asha kamat
Forum Senior
Topics: 12
Posts: 101
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Hi! guys,
All I want to say right now right after this exam is ' keep reading kaplan notes WORD TO WORD, and revise UW atleast 2-3 times'. get the concepts right.
All the topics are covered equally with little emphasis on step1 (except for basic stuff)
most of the questions end with
what is the diagnosis
what is the most appropriate next step
what is the most appropriate test to be performed
what is the precaution you would take to prevent spread of a disease, before some procedure etc.
like everybody has said majority of the questions are from internal medicine. every topic is tested so the key to master this is to know kaplan word to word, and supplement with UW concepts. I had around 60-65% of IM. I got 3 ECG's with history and presentation of the disease.
surgery mostly deals with trauma and other diseases which can present acutely. I think about 10-15% of questions were from surgery.
There were no unusual syndromes or unusual congenital diseases from pediatrics, know the growth and development milestones very well, you will get atleast 2-3 questions from it.
Obs and Gyn surprisingly had a very few questions. mostly from acute presentations. so the idea is to know the topics which can present acutely in detail, especially the management.
psychiatry was about drugs with their side effects and diagnosis.
Time was just enough for me, I could revise a few blocks, but most of the time I had to be satisfied with what I had marked, did'nt get a chance to look at it again.
I took first 2 blocks one after other without breaks, but took short breaks after every block later.
The staff at the prometric were great! they were very professional and helpful.
I have written everything very briefly, if you want to know something please feel free to ask.
good luck to all the exam takers.
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| bunyavirus
Forum Senior
Topics: 14
Posts: 53
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good luck for gr8 score
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| sprint123
Forum Guru
Topics: 129
Posts: 870
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That was short and sweet!Thanx for your expereince and good luck on your score!Can you tell me a bit more on knowing kaplan word by word...I have a feeling that I don't remember the management aspects when I see some questions-But when I turn over the theory again,I curse myself for missing that since I have already read it!
Do have any suggestions asha??
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| doc_clotaire
Forum Guru
Topics: 159
Posts: 1,245
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Thanks for sharing Asha !
Good Luck with your score
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| coolmavs
Forum Elite
Topics: 21
Posts: 327
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Hey asha, good luck for a great score. Did you watch the Kaplan Videos? And did you find it useful?
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Yeh Zeher bhi, yoon piya hai.....Jaise sharaab ho!!!!
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| Malithahe
Forum Senior
Topics: 16
Posts: 171
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Thanks Asha. Good luck for a great score
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| MRMAVERICK
Forum Guru
Topics: 41
Posts: 723
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best of luck for your scores
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| USMLEGladiator
Forum Guru
Topics: 121
Posts: 407
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Congrats asha.Hope u will get exceellant score.
how many months u prepared? How many hrs/day?
Did u use Blue Prints series?
I'm just starting step2 prep.
I'm doing half day job.
I can hardly finish one UW block in 2 days(reading explns).Is therea way to speed up reading speed?
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scores are just up to how high we aim and of course the amount of effort and time we put into it
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| justdoitfor2007
Forum Newbie
Topics: 2
Posts: 11
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thanks Asha for your advice.All the best for your score.
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| asha kamat
Forum Senior
Topics: 12
Posts: 101
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Thanks guys for your good wishes.
One good way to remember is to solve UW questions topic wise following your read from the notes, then you will notice that you had not noticed some important points while you were reading. So the next time you go through the notes you will definately not miss those important points again! it is absolutely normal to overlook important points while you are reading, but as you keep solving more questions you wont find that a problem anymore.
well I could watch only cardiology videos, I had time constraint and could'nt watch all of them.
I took 3 months to prepare, and my study material was kaplan notes and UW. I did not read blueprint. I sincerely think that you can do a good job if you are good with these two. I took most of the time in my prep just to read the explainations, but I guess it is worth reading. So you have to be persistent. It doesnt matter if it goes slow, always something is better than nothing
One more thing to mention I looked up almost every picture of the disease which I came across on google, and read a little more from the internet topics which I felt I did not understand the concepts well.
I did not have any audio or video questions(I dont know if they have started putting those in the exams) but anyho I was happy about it not being there.
