Step 2 CS Increasing Standard & International Grads

[music2doc]

---

Members do not see this ad.

For those considering the Carib and other international programs, the following excerpt from a letter the LCME sent out to deans of US medical schools may be of interest:

It is noteworthy that these content and format changes in Step 2 CS limit the ability of NBME staff to use historical trends to predict the impact of the changes in minimum passing requirements. However, if the new minimum passing requirements were applied to the group of first-time examinees who recently tested under the revised examination, the overall passing rate for examinees from US medical schools would be approximately three percent lower and the overall passing rate for examinees from international medical schools would be approximately eighteen percent lower. This represents the best estimate expected to result from this change in the standard, using currently available data. The overall impact will be reviewed by the Step 2 Committee when more examinees have tested under these new requirements.

In other words, these changes are expected to affect IMGs at a degree of 6x the effect on US grads. It seems that the LCME sees this as neutral to positive. One more reason to reconsider DO over international MD.

 

[sinombre]

Each step has its own committee? It makes sense, but it's still strange.

 

[music2doc]

Each step has its own committee? It makes sense, but it's still strange.

Why is that strange? Each step is a different exam. Each step has different individuals who would be subject matter experts at a particular point in one's education. (E.g., I would anticipate the Step 1 committee may have a lot of MD/PhDs and others who do a lot of bench and translational research, whereas Step 2 CS and Step 3 would be more likely to have committees made up of primarily well-regarded/recognized clinicians and former clinicians with an academic background.)

 

[KnuxNole]

If you can speak English, this shouldn't be that big of a deal.

 

[sinombre]

Why is that strange? Each step is a different exam. Each step has different individuals who would be subject matter experts at a particular point in one's education. (E.g., I would anticipate the Step 1 committee may have a lot of MD/PhDs and others who do a lot of bench and translational research, whereas Step 2 CS and Step 3 would be more likely to have committees made up of primarily well-regarded/recognized clinicians and former clinicians with an academic background.)

Yeah, it makes total sense. I guess it's strange because I'm so far away from thinking about the actual tests, and in my mind they've all sort of been lumped together (and I'd like to keep it that way as long as possible, I don't want to have to think about another standardized test until I have to). So basically, the answer to your question is willful ignorance.