hitesh
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Topics: 64
Posts: 1,087
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I took step 1 today and damn! was it long!! I had almost no energy left in me by the end of it... 8 hrs is too long a time for me to sit at one place.. I havent even ever studied for 8 straight hours.. rather, i have never done anything for eight straight hours before.. ( 'cept for playing video games when i was younger  )
The good thing is its done now and am on to step 2 ck next..
So, a bit about my exam : the questions were not too lengthy.. easier than UW.. Kinda like mid way between UW and the Usmle cd test (3 blocks).. had enough time to review the marked ones in each block.. I'd break it down as 20% give-aways, 40% easy questions, 25% moderate and 15% hard.. Had a few questions in each block that I had no clue about. Now i know the answers to some of those, but even if i had studied for 6 more months, i would not have known those small tiny irrelevant facts .. i really dont regret not knowing those..
The most striking thing that i noticed (and some thing that I have never heard anyone saying before) is that it felt as if they (USMLE guys) were short of concepts they wanted to test.. I had several questions testing the same things again and again.. And each time I'd look to see if it was a tricky one or something.. Why would they wanna test the same concepts .. just in different scenarios...!? 
But all in all, It was pretty manageable ('cept for the last two blocks when i was really tired and sleepy and just wanted to get it over with asap..  ) and I'm satisfied with what I did. I 'd advise everyone to take a good 8-10 hr sleep before the exam. unfortunately, I could get barely 3 hrs of sleep and i think that it really affected my performance.. So, Keep that alprazolam handy the night before.. Dont think twice before taking it.. Make sure you get a good night's sleep.. 
A bit about my prep:
Prep time: 2 months ( abt 9 weeks)
I read FA ( It's really good.. Pls dont skip it, however good at anything you may be).. Used Kaplan LNs for Path, biochem, pharma, BS and half of anatomy.. Did UW - did all the questions but could read thru the explainations of only 70% of it.. Cumulative score - 72%.
Took NBME 5 ( 20 days back) - 610
UW and FA were the backbone of my prep..
I hope I get the result soon.. and hopefully something good..
On to step 2 forums now!
Good Luck all !!
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| Aashi
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Thanks hitesh....GL for a wonderful score!
All the best for step2 CK!
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| usmlekiller
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thx man gl wit ur score.......im sure nothing less than 99!!!!!!
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| match2010
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 Hey first of all congrats for getting done with this ....and secondly good luck for your score but you dont need much luck as you will get nothing less than 99 ( as predicted by your nbme as well ) !!!
Did you do Rapid review goljan ? and for how long did you sign up for UW .....and did you do kaplan Q bank as well .....you prepared for 2 months only .....damn you must have read 15-16 hrs a day then !!
i hv my exam in 2 months exact  , what do you suggest i suld focus more on !! goood luck with ur step 2 prep !!
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| hitesh
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Thank you Aashi..!
Thank you usmlekiller..!
@ match2010... Thank you!.. No, i didnt do RR goljan.. but i did listen to goljan audio lectures last year ( not sure if it helped me). I signed up for UW for 1 month and then extended it by 2 weeks... No i didnt do kaplan Q bank.. I typically used to study 5-6 hrs a day.. 8 hrs at max.. I get too tired of studying too easily .. And since i didnt read a lot of books, 5-6 hrs a day for 2 months was enough to get through FA and most of UW.
I 'd advise you to know FA well.. Try to know the concepts rather than facts.. Keep adding notes to FA and revise just that in the final 3-4 days.. thats what i did... And dont forget to get that elusive sleep the night before ! 
Good Luck!
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| usmlekiller
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wow man u must be a genius......barely using ne review books!!! props to u bro....
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| g@uri
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Heyy you are done ! Thanks for the tips hitesh
u'll get a great score , GL
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| hitesh
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Thank you usmlekiller... But, I'd wait to say anything till i get my score..lol.. I mean, none of what i said would have any value if I got a low score..
and,.. FA is "the review book"..!! trust me.. Most people underestimate what it's worth.. i did too, till i read it.. What it lacks is details, but hey, its not meant to give you details.. FA covers almost all the topics that are tested on the exam.. infact, I'd rate it as one of the most efficient and concise (and pretty close to being complete) review books..
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| hitesh
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Thank you gauri !
Good Luck!
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| g@uri
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oh just a quick question ....have u gone through kaplan medessential ? how did you find that book?
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| match2010
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how many times did you do FA ? and you added notes from UW to it ?
Thanx for the prompt reply ...
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Rather the pain of discipline than the pain of regret.
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| hitesh
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@ gauri : No, i didnt do medessential
@match2010: I did FA twice. I added notes to whatever i thought was not discussed in enough detail but was important to know. e.g. Brachial plexus.. notes that i added were from UW / internet/ Kaplan LNs / Kaplan Qbook ( this was another book that i used. Sorry, i forgot to mention this). I didnt add a lot of notes to FA, 'cos mostly i didnt have the patience or the time to.. but I think it helps a lot.. "cos afterall, FA does skip a lot of important details
Edited by hitesh on 07/29/08 - 09:09 AM
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| maoudoody
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good luck hitesh
610 ia about 242 so 99 inshallah
Edited by maoudoody on 07/30/08 - 03:25 AM
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| spinal shock
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good luck, hope you best
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| littledoc
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thanks for your advise & good luck for ur score ( ofcourse 99! )
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"slow & steady wins the race!"
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| hitesh
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maoudoody, spinal shock, littledoc Thank you! and Good Luck!
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| usmledreams
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hey hithish....congrats!!!
u really have done a commendable job!!!
u really must be a genius.....
i did not clear my step in the 1st attempt!!!
what i really lacked was confidence and i went without goin thru first aid thoroughly...
ijst gav it a glance
do u hav any advices 4 me??
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| hitesh
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Topics: 64
Posts: 1,087
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usmledreams : Since you have been through this once, you already know what your weak area are. Work on those.. Do read FA. Take NBME before the exam and trust the results..
Good Luck!
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| pujan
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Great score on the NBME Hitesh. You should be pretty optimistic with your scores. I am taking the exam tomorrow, hope it goes well. Would like to take time to thank this forum and great ppl here. Will be posting my experience soon. Cheers guys!
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| hitesh
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Topics: 64
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Good Luck Pujan !
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