poo_smle
Forum Newbie
Topics: 0
Posts: 2
|
Stay away from other Step 1 people, namely your classmates. Just focus on the work ahead of YOU and you'll do fine. It's when you start to compare and despair WTO your colleagues that you'll lose faith. Keep on truckin'!
|
| missedtackle
Forum Senior
Topics: 1
Posts: 21
|
That's a good one. And while you're at it, stay away from that exam score thread pinned to the top. 
|
| MagnaDoc
Forum Newbie
Topics: 0
Posts: 2
|
this could be so
|
| tolito
Forum Fanatic
Topics: 119
Posts: 2,164
|
my biggest mistake was leaving to the end some subjects i felt daunted by. i felt like i could never understand them so i never wanted to read them but i had to read them. so i left them too late. subjects like genetics. i barely grasped gene language but the exam tested the whole shinding!!  . i probably had 50q in genetics. i whole block had like 25 and it was written in another language.
second biggest mistake (caused by the biggest) was not setting enough time aside to read my notes. i made fantastic notes but ended up not reviewing all of them before the exam not even half of them
third mistake was taking too long studying. i should have just put in max 3 months and studied like i would die ( you never die). surely my short term memory would not have been so badly harassed on the dday.
___________________
It has been a looooong hard journey but I am inches away from my destination...
|
| shamail zia
Forum Newbie
Topics: 0
Posts: 7
|
I think u should do the qbank with each topics u did from the kaplan.Not to do the mcqs along with reading the kaplan u should give the gap b/w ur mcqs and ur kaplan reading it gives how much u retain after reading
|
| FLK11
Forum Newbie
Topics: 0
Posts: 4
|
Not finding out about TommyK's high yield till a week before the test. I was so blown away by them that I did over a thousand with only a few days left. If I could do it all over... I would have done the entire bank at least twice.
Also, not studying like my life depended on it until the last 2 weeks. If you push hard you WILL adapt and become more efficient than ever before. When D-Day was upon me I realized you can't function at 100% unless you're studying 16 hours a day while high on stress. It's a magical combination!
Edited by FLK11 on 09/28/06 - 01:34 AM
|
| smal
Forum Guru
Topics: 140
Posts: 727
|
asmaali_h
i think Kaplan and FA should suffix.
MY MISTAKES:
1. having these ups and downs during study.this is something internal to achieve-consistency and a positive attitude.i lacked them
2.not doing Q-bank kaplan after 1st reading.coz even in the second kaplan reading i was reading topics i felt was imp and didnt realize am missing on the very imp topics for USMLE
3doing UW after NBME.
i think my sequence should've been-
1.kaplan+ Q-book+ goljan lectures
2.2nd reading
3.FA+ kaplan+UW
4. NBME
i had to postpone my exam for the delay in yellow card.but now i feel ok about it.coz practice exam really helped me take away that first time anxitey.
___________________
remedy for weakness is not brooding over it ,but thinking of strength.
|
| drplacebo
Forum Senior
Topics: 6
Posts: 141
|
Goin thru all da unnecessary books, on blind advice
Not realising the best plan early.
Conditioned by others about the limitations, regarding time, capacity.......
These were my flaws.
___________________
nothing in this world thats worth having,comes easy!!!- "SCRUBS"
|
| Jackofknives
Ipwnpoker.com
Topics: 91
Posts: 707
|
Fear is my worst enemy. I going after one of the most competitive specialties in the US and I’m afraid that if I don’t try my hardest then I won’t make it, consequently I usually push myself to the limit where I can’t go on for another minute. This behavior sometimes results uneasy feelings, stress and whatnot negative impact on my health. It’s all worth it if I make it though.
___________________
There are many things in this world that can’t be changed no matter how hard you try. That’s why you must not hesitate when the time comes where you have to give it all you’ve got.
|
| spitmetal
Forum Guru
Topics: 25
Posts: 635
|
i used more than one book for each subject that was my bigger mistake
arrive 30 min early to the test center
first study and then schedule the test
these were my major mistakes hope it helped
___________________
NEVER REGRET IF U DID YOUR BEST--"THE PEOPLE WHO CAN'T DO SOMETHING WILL KEEP SAYING THAT YOU CAN'T DO IT.....BUT REMEMBER YOU CAN DO IT!!" by Dr. Luck a member of this forum
|
| tee40
Forum Senior
Topics: 5
Posts: 117
|
Thanks for the tip, I say yes, after scheduling my exam and then studying and having to pay for a rescheduling of my exam period, I learned that lesson the hard way. Also, i concur on not studying from multiple, multiple books as i did and wasted time...but not do to take test until the 30th anyway...
|
| spitmetal
Forum Guru
Topics: 25
Posts: 635
|
yes tee40 i leerned that the hardway as u
but is a lesson that we neve will forget
___________________
NEVER REGRET IF U DID YOUR BEST--"THE PEOPLE WHO CAN'T DO SOMETHING WILL KEEP SAYING THAT YOU CAN'T DO IT.....BUT REMEMBER YOU CAN DO IT!!" by Dr. Luck a member of this forum
|
| virgola82
Forum Guru
Topics: 85
Posts: 348
|
I did step 1 last week so, because i don't have my results yet, I can't tell you if my advices are reliable or not, anyway my biggest mistakes were:
- Embriology: didn't study it properly and realized that only in last 10 days after doing kaplan simulated exam. So in last days I crammed my brain with a lot of info that of course I've already forgot now... I strongly reccomend not to this mistake
- Path slides: I relied too much on the rumor that most of time you can undersytand the answer by the q stem and didn't do enough path slides. "most of times" doesn't mean everytime.... I realized this during exam...In fact I had some qs with almost no clues given in the stem
-Behavioral: I had A LOT of these qs and but because I hate this subject I wasn't adequately prepared and this is a pity because if you study this subject with a committment similar to that used for path or pharm they are easy and can really make your score get high. I have a similitude that only golfers will understand: behav sciences are like putting in golf, if you always do no more than 30 putts per round even if you don't play that well you will still have a decent score...
