Studying for classes using only board materials?

[Foot Fetish]

My school is true pass/fail, and I feel like I'm wasting my time focusing on my professors' powerpoints and lecture notes. I am at the top of my class (based on exam averages), but apparently that doesn't count for anything since we don't have pre-clinical ranking, and AOA is based only on 3rd year clerkship grades...I want to hear from people who were in similar situations and decided to transition to using board materials as their primary study resource.

I'm thinking I'll read Kaplan USMLE lecture notes or a highly regarded textbook chapter on the subject to lay a foundation, do a pass through FA, memorize the corresponding Brosencephalon deck, and then do as many practice questions as possible. For better or for worse, I have an all-or-nothing mindset in life, so I can't do half lecture-material, half board material. I need to hone in on a single study paradigm in order to maximize my efficiency.

I've already decided to overhaul my study strategy, so please don't try to dissuade me. I'm just looking for any suggestions or advice from people who have done something like this. Thank you.

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[mcloaf]

I spent most of m2 focused on step materials, but as an m1 it might be a waste of your time.

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[jd989898]

I'm also an M1 in a true p/f curriculum. I scored near the top of my class as well for a while using 100% in-house lectures/notes, but felt like all that effort could be used more efficiently. After all, when we apply to residency, the step 1 score, not our course grades, is what we will be judged by. For the past few months I've been using pathoma, sketchy, and DIT (basically video form of FA). I now score only a bit above average (like 85 instead of 95), but I feel I'm better preparing myself for step 1. Occasionally, I will 2x speed some of the in-house lecture videos just to supplement my studies with low-yield stuff and research it via google/youtube.

 

[Foot Fetish]

I spent most of m2 focused on step materials, but as an m1 it might be a waste of your time.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using SDN mobile

Well, we're coming up on our pathology and microbiology courses , so I figure now is a good time to switch gears and start incorporating Pathoma and Sketchy at a minimum. I know in my heart of hearts that I am a marathon type learner, so it will pay dividends for me to get early exposure. I would hate to wait until midway through 2nd year to start studying in earnest and end up feeling anxious and rushed for months.

I'm also an M1 in a true p/f curriculum. I scored near the top of my class as well for a while using 100% in-house lectures/notes, but felt like all that effort could be used more efficiently. After all, when we apply to residency, the step 1 score, not our course grades, is what we will be judged by. For the past few months I've been using pathoma, sketchy, and DIT (basically video form of FA). I now score only a bit above average (like 85 instead of 95), but I feel I'm better preparing myself for step 1. Occasionally, I will 2x speed some of the in-house lecture videos just to supplement my studies with low-yield stuff and research it via google/youtube.

Nice, I'm going to start doing something very similar. When do you plan on starting USMLE board-style question banks (i.e. Kaplan, UWorld) ? I'm thinking I might try to get through Kaplan over the summer and save Uworld for 2nd year...What's your summer plan in terms of board prep?

 

[jd989898]

Nice, I'm going to start doing something very similar. When do you plan on starting USMLE board-style question banks (i.e. Kaplan, UWorld) ? I'm thinking I might try to get through Kaplan over the summer and save Uworld for 2nd year...What's your summer plan in terms of board prep?

For now, I'm just focused on committing as much of sketchy/pathoma/FA as I can to memory before 2nd year begins. Sketchy & pathoma can be realistically completely memorized, but it's a lot harder than most people think to TRULY memorize the entirety of these materials. For someone without a super human memory, I think it will take about 7 passes of sketchy/pathoma (this probably takes about 600 hours). Once I feel I've memorized sketchy and pathoma, I'm going to memorize as much as I can of DIT (FA). I will probably start UWorld once I begin to feel burned out with FA. Then, I'll just coast through 2nd year, picking up low-yield stuff as I go and refine my understanding of everything while continuing to make passes through FA and UWorld. Might not even touch kaplan Q bank, but I've heard their pharm/immuno lectures are good. Close to exam time, I'll probably focus on lower-yield, easy-to-forget stuff like biostats, embryology questions. And for the record, I'm not a psycho gunner, just interested in a very competitive specialty and need to worry about score creep as an MD/PhD.

I should also mention that I still use in-house material for the lab component of my courses.

