coolbabe76
Forum Guru
Topics: 92
Posts: 635
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amazing man!!!!!!!!!!!!!great score...........
me giving exam in 10 days .....
pray 4 me 
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| laila
Forum Senior
Topics: 3
Posts: 86
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And my heartiest congratulations.
I remember when I read in ur diray that u really wanted to get a score in high 90s and that " I didn't learn medicine in English, so my first round of reading is really the very "first". The hardest time was when I looked in the dictionary word by word, glad this part was over."
I said to myself wombat will get that score and what is more it would be a perfectly well deserved triumph.
U earned it. And a big cheer for u.
Laila
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| niti
Forum Guru
Topics: 36
Posts: 499
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Hey wombat,
I can't tell u how happy I am to see your score..a big hug & CONGRATULATIONS !! D
niti
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hi wombat
my hearty congratulations for you!!!as i said...another 99.i'm very happy for you.i expected this....and was waiting for you score to be posted.
now i think you are completely relieved.its time for party!!!!!!enjoy my friend!!!! :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :-({|= :-({|= :icon_queen: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_salut: :icon_salut: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce: :icon_bounce:
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| mitty
Forum Guru
Topics: 52
Posts: 376
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Hi wombat !you did it girl!!!I am very happy for you.
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He will make it happen.
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| v_ashu
Forum Newbie
Topics: 2
Posts: 13
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congrats for u;r great score. u deserve it.
i am giving my exam in 1 month please just let me know is kaplan notes sufficient along with goljan audio? i am not touching other books. do u think immunology and biochem is sufficient from kaplan.
please reply i would appreciate it
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| ssrpk
Forum Fanatic
Topics: 154
Posts: 2,819
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CONGRATS buddy!
u have set a really great example for all of us!
have fun and all the best for step2!
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life is guud
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| krushna
Forum Senior
Topics: 9
Posts: 175
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amazing score !
cogratulations!!! its party time,have fun!
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| wombat
Forum Guru
Topics: 22
Posts: 304
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My experience right after exam: http://www.prep4usmle.com/community1/viewtopic.ph...
My prep journal: http://www.prep4usmle.com/forum/thread/14829
My background information and details of preparation can be found in above 2 links. In brief I am IMG graduated in 1998, learned medicine in another language. Have full time research job, studied on evenings, weekends and used all vacation time of 2004.
First of all I want to thank my husband (boyfriend then when I started preparation) for his great support. He sacrificed a lot during this whole painful study.
I believe there are a hundred ways to study for this exam and get a good score, my way is probably just one of them.
Materials I used
The only books I read were kaplan notes and First Aid 2003. I took kaplan center preparation where I watched all videos once. Listened to Goljan audio 2 times, repeated some lectures more than twice, lost track. I did kaplan Qbank, most part of Qbook, most of rapid review mosby questions (350Q on book and 1000Q on CD), a little bit of BSS. Did both kaplan simulation tests on CD and online. Did NBME form 1 and form 2. USMLE CD twice.
Stats of my practice Qs
Kaplan diagnostic exam before enrollment: 45% (1 year before exam)
Kaplan Qbank: 66% cumulative. Finished all Qs but didn't read explanation. Paid for another month just to do all Qs again in tutorial mode and read explanations
Qbook: finished 80% of it, scores vary, about 60%-75%
Rapid review Qs: finished most of them. 60% something to 80%, mostly 70%
BSS: feel the Qs are hard, so gave up later. Lost track of score
Kaplan simulation: 66% for online version (3 months before exam)
75% for CD version before exam
NBME form 1: 4 months before exam 480
NBME form 2: 1 month before exam 630
USMLE CD: 80% 3 months before exam, 85% 2 weeks or so before exam.
Over all I read kaplan notes 4 times, some chapters of pathology more than 4 times. (I count watching kaplan videos as one read too, although at that time I didn't read books after watching videos as I should) Read FA whole length 3 times, some subjects 4 times, but did cover the rest subjects by going over quizz questions on the website. I got all kinds of books that people recommend but didn't touch them at all. No time and now it seems unnecessary too. Went over slides at webpath once, but about 6 months before the exam. The plan looks simple but it just took forever for me to read through all subjects. There were bad days when I couldn't read at all; there were chapters I got stuck for a few days; there were topics I used to understand but not any more when read again... All these things made me feel so bad I thought I may never be done with this exam. So friends don't get frustrated when you have bad days, don't be obssessed with the idea that you just "wasted" another week. Perhaps this is part of the package of study, maybe it's just not possible to be 100% efficient all the time.
