USMLE World Scores and Step II Scores

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lmh14

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Probably been discussed before, but can't find a recent thread....

I'm just curious about what scores people were getting on USMLE World, and then how you ended up doing on Step 2.

All you have to do is post two numbers...... 🙂

Thanks folks, and good luck with everything!!
 
Is there a particular reason you felt Secrets wasn't as helpful as MTB2/3?

Did you by any chance take time off btwn Step 1 & 2?

I literally just finished Step I, so a lot of the concepts are 'fresh'. Luckily ethics & psych were always my strongest subjects (not sure why that is, but glad its the case).

Also, I haven't heard much hype for FA CK.
Again, no book is as helpful as your own notes.
However, IMHO Secrets is just a compilation of facts but MTB explains some concepts and I found (after reading the same topic from larger textbooks) that every word of MTB has a meaning but you may not realize that on a superficial reading. New FA CK has some topics covered very well as compared to others and the little vignettes on the sides are really helpful. But again, both of them lacks some HY topics.
I did prepare for Step 1 but did not go for the test since a week before the test my NBME score was 227 (and I wanted over 240). So, yes, I was fresh from my prep for Step 1 when I started my prep for Step 2 CK but Step 1 prep is not going to be of much help for Step 2 CK since it is an entirely a different ball game.
My Psych and Ethics were also my strongest subjects but what I found on the test was an entirely different animal.
In the end you choose the book which suits you best but the key to prep is Q Banks & your own notes.
 
Again, no book is as helpful as your own notes.
However, IMHO Secrets is just a compilation of facts but MTB explains some concepts and I found (after reading the same topic from larger textbooks) that every word of MTB has a meaning but you may not realize that on a superficial reading. New FA CK has some topics covered very well as compared to others and the little vignettes on the sides are really helpful. But again, both of them lacks some HY topics.
I did prepare for Step 1 but did not go for the test since a week before the test my NBME score was 227 (and I wanted over 240). So, yes, I was fresh from my prep for Step 1 when I started my prep for Step 2 CK but Step 1 prep is not going to be of much help for Step 2 CK since it is an entirely a different ball game.
My Psych and Ethics were also my strongest subjects but what I found on the test was an entirely different animal.
In the end you choose the book which suits you best but the key to prep is Q Banks & your own notes.

Cool, thanks for the explanation!

I did notice that questions are overlapping though. There are several in each block (in IM sections) that seem to be testing Step 1 concepts. For example, in the last block, I saw questions on both macular degen and DM CN III ischemia. Both concepts are right out of Step 1 FA. No new knowledge is required for these. I'm guessing these types of questions will be the gimmes on the actual exam?

I'm missing the screening questions & best diagnostic questions. (Probably because I didn't study in the US...) These wind up as either I know it, or I'm forced to narrow it down and take a guess. Luckily, Secrets seems to cover these areas (I think), so I should be able to lock these points up between that and my own notes.

For now, I'll stick to my blocks of UW + taking notes while getting through Secrets. If my UW scores improve enough (~65%) or if I feel like I'm making legitimate progress I'll stick with this method till I hit a plateau.

If there's no real improvement, I'll pick up MTB 2+3 once I'm done with this initial run-through of Secrets and work on my weaknesses.

(And wow, you were only a week out from Step 1 and managed to switch gears to Step 2? That's rough!)
 
Got my score report yesterday.

Step 2 = 234
UWSA = 247
NBME 4= 214 (when I had completed only 50% of USMLEworld)

It was a bit off the self-assessment, but nonetheless I'm happy with my score. Good luck to you all
 
Congrats! Could you briefly share your prep time and method used? How'd you do with Step 1?
sure.

I studied for a month and a half using only USMLEworld. In my opinion a book is not really necessary since Uworld covers almost everything; I guess the books are just to get a really really high score, but I can't tell. I started doing 1 block/day until I completed around 50%, then I started to add more questions per day, often 2 blocks of 44 questions. When I completed the whole Qbank, I just went over the incorrect ones, until I had none.

Regarding my Step 1, I score a 223. For that I prepped for 3 months using FA and USMLEworld.
 
sure.

