busybee
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 115
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just got the result.........99/238.........tho 3 dig is lower than my st 1(99/247).......im happy!.........esp coz i gave the exam with almost 2 hrs of sleep the night b4.........and was very groggy in exam...............so , am very grateful to God who has been kind, very kind to me......i gave the exam with just 2.5 mnths prep and lost of personal probs...........feels so good now!...gl to all
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| innocent devil
Forum Guru
Topics: 54
Posts: 748
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congrats dear.can u plz tell the material u used,plan of treatment n ur score in pre examz assessment tool
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man of unknown principles
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| nany
Forum Guru
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congratulations 
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" You Are Limited Only By What You Think "
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| busybee
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 115
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kaplan video and notes, fa for only things not in kaplan coz sometimes the mx in the 2 was conflicting , so i only used fa where kaplan was deficent....uw........my avg was 72 %..........made lil notes from qs i got wrong and those which i got right but wasnt too sure of..........i did not do any nbme forms..........thats it , gl
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| anuba
Forum Elite
Topics: 6
Posts: 449
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Congrats busybee!
How many times do I have to read FA? can u please share your strategy? Thanks.
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| gr8doc
Forum Senior
Topics: 8
Posts: 210
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Congrats !!!! Time to celebrate !!!!!
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| smalley
Forum Elite
Topics: 54
Posts: 297
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great score
congratulations
enjoy
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But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint-Isaiah 40:31
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| ing
Forum Guru
Topics: 45
Posts: 435
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Congrats!
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Never give up!!
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| srita
Forum Junior
Topics: 11
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congrats
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| MRMAVERICK
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congrats
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| SOS
Forum Guru
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congrats
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| busybee
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 115
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hi all
ok........so this is all info i hav to offer
TIME I SPENT ON ST 2CK :- total 2.5 mnths......in which first 3 weeks were wen i had to go to kaplan to see vidoes..........i didnt really have a choice coz i had already applied for this match with just a st1 score....was awaiting cs results wen id applied and i had to take ck ASAP..........i already delayed it in terms of this match and so , i had only 6 calls..............not grt but better than most.....so everyone was telling me to take it in late oct/early nov........but i didnt think i wud b able to do justice to the exam and i didnt compromise for the sake of a few more calls......coz the way i saw it , no matter how many calls i got , no one wud want me if i didnt score well.......OFCOURSE , had i had a choice , id have taken the exam in dec/jan...done more qbank ........etc........
STUDY MATERIAL I USED:- Kaplan videos and notes.....managed to go thru then abt 6 times..first time was while i saw videos ......took 3 weeks but that was coz i had to go to kaplan everyday . commute wasnt easy and took over 2 hrs a day up and down...i guess if u hav dvds at home , it can b done in 2 weeks.......second revision was on my own...2 weeks......then each revision took 10 days.......last revision was wrapped up in a week
Used FA only for things not covered in kaplan.......after i did a section from kaplan id go thru the relevant section in FA and mark what wasnt there in kaplan.........at times i found FA and kaplan conflicting esp in management issues.......eg hyernatremia/hyonatremia.......i stuck to kaplan coz i found it more systematic and it actually gave u an algorithm while fa just randomly listed the management options.....i think i went thru FA 2-3 times.........derm is well covered......do it with kaplan.......and also go thru the last few pages abt s/e of drugs etc.......good stuff.......
I only did uw coz i really had no time.......tried qbook initially , did like 1/4 of it but i found the qs real easy and they r not like wat u get on the exam so , i didnt do it........hey , i had no time.........if i did have time , id hav done it page tp page.......
so , for uw i made my own notes , of those i got wrong plus some i got right either as a fluke or i found something i didnt know completely......my avg was 72%......but in the beginning , id scores from 50s to 80s.......in a couple of weeks tho....it started to stabilize as i bcame more thorough with the notes........and dont let low scores bog u down , just keep studying and they will improve automatically.....TRUST ME.......i saw it happen in st 1 and st 2.......
for st 1 i had done the kaplan qbank too but this time i cudnt coz of lack of time........but if u do hav time......do it.........the more qs u do the better it is.....
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| busybee
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 115
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ok the exam was not as hard as uw but , i wud not say its easy , its not a cake walk.......but if uve done uw ull find urself pretty wel prepared and the qs , most of them anyway , will seem easier.......some qs, id say 4-5 , tested me on concepts i learned from uw only....so tyhat was good , not like the qs were exactly like the ones in uw but these 4-5 wr very similar.......
in the exam , keep ur cool and think straight......lots of qs rnt from any book u hav read and require u just to b able to think clearly as to wat might b the next best step in management etc...
med-max qs r from this...so do it real well
obgyn and paeds - next in max in representation
surg then
psych
and least ethics /stats......they r real easy not like st 1.
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| oldkidontheblock
Forum Guru
Topics: 57
Posts: 912
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Congrats....
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Malcolm Forbes: Victory is sweetest when you've known defeat
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| busybee
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 115
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DO get some sleep the night b4.......take benaryl if hav to.........i had a terrible night......barely 2 hrs of scattered sleep.......so was very tired and groggy in exam , had to wash my face after every block just to keep awake....after 4 blocks , i was soooooooooo tired.......i prayed to God to somehow carry me thru the day........in the morning my biggest fear wasnt how difficult the exam wud b but how id cope with next to no sleep........
For me , there wr 3 challenges -
1) very lil prep time....most ppl study for at least 4- 5 mnth.....some for 8-9......so i was real scared , with just 2.5 mnths prep time......at times i was like , what the hell am i doing???.......