 

[mik30102]

As someone who just started dedicated this week its a bad idea. I have gotten quite a few questions right with knowledge from my classes not found in FA/pathoma directly (though of course my classes did not cover everything in board materials). I would make time for both.

 

[Azete]

I used to think like this too, but now that I'm about to take Step 1 I can confidently say this is a bad idea. FA/Pathoma/UWorld/Sketchy will get you ~80% of the way, and the rest you're going to rely on remembering random details your school taught you. Almost everybody taking the test will have a reasonably good mastery of the stuff found in review books, so the difference between a top tier score (250+) and a middle of the pack score (~230) is going to be how you perform on the ~20% of questions not found in review materials.

 

[pbrocks15]

I used to think like this too, but now that I'm about to take Step 1 I can confidently say this is a bad idea. FA/Pathoma/UWorld/Sketchy will get you ~80% of the way, and the rest you're going to rely on remembering random details your school taught you. Almost everybody taking the test will have a reasonably good mastery of the stuff found in review books, so the difference between a top tier score (250+) and a middle of the pack score (~230) is going to be how you perform on the ~20% of questions not found in review materials.

I find this very hard to believe. I have a number of friends who studied strictly from FA/Patoma/DIT/Sketchy that scored 250+. Not a single one of them mentioned a single thing about something being on their exam that they didn't recognize from those sources.

 

[jd989898]

I find this very hard to believe. I have a number of friends who studied strictly from FA/Patoma/DIT/Sketchy that scored 250+. Not a single one of them mentioned a single thing about something being on their exam that they didn't recognize from those sources.

Yeah I know someone who scored >265 who studied only from boards material. My hypothesis is that these people THINK they truly memorized fa/pathoma/dit/sketchy, but didn't actually know every single last fact down to the sentence. Some bits and pieces they didn't remember from FA were likely mentioned in class, creating the illusion that in-house lectures were actually the sole source of that material.

Also I think it's important to recognize that natural intelligence/test taking ability creates a personal ceiling for each test taker, regardless of his/her mastery of the material.

 

[pbrocks15]

Yeah I know someone who scored >265 who studied only from boards material. My hypothesis is that these people THINK they truly memorized fa/pathoma/dit/sketchy, but didn't actually know every single last fact down to the sentence. Some bits and pieces they didn't remember from FA were likely mentioned in class, creating the illusion that in-house lectures were actually the sole source of that material.

Also I think it's important to recognize that natural intelligence/test taking ability creates a personal ceiling for each test taker, regardless of his/her mastery of the material.

Agreed. It isn't a hard and fast rule, but I can't think that the people who are scoring >250 are really only doing so because of lectures. I do also think it is those people who do score well that have great test taking skills while others build those test taking skills through the years questions, which I think in the end really differentiates the ~240/245 from the ~250/255.

I wonder though, can you really build this test taking ability from thousands of questions?

 

[OnePunchBiopsy]

Review Step 1 materials first to gain a "grand view" of the important topics. Do this before the lecture material is covered, or the day it is covered.

Once you make a pass through the Step 1 material, then start reviewing your school lectures.

It is common to skip things learned in class and have them appear on your Step 1 exam and bite you.

 

[Azete]

I find this very hard to believe. I have a number of friends who studied strictly from FA/Patoma/DIT/Sketchy that scored 250+. Not a single one of them mentioned a single thing about something being on their exam that they didn't recognize from those sources.

With a good knowledge foundation you can usually reason your way to the correct answer without knowing all the minutiae, especially if you're a naturally smart person, but I promise you will find more than a handful of questions on Step 1 that are not found in any of those review sources.

 

[Azete]

Yeah I know someone who scored >265 who studied only from boards material. My hypothesis is that these people THINK they truly memorized fa/pathoma/dit/sketchy, but didn't actually know every single last fact down to the sentence. Some bits and pieces they didn't remember from FA were likely mentioned in class, creating the illusion that in-house lectures were actually the sole source of that material.

Also I think it's important to recognize that natural intelligence/test taking ability creates a personal ceiling for each test taker, regardless of his/her mastery of the material.

FA is the absolutely bare minimum knowledge needed going into the test. If someone can't even remember if the material is found in FA or not, they're in a big trouble. I can't recite every page of the book, but if you ask me if any piece of information is in there I'd be able to tell you with 100% accuracy, as would most students that are about to take Step 1.