I studied for a month and a half using only USMLEworld. In my opinion a book is not really necessary since Uworld covers almost everything; I guess the books are just to get a really really high score, but I can't tell. I started doing 1 block/day until I completed around 50%, then I started to add more questions per day, often 2 blocks of 44 questions. When I completed the whole Qbank, I just went over the incorrect ones, until I had none.

Regarding my Step 1, I score a 223. For that I prepped for 3 months using FA and USMLEworld.

Sounds awesome! Thanks!

I'm using UW + Secrets for now. Ordered MTB 2 as well, but I guess I'll see after a month of UW + Secrets.
 
Got my score report yesterday.

Step 2 = 234
UWSA = 247
NBME 4= 214 (when I had completed only 50% of USMLEworld)

It was a bit off the self-assessment, but nonetheless I'm happy with my score. Good luck to you all

Congrats on your great score. Can you share your UW %. Also, how did the question difficultly compare with UW or the NBMEs? How did the question length also compare? Thanks.
 
Congrats on your great score. Can you share your UW %. Also, how did the question difficultly compare with UW or the NBMEs? How did the question length also compare? Thanks.
Sure. My first pass was 64% and the 2nd one I think it was 68-69% don't remember precisely. Regarding the questions style, IMO they are totally different from UW and NBMEs, but way more compared to NBMEs. They are very, very long. I felt like crap when I finished the test. I really thought I was going to fail, but I think that's the overall consensus all around the forums, so don't feel bad if you also get out like that when you finish your exam.

Good luck CDI!
 
Has anyone who's taken the exam looked at the Conrad Fischer video cases? (For when you're taking a break or after a day of studying.)

Seems like a good way to lock up some of the easy "most appropriate" and "most accurate" answers.
 
Has anyone who's taken the exam looked at the Conrad Fischer video cases? (For when you're taking a break or after a day of studying.)

Seems like a good way to lock up some of the easy "most appropriate" and "most accurate" answers.

where would one find these
 
sure.

I studied for a month and a half using only USMLEworld. In my opinion a book is not really necessary since Uworld covers almost everything; I guess the books are just to get a really really high score, but I can't tell. I started doing 1 block/day until I completed around 50%, then I started to add more questions per day, often 2 blocks of 44 questions. When I completed the whole Qbank, I just went over the incorrect ones, until I had none.

Regarding my Step 1, I score a 223. For that I prepped for 3 months using FA and USMLEworld.

I guess my prep won't be too much different than yours, I got a 217 on Step 1. I feel like I may have to put in some extra work though. I'll need to balance out my <Sub 220 with a 240+ on Step 2.

Since the beginning of this month, I've quickly run through Secrets once and I've kept going with UW. (Had some obligations that took away from my studying, but back at it now full-time.) My scores are improving. Although it's fairly early, I think for Step 2, more than the knowledge and memorization, it's the actual approach to the questions which needs to be fine tuned. Hopefully this is the case, and I can keep improving on this.

I picked up MTB 2 (for IM) & MTB 3 (for all else). I'm going to read through them just once - while hitting UW over the next month. I'll take an NBME after that, see where I stand. Then just going to stick to UW + Secrets, while doing an NBME or USWA every 1-2 weeks until the exam.
 
I keep hearing everyone say the exam is crazy and that it's nothing like they've seen before. While I know you can't specifically give an example of a question you had, would someone care to provide their own original example of what a question they saw was like? (on the new step 2 ck edition that is)
 
I keep hearing everyone say the exam is crazy and that it's nothing like they've seen before. While I know you can't specifically give an example of a question you had, would someone care to provide their own original example of what a question they saw was like? (on the new step 2 ck edition that is)
Something like this:

