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New intern, already took step 3. Just wondering when I should start using MKSAP? I learn best with questions and am kind of eager to start using it. Let me know what works best.
When to Start Using MKSAP
- Thread starter MNCASC
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Whenever you want. You can always use another resource to study for boards if you finish MKSAP, or you can just start going through it a second time.
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Whenever you want. It's on a 3 year release schedule though, so MKSAP 19 is due in Summer 2021 - if you don't get it for free through your program, I probably wouldn't spend my money on MKSAP 18 right now if I were an intern.
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Nope. You can take it whenever you want as long as it's not too late for your program. Many in my IM program took it in third year, and as many people took it during intern year.
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Somewhat state dependent too. Under the old rules, US graduates in CA required a permanent license at the end of 2nd year - so you had to have step 3 passed by roughly mid-way through second year so you could apply for your license in time.
I'm unsure which states still require it before 2nd or 3rd year but I'm sure at least one does (CA has since changed the timelines).
My general advice to interns is to spend the first 6 months learning how to survive (studying how to treat the patients you currently have, learning to navigate the system, etc) then after about 6 months add MKSAP above and beyond that.
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Using MKSAP text to learn about your patients is very underrated IMO. Especially as an intern when time is limited it made it very easy “oh I admitted a CHF let me just jump to that article in MKSAP and read the 2-4 pages on it.”
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UpToDate and many other sources work well for that too though.
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What are the benefits of waiting for the new version to come out? Is it going to be that different?
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Probably. But nobody here can tell you that for certain.
I agree with @Raryn, you'll have plenty of other studying opportunities in the next year. If you're going to have to spend your own money on it, wait for the new one.
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The questions are completely different every version. A 3 year old MKSAP isn't THAT out of date - though some things like HTN guidelines seem to change every couple months. The problem is that if an *intern* gets MKSAP 18 now, by the time they take boards in 3 years, it will be a 5 year old question set - probably written 1-2 years prior to that. So some of the newer things like adverse effects of newer cancer drugs - which the ABIM loves to test - will not be included.
I personally have residents/students rotate with me periodically and I go through MKSAP *17* with them, which came out in Summer 2015/January 2016 - but that's because I'm way too cheap to pony up for a new version just for the resident spending a couple weeks for me (and thats the version *I* bought when I was studying for my boards).
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4th year of med school. Otherwise, now
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I wouldn't start mksap before the match for sure. For a variety of reasons, including it being a waste of money if you go to a program that provides it.
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That would be great If the program did a lot of programs I'm seeing are transitioning to competitor board review due to costs, one way to overcome this is to buy the previous version of mksap which is quite affordable and comparable to current releases with the updates, as a forth year when there was tons of time and electives you can purchase mksap audio to listen to on your commute on your drive while doing laundry and dishes are going for a jog or whatever your pleasure is, and have all of mksap completed prior to or during your internship, an easy way of finding the inches in daily life, one question a day one minute a day and next thing you know you've done it three times before the completion of residency, sometimes when you decide you're going to do something unrelated to medicine you become quite bored and at a loss and then you decide to go back to studying the art of medicine anyway because you remember this was your true first love anyway and find joy and delight in learning something new, many different ways to attack it,and it is very rewarding when you can help someone because of it and that if it wasn't for you there wasn't anyone else that was going to come to be to their aid, although you wouldn't be blamed for just relaxing and just enjoying all the leisure time prior to starting the rigors of training or upper level residency as well, good luck
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