What do you REALLY need to study effectively for the STEP1?

[monkeyMD]

I know you need to pay attention in class, have a pretty good brain and use the FirstAid bks. However, I was wondering which of the First Aid books one needs to purchase and whether one must also purchase those flashy flash cards to do well on the USMLE. Any advice will be appreciated.

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[VisionaryTics]

I know you need to pay attention in class, have a pretty good brain and use the FirstAid bks. However, I was wondering which of the First Aid books one needs to purchase and whether one must also purchase those flashy flash cards to do well on the USMLE. Any advice will be appreciated.

When people say First Aid, they mean "First Aid for the USMLE Step 1". Just that one book.

Also, flashy flash cards are a must. The flashier the better.

 

[ijn]

You need a mind sharper than lime green jello and the dedication of a wombat in heat.

Studies have shown flashy flash cards could get you a 234, at best. Nothing to write home about. If you want the real secret to breaking the 250 ceiling please PM your PayPal information.

 

[monkeyMD]

When people say First Aid, they mean "First Aid for the USMLE Step 1". Just that one book.

So none of that First Aid Q&A, First Aid cases... etc etc?

 

[werd]

i really liked the kaplan book series for step 1 (not the course). i used them, first aid for step 1, and qbank as my study resources, and got in the 260's.

 

[monkeyMD]

i really liked the kaplan book series for step 1 (not the course). i used them, first aid for step 1, and qbank as my study resources, and got in the 260's.

 

[tjquinn]

For me the key was questions, I only used First Aid supplemented with Uworld, UsmleRX, Kaplan Qbank, Pretest, Kaplan Qbank Qbook, BRS Physiology Questions, Robbins Path Questions, Goljan Questions, all of the NBME forms, etc

Result was 253

Everyone has a somewhat different strategy, but I think it boils down to # of questions and people that use other books are also doing lots of questions.

 

[Bartelby]

Here to second what others are saying: first aid for the USMLE plus USMLE World Qbank. I focused on these plus a little extra reading on areas I saw as particular weaknesses of mine and scored ~240. This was basically the strategy I used for step 2 as well and I was again happy with the results.

 

[monkeyMD]

Thanks for all the input. Also, when purchasing books, should I go for the most recent editions or does the date of publication not matter?

 

[shenanigi]

All I used were first aid and uworld. Scored in the 250s

 

[TAWS]

Have you guys seen the errata sheet for First Aid? It has so many mistakes, which makes me question whether it is the best book to use for Step 1


http://firstaidteam.com/wp-content/uploads/FA-Step-1-2011-errata-110817.pdf

 

[VisionaryTics]

Have you guys seen the errata sheet for First Aid? It has so many mistakes, which makes me question whether it is the best book to use for Step 1


http://firstaidteam.com/wp-content/uploads/FA-Step-1-2011-errata-110817.pdf

Yeah, there's a good number of mistakes. But it really is the only book that strikes the right balance of brevity and depth, touching on 99% of the trivia you need to know for the exam.

There's a reason UW + FA is the standard. It works.

 

[shenanigi]

Have you guys seen the errata sheet for First Aid? It has so many mistakes, which makes me question whether it is the best book to use for Step 1


http://firstaidteam.com/wp-content/uploads/FA-Step-1-2011-errata-110817.pdf

just take an hour and correct the mistakes...