kavi
Forum Newbie
Topics: 4
Posts: 18
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My Step 1 experience
Hi i'm an IMG, graduated 2 years ago. Started studying for Step 1 in
April and took my exam on the 8th of nov and just got my score
yesterday( dec 5th).
Got 239/97!!
I still cant believe it !
I went away on a two week holiday immediately after my exams and
then had the dreadful wait for the results so i decided to post my exam
experience after the results came.
My Resources :
I mainly used the Kaplan notes had 2004 edition and the Dvd's. The
biochem and Behavioural science were the best of the lot. The
anatomy and physiology were good but the Micro, Pharm and Path
were not that good.
For Pathology the best is without a doubt GOLJAN. I listened to his
audios twice and it really helped..some of the stuff he said came out
word for word in my exam. Plus he really makes it enjoyable.so please
do listen to him.
First Aid was the best investment. I got it during the second reading of
kaplan notes and just had it open in front of me while doing questions .
I made lots of notes and highlights and used it solely in the last week.
I also got the Kaplan q bank 3mths. The questions weren't similar to the
actual exam style but it was a good source to practice doing questions
under timed mode and the bar graphs also helped me to work on my
weaker areas. My cumulative score was abt 69% but i was scoring abt
80% in the last couple of tests.
I also used the Robbin and Cotran review of pathology (2nd
edition).This was also a very good buy.This book together with Goljan
and you are set in pathology.
I also used the kaplan qbook towards the end.. but didnt have time to
finish it.
Apart from this i used a whole lot of other resources .. webpath, did
questions on the various forums , questions from pre test, Appleton &
Lange , NMS..and a whole lot.
And of course did NBME 2, 1 month before the exam got 530.
My Mistakes :
1) I did not have a good idea of what the usmle was all about..hence i did not have a good plan.
Thats the biggest mistake.
I just started studying with the Kaplan notes ..and only later read about Goljan, and First Aid . So i had to keep changing my timetable .
So my advice to you is to take maybe a week to find out everything you can abt usmle .. speak to people, read people's experiences, go and check out your local Kaplan centre .. take a practice test, look at the kaplan books and listen to the dvds.
Theres tonnes of resources out there and its very easy to get overwhelmed.and what works for others may not neccesarily work for you.
Once you have an idea of what books are out there..go to the library or bookstore and just browse through the books.
So you have a basic idea .
2) I took 8mths to study for this..and it was too much time. I think its very doable in abt 4-5mths. Book a date and stick to it. Its very tempting to postpone ..hence i booked a two week holiday the day after the exam..so i had to take it on nov 8th. But my eligibility period only ended in dec so i had some option.
DONT book ur exam on the last week of eligibilty period..have some flexibility in case you need to postpone.
The Actual EXam:
8 hrs goes by quickly especially the 45 min break time. Plan ur breaks properly. And allocate at least 10-15mins to the whole signing in - signing out process.
I went into the exam convinced it would be the worst exam possible. I had read prior exam experiences saying some blocks were tougher than others.
But in truth it was a very do able exam. And all the blocks were pretty much the same. they had abt 25% easy questions, 50% mod questions and 25% hard.
This has turned out to be a very long message. If you have any questions please do ask.
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| vanshita
Forum Guru
Topics: 28
Posts: 907
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Congratulation
GOOD LUCK for step 2
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| kavi
Forum Newbie
Topics: 4
Posts: 18
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Thank you Vanshita
Good luck to you too
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| Saleem
Forum Newbie
Topics: 4
Posts: 9
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Congratulation
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| Seltzer
Forum Newbie
Topics: 0
Posts: 9
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Great job! Good luck for SteP II!
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| jam
Forum Newbie
Topics: 5
Posts: 26
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congratulations doc!! may you repeat your success again in step2!!
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| epica
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Congratul'
I have the !st edition of Robbins Patho Q do I need to buy second? Do u know the difference?
Thanks
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| kavi
Forum Newbie
Topics: 4
Posts: 18
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thanks you
Sorry epica i dont know the difference betw the first and second editions.
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| abdo
Forum Senior
Topics: 11
Posts: 136
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well i want to ask 3 questons
1- about the pics of patho , did u do it form web path ? i think it is too much from there and is it worthy ? ppl advise me to do the pics in glojan but i dont know is it enough ?
2-is the nbme good source of review ?
3- what about robbins mcqs ?
___________________
stupidity: the art of making locks instead of making keys
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| klimt
Forum Guru
Topics: 27
Posts: 605
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congratulations on your great score!
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Traveler, there are no roads. Roads are made by walking.
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| kavi
Forum Newbie
Topics: 4
Posts: 18
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hi abdo sorry for late reply
1) i used the pics from both web path and goljan & i agree its a lot from both.
make sure you know the pics in first aid..and usually you can get the answer from the clues they provide in the question stem.
2) i think the nbme is a very good source of review. i reviewed the questions with a study buddy and we researched the answers to almost every single question!
3) I used the Robbin and Cotran review of pathology (2nd
edition) together with the goljan notes . The questions are great..exam style with long scenarios and numerous labs and also lots of pics. So i wud listen to a chapter of goljan and do the questions and that really helps in understanding.hope that helps.
A big Thank you for all the congrats.
I wish you all the best of luck for your exams.
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| abdo
Forum Senior
Topics: 11
Posts: 136
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thx for ur reply and big wishes that to get 100 % !! i want to know how many questons in
the nbme , what is it 's system and did u use usmleworld or kaplan q bank and what do u think regarding them .
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stupidity: the art of making locks instead of making keys
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| inkspot
Forum Guru
Topics: 35
Posts: 643
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congrats! all the best for step2!
i will be following the same books line! NMS Robbin goljan etc
what do you think is kaplan physio enuf? where did u do ur pharma from?
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89/92/CS/Step3 awaiting result/H1-J1/2005 grad/1 mo USCE/ 2 publication in home country/ 1 Research/volunteer work/
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