 

[ActinicKeratosis]

FA is the absolutely bare minimum knowledge needed going into the test. If someone can't even remember if the material is found in FA or not, they're in a big trouble. I can't recite every page of the book, but if you ask me if any piece of information is in there I'd be able to tell you with 100% accuracy, as would most students that are about to take Step 1.

I find this hard to believe. I scored 250+ and can honestly say that I came no where close to learning all of First Aid. Unless you have a photographic memory (which the vast majority of people who take Step 1 do not) then there is no way that you can learn all of First Aid.

 

[intubesteak]

FF- I have been doing what you are talking about for a month or two now. Basically, I follow along with whats happening in classes, but do my primary studying in Big Robbins, pathoma, firecracker, and Rx Qbank. Then, 3-4 days before the test, I focus on learning the things that were in lecture but not in the other resources. My test scores dropped from 95ish average down to 90ish average, but I am OK with this because I am still learning the majority of the stuff in classes, but also hammering away at the board review stuff. I would say we cover maybe 60% of FC/FA in classes, and it makes me feel better to learn that extra 40% on the side and not worry about cramming them in during dedicated. Plus, the difference between 90-95% on our tests is usually a few BS poorly worded questions that I *might* have gotten correct if I diligently took notes and memorized exactly what the professor said. Diminishing returns.

I basically posed the same question you did when I started the new study plan, and got pretty similar comments. The general consensus on here is DONT completely ignore class stuff. I think when people post strong opinions about this they are imaging you trying to sit there and memorize FA or something like that. What you are talking about, if I understand you correctly, is taking those extra 20-30 hours of studying it takes to go from low A to high A and putting it towards familiarizing yourself with board materials and filling in the gaps. In any case that's what I'm doing, and I like it better this way.

 

[jd989898]

 

[Azete]

I find this hard to believe. I scored 250+ and can honestly say that I came no where close to learning all of First Aid. Unless you have a photographic memory (which the vast majority of people who take Step 1 do not) then there is no way that you can learn all of First Aid.

FA is a few hundred pages in outline form; I've had study guides for single path exams in med school that approached 100 pages. With 6 weeks of dedicated it's pretty easily doable.

 

[ortnakas]

You're at the top of your class.

Don't fix what's not broke.

 

[ActinicKeratosis]

FA is a few hundred pages in outline form; I've had study guides for single path exams in med school that approached 100 pages. With 6 weeks of dedicated it's pretty easily doable.

Perhaps you are the exception. However, most students about to take Step 1 come nowhere close to completely mastering First Aid.

 

[Foot Fetish]

Most students about to take Step 1 come nowhere close to completely mastering First Aid.

Average students get average scores 🙂

 

[YoungDoc25]

Would you guys recommend supplementing class with FA/bros deck during M1? Planning on using sketchy and pathoma as needed too. I always hear mixed reviews on when to start bros/FA though.

 

[ActinicKeratosis]

Would you guys recommend supplementing class with FA/bros deck during M1? Planning on using sketchy and pathoma as needed too. I always hear mixed reviews on when to start bros/FA though.

I personally think first year is too early. I started using First Aid second year and that was more than enough time.

 

[ortnakas]

I personally think first year is too early. I started using First Aid second year and that was more than enough time.

Agreed, for the most part. I used it sometimes as a first year to get a quick overview of something or other, but I'd highly recommend NOT annotating it first year, even if you are a super-star first year. Everything feels high yield at that point and you'll scribble all over everything and have an unusable mess when boards roll around. Start REALLY using mid-late second year when you know what you're doing.

 

[YoungDoc25]

I personally think first year is too early. I started using First Aid second year and that was more than enough time.

Agreed, for the most part. I used it sometimes as a first year to get a quick overview of something or other, but I'd highly recommend NOT annotating it first year, even if you are a super-star first year. Everything feels high yield at that point and you'll scribble all over everything and have an unusable mess when boards roll around. Start REALLY using mid-late second year when you know what you're doing.

Thank you!

 

[68PGunner]

Would you guys recommend supplementing class with FA/bros deck during M1? Planning on using sketchy and pathoma as needed too. I always hear mixed reviews on when to start bros/FA though.