A 25-year-old military serviceman reports having respiratory difficulty along with red-tinged sputum, chest pain, chills, and fever for the past 2 days. He then passes dark urine. He goes to see the base physician. Vital signs are recorded as: T 37.9 C, P 83/min, RR 15/min, and BP 145/90 mm Hg. Physical examination findings include crackles over lung bases.
Urine dipstick examination shows 1+ protein and 4+ blood.
Additional laboratory findings include serum creatinine 2.8 mg/dL, urea nitrogen 30 mg/dL, glucose 74 mg/dL, total protein 6.1 g/dL, and albumin 3.6 g/dL
Two days later is serum creatinine is 4 mg/dL and urea nitrogen 43 mg/dL. Further history reveals that he works in a military fuel depot.
A renal biopsy on light microscopy shows crescents in the glomeruli, filling Bowman's space and compressing the residual glomerular tufts.
With immunofluorescence staining for fibrinogen, the crescents within Bowman's space stain for fibrinogen, consistent with severe glomerular injury leading to leakage of fibrinogen that stimulates epithelial cell proliferation and crescent formation.
The immunofluorescence show with staining for IgG shows a linear pattern of staining along the glomerular basement membrane with antibody to IgG. In most cases of Goodpasture syndrome with rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis there is linear staining with IgG, but staining with IgA and IgM can also be present.
He than visits his 49-year-old mother and tells her about the biopsy and the results. Her mother remarked, "You know, maybe I should go and see my doctor, because my aunt died of breast cancer about my age." She sees her doctor, who palpates a large irregular firm fixed mass in the right breast as well as overlying skin with a rough, reddened appearance. There are enlarged, nontender axillary lymph nodes. Mammographically, the mass has irregular borders. A fine needle aspirate is performed of the mass and then a mastectomy is done. The lesional tissue is tested for estrogen-progesterone receptors and HER2.
The breast mass has irregular borders. The cut surface of the mass has a central irregular whitish scar. There are scattered foci of yellow to white necrosis and calcification. Axillary lymph nodes were also found to be enlarged and firm with similar cut surfaces. A frozen section confirms the diagnosis of malignancy
Microscopic sections of this neoplasm with overlying breast skin show intralymphatic cancer cells. The stroma around the tumor-cell nests is mildly desmoplastic. Metastatic breast cancer is present in an axillary lymph node.

What is the most likely diagnosis?

A. Paget’s disease of the breast
B. Infiltrating ductal carcinoma of breast
C. Hyalinized fibroadenoma
D. Intraductal papilloma
E. Duct ectasia
F. Fibrocystic disease
G. Breast lymphoma
H. Traumatic fat necrosis
I. Breast abscess

Another example (looks deceptively easy!):
Patient was brought in to ER. His labs shows Hypocalcemia with Metabolic acidosis. His oral mucosa is moist.
Next step in management?
a. Calcium gluconate
b. Sodium bicarboate
c. Normal saline
d. 5% dextrose
e. ETOH
 
I want to thank the posters of this forum for all the advice and the tips i've picked up regarding the USMLE. SDN has been a great resource to me, and to contribute, my practice test score correlation with my actual score are as follows:

NBME 4, 2 weeks out: 249
UWSA, 3 days out: 252
Real Deal (taken March 26 2013): 259 🙂
 
I want to thank the posters of this forum for all the advice and the tips i've picked up regarding the USMLE. SDN has been a great resource to me, and to contribute, my practice test score correlation with my actual score are as follows:

NBME 4, 2 weeks out: 249
UWSA, 3 days out: 252
Real Deal (taken March 26 2013): 259 🙂

Care to share your experience and study plan? Good job!!
 
for the 2nd question that looks easy:


Patient was brought in to ER. His labs shows Hypocalcemia with Metabolic acidosis. His oral mucosa is moist.
Next step in management?
a. Calcium gluconate
b. Sodium bicarboate
c. Normal saline
d. 5% dextrose
e. ETOH

my guess is calcium gluconate? in metabolic acidosis, you will have hyperkalemia, and since pt has hypocalcemia, then maybe chance for arrythmia is higher? no idea.. whoever posted the question pls post the answer...
 
Transposony: Are you sure about the first question is a step 2 style?! This is longer than MKSAP for residents questions! I
 
Whoa, I wasn't excluding anyone. Just giving the post-exam freak-out the appropriate eye-roll. :laugh: I'm sure they did great. I think that we all know that even high scorers can have that reaction. (In other words, it was only a joke.)
Ahh ok. The post-exam failure fears seem to be a general characteristic of both Step 1 and Step 2 and even CS to a degree.

I misunderstood that to mean you were tired of the high scores being posted. My apologies.
 
Ahh ok. The post-exam failure fears seem to be a general characteristic of both Step 1 and Step 2 and even CS to a degree.

I misunderstood that to mean you were tired of the high scores being posted. My apologies.

