you've already covered (e.g. cardio, GI, hematology random) - which makes it a review of stuff you've already covered.

 

[SpecterGT260]

Hello there, after searching for a bit I couldn't find this question specifically addressed.

I'm trying to decide how to prepare for Step 1 during M2 year, and I've often heard that the best way is just to do well in your classes, maybe reading FA a little bit along the way or doing a lower tier qbank if you're feeling gunnish. The reason focusing on classes is emphasized is because a normal school does anatomy/physiology first year and pathology second year.

Does this logic change at all if you go to a school that does integrated organ blocks? At my school, we do anatomy, physiology and pathology of each organ/system as we learn it, so we have already done half of our "M2 year" material in the traditional sense.

Anyone who went to a school with similar curriculum able to comment on how this affects step 1 prep during the year? Thanks!

I did average in my classes and did rather well on step1 (unless the national average skyrocketed since last year ) so I wouldnt hold this as a hard fast rule. The only way that I can provide input is to talk about what I wish I had done in terms of what I found to be obstacles for my studying

1. Do well in classes? Um, sure. It doesn't hurt. I would say you are better off working questions slowly throughout the year. Do them related to the subject you're currently working on in class (or for whatever test is coming up).

2. Resources? I had them all. I used.... very few of them to a very small degree. I have a 20gb folder with digital copies (fully searchable) of every major medical text you can think of. You honestly don't have the time in MS2 to spread yourself across several different resources. Goljan is very good, but I used it as a reference for when the lecture notes didnt make sense or needed further detail. Everyone has their own style, so take this as you will.

3. My biggest regret - I didn't really open FA until 2nd semester. Honestly if I could go back I would have been going along in FA for everything starting MS1 year. It wouldnt take long, and I am not suggesting making FA the primary resource for the didactic years. What I mean is this: when you finally sit down to study for step1 and only step1, you don't want to fumble around with a book you've never seen before. Your time will be much better spent if you already know where to find things in the book and don't have to thumb through pages after every question or skip to the index to find the topic you want. A quick read-through of each section (related to whatever test you're about to take) all along the way will familiarize you with the layout and where to find things. I also suggest using USMLE Rx before going to Uworld because it will tell you the exact FA page number you need for whatever factoid they are testing. I did 3 months of FA to get my bearings and then went to UW once it ran out and that worked well.

TL;DR
Doing well in classes is a good thing, don't get me wrong. But playing your profs' games too hard can cost you. Set yourself up to be as efficient as possible when you finally have time to focus on step1.

 

[Brain Bucket]

In this case you can feel free to do qbanks like Uworld or Rx during the year. If you're on cardio, then complete all those cardio questions. Rinse and repeat.

Or you can just wait until the last 6 months and start doing random questions on all the subjects you've already covered (e.g. cardio, GI, hematology random) - which makes it a review of stuff you've already covered.

I second doing qbanks limited to the systems you've already covered as well as doing Qs for the system you're doing as you go along. That curriculum is unfortunate , but it does give you the opportunity to start Qbanks earlier.

 

[Brain Bucket]

3. My biggest regret - I didn't really open FA until 2nd semester. Honestly if I could go back I would have been going along in FA for everything starting MS1 year. It wouldnt take long, and I am not suggesting making FA the primary resource for the didactic years. What I mean is this: when you finally sit down to study for step1 and only step1, you don't want to fumble around with a book you've never seen before. Your time will be much better spent if you already know where to find things in the book and don't have to thumb through pages after every question or skip to the index to find the topic you want. A quick read-through of each section (related to whatever test you're about to take) all along the way will familiarize you with the layout and where to find things. I also suggest using USMLE Rx before going to Uworld because it will tell you the exact FA page number you need for whatever factoid they are testing. I did 3 months of FA to get my bearings and then went to UW once it ran out and that worked well.

TL;DR
Doing well in classes is a good thing, don't get me wrong. But playing your profs' games too hard can cost you. Set yourself up to be as efficient as possible when you finally have time to focus on step1.

It's amazing how many people don't get this.

 

[DCBFan]

Thanks for the input guys. I was already leaning towards doing some Rx questions throughout the year, but now I'm certain I will.

I'm glad I get to be in this cool integrated curriculum and I think it has a lot of strengths relative to the traditional first two years, but step 1 prep is probably not one of them.

 

[honeyyygirl]

So is it worth buying the 2013 FA now and the buying the 2014 FA come January??

 

[JeetKuneDo]

So is it worth buying the 2013 FA now and the buying the 2014 FA come January??

It's only 30 bucks on amazon right now. In the grand scheme of things, not much to spend.

 

[normtheniner]

It depends on the curriculum, I think. My school taught everything on boards plus a ton of other stuff. I focused on learning it all as well as possible and ended up with a 249.