You start hitting FA/bros deck once you move into the system. Bros deck along with a few clinical cards from your teaching docs for each classes will come a long way in your study. I did above average in the Intro to Science courses while having zero upper science classes taken in undergrad. Once we move into the system, I start beasting on my exams. Exams in the system require both basic knowledge, critical thinking, and test-taking abilities.

Believe it or not, it also depends on your style of learning and strong points. Critical thinking has always been my strong point. Therefore, it wasn't hard for me to make that transition. However, some people in my classes are having a hard time right now.

 

[YoungDoc25]

You start hitting FA/bros deck once you move into the system. Bros deck along with a few clinical cards from your teaching docs for each classes will come a long way in your study. I did above average in the Intro to Science courses while having zero upper science classes taken in undergrad. Once we move into the system, I start beasting on my exams. Exams in the system require both basic knowledge, critical thinking, and test-taking abilities.

Believe it or not, it also depends on your style of learning and strong points. Critical thinking has always been my strong point. Therefore, it wasn't hard for me to make that transition. However, some people in my classes are having a hard time right now.

Makes sense! We start systems second year, so it sounds like I'll be holding off until then. I feel like my critical thinking skills are solid, but then again, I probably don't really know until I've encountered medical school. I guess I will find out in a few months! Thanks a ton!

 

[Vain Brother]

imo relying heavily on FA/pathoma/UWorld is fine (assuming you're a second year and your exams are board-style) but you do need to have some sort of primary source to actually learn the material. for some students this is lecture slides; personally i read robbins

edit: ok i read the OP more carefully and yeah, i've been in exactly your shoes. when our school started to do organ systems and NBME shelf exams i transitioned from using lecture material to using exclusively robbins/first aid/UWorld. like you i am at the top of my class and i assure you it was not a difficult transition. remember that what really matters in your shoes is preparing for step 1

 

[whatisthisstuff]

My school is true pass/fail, and I feel like I'm wasting my time focusing on my professors' powerpoints and lecture notes. I am at the top of my class (based on exam averages), but apparently that doesn't count for anything since we don't have pre-clinical ranking, and AOA is based only on 3rd year clerkship grades...I want to hear from people who were in similar situations and decided to transition to using board materials as their primary study resource.

I'm thinking I'll read Kaplan USMLE lecture notes or a highly regarded textbook chapter on the subject to lay a foundation, do a pass through FA, memorize the corresponding Brosencephalon deck, and then do as many practice questions as possible. For better or for worse, I have an all-or-nothing mindset in life, so I can't do half lecture-material, half board material. I need to hone in on a single study paradigm in order to maximize my efficiency.

I've already decided to overhaul my study strategy, so please don't try to dissuade me. I'm just looking for any suggestions or advice from people who have done something like this. Thank you.

Seems like a foolish strategy.

Most of what you're saying doesn't make any sense. I know people never like to believe this but your lectures do prepare you for boards. Acting like they are mutually exclusive is nonsense. Hence to why the people who do the best in classes do the best on Step. More could be said on this but based on your million nonsensical threads where you don't listen to anybody I don't know why I would bother.

 

[pbrocks15]

Seems like a foolish strategy.

Most of what you're saying doesn't make any sense. I know people never like to believe this but your lectures do prepare you for boards. Acting like they are mutually exclusive is nonsense. Hence to why the people who do the best in classes do the best on Step. More could be said on this but based on your million nonsensical threads where you don't listen to anybody I don't know why I would bother.

Could it be said though that those who work hard to do well in class are those who also work hard to do well on the STEP versus the fact that they know their class material better and that is what is allowing them to perform/score better on the STEP?

 

[whatisthisstuff]

Could it be said though that those who work hard to do well in class are those who also work hard to do well on the STEP versus the fact that they know their class material better and that is what is allowing them to perform/score better on the STEP?

Of course. That said, knowing your class material better almost always = knowing the material better. Understanding material extremely well is the key to really killing anything. There will always be things you've never seen and you have to be able to take your understanding and extrapolate it. Board materials are by and large review sources.

I think theres an argument for the last half of 2nd year not spending the extra time and memorizing the minutia your professor might test you on for the few extra points...but by that point you should know what your tests are like well enough to make that call for yourself. And thats very different from "only using board materials."

 

[intubesteak]

Could it be said though that those who work hard to do well in class are those who also work hard to do well on the STEP versus the fact that they know their class material better and that is what is allowing them to perform/score better on the STEP?

