Delmar
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 142
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Took exam june 3rd
score 246 - 99
My story:
Old IMG Grad = 2002
my first thoughts of usmle were back to year 1996-97 , thats when i bought the nms series and decided to know abt the usmle, the exam was paper pencil format at that time , but things happened and i had a professor at my college who is like a father to me and told me IMG should take step 1 after finishing their clincal rotations because the exam is so clincally applied and he was 100 % correct, finished medical school and i was one of the top on my class so i was offered residency and faculty staff career at my university , at that time i was torn apart i wanted to do the usmle , but was so hesitant to turn this offer down, took the offer, completed residency an now i am a staff member , but never missed the dream of the usmle, every year i would be some pathology books, first aid and just look at the them and keep following with u on this forum and others proabaly since 2002-03 i was regular checking many forums , but for the demanding job activity didnt have the time to prep, finished my masters and then noew prep for my PHD when i was offered to finish in the USA
and here comes back the chance to do it , i accepted it in a heart beat, came to the states last december doing my research and i decided to finally meet the monster face to face, i remember that it was always freaking me out, just the idea of having this exam, i mean imagine i have been thinking about this exam for 11 years, yeah i have goljan the 2 edition each one got it as soon as it was on the market, brs and ll kind of books u can imagine and yeah i had just a look at this and that and i have the first orginacl copy of first aid , i should make my own historical USMLE museyum i guess.
for 11 years checking whats going arround, until finally i had the chance
ACTUAL EXAM PREP :
total prep time 5 Months, 3 working and 2 months fully dedicated to that exam
material used:
KAPLAN notes (2 times)
UW online score 77 , 85 th percentile
NBME , offline, never done it timed or scored
Goljan Audio 1 time
first Aid , used 2007 and got the 2008 1 month before the exam and used it for that month
TIPS for ur PREP :
1- do kaplan notes 2 times, but time sequence is the important , meaning u can spend 3 weeks doing pathology..do not do that, 1 week and then re read it for another week, thats better
2- road map to biochemistry and gentics are 2 great books i used them after doing kaplan notes 1 time only, they are much smaller but more to the point, the kaplan notes for 2007-2008 are very badly written in this subject
3- UW a great tool, but does not represent the exam really, shifted from the exam and there is like 500 Q that would make u think that the exam is all about receptors and 2nd messengers, yeah they are important but not to that extent , so do not freak out when u see a lot of these, they are not on the actual exam as much but knowing them help u get the global picture ( i ws thinking they made a new science branch called recptorology by the end of my prep LOL) ....UW i did it only once, and reviewd only 450 Qs for a second time, so dont freak out and feel the pressure u have to do it for 10 times
4- Q bank, had it offline , did not use it that much
5- Goljan patholgy book is great, but again the gentic related pathology is very important and not that well highlighted, its there but scattered all over the book, get it form first aid and make sure u understand it and know it and add as u r studying
timed and full length simulations are important
health and sleep are more important than all what i have said, eat well, sleep well, the exam is gona fry ur brain so u'd better be ready
Actual Exam itself:
i took a 5 min break between each block, finished each block 7-10 minutes before and just reviewd
some Qs were wierd and i was so hesitant about them , but i learned to make a choice and move on
u will find some repeated Qs within the same exam i had 3-4 Qs with the same picture and the same case but asking a bit diffrent thing, nt on the same block, do be parnoid and think they are trying to confuse u and relate this Q to the one u saw 2 blocks ago, no its a new Q deal with it
thats it, being watching the forum for at least 5 years i felt i owe u this
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| target
Forum Elite
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Posts: 757
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Thanks Delmar for the detailed experience and prep. I am like you graduated 96 and have all old editions for the USMLE. I can empathize with how you feel about this exam - it is desire that doesnt die........but constantly is there eveyrday of your life. I am in prep for step1 now taking aug end with a job on hand and hence your experience gives me HOPE. Thanks so much!
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| Delmar
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 142
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i am glade i helped some 1, please keep the hope thats what we live 4, no matter how u get drifted from the shore , keeping ur eyes on it u would be able to reach it and here i am just puting my first step on the shore and still many steps to reach the final destination,
please feel free to ask me any Qs and i would be more than happy to help , just as i received a lot of help from you here and at other forums
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| dowjunk
Forum Elite
Topics: 14
Posts: 413
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Man, man, man....................Delmar...................I 'll be the first one on the auction store of ur prestigious museum! ALLs Well that ENDs WELL!
