shwe
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Thanks didl27io.
You make me clearer re; how & what to focus ,study. I kind of study bunch with rushig the video speed with no reading & Q at all at the beginning to finish the tapes on time to save the money for course extension.
Now for next round will slow down, balance with video, after kap notes reading then kap topics Q, in kap books & center old Q [Is that means center CVS, etc system wise, old 1998 or olde Q?] all side by side.
A bit not clear, FA, repeat kap books read also side by side with above 3 mention to do or, should be before any Q as mention above & other Q you said in your all posts, eg. QB,UW, & kap topics diagnostic, kap simulat, USMLE CD.
Also which order should be 1st in term of all Q to do. NBME form 3 is last ,is that right?
Thank you for your kindness & guide.
With best wishes for your st 2, CS & St 3 too.
Hope you can also guide,share the rests of the exams study & experinces.
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| didl27io
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drdido:
didn´t attend live lectures, and think it is not necessary if you are used to studying on your own. very rarely some facts are unclear in the videos but you can look them up. it happened only once or twice that something remained obscure after this procedure, in fact this won´t affect your outcome on the exam !
I followed exactly the strategy you described, except that I already started doing question while I was still studying kaplan. you need to do some 2 or 3.000 q´s in order to cover everything (not a prerequisite, but it worked for me).
shwe:
your posting was a little bit confusion for me, so I hope I didn´t misunderstand you on some topics 
a balanced (not rushed) approach is definitely the wiser choice. don´t do too many old q´s, since they change over time and the q´s in my old brs books from ´98 are in some instance not comparable to the actual exam q´s. as you said, do chapter by chapter and try to go to the next one, only if you´re really familiar with the previous.
If I got your 2nd paragraph right, it´s about when to do q´s?!?
In my opinion you could start on the first day of your studies, but this won´t help. you should have a concept of most things in mind where you can put new things you "learn" while doing q´s. you wouldn´t be able to benefit from the sophisticated UW stuff if you simply try to memorize it.
doing these simulated exams (kaplan, NBME, CD) is only for your personal rating, to see where you are standing at the moment. First of all, there are no explanations on NBME and CD, so you can find out everything you don´t know by yourself, which takes too long to be useful. and when i did kaplan sim, it tried to set it up like a real exam situation (8 hours, use the breaks wisely...), so funnily I was quite upset and nervous and didn´t benefit very much from it (of course I learned something, but it was not a good day of studying).
In the end, you should use FA only to keep your concepts together, for "fast-track" review to bring things to your mind that you already forgot.
thanks for your blessings, I also hope that your prep and exams run well!
regards
d
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| shwe
Forum Elite
Topics: 10
Posts: 539
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Thanks didl27io.
Thank you for answering all my Q in detail & your kind wishes.
Happy & success studying to you too.
With best Wishes,
S.
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| keepitsimple
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hi didl27io, congrats with the perfect score and thanks a lot.What you wrote and have been suggesting has worked for many,inspired a lot more and is sure to help many who choose to take usmle.thanks and may god bless you.good luck with all.
i went through what you wrote and suggested.i have my exam scheduled for the 16th of feb'07,followed by cs scheduled for 30th feb. i need ur advice regarding how to go about my prep from now on. i have taken the exam once and couldnt pass it.been reading for some time.i know some of my stuff but am really weak with path and pharm.no matter how much i read,over time i forget.cant correlate stuff.took kaplan live lectures,but its so volatile,i simply need to go back to books so very often.pls suggest.even a month before my exam i feel a need to go back to the text rather than doing questions.the problem is i cant postpone no more and have to make it to the 2008 match,and am yet to give step 2 ck as well..please suggest...asap..thanks and once again,thanks for making a difference to so many of us.good luck,and may you have a wonderful and successful year ahead.
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| didl27io
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dear keepitsimple (I like that name)!
i think what you describe is a very familiar feeling for all of us who study (-ied) for these exams. It´s so much information, there´s no way to permanently store everything in your brain! So, I hope I don´t repeat myself too often, but everyone needs a concept (for everything).
for instance take lymphoma (a horrible chapter I think): I just could not remember these different types, nor could I recognize the correct ones from the vignettes. So I started to connect some facts with each other: follicular (the most common), t14-18, bcl-2, b-cell thats it. hairy cell - TRAP; DLCL reminded me of one patient in whom I did a diagnostic lymph node biopsy - stomach, cns, aggressive, and so on. not more than one to three facts. that was sufficient to answer most of the q´s on that topic and the one I couldn´t answer: didn´t make a difference. nobody expects you to know everything, but to know at least something on one topic already helps.
have to stop right now, will continue later...
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| didl27io
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if you have a basic understanding of those topics + an couple of these memorized facts you should be able to answer a high percentage of q´s in that field.
the most important thing is not to do this "superficial reading": you had a question about sth. (take lymphoma) and think: oh, I SHOULD know that, but you just can't remember. Then you decide to quickly browse through that chapter in your book/syllabus to bring those things back to your mind. They will be back - but only for a couple of mins/hrs. I tried that one for me and found out that I had forgot almost everything I repeated the day before using this "Quick-glance review technique". I then started to write down those facts that just didn´t want to stay in my memory. It worked for some things, especially for those, where I had the mnemonics from FA. So, together with this technique I think you can gather sufficient knowledge to pass the test.
If that doesn´t work either, maybe you should go back and get the DVDs and repeat the tricky chapters at your own pace. I also had to watch some topics repeatedly when I recognized my attention level was obviously too low when I watched them initially. On some days, your brain just seems to be shut down, so it´s a good idea to try to study that one on another day (if it´s an important one).
So, let me know, if these strategies worked for you!
regards
d
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| keepitsimple
Forum Newbie
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hi didl..thanks a ton for the advice..will definitely keep it in mind as i prepare...thanks again..and goodluck with future exams and in toto,,,with life..take care..hope to comeback and ask u some doubts if i do..else,hope to see u in the step 2 ck forum soon.till then..goodbye.
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| usm
Forum Senior
Topics: 6
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Good job man!!! Congratulation!
Where from Austria are you??
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| didl27io
Forum Newbie
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I'm from Vienna!
I guess, you're from Czech Republic?!?
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| usm
Forum Senior
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Yes Im from Czech. I just love Vienna . Im just wondering why somebody from Austria wants do a residency in US becouse for me it is more a money issue but for doctors from Austria I dont know. Good Luck for your CK and CS. I ve finished CK and preparing for CS right now. Heading 2008 match.
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| didl27io
Forum Newbie
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I'm going for a fellowship! Money is still far better in the US compared to Austria, but that's not the issue...
cheers
d
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