I think its both. Our admins have mentioned a few times that while boards scores generally correlate with class rank, there are always significant outliers. A few years ago the NUMBER ONE guy in the glass "barely passed" (purely anecdotal, but still). If true, its because he learned that the best way to ace our class tests is cramming in the material without getting a deep understanding. There are also stories of people in the lower half of the class getting the top board scores. The reason is that OUR TESTS ARE ABSOLUTE CRAP. Doing well on them shows an ability to memorize words on a powerpoint slide and take diligent notes, and says nothing about actually understanding the topic. Its possible to do really well on them, but the time it takes to go from a 85-90% to a high A is much better spent learning some of the stuff they do not think is important enough to mention in class, but is still going to be on the boards. IMO, you get a better understanding of a topic when learning it from different sources with different emphasis. Robbins emphasizes certain things, pathoma emphasizes or explains a little differently, and professors have their own way as well. Some people would rather learn/understand all of them rather than hone in on one.

Edit: I realize now that FF is talking about completely ignoring class materials. Prob not the best idea...if I did this for our class tests, I probably would not pass because they are so lecture specific. I know you are completely opposed to 50/50, but that's probably your best bet both to make sure you pass and for the long run. A lot of time the clinicians (hopefully you have some real docs teaching from time to time) will give you an invaluable real-world approach that you are not going to find in other sources, but could be very helpful in the long run.

 

[username456789]

This debate has gone on for longer than any of us have been in medical school practicing medicine. I was the kind of person who busted my ass to ace school exams, but also spent extra time making sure I was pouring over boards resources starting day 1 of M2.

I admit that it was pretty miserable spending more time than most people on studying; however, that one miserable year culminated in a 260+ board score (when the national average was 221, nearly a decade ago). More importantly, I had a deep understanding of the material and felt I learned rather than crammed. Made M3 shelves, Step 2, Step 3, and wards pimping a breeze.

There were definitely a few questions I remember getting on step one that we're not it all covered and review sources. On the other hand, there were definitely several questions I got right only because I had heard them from Goljan's audio.

Find what works for you, but I would avoid taking pride in "memorizing over learning". Yes, it's a survival game where you want to maximize your step score if you are going into a competitive field. But keep in mind that beyond that, understanding and applying basic science principles to medicine is important.

 

[Foot Fetish]

Thank you for all the awesome replies, guys. I fear that I often fall into the trap of memorizing instead of learning, like @username456789 and @intubesteak mentioned. I suppose that's one of the major downsides of flashcards, which is my primary study method. They can be very effective if used appropriately, but you also run the risk of just relying on what is essentially pattern recognition of buzzwords to answer exam questions
...this often results in top-of-the-class grades, but the learning isn't the deep kind that sticks with you.

 

[Azete]

Thank you for all the awesome replies, guys. I fear that I often fall into the trap of memorizing instead of learning, like @username456789 and @intubesteak mentioned. I suppose that's one of the major downsides of flashcards, which is my primary study method. They can be very effective if used appropriately, but you also run the risk of just relying on what is essentially pattern recognition of buzzwords to answer exam questions
...this often results in top-of-the-class grades, but the learning isn't the deep kind that sticks with you.

Try Najeeb for Physio topics. His videos are insanely long and difficult to find time for during med school, but I haven't found a better way to master Physio on the first pass. I have classmates that know a lot more facts than I do, but I've found my understanding of how everything works to be significantly higher and I've got to give Najeeb credit for that.

This is going to sound gunnerish, but I've found watching all the Najeeb videos and glancing at the relevant First Aid topics during your break before a block starts to be a generally winning strategy. I only started this in M2, but basically you sacrifice a big chunk of your break in favor of making your block significantly easier -- I'm done studying by 9 every night, even before exams.

 

[Gorne]

By your logic, anyone that can read first aid, do pathoma, watch microbiology cartoons and get a 195 on Step 1 has a sold enough understanding of the basic sciences to become a doctor?

Might as well have paid the 300 dollars for those materials instead of the thousands upon thousands for the medical education. If your school wastes your time then that's on your school.

