When to take Step 2?

[medstudent7860]

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I know this question has been asked before of course, but I've searched SDN and it's hard to find current information that pertains to IM specifically. So I'm planning on taking CS in May, and then I am actually ending my core rotations with Peds by the end of June, which puts me in kind of a tight spot because I feel like I don't have much time for both Sub-I's and studying for Step 2. I was tentatively thinking of doing a Sub-I in July, and then taking August off to study the entire month and take Step 2 CK by the end of August. Would it hurt me to only have one Sub-I though? I could do another one in August, but that would delay my Step 2 at least another month. I got a 247 on Step 1. I will not be AOA (my school has letter grades and I got 2 Cs early on); my preclinical grades gpa is 3.5. So far in my rotations (IM and Family Med), I have gotten Honors. I go to an unranked US MD school, and I don't have much research-wise (I have 2 research projects but they were like handing out surveys; no publications). I want to do residency in Chicago, and my dream school is U of Chicago (I don't know how realistic that is for me), so would taking Step 2 by the end of August help? Or would doing another Sub-I in the Chicago area be better? If I take Step 2 in August, would my score even be out in time for residency PDs to use that information? Should I take it even earlier and just not have as much dedicated study time?

 

[DyingBreed]

I would be sure your CK score is back before the Sept 15th application submit date. Internal medicine programs want to see CK scores. Period. I have similar Step 1 from a state US MD school and took my CK late July, after coming off of surgery in June. 3 weeks is a good amount of time for devoted CK studying.

Regarding Sub-I, my school has a rotation lottery and I was not able to get my Sub-I in August (which would be ideal if your school can report your August rotation grade on your transcript before MSPE's are released on Oct 1). I applied without completing Sub-I but with an LOR from Sub-I attending. Like me, your 'Honors' in IM clerkship helps you significantly in this regard. Also, I did no 'audition' rotations and A) do not regret it, and B) do not think it significantly affected my interview invites.