Why is UWorld so good?

[Nucleus Accumbens]

So I was having this discussion with a class mate regarding why UW is so good. We have (as well as everyone on this forum) established it's literally better than any bank we have used before. No question is a gimme and all require complex thinking! In addition the success rate is really high in terms of its predictive value.

Now the question, why is this the case? The company has no affiliation with NBME and USMLE, yet puts out such amazing question content which most accurately mirrors the USMLE. We started conspirasizin' a-way... maybe there is a better explanation as to why it's so good when it isn't associated with the writers of STEP or it's partner companies.


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[deleted436726]

In addition the success rate is really high in terms of its predictive value.

I'm not sure how true that is...

 

[Nucleus Accumbens]

I'm not sure how true that is...

General consensus seems to think so


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[LLCoolK]

.

 

[Nucleus Accumbens]

they probably have students tell them what was previously on their exams and get their input on how the exam tests material, and create questions based on that. I've always wondered this myself

It's very conspiracy-esque... how could an external group of exam writers be so good at writing questions for USMLE


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[ridethecliche]

Folks that write exam questions for the board are allowed to write questions for other agencies too right? So what's stopping folks that used to write questions for the boards or have experience writing questions do so for UWorld?

If there's some sort of NDA for those that write for the boards, that would be news to me, but I could see it.

Also, what stops writers from taking the exam every year or two and using that to guide question writing? You can gain a ton of insight into how the test asks for info by taking the official practice tests as well.

 

[Nucleus Accumbens]

Folks that write exam questions for the board are allowed to write questions for other agencies too right? So what's stopping folks that used to write questions for the boards or have experience writing questions do so for UWorld?

If there's some sort of NDA for those that write for the boards, that would be news to me, but I could see it.

Also, what stops writers from taking the exam every year or two and using that to guide question writing? You can gain a ton of insight into how the test asks for info by taking the official practice tests as well.

I don't think a tester from a 3rd party organization can just sign up for the test and take it. You have to be an enrolled student with clearance from your school.


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[ridethecliche]

I'm pretty sure I know of docs that have taken the test a few times since they teach/advise board courses.

I wonder if a school can give someone permission to take it.

 

[Nucleus Accumbens]

I'm pretty sure I know of docs that have taken the test a few times since they teach/advise board courses.

I wonder if a school can give someone permission to take it.

Maybe, anything is possible lol. We just know very little about this whole grading process, etc.


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[IM1978]

I'm pretty sure I know of docs that have taken the test a few times since they teach/advise board courses.

I wonder if a school can give someone permission to take it.

This is just completely false. You absolutely have to be a confirmed student from a medical school.

 

[The Knife & Gun Club]

We have a professor (MD) at my school who actually explained this to us, because he worked for UWorld for a few years and used to write step questions.

Basically for the real step exam theres a bunch of physicians from academic centers that write questions and send them to NBME. What NBME does from there he doesn't know, but NBME will tell you if the questions get accepted into the pool.

UWorld then hires people who have written questions for the NBME in the past. You can actually see the postings for these jobs on the UWorld website. However, once you write for Uworld or another QBank you're never allowed to write for step again.

Also NBME monitors the Qbanks for stolen questions, and are "pretty aggressive" (whatever that means) in making sure real questions from their pool never end up in UWorld.


PS this professor is an clinical anatomist and is responsible for some of the diabolical anatomy questions on STEP and in UWorld.

 

[orangetea]

Who is NBME.. (not trolling) but legit wondering if they are working physicians, retired physicians, random community members from the medical field.. like who are the individuals that make the qbank (once questions are submitted) / decide on the curve that STEP examinations are derived from?

 

[The Knife & Gun Club]

If you REALLY want to dive into the weeds, the NBME puts out a manual every decade-ish on how they'd like people to write the questions they submit. The current one is obviously confidential, but the previous version, from 2003 is available online (below).

http://www.nbme.org/pdf/itemwriting_2003/2003iwgwhole.pdf

 

[PantherPride]

We have a professor (MD) at my school who actually explained this to us, because he worked for UWorld for a few years and used to write step questions.

Basically for the real step exam theres a bunch of physicians from academic centers that write questions and send them to NBME. What NBME does from there he doesn't know, but NBME will tell you if the questions get accepted into the pool.

UWorld then hires people who have written questions for the NBME in the past. You can actually see the postings for these jobs on the UWorld website. However, once you write for Uworld or another QBank you're never allowed to write for step again.

Also NBME monitors the Qbanks for stolen questions, and are "pretty aggressive" (whatever that means) in making sure real questions from their pool never end up in UWorld.


PS this professor is an clinical anatomist and is responsible for some of the diabolical anatomy questions on STEP and in UWorld.

This would make a lot of sense. In addition to this, as huge as it is, there IS only a limited amount of knowledge they can reasonably test you on, and there are only so many ways to ask you questions about that limited pool of knowledge. They have enough people taking the test every year to get plenty of data on experimental questions, and that new content slowly gets added to First Aid and UWorld. I remember being somewhat impressed when uWorld had a question on a particular immune checkpoint inhibitor, meaning that it must have popped up on someones actual Step exam that they would include it