No prob! I guess I could've worded that better (or actually used words, haha).

How's your progress coming along? You're one of the guys that crushed Step 1, right? I'm guessing you'll do the same here with ease.
 
No prob! I guess I could've worded that better (or actually used words, haha).

How's your progress coming along? You're one of the guys that crushed Step 1, right? I'm guessing you'll do the same here with ease.
:laugh: I didn't exactly crush Step 1 (23x), especially by SDN standards haha.

I do however plan to take Step 2 in 10 days or so, so I'll be sure to update things then!
 
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Transposony: Are you sure about the first question is a step 2 style?! This is longer than MKSAP for residents questions! I
The point of posting that question was to give an idea of the kind of questions I encountered on my test. Typically they had a long stem but the answer was easy once you have read the entire stem with the key information hidden somewhere in the stem BUT if you only read part of the stem you will inevitably get the question wrong.
 
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Whooped my @ss! Let me know how it goes, maybe I can ping off your prep method.

Are you doing anything beyond UW + Secrets?
I tried doing Secrets but honestly found it to be a waste of time. It has all the right answers but without the correct order of tests, it was pretty useless for me.

I've had a much better time doing Master the Boards Step 2 and after finding out I sucked at OBGYN I added MTB Step 3. Unfortunately, based on my latest practice test, I still suck at OBGYN and I have no idea what resource I can add.
 
I tried doing Secrets but honestly found it to be a waste of time. It has all the right answers but without the correct order of tests, it was pretty useless for me.

I've had a much better time doing Master the Boards Step 2 and after finding out I sucked at OBGYN I added MTB Step 3. Unfortunately, based on my latest practice test, I still suck at OBGYN and I have no idea what resource I can add.

Fair enough. I'm almost through one run of Secrets. Will probably start up on MTB 2+3 soon since that seems to be the consensus as of late.

Good luck!
 
Transposony: Are you sure about the first question is a step 2 style?! This is longer than MKSAP for residents questions! I

That's pretty average for a step 2 question stem. They all tend to be book-like in length. You probably won't see anything that is only a couple sentences like the second question.
 
Pretttttty sure I just took a pediatric board exam. :laugh: My exam was loaded with peds.
My advice after taking it: Step up to medicine was great. Got a few questions directly from the book that were not on U world.
U world is the best though.
This is hard to give as advice since its really not a learned skill, but reading fast really helps out since the stems are rather long. I was able to finish with about 12 mins per block, hopefully I wasnt not reading too fast.:xf:
Also, know indications and contraindications of vaccines, they got really picky about that stuff.
Surgery questions were either straightforward or from left field...doing a rotation in CT go me a few questions I would not have gotten otherwise. Unless you read Schwartz or something, your going to get caught off guard.
Pharmacology was non-existant. Mainly a few drug side effects and indications for the common drugs (statins, diabetic etx).
NBME4 3 weeks out: 253
UWorld exam one week: 258
NBME 3 three days: 253 (I really hate OBGYN!)
Uworld: 72% 1st time
 
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Pretttttty sure I just took a pediatric board exam. :laugh: My exam was loaded with peds.
My advice after taking it: Step up to medicine was great. Got a few questions directly from the book that were not on U world.
U world is the best though.
This is hard to give as advice since its really not a learned skill, but reading fast really helps out since the stems are rather long. I was able to finish with about 12 mins per block, hopefully I wasnt not reading too fast.:xf:
Also, know indications and contraindications of vaccines, they got really picky about that stuff.
Surgery questions were either straightforward or from left field...doing a rotation in CT go me a few questions I would not have gotten otherwise. Unless you read Schwartz or something, your going to get caught off guard.
Pharmacology was non-existant. Mainly a few drug side effects and indications for the common drugs (statins, diabetic etx).
NBME4 3 weeks out: 253
UWorld exam one week: 258
NBME 3 three days: 253 (I really hate OBGYN!)
Uworld: 72% 1st time

Thanks for the write-up. Were there questions on knowing the vaccination schedule, or more regarding what can't you give if pregnant or immunodeficient?
 
There were not specific schedules (thank god). It was with immunocompromised, patients with CHF, RF etc. I recommend the ambulatory medicine section is Step up..has a great table that was good to know. Also, pathology was non-existent.
 