Never opened first aid until my dedicated study times. Everyone is going to have their own way of doing things.

I can say that of the people in my class (there were 3-4) that broke 260, some of those focused on studying for boards the whole year, and some of them did what I did. I think you can't go wrong either way, as long as you're putting a lot of time (efficiently) in throughout the year, you should be fine.

 

[Dharma]

I did average in my classes and did rather well on step1 (unless the national average skyrocketed since last year ) so I wouldnt hold this as a hard fast rule. The only way that I can provide input is to talk about what I wish I had done in terms of what I found to be obstacles for my studying

1. Do well in classes? Um, sure. It doesn't hurt. I would say you are better off working questions slowly throughout the year. Do them related to the subject you're currently working on in class (or for whatever test is coming up).

2. Resources? I had them all. I used.... very few of them to a very small degree. I have a 20gb folder with digital copies (fully searchable) of every major medical text you can think of. You honestly don't have the time in MS2 to spread yourself across several different resources. Goljan is very good, but I used it as a reference for when the lecture notes didnt make sense or needed further detail. Everyone has their own style, so take this as you will.

3. My biggest regret - I didn't really open FA until 2nd semester. Honestly if I could go back I would have been going along in FA for everything starting MS1 year. It wouldnt take long, and I am not suggesting making FA the primary resource for the didactic years. What I mean is this: when you finally sit down to study for step1 and only step1, you don't want to fumble around with a book you've never seen before. Your time will be much better spent if you already know where to find things in the book and don't have to thumb through pages after every question or skip to the index to find the topic you want. A quick read-through of each section (related to whatever test you're about to take) all along the way will familiarize you with the layout and where to find things. I also suggest using USMLE Rx before going to Uworld because it will tell you the exact FA page number you need for whatever factoid they are testing. I did 3 months of FA to get my bearings and then went to UW once it ran out and that worked well.

TL;DR
Doing well in classes is a good thing, don't get me wrong. But playing your profs' games too hard can cost you. Set yourself up to be as efficient as possible when you finally have time to focus on step1.

👍 thanks for posting specter! just started year 2 and only now cracking open FA for the first time along with systems. we started systems at the end of last year and already feel like i've missed out on not using FA and Rx along with them even though i did well (MSK and neuro). better late than later I guess! any advice on how to incorporate a bit of review of last years' material into the year (i.e. pre-board study time, i.e. these next couple of months) or is it best to just focus on what's on my plate and hold off until January/Feb to start working the oldies into the mix?

BTW that bolded part up there is GOLDEN! does get some funny stares when i mention it to classmates though...

 

[tiedyeddog]

So is it worth buying the 2013 FA now and the buying the 2014 FA come January??

google it... I am sure you'll find a PDF copy on google somewhere....

 

[SpecterGT260]

👍 thanks for posting specter! just started year 2 and only now cracking open FA for the first time along with systems. we started systems at the end of last year and already feel like i've missed out on not using FA and Rx along with them even though i did well (MSK and neuro). better late than later I guess! any advice on how to incorporate a bit of review of last years' material into the year (i.e. pre-board study time, i.e. these next couple of months) or is it best to just focus on what's on my plate and hold off until January/Feb to start working the oldies into the mix?

BTW that bolded part up there is GOLDEN! does get some funny stares when i mention it to classmates though...

What I did was I tried to work qbank questions related to anything you're studying. You will inevitably get some that reach back to ms1 topics as they try to make them 3 step questions and when that happens you just roll with it because its good review even though the little voice in your head is screaming at you that you have a bajillion things to learn and no time to get side tracked. That's about the best I could come up with there while trying to balance the ridiculousness of ms2 and not letting yourself forget boards

 

[operaman]

I think the honest answer to this question hinges on how you learn and especially on how well you do on standardized tests. My suggestions would vary widely for someone just hoping to pass Step 1 vs. someone aiming for a 260. Since sdn is known for super high scores, I'll assume the latter:

In some ways, your curriculum is a bonus because you can start doing serious question blocks on material you've covered. I'm hesitant to go by system along with classes too much because I think you end up merely testing your short term knowledge. This is typically what happens with people who score high on their UWorld blocks and tank their first NBMEs -- they study FA in the morning and do World for that material in the afternoon -- only tests short term retention. I would try to make a habit of doing 10 or so World questions every day, random, timed, and covering every system you've covered so far.

Part of what separates the elite scores from the really good scores is the ability to intuit what the examiner is asking. This is learned primarily from doing questions. If you're doing World questions and you can correctly anticipate the "educational objective" for each question before you answer it, you're poised to do really well. Even if you don't know the right answer, understanding the objective of the question can be huge when it comes to nailing some of the more obscure questions.