2) had just gotten married and moved to the us a few months back , so managing household chores with studying wasnt easy......my husband did help , but being a resident himself, he was so busy that there wr times that i felt overwhelmed by eveything.......i had to work so hard , id cook in my 'break time'!.........was a tough time for both of us.....sometimes he wud come home tired and then he wud cook......so wasnt easy!
3 ) not getting a decent amt of sleep the night b4 made it really tough to concentrate......SOOO thankful to God for helping me thru.....after my exam , i wasnt sure if my dream for a 99/99 wud ever come true.......but it did.......even tho just barely , only coz God helped me thru that day.....!
but at the end of the day , tho im NOT being ungrateful and greedy cant help but wonder , wat if id had a restful nights sleep?.....how wud it hav affected the score.....but thats only coz id studied 15-17 hrs a day for 2.5 mnths.......
in the end.........work hard , believe in urself and God will help u.......u can get a grt score..........even with loads of difficulties(everyone has some)........it is possible to do real well......u dont havt to b super brilliant, im not , but with dedication and reasonable intelligence , anyone can do it.......and keep going at it , even if uw scores scare u , it happens with everyone.....if time , u WILL improve......sorry for such a loooong post....but cudnt help it!
gl to all , i hope i cud be of some help to saomeone.
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| anuba
Forum Elite
Topics: 6
Posts: 449
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Thanks a lot busybee. Great you were the busiest bee & you did GREAT! Congratulations again. You amazed me!
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| busybee
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 115
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ohhhhhhh........almost forgot.........at times i found answers in uw conflicting with those in kaplan.......so either referred to harrison or stuck to kaplan.........also do look at ecgs in harrison....see the ecg patterns for all u can.......and see derm pics in harrison.......
i got 3 ecgs , as far as i can recall....1 was inf wall mi, 2 was post wall mi(all changes will b reverse of ant wall , st depr not elevation etc) and 3rd was svt..........so do look at all possible ecgs coz if i hadnt , i wudnt hav been able to get svt.......
got 2 media clips.......opda in child and mr in pt with recent mi.......
gl
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| busybee
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 115
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and di uw in timed mode with mixed qs.........that to my mind is the best way to practse for the test........coz if u do untimed/subject specific tests, u may score grt but, hey the exam will not b like that so how does it matter.........so do timed and mixed...
gl......promise this is the last 'tip'.......
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| busybee
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 115
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thanx everyone for ur good wishes.......hope i cud help someone......happy holidays and gl......
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| falcon
Forum Elite
Topics: 12
Posts: 262
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Hi, busybee
Special congratulation for ur great score, especially in such a short time of 2 and half months , while taking care of all household. It is really commendable.
I have 3 months and wants more than 90 score( I already got 96 score in step-1). As u mentioned u listened DVDs and read Kaplan notes in 3 weeks. I am listening DVDs now a days, but I am very slow, I could hardly listen one hour DVD in 2 hours. Could u please elaborate a little bit more how u managed this in 3
weeks. Did u take notes from DVDs. Did u listened all DVDs. I am really confused and want to enhance my speed. Your advice will be very precious for me.
Happy holidays and Eid Mubarik
GL FOR UR RESIDENCY OF UR DREAM
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| busybee
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 115
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thanx falcon,
well , i didnt have dvds.....had to go to kaplan and see videos......so i did lik 9 to 10 hrs almost straight.....from 10 am to like 7-8 pm......with lil coffee and lunch brks......i only saw like 2/3 of pediatrics coz it was a real bore......otherwise i tried to read b4 i saw something and also took notes as i saw it......if u hav dvds at home , it is much better.....u can start and stop at ur own convenience , not at the center's convenience etc.......ull hav to motivate urself.it wont b easy......but ull do it.......try to read the topics b4 u see the dvd......it really helped me.....ofcourse i cudnt do it all the time , but i managed to do it for most things.....
gl....
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| arlete
Intern in 2009!!!!!
Topics: 36
Posts: 2,553
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Congrats!
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When men make the rules, God decides the exceptions.
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| falcon
Forum Elite
Topics: 12
Posts: 262
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Thanks very much , busybee
I have those videoes at home. As u said that reading the topic before the looking/listening vidioes is better methodology and Pediatriacs video is not that helpful. I will opt same method.
Could u please tell me which subject videoes are really worth looking/listening and which are those that really help u in attaining such a great score in shot span of time.
I will be really grateful to u. I feel obliged that I am consuming so much precious time of you.
BEST OF LUCK FOR UR RESIDENCY OF UR CHOICE
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| crazyserb
Forum Newbie
Topics: 4
Posts: 41
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Congrats busybee!!!!!
One question... How much of those stupid statistics questions were present!?!?? I'm taking the exam soon and so don't have time to go through that again, have more import thigs to go over! What I understood most are IM, gyne, pedi and surg... with some psych... right??
Thanks 
M
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| busybee
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 115
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hi
thanx arlete and crazyserb
falcon.......do all videos czo i think they really bring things to life and help u retain esp if u dont hav months and months of prep time......id say even for paeds...try to do as much as possible........i cudnt , i did like select topics 2/3 of the whole course of paeds.......
ur luck that u can space ur hrs of doing videos at home with meals /brks.....so use the advantage......i think total 9-10 hrs of videos is pretty do-able......and throw in 2-3 hrs for reading the topic......btu then , everyone is the best judge abt wat works for them......dont take my advice to the letter....modify as u feel suits u best.......
crazyserb......statistics has verrrry smaill representation in the test.......not like step 1......i think i got like 5-6 qs in all.......and very basic stuff......sensitivity etc......nothing out of the world.....dont worry!...gl
gl to all
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