Some people recommend using MTB 2 & 3. Do you all feel that this is imperative? My main approach to step 2 was doing uworld 2.5x and reading mtb 2 two or three times. Does uworld not cover the non-IM stuff well enough either where I should get MTB 3?
 
Some people recommend using MTB 2 & 3. Do you all feel that this is imperative? My main approach to step 2 was doing uworld 2.5x and reading mtb 2 two or three times. Does uworld not cover the non-IM stuff well enough either where I should get MTB 3?

I was set on UW + Secrets but realized it wasn't enough for me, as indicated by my UW performance.

I just started on MTB 2, trying to crank out a quick read. It doesn't seem to require much review.

If MTB 3 (for non-IM topics) is anything like MTB 2, I'll be going through it. It'd be worth the time to learn it with the presented structure.
 
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What was your pre-MTB UW performance? Have you noticed an increase after going through MTB?

I started doing MTB 2 because my UW (IM only) was only in the 50s. I'm an IMG though so there's some stuff from the US system I just didn't know or knew differently (i.e. screening procedures, vaccinations, etc). I'll report back in a week to see if my UW scores have gone up any after MTB 2 (IM chapters).
 
Just got my results in today for step 2 ck. I am a 3rd year DO student applying to EM in MD residencies for next year. Post helped me a lot so I will lay out my stats.

Study time: 3 months
What I did: UWorld- 1st run 62%
UWolrd wrong questions about a 1000
Uworld 50%-with 89-92%
Comquest( DO ) - 74%
MTB-read once fully and once concentrated just on specific weak areas
UWSA 2 wks before test-232
NBME4 1 week before test-253

USMLE Step 2-243 released (4/24)
COMLEX Step 2- 604 released (4/23)

STEP 1- USMLE-226
COMLEX step 1-579

What I learned. Forget about step up to medicine,or step up to boards. It's useless,dry info IMHO, what helped me is MTB by Dr.Fischer. I had 3-4 questions exactly how he laid it out, didnt even have to think. His book is a dialogue, not a monologue like other books, if it makes any sense.
2. You really do not need to read anything for step 2, just do UWSA over and over again. Forget about trying to remember the questions9even if you do keep reading and thinking ), think about info given in the stem, its good to read same info more then once, it is asked VERY similar on the actual exam. Do questions, and trust that all the info you need will be in UWSA.
I had a bunch of ECG and what helped me with heart stuff is doing free 50 questions on WWW.learntheheart.com. They really allow for some ACS,angina,CHF stuff to sink in.
3. You,me,and almost everyone else will come out thinking you tanked the exam, it is not true. Trust your pre-exam practice stats+-10.So dont take the test unless you can play with that +-.
4. For DO students, do UWorld and comquest, or combank, not both, but doing more questions will not hurt if you have $.
And if I had to say it again, I will-forget about reading, do questions. I don't know about KAPLAN, or other q-banks, just what I told you.
Anyway, peace out guys, thanks for being with me all these past 2 years, and supporting me in the time of my neuroses, let all who strive-achieve.
OM.
 
Just got my results in today for step 2 ck. I am a 3rd year DO student applying to EM in MD residencies for next year. Post helped me a lot so I will lay out my stats.

Study time: 3 months
What I did: UWorld- 1st run 62%
UWolrd wrong questions about a 1000
Uworld 50%-with 89-92%
Comquest( DO ) - 74%
MTB-read once fully and once concentrated just on specific weak areas
UWSA 2 wks before test-232
NBME4 1 week before test-253

USMLE Step 2-243 released (4/24)
COMLEX Step 2- 604 released (4/23)