Really appreciate that u shared ur experience! For me the key point is quick intensive reads are more high yield than 3week snaily marathon of one subject!
Cheerz!
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Grad of 2007. Work in progress.......
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| Toledo
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 80
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actually, a very nice and thoughtful story. but tell me dr. Delmar. if the times gets back with u, would u go for USMLE directly or u would again choose to go through ur residency in ur university?
as i am nearly in the same situation now.
by the way, can u tell me where u r from?
thanks again and many best wishes for coming steps
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| usmlekiller
Forum Guru
Topics: 13
Posts: 812
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congrats
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| Delmar
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 142
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Thank you all for ur congrats and sweet words , i am really happy thanks
God, well Toledo, i am from Egypt, and the question ur asking is really quite difficult, i mean i did not land on solid ground yet here in USA , but i cannot deny that my residency added a lot to me not in terms of well constructed planned mangemant of a patient or in depth of basic sceince, but i added the common sense and the skill to know something without knowing, i really dont know how to express that correctly, but working in a university hospital in egypt would give the tools to practice medicine anywhere, but u have to understand that these are not the standerds of care in the USA , but its like the back door or the skill not found in books ( without usmle ..u know little science , but u develop a lot of skills , with usmle added ..u have both, usmle alone without the hell experince in university hospital, i am not sure ,,but it may work as well, it will save u time at least i am 30 now ... i guess thats by defintion is OLD
thanks again
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| doctor123
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Congrats Delmar.
Wish you best of luck in achieving your dream.
DR.123
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ALLAH; guide me to the Path of Success.
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| Toledo
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 80
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Dr. Delmar, again many thanks for ur detailed replies and great help.
by the way, we r ( baladyat). i am also from egypt and i touch this from ur speech about univ residency and USMLE. it is a really dilemma and it is my time to face now and i really hope u can help me in this. i understand what u said about the clinical sense. i really touched it while i was in emtiaz (internship). and sure it is more clear and obvious in residency.
as u many already now i have a difficult choice now. would i go on with USMLE (by the way, i am waitting results of CK) and save years of my life and start with a residency in the US ( which isnt guaranteed), or avoid the risk and start my residency here which is 100% guaranteed, but will be in a speciality i dont like and mostly in a surgery branch which will not benefit me while in the US?
hope i can find a brother`s advice with u
again many thanks
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| gpatama
Forum Newbie
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Congraturation!
great story 
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| Delmar
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 142
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thx gpatama, wish u the same or better score
toledo, thats a life decsion, u have to make that urself, but here is my advice, i was in ur shoes exactly and as u can see i did the residency, so i cannot advice u the contrary, i mean it depends on a lot of variables, social, financial and others for each person
but let me correct u, surgery in egypt would help u greatly in USA, not like what u think it will be a wasted time, no its not , but its not the top notch of course, so it would help yes sureeeee it would, how much it will help, that depends on u , would u skip it and go th usmle directly , sure but ull have to deal with risk of not being granted a residency, whih is minimal by the way and it will save u at least 3 years of ur life
if time goes back , i guess i would go for usmle directly , but again u weigh it from all aspects as i metioned and be frank with urself ..let me know if u need further help
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| ultradocmansu
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congrats!! 
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| ultradocmansu
Forum Junior
Topics: 5
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by the way , r u ibn_sina from usmleforum? 
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| Delmar
Forum Senior
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yes sir, thats not a secret, i posted the same exp over there, because i use the 2 forums equally, there its more active a bit, here its more organized hehehee , anyway i am glade u read my post and wish u not just good luck, but to rock step 1
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| ultradocmansu
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yeah i jus joined this forum recently , but i ve been active in that forum since long..
im done with exam on 10th july .. i ll keep ur wishes for results , in fact i would love if u wish me a decent score too .. goodluck for step 2 forum buddy , see u there too 
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| Toledo
Forum Junior
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Dr Delmar, thanks so much for the sincere and wise advice u gave me. yes, u r right . it is a life decision and so it is a hard one. a so hard one indeed. but can u tell me, what in ur idea is the advantage of taking residency in US over in egypt? i mean what is the benefits i may get if i go their over the looses i will loose here if i go.
hope u get my point
thanks again so much and sorry if i ask so much but u can imagine how hard these days.