|
| can do it
Forum Newbie
Topics: 2
Posts: 4
|
So, did you get a lot of Embryology in your exam or not? I mean: does it worth to spend time on it? My exam in less than two weeks and Embryology is not in my schedule so far. Thanks and good luck with your score.
|
| virgola82
Forum Guru
Topics: 85
Posts: 348
|
I had a couple of qs on pharingeal arches/pouches/clefts and some on heart and kidney development. i remember that I did for the first time in the last 7 years pharingeal arches the day before exam and could answer those qs just because of this.... Now i already put all that stuff back into my unconscious...
|
| jaydoc
Forum Senior
Topics: 17
Posts: 101
|
Mistakes i made....
1. Underestimating the fact that Path was the most heavily tested subject
2. believing that the exam would test heavily on embryology and wasing so much time on prepping for it.
___________________
A conclusion is simply the place where you become tired of thinking.
|
| what_to_write
Forum Newbie
Topics: 3
Posts: 24
|
my biggest mistake was not turing off my cell before sleeping..and assuming that noone would be stupid to call me late night as my friends know that i hav a big exam tomorow.. but a friend called me at 1 am at night and then i cudnt sleep after that...was realy disturbed
another mistake was .. pushing the red button of water cooler in exam cetnre.. n burnt mouth with boiling water!
through out my preparation... my mistakes were.. Panicking.. and wasting time in anxiety... being fearful of exam...
the other biggest mistake was not starting MCQs on time.. starting them v late...
leaving things to end.... and taking long time for preparation..
not doing NBME to assess my self..
not doing goljan slides
not doing UW and not paying attention to ethics... where i scored lowest.. and not revising patho quickly...
but the most important thing is that
DONT FORGET TO TURN UR CELLS OFF AT NIGHT!!
|
| P4a99
Forum Fanatic
Topics: 34
Posts: 2,270
|
I hope you are still friends 
___________________
2008 Step 1 Study Plan Discussion ..... I am a moderator not a source for download links. Please do not ask me for any.
|
| deja_vu
Forum Senior
Topics: 4
Posts: 214
|
My biggest mistake: I took 4 months break in between my preparation. I read step1 for 3-4 months then started preparing GRE, TOEFL and Searched universities for MPH, applied to all and kept follow ups.I had to start it again and read 3-4 months more. In the whole process I think I worked 1month extra because of the break. Never do such kind of silly things.
|
| ABLAH20
Forum Newbie
Topics: 3
Posts: 5
|
My biggest mistake was falling in love with someone during prepration for the exam
Never let anything or anyone distract you from achieving your goals.
You will have plenty of time to do whatever you want after acing the exam.
|
| myeloma
Forum Junior
Topics: 3
Posts: 76
|
ABLAH20 wrote:My biggest mistake was falling in love with someone during prepration for the exam Never let anything or anyone distract you from achieving your goals. You will have plenty of time to do whatever you want after acing the exam.
WOW! wat a unique mistake! never heard that one before. i hope that "someone"isnt around to read ur post or things might get nasty
|
| Zozo
Forum Newbie
Topics: 3
Posts: 11
|
This is a wonderful thread!
thank you!
___________________
USMLE is like any other exam, only it's slightly more difficult
|
| drjmch
Forum Newbie
Topics: 0
Posts: 2
|
My biggest mistake was just studying qbanks from usmleworld...... I'm not saying the questions aren't good, but there are so many questions there that are way more difficult than the real test. I also didn't have enough time to study during the day (because I am an IMG and have a 8 hours job), so I just could dedicate about 2 or 3 hours a day to study and it really kept me out of focus. Just received my score and I failed. Funny thing is that most of the vignettes were really familiar.... but since I studied several months I just had forgotten what I studied the first month......so, my advice is, do not waste your time.
|
| hiprized
Forum Newbie
Topics: 6
Posts: 21
|
[quote=ABLAH20]My biggest mistake was falling in love with someone during prepration for the exam
Never let anything or anyone distract you from achieving your goals.
You will have plenty of time to do whatever you want after acing the exam.[/quote
this is so true.....i think it is the biggest distraction or biggest help you can get...for me...it was a big distraction and spent a lot of time that i could have used for studying....in the middle...i had to let go of her.
|
| cNOfussedLA
Forum Newbie
Topics: 0
Posts: 1
|
I just finished my basic sciences at a Caribbean Medical school (WUSM) and I am preparing myself to study for the Step 1. I'm not sure how to go about it...with what topics to start with. Right now I feel like I don't know anything and feel very discouraged. If yall can give me any tips on what books you used, what topics you studied together and started with...it will be greatly appreciated. THANKS!!
|
|
| |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