STEP 1- USMLE-226
COMLEX step 1-579

What I learned. Forget about step up to medicine,or step up to boards. It's useless,dry info IMHO, what helped me is MTB by Dr.Fischer. I had 3-4 questions exactly how he laid it out, didnt even have to think. His book is a dialogue, not a monologue like other books, if it makes any sense.
2. You really do not need to read anything for step 2, just do UWSA over and over again. Forget about trying to remember the questions9even if you do keep reading and thinking ), think about info given in the stem, its good to read same info more then once, it is asked VERY similar on the actual exam. Do questions, and trust that all the info you need will be in UWSA.
I had a bunch of ECG and what helped me with heart stuff is doing free 50 questions on WWW.learntheheart.com. They really allow for some ACS,angina,CHF stuff to sink in.
3. You,me,and almost everyone else will come out thinking you tanked the exam, it is not true. Trust your pre-exam practice stats+-10.So dont take the test unless you can play with that +-.
4. For DO students, do UWorld and comquest, or combank, not both, but doing more questions will not hurt if you have $.
And if I had to say it again, I will-forget about reading, do questions. I don't know about KAPLAN, or other q-banks, just what I told you.
Anyway, peace out guys, thanks for being with me all these past 2 years, and supporting me in the time of my neuroses, let all who strive-achieve.
OM.

Congrats on a great score! Thanks for the write up.

Glad to see MTB worked for you. Going to aim to get through it once before I focus on UW exclusively.
 
I've heard several people say we should read IM from MTB 2. Does that mean ALL other subjects should be covered from MTB 3? (i.e. Derm, EM, Psych, Surg, Peds)

Also, once you've read both MTBs is there any value in revising these like we did for FA, or is it time to just go all-out with UW?
 
I've heard several people say we should read IM from MTB 2. Does that mean ALL other subjects should be covered from MTB 3? (i.e. Derm, EM, Psych, Surg, Peds)

Also, once you've read both MTBs is there any value in revising these like we did for FA, or is it time to just go all-out with UW?
Yes.
What I did was write notes on MTB while doing UW and then read the MTBs with the notes for revision.
 
Just got out of my test. Definitely a long test, and its challenging to stay focused all the way through.

As far as prep goes, I started around February along with my regular coursework. I only had 2 weeks of dedicated time, which was in the middle of my prep. I began with MTB and UWorld, didn't like my scores so I switched to Step up to Step 2, didn't see an improvement so I switched back to MTB. Definitely didn't like SUS2, and I'd recommend sticking to one main source (MTB series, Step Up series) since it allows better retention.

Like everybody else says, UWorld is the way to go for Step 2. No book is going to have all the info, but UWorld sure does. I did it around 1.75 times and I annotated into MTB which I did twice.

I was originally planning on taking it on April 1st, but a week earlier I took an NBME and didnt like my score so I scheduled it for today. Another tip is to not schedule your test until you're ready, as long as you have an available test center. I scheduled mine around 20 days before the exam.

As far as tests and scores:
Step 1: 23x
NBME 4 (1 week before first date, 30% UWorld left): 244
UWorld first pass: 72% (did the first half in timed, non-random blocks, and the second half in random blocks)
UWorld second pass: 90% with 800 questions left.
UWSA (10 days before the actual exam): 259

Test itself felt very fair. I marked a lot of questions, but there were 2-3 questions per block that I was sort of stumped by. I had some transfusion reaction stuff on my first block, and surprisingly 3 questions where I'm pretty sure the answer was Epinephrine. A lot of allergy IMO, but I felt that MTB and Uworld covered all the basics.

Thankfully I didnt have too many OBGYN questions, cause that was a weak point throughout which made me go out and buy MTB 3. I think for OBGYN MTB 2+3 is a good combo, but neither is sufficient as a standalone.

Biostatistics were a lot easier than the stuff in UWorld. Lots of calculations, but no so much bias and stuff. The drug ads were hilariously funny. Like reading comprehension funny.

Time management is essential for the test, as every block I finished on time except the last block which was 60 minutes but only 28 questions surprisingly. One personal recommendation that I found helpful was to take a break after the first block to calm your nerves. I made a lot of silly questions in the first block, but I went outside immediately afterwards, used the bathroom and calmed myself down.

Good luck to everybody, and now for the wait. Anybody know if Sunday tests need a 3 Wednesday or a 4 Wednesday wait?
 
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I've heard several people say we should read IM from MTB 2. Does that mean ALL other subjects should be covered from MTB 3? (i.e. Derm, EM, Psych, Surg, Peds)

Also, once you've read both MTBs is there any value in revising these like we did for FA, or is it time to just go all-out with UW?

So by MTB 3, do people mean MTB for for Step 3 (edition 2), or is it MTB for Step 2 CK Edition 3? Been looking for a 3rd edition and there isn't one. I feel like I'm losing my mind.
 
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