I feel reading kaplan notes is the key. The more you read, the higher you score. If I am to give suggestion for a beginner in step 1, I would say read kaplan notes 5 times, do Qbook after second read, do Qbank after third read, do NBME form 1 after finishing Qbank, do form 2 two weeks before exam date so you can decide if need to postpone the exam. Do kaplan simulation exam 2 weeks before to train your performance. Do USMLE CD 1 week before and memorize all the answers. When do Qbank, always do in timed mode. Do Qs during midnight before you end your day or right after lunch when you feel sleepy. That is, do Qs when you don't have clear mind. Cuz that's what you would be during real exam. Listen to Goljan as much as possible, absolutely a pearl. His lectures explains to you mechanisms that will boost your confidence. As for kaplan lecture, it's crucial for me as I had never listened to English lectures about these stuff before. At least it let me know how to pronounce these terms. So if you can understand kaplan notes without problem, then maybe you don't need lectures. Otherwise it's helpful for understanding the basic concepts.
I feel performance is as important as knowing the stuff. You eventually need time to show how much you know during exam. So I always train myself to do Qs under hard conditions. I always do 50 or 100 in a row. When do all kinds of simulation tests, I never took breaks. Always do them in a row. It was tiring but I believe this paid off. During my exam, I was able to keep calm and relaxed. Because I could take break after 50Qs, I could drink water, it was quiet... Over all I didn't panic, which gave me more and more confidence towards the end of the exam.
Mentally well prepared before exam is also key. I have always heard people say the real exam is nothing like any practice Qs. They were twisted etc. I was really scared about all these. I was so afraid that I might not even understand what they ask. So before exam I told myself again and again: Don't lose heart if I couldn't understand what they are asking. Don't regret if it's something I've read but couldn't recall. Don't panic if they ask something I never know. Just keep going and drag myself through no matter what I got on the exam. I was expecting a super hard exam, so when I found out it's not that bad, I felt relaxed right away.
It's a long painful road, but if I can do it so can you. Keep reading you will find a whole new world when you repeat more. I would be glad to answer any questions. Good luck to everyone.
Edited by prep4usmle on 09/20/05 - 11:27 PM
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| Alina T
Forum Elite
Topics: 17
Posts: 388
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Congratulations wombat!!! hard work, tough moments, great achievement!!
thank you so much for your detailed opinion about the exam, it really helps me keep cool now, 4 days before the test. i will repeat those words to myself too! 
Enjoy your victory, spoil yourself with whatever your heart is asking. YOU DESERVE IT!!!!!
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There are 3 types of people: those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened.
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| Roxanita
Forum Senior
Topics: 16
Posts: 108
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Congratulations Wombat!!!
Wooooooooo hooooooooooo!!!
You deserve this success in your life as you have worked very hard, really great news :icon_salut: Now enjoy girl /
Thank you very much for sharing your experience with us,
God bless you.
Roxy.
Edited by prep4usmle on 09/20/05 - 11:30 PM
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| KEROCHI
Forum Guru
Topics: 60
Posts: 971
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WOW!!! GREAT!!
CONGRATULATIONS!!!
I have one question for you.. When you said read Kaplan notes more than once did you mean Kaplan notes that you did after listening to the video?DVD or the Kaplan books ? Thanks in advance for your reply & again.. CONGRATULATIONS!!
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| KEROCHI
Forum Guru
Topics: 60
Posts: 971
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hi wombat,
another q, what is rapid review q's.. where can I get that?
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| pray4md
Forum Senior
Topics: 13
Posts: 124
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wombat, congrats my friend. you did so well as we all expected!!! enjoy the feeling!
p4md
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| Moctopod
Forum Elite
Topics: 14
Posts: 422
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That's brilliant Wombat! All that hard work paid off, huh?
Thanks for all your help over the past few months, and enjoy the feeling.
Moc
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| usmlerock
Forum Senior
Topics: 3
Posts: 93
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many many congrats wombat !!!it is a vowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww to u coz nor did u study hard but u never gave up as u dint study med in eng ...that is so brave of u
all the very best in whatever u do and u have proved tht efforts are never wasted!!
thanx alot for all yr help!!
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| wombat
Forum Guru
Topics: 22
Posts: 304
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Thank you everyone!!
v_ashu: I think kaplan notes alone is enough to get you a good score. I only read kaplan and FA. I am not fresh from school, I didn't learn these stuff in English, so I think there is less bias here in terms of demonstrating kaplan is a good source. Just keep reading them during the last month and train your performance by doing simulation tests.
kerochi: The rapid review is by Mosby: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/032...
I think it would be good to listen to kaplan lectures twice. As for reading the notes, 5 times would get you a great score. (Of course need to understand the stuff)
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| berkeleyboy
Forum Elite
Topics: 15
Posts: 361
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this test wombat!!! my personal congratulations!!!
250 is a an amazing dream come true!!!
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PGY-1 Ohio State University Plastic Surgery
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| usmlerock
Forum Senior
Topics: 3
Posts: 93
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wombat ,u said reading kaplan notes 5 times ,can u tell me how ddid u do it?....completing all subjects and then restarting all of them ...or doing physio, for example 5 times in a row.....
thanx in advance
all the best for step 2
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| mich
Forum Newbie
Topics: 1
Posts: 23
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CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!
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