And most important of all dont get stressed, it will reduce your performance. Stay focussed
thankyou to this forum and all its members, you guys were a great support during my ups and downs(mostly downs)
good luck to all exam takers, and I will see you soon when I get my results!
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| AAzad
Forum Guru
Topics: 55
Posts: 456
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Thanks for sharing
Good luck
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AAzad
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| coolmavs
Forum Elite
Topics: 21
Posts: 327
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Great advice asha, just one more thing....when you are doing the 2nd or 3rd reading of UW, did you solve the questions all over again or just read the expalnantions.
And a slighly silly question, but thought would ask you never the less, what points do you concentrate on when you are reading the UW material again....
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Yeh Zeher bhi, yoon piya hai.....Jaise sharaab ho!!!!
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| snake0613
Forum Elite
Topics: 89
Posts: 182
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good performace.
congrats
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| vanshita
Forum Guru
Topics: 23
Posts: 824
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Thans for sharing with us GOOD LUCK for score
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| ing
Forum Guru
Topics: 45
Posts: 435
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Thanks and good luck!
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Never give up!!
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| asha kamat
Forum Senior
Topics: 12
Posts: 101
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Hi! there
thanks again for your good wishes. I concentrated on the wrong answers after solving UW, and read the explainations for the wrong ones.
I would suggest that you understand the concepts each time you read UW and kaplan, cos most of the question pattern is similiar to UW. and there are certain places where you have to memorise stuff.
good luck you guys!
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| surgeon99
Forum Senior
Topics: 9
Posts: 98
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good luck for score & residency
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| asha kamat
Forum Senior
Topics: 12
Posts: 101
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Hi! guys,
I got my results and it is 254/99. I want to thank god for giving me strength and courage to believe in myself and pass this test. I owe all this to my kiddo 'mini' who is the best kid in the whole world! who waited patiently for everything while I was reading. I feel lucky to have a wonderful and supportive husband who helped me every step of the way during the whole process. I also want to mention about my friend eshu who always lent me a shoulder to cry when I was in distress
A huge thanks to all the forum members. I have benefited so much from this forum, I feel there is no way I can ever pay it back.
I would be glad to answer any more queries if anyone wants to ask them.
take care you guys and good luck to all of you there.
Believe in your dreams!
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| coolmavs
Forum Elite
Topics: 21
Posts: 327
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Congrats Asha, great score! You deserve it! Would you mind sharing your UW score?
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Yeh Zeher bhi, yoon piya hai.....Jaise sharaab ho!!!!
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| USMLEGladiator
Forum Guru
Topics: 121
Posts: 407
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congrats asha.when did u graduate? is 5 months enough with 6hr/d job for old IMG?
IS uw+kap notes sufficient to get above 90?
did u do any review book like fa/crush/boards n wards?
thanks
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scores are just up to how high we aim and of course the amount of effort and time we put into it
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| Malithahe
Forum Senior
Topics: 16
Posts: 171
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great score Asha. Congratulations!
I'm so happy about you
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Although there are many barriers, people who do good do not fail to pass all those successfully ...
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| dr.Dove
Forum Senior
Topics: 33
Posts: 118
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CONGRATS !!! 
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| asha kamat
Forum Senior
Topics: 12
Posts: 101
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Thankyou! I scored 62% when I solved UW for the first time. I solved all of it 'timed' and read explanations every time. So please keep reading explanations even if the answer you marked is right.
I think 3-4 months is good enough, if you completely devote 6-7 hours of study time. Last month before exams maybe you will have to increase it to 8-9 hours. I dont think it matters much when you graduated unless you have completely lost touch with your subject.
Like I said before kaplan notes and UW should be enough, and definately some questions will be wierd, but the ones from kaplan notes and UW should not be missed. Questions maybe twisted and asked so I think understanding the concepts is the key.
good luck to all of you.
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| USMLEGladiator
Forum Guru
Topics: 121
Posts: 407
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thank u very much
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scores are just up to how high we aim and of course the amount of effort and time we put into it
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| vanshita
Forum Guru
Topics: 23
Posts: 824
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Congratulation
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