Scrupulous study of UW will help immensely for the real deal. There were many questions I answered due to recognizing similar concepts that I learned from UW. Unfortunately I had limited time to prepare for this test (a bit over a week) and only finished about half of UW. Did not have any time to do practice tests. Had I completed the entire thing I'm sure it would have helped. I did not use any other resources. I think I passed but I'm not so certain I got the same kind of score as I did on Step 1. Oh well, what's done is done. I was by no means a shelf monster like some people here but I felt I had a decent foundation with UW to help smooth out the rough areas.
As for my experience taking the test, I had one really tough block with really strange questions. But then it was also when I made the mistake of not taking a break and I was starting to feel hypoglycemic so that might have been a factor. It left me wondering though how they mix in throwaway questions; whether an entire block can be dedicated to them or if they just mix them into every block (without having a dedicated block of throwaways).
Regarding the kind of questions I saw: There were probably 2-3 stats questions I couldn't answer with certainty. Probably about 10 questions with presentations that I've never encountered. About the same number of questions with concepts I've never seen before as well. A good handful of questions too where at least two answers seemed very reasonable and the presentation offered no real details to differentiate between the two. Strangely I had a lot of similar questions asking about the same 2-3 diseases. I also had at least 6 questions asking about one of my weak areas and this gave me some difficulty. A few questions I only knew because of a specific rotation or experience (like maybe I've encountered once in my entire 3rd year); otherwise there would be almost no way to answer the question correctly for the average medical student. I actually wondered about this while doing UW; our education during 3rd years are so varied and cover so many different things, it's a wonder that they expect you to know all this information without having a few holes here and there. I've come across many questions where I was sure that even attendings would have a hard time choosing the right answer. Oh and I most definitely leaked some troponins whenever that 5 minute warning popped onto my screen for every block; I don't remember this being on Step 1. I even almost ended a block halfway through (clicking "end"); thank heavens there was a confirmation box that popped up before that happened. This is a very long test and the mental drain is real.
All in all, focus on knowing a lot of different things. Some things you can figure out, sure, but usually that's only because you know a fact or two at least peripherally related to the question. The more factoids you know, and the better you can piece them together, the better you'll perform. It's impossible to be systematic about this like with Step 1 (where FA/UW has nearly everything), so just try to pick up here and there as many things as you can and hope it all adds up.
Time management is key. I was not used to keeping time after I got used to doing tutor mode. I was a bit close on some sections but just forced myself to select answers on gut instinct and made it a goal to be past question 22 before 30 minutes was up (just to speed up accordingly; I'm sure you can calculate better goals like dividing each block into quarters or something). Also using breaks properly is essential. I actually went a bit over on my last break, which took a few minutes off my actual block, but these breaks will keep you alive taking an 8 hour test.
I guess if by some miracle I actually did decently then maybe this is hope for those who don't have much time to study and just want to focus on doing UW questions.
I can't imagine that its full 9 months away. First Aid Step 2ck says that scheduling permits aren't even released until 6 months before your 3 month eligibility period.