Yes, schools are going to go into more detail than needed on boards, but that's the whole point? Shouldn't physicians have a deeper understanding of the science behind the pathology? There's a certain point at which the detail
is excessive, but that's unique to the school. Most schools go beyond what's necessary for boards, but it's not excessive. If you feel your school spends an unusual amount of time going over irrevelant material, then that's on you for not doing your due diligence before attending and spending an absurd amount of money to read out of first aid.

 

[intubesteak]

By your logic, anyone that can read first aid, do pathoma, watch microbiology cartoons and get a 195 on Step 1 has a sold enough understanding of the basic sciences to become a doctor?

Might as well have paid the 300 dollars for those materials instead of the thousands upon thousands for the medical education. If your school wastes your time then that's on your school.

Yes, schools are going to go into more detail than needed on boards, but that's the whole point? Shouldn't physicians have a deeper understanding of the science behind the pathology? There's a certain point at which the detail
is excessive, but that's unique to the school. Most schools go beyond what's necessary for boards, but it's not excessive. If you feel your school spends an unusual amount of time going over irrevelant material, then that's on you for not doing your due diligence before attending and spending an absurd amount of money to read out of first aid.

You're making a ton of generalizations and assumptions here.

 

[Gorne]

You're making a ton of generalizations and assumptions here.

Elaborate

 

[Foot Fetish]

By your logic, anyone that can read first aid, do pathoma, watch microbiology cartoons and get a 195 on Step 1 has a sold enough understanding of the basic sciences to become a doctor?

No, the whole point is that the people who focus heavily on board materials will presumably go on to crush the boards. If anything, the obsessive lecture attendees who pore over the professor's arguably low-yield notes will be the ones who find themselves under-prepared for Step 1 and thus more likely to score a 195.

 

[Gorne]

No, the whole point is that the people who focus heavily on board materials will presumably go on to crush the boards. If anything, the obsessive lecture attendees who pore over the professor's arguably low-yield notes will be the ones who find themselves under-prepared for Step 1 and thus more likely to score a 195.

You missed my point and that's fine, it wasn't in flash-card format so I understand. There is a happy medium between lecture and board review material (during the year) and as boards become closer, the shift begins to board materials. No where in my post did I endorse meticulously dissecting lecture notes while ignoring board materials.

To look at it from another angle, a friend of mine who attends a Caribbean school complains about how First Aid is essentially the required textbook for most her classes and professors will teach out of it. Your "only use board materials" method is basically the Caribbean curriculum, do they go on to crush boards? Which leads to a last point, by no means does studying flash cards of first-aid and other high yield materials mean "people will go onto crush the boards"

All these things you'll find out in due time.

 

[whatisthisstuff]

Even if you could totally crush boards with this method (its debatable, some people certainly can) you are completely ignoring the fact that boards are only one part of your entire medical education. I know its popular to act like boards are the only thing that matters, but they aren't. Believe it or not M1 and M2 shouldn't be totally devoted to preparing you for boards. They are preparing you to be a physician. While the common retort to this is "I'll be able to learn what I need when the time comes" you are only making life more difficult on yourself and making the learning curve that much steeper. Theres lots of things in med school you might never see again and this is often what keeps you from being a fool when interacting with others.

 

[intubesteak]

Elaborate

Too many. Approximately one per sentence.

 

[Azete]

By your logic, anyone that can read first aid, do pathoma, watch microbiology cartoons and get a 195 on Step 1 has a sold enough understanding of the basic sciences to become a doctor?

Might as well have paid the 300 dollars for those materials instead of the thousands upon thousands for the medical education. If your school wastes your time then that's on your school.

Yes, schools are going to go into more detail than needed on boards, but that's the whole point? Shouldn't physicians have a deeper understanding of the science behind the pathology? There's a certain point at which the detail
is excessive, but that's unique to the school. Most schools go beyond what's necessary for boards, but it's not excessive. If you feel your school spends an unusual amount of time going over irrevelant material, then that's on you for not doing your due diligence before attending and spending an absurd amount of money to read out of first aid.

You make a lot of good points, but this whole "do your due diligence before attending X school" is a pretty tired argument. Not everyone that applies to med school is a superstar with 7 acceptances; most of us apply very broadly and take what we can get. Given the choice between attending a med school with bad teachers and/or policies, and not attending med school at all, it's kind of a no brainer.

 

[Gorne]

You make a lot of good points, but this whole "do your due diligence before attending X school" is a pretty tired argument. Not everyone that applies to med school is a superstar with 7 acceptances; most of us apply very broadly and take what we can get. Given the choice between attending a med school with bad teachers and/or policies, and not attending med school at all, it's kind of a no brainer.

I agree, its unfortunate that some schools don't realize the importance of honing their lectures towards success on step 1. I have to believe that can't be very common considering schools want students to succeed.

 

[Gorne]

Too many. Approximately one per sentence.

Fail.

 

[Shams al Deen]

I find this hard to believe. I scored 250+ and can honestly say that I came no where close to learning all of First Aid. Unless you have a photographic memory (which the vast majority of people who take Step 1 do not) then there is no way that you can learn all of First Aid.

Yup, I scored similarly to you and can honestly say that there were numerous facts on EVERY single page of FA that I had not memorised cold. Now did I know something about every topic in FA? Yeah, probably. But every detail in that book? Hellllllll No. It's a MCQ thinking exam, not a memorisation contest. That's why Pathoma is so damn valuable. It gives you the concepts to all that pathology nonsense in FA.

I saw a video on YouTube by this DocOssareh guy a month or so before starting dedicated, and it confused the hell out of me. He basically advocated exactly what @Azete seems to think. That 'hi yield' resources like Pathoma will get you mediocre scores (230) but if you want a high score (250+) you need "in-depth" resources. Pure BS. Luckily I listened to the advice of SDN over this (pretty popular) YouTuber.

 

[PREMEDitated22]

Serious question that may seem silly. If you essentially study from pathoma, FA and U world for boards without going back to class material for the minutiae do you really remember some random fact while answering questions on boards? I feel as though I'm deeply learning things and I'm doing really well in classes but ask me about some random fact I learned at the beginning of the year I probably wouldn't remember it.

 

[Azete]

Serious question that may seem silly. If you essentially study from pathoma, FA and U world for boards without going back to class material for the minutiae do you really remember some random fact while answering questions on boards? I feel as though I'm deeply learning things and I'm doing really well in classes but ask me about some random fact I learned at the beginning of the year I probably wouldn't remember it.

You'd really be surprised what you can remember by sight recognition.

I'm pretty amazed at how frequently I see a question I'm totally clueless about, and sort of "feel" my way to the right answer based on something that looks familiar (despite learning it over a year ago). Just today I got a practice question right about cholesterol synthesis, which I learned second week of med school and know less than nothing about off the top of my head.

 

[intubesteak]

@Foot Fetish how has the study plan been working for you? FWIW I just talked to a couple kids at my school who scored >250...they would go to lecture and listen, but didn't take notes, study slides, or anything. They used board materials and read the textbooks and stuff like that but did not study lecture at all.

In the last block my strategy was to keep up with watching lectures, but I did not study them until 4 days before the test, just to pick up the minutiae. Instead I read Robbins and Costanzo for primary sources (along with pathoma and physeo on the treadmill), kept up with FC every day, and did the questions from Robbins and Rx towards the end. What amazed me was the "minutiae" in my professors lectures wasn't really that minute....it was also in Robbins, sometimes FC, etc. So yeah reviewing the lectures was essentially a review, and everything on the test could be found in one of my primary sources. I did very well on the test and with minimal headache from trying to make sense of crappy powerpoint slides. How is it going for you?

 

[libertyyne]

Yup, I scored similarly to you and can honestly say that there were numerous facts on EVERY single page of FA that I had not memorised cold. Now did I know something about every topic in FA? Yeah, probably. But every detail in that book? Hellllllll No. It's a MCQ thinking exam, not a memorisation contest. That's why Pathoma is so damn valuable. It gives you the concepts to all that pathology nonsense in FA.

I saw a video on YouTube by this DocOssareh guy a month or so before starting dedicated, and it confused the hell out of me. He basically advocated exactly what @Azete seems to think. That 'hi yield' resources like Pathoma will get you mediocre scores (230) but if you want a high score (250+) you need "in-depth" resources. Pure BS. Luckily I listened to the advice of SDN over this (pretty popular) YouTuber.

I take it the advice giver didnt score 250+ himself considering he is in neurology.

 

[Affiche]

I take it the advice giver didnt score 250+ himself considering he is in neurology.

Everything's competitive at the top.