Class 2011Step 1 Prep Survey

8/4/2019 Class 2011Step 1 Prep Survey

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T H IS IS HOW WE: DO I T :Recommendations from the KSOM c/o 2011 on how to rock the USMLE Step 1.

The Numbers:~236: average score in the K50M c/o 2011~73%: students sat isf ied with their score- 23: Average number of days between the comprehensive final andtaking the U5MlE (most students took the exam 2- 3 weeks after thecamp).- 97.8% percent of students used "F irst Aid for the USMLE Step 1"- 88.2% of students thought First Aid was essential!

Distribution of Step 1 scores for KSOM c/o 201120.0%15.0%10.0%5.0% -I--.,:a--------- H;!.....I-II-t~ .... -0.00/0 +-.--r-.-.-.-.~~r_~~~~~-.-..,~r_~~

When to begin studying:-10% of students began their s tudies early in the spr ing semester.- Another 10% of students began studying at the beginning of springbreak.

- 75% of students began studying at the end of springbreak/beginning of 1(5.

- Only 13% of students annotated their f irst aid during organ systemsin the second year. Don't worry if you didn't!

Making a study plan:We recommend you create a genera l long-term study plan at thebeginning of 1(5,by assigning specif ic subjects to each week. Atthe beginning of each week, define daily goals wi th specific pagenumbers and number of questions you plan to complete inquestion banks. Be carefu l not to make your study calendarover ambi tious or too vague.- 89% of students had some sort of study plan that led them upto test day.

- 10% of students studied mater ial randomly, with no specificdai ly or weekly goals.

- 100% of students that stud ied materia l randomly now hatethemselves.

- 48% of students def ined weekly objectives and study goa Iswithno daily organization.

- 41% of students had focused daily goals defined more than aweek in advance.-11 % of students left one day a week open to study difficult ort roubling topics they encountered during the week.

In the weeks leading up to the exam, howmuch did you study? (average)

30.0%20.0%10.0%0.0%

uno


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"I wish I would have- Done more practice questions and focused more on my problemareas.

- Purchased USMLE World and never used Kaplan.- Studied harder earl ier and finish my question banks- Exerc ised more to rel ieve stress and maintain my sanity .- Studied more in the fi rst two years.-Studied earlier , and made notes in f irst aid ear lier .-Focused on more quest ions and less on small detai ls .- Taken the test ear lier .- Taken the test earlier, I f elt like I peaked the week before onpractice tests and did worse on the real thing.

- L istened to al l o f the Goljan lectures at least twice.- Studied harder toward the end.- Allowed more t ime for biochemistry .- Uti lized ICSmore; it 's a good chance to review.- Forced myself to stayon campus on after ICS.- Done USMLE world in random mode. I tried to do questionsspecific for one organ system early on, but I forgot material that Istudied earlier.

- Memorized pharm better and purchased pharm flash cards.- Thoroughly f inished both Kaplan and USMLEQ banks, and had timeto review the questions I answered wrong.

- Skipped the NBME, it's worthless.- Made a study schedule and stuck with it. You'll be surprised howmuch info you can fit in your head if you just sit down and do it.

- Minimized my distractions. Deleted my facebook account.- Started studying earlier.- Postponed the exam, because I never reached my peak.- A imed for a higher score. I met the goal I set for myself, but if I hadset a higher goal I might have done better.

- Taken a vacation between second year and third year.- Relaxed the day of the test. Iw as very nervous, and I think itnegatively impacted my score.

- Tackled the difficult topics earlier.

Rescheduling your exam:- 22% of our class rescheduled their exam. Three quarters ofthese people scheduled their exam earlier. One quarter ofthese individuals scheduled their exam later.

- Most people who rescheduled their exam, for earl ier or la ter,were later satisf ied with their decision.

- If you reschedule your exam, realize that it is difficult to moveyour test date within the three week period, as most testingcenters are booked at least a month in advance.

Special Recommendations for ICS:- "I thought of study time as separate from ICS,and did notspend much time outside of ICSworking on it. I sti ll learnedfrom it but also covered material at home. But be sure to planout loosely blocks of what you will study when so you do notskip things."

- "Use ICSas a framework of what to review, at least at first. Payattention, participate, keep notes of topics you don't know well.Use the afternoons to prep that material ; you should feel readyto teach that stuff to someone else if you had to. For Step 1, youwill spend a lot of time reading things, thinking "I get that," andmoving on. You might "get it" when it's written in front of you,but try to be sure you really KNOW the material and can workwith it. It would be golden if you didn't waste study time justreading without real ly ingesting the materia l. Th is is what takingpract ice tests will rea lly help you wi th: the q-banks wi ll showyou if you truly understand the material. During IC5, make sureyou take time to take long hikes or go running. Zone out andlisten to Gol jan as appl icable to what you are studying. He canbe annoying, but you'll start to see what areas you're weak on."- "00 the bare minimum needed for ICS;ICSis good preparationfor third year, but poor preparation for Step 1.At home afterclass, solely study for the USMLE using First Aid and/or Gol jan. Itmay be possible to sneak in Step 1 studying during ICSsessions,which could be a better use of your time."