((((by the way, what univ u were in?)
Salam alikum
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| Delmar
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 142
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hey buddy, i am at Ain Shams and still titled assistant lecturer there,
advantge of US residency is uncomparable, here the they will teach you how to take care of patients in professional manner with super enforcment of the tiny details about each patient, u did ur internship in egypt u told me right, imagine u walking into the medicine ward having a patient with hepatic encepaholopathy and the resident is reviewing him with a bunch of professors in the round ( which is weekly, but in US daily morning round ), then u would simply ask whats the amonia and ldh levels, looool they might die of a heart attack hahha, seriously and u'll find some great prof talking about his own opinon which is usally based on a previous single case or none....no sir, that does not happen here , if its looks like a zebra then its more likely to be a zebra and within certain situations u can use evidence based medicine...i mean they will reshape ur thinking and u'll be more talented in patients managment overall, as for hand skills in surgery , sure u'll have a grasp on that
the Disadvantage:
seprated from ur home country...thats a real thing not a myth, u will feel it when ur there
long term plans are not as solid because basically u dont know whats gona happen, but if got bpard certified , thats a higher degree than the egyptain MD and when come back home you will be delt with offically a senior consultant ( the syndicate rules)
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| Aashi
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Thanks Delmar, congrats for that awesome score!
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"Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your EYES off your goal."
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| gauri14
Forum Newbie
Topics: 1
Posts: 62
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congrats for the gr8 score!!!
could u tell me how to go for the usmle world q"S???where can i get that frm??plz help!!!thnx...
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| usmlekiller
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http://www.usmleworld.com/
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| Delmar
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 142
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Asshi , thank you so much and i totally agree with ur slogan "Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your EYES off your goal."
dear gauri14, usmleworld , there is a download link floating over the internet u can find it and download it, but i had it and did not use i subscribed for the online Qbank, to get used to exam software adn to get used to do Qs in an exam like atmpshphere, how to speak t the screen, how to u feel today, doing only incorrect previous Q, new only, marked only, subjectwise, system wise, the online bank for sure offers all those varities more over offers u a performance analysis, not to estimate ur actual exam result but rather to know where is ur problem if u have any , so its according to u, but i had the offline thingy i didnt look at it, didnt want to burn the Qs,
timing , when u start subscribing, 3 months before the exam , u will have 2200 Qs in 3 months plus ur review reads..u ll get a 99 easily
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| superstar
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Congratulations!! Very inspiring story! I wish you all the luck ....
a question tho... why did you start doing FA 2008? And would you recommend that one over 2007?
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| Delmar
Forum Senior
Topics: 24
Posts: 142
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thanks my friend
regarding ur FA Q
yes sire its a bit diffrent , but not a hurdle if u didnt get it, i mean being physcian , u know at med school they turn us into anal compulsive personalities LOL, so u find urself driven by those. if u have the time great , do it, even u made notes in the old one copy them, ur revising, if u can get ur hand on it, its here in PDF format on this forum , with the corrections even, print it thats the best and pile it up , when printing make 1 page and leave the back blank, u will have ur own self made first aid ..thats amazing....but dont over do it , i mean if u found urself adding 200 pages ..its not a FA, u will not be able to revise all these, or may be u could but those are not the most high yield, be careful with what u add .GL
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| gauri14
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thanx for ur reply!its really nice to get answers since am all new to the MLE squad and really lost!!
i have started my review frm the kaplan videos nd the books...just wanted to know which one is better btw BRS and FA....i also hear about some errors in FA??is it true??
plus,is Q review(of kaplan) different frm the Q bank ??
and plz advice me as to when do i start doing the q"S and whats the max time i shud take to finish reading kaplan??
thanx a million!!!
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| Toledo
Forum Junior
Topics: 9
Posts: 80
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Dr. Delmar, thanks so much for such great help. it is so nice to see a brother like u giving us a hand.
if not annoyed, i will be happy if u share me my trip to decide where to go with the USMLE or proceed with residency here( just now hope Allah would bless me with a good score in CK).
thanks from my heart.
and best wishes for next steps
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