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Special Recommendations for ICS (continued):- "I made my study plan correlate with the weekly topics of ICS.Integrate ICSinto your study schedule by matching up chapter inFirst Aid with weekly ICStopics. Here was my schedule:Week 1: Headache (Neuro + Psych), Week 2: Abdominal Pain(Renal + GI), Week 3: Fatigue (Endo + Heme), Week 4: Dizziness(Repro, Biochem, Preventive Medicine)Week 5: SOB (Respiratory + Cardiovascular), Week 6: Fever(Microbiology, Pharm, loose ends from core)Week 7: ER(MSK, Derm, Gross Anatomy)For the cumulative exam just reread the notes someone types upin your MOL the day before exam. there will be at least onenotetaker."

- "Make a schedule to go through all of FirstAlD (starting day 1 ofICS)by a week or two before the cumulative. Pay attent ion duringICSand schedule your boards studying around each week as muchas possible (i.e. review first AID section of neuro during theheadache week). Don't study for ICSi tself unti l a week before thecumulative. Having a group of friends (5 or so) on the same studyschedule can be very helpful for both asking quest ions, keepingyourselves motivated, and supporting each other."

- "I did not coordinate my study schedule with ICS,and just paidattention in ICSand learned as much as I could during ICSclasstime, then studied according to my own schedule after class."

- "Take good notes and be present during ICSso that you haveconcise notes to study f rom for the comprehensive test. But whenyou go home in the afternoon, study for the boards, NOT ICS(real ly no reason to study for ICS).You can be studying the sametopic as ICSbut there isno reason to study specif ica lly for ICSunt ilbefore the comp."

Award for "SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT RESOURCE":1Stplace - First Aid for USMlE Step 12nd place - USMlE World3rd Place - Kaplan Q bank

Top 5 recommended resources for studying:1.First Aid for the USMlE2. Goljan Audio3. Rapid Review Pathology (Goljan Book)4. Premade flashcard for Pharm and Micro5. Costanzo Physiology

Five resources we do NOT recommend:1. lecture Notes from systems2. Kaplan Review, volume of 4 books (too much info)3. BRS Review Pathology4. Medical Microbiology and Immunology ( lange)5. Microbiology Made Ridiculously Simple (too much info)

Tips on books:- A majority of our class purchased First Aid onl ine using aninternet coupon to Borders.

- "Don't use too many resources: 2 books, plus a question bank isenough."

- "Share books and switch off with classmates."- "Everyone freaks out and buys too many books; and I bet youwill too."

- "Buy used books to save money, except you should purchase thelatest version of first aid . "

- "Buy books on subjects our school isweak in (ie Biochem,behavioral sciences, and embryo)"- "Don't just pick the book with the most facts; pick the book youcan actually read/study from. If you absorb facts, p ick a fact book(ie first aid). If not, pick a book with paragraphs (ie step up)."

- "Don't but too many books at once, wait and see which areasyou need help on and then get them; otherwise you may notmake it through all the books."

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How to organize your First Aid:- Your First Aid book is the skeleton of everything you need toknow to ace Step 1. It's essential. that you organize your text in aneasy to use fashion - you'll be spending hund reds of hours with it!- You can get your USMLEF irst Aid spiral bound at Kinko's for acouple of bucks.- If you opt to get your First Aid spiral bound, consider getting thecover laminated or protecting it in some way. Your book will getpretty beat up over this ten week period.- There is a PDFv ersion of First Aid; a hand full of students usedjust the PDFv ersion - which allows you to quickly search fo rkeywords.-95% of the class made notes in thei r book. The margins a re wideand provide sufficient space for notes, but most people addedextra pages at the end of each chapter.- 45% of the class used some color scheme in thei r note taking.-90% of the class used tabs to divide the chapters of their book toallow for quick reference.

NBME Practice Exams:-NBME test are actual

board exams that havebeen retired.

- These exams are forsale at :nbme.org.

Information about question banks:- 93% of people believe USMLE World was most like the realexam.

- 95% of students purchased a subscription to USMLE World.- 83% of students purchased a subscription to Kaplan Qbank.- 13% of students used Kaplan Qbook.-12% of Students used USMLE Rxquest ion bank.- Only 40% of peop.le who purchased USMLE World were ableto finish al l of the questions avai lab le. Most peopleunderestimated the amount of time it takes to answer andstudy pract ice quest ions - plan ahead.

-73% of ind ividuals said that they studied questions they gotwrong in detail and would usually take notes on why they gotthe wrong answer.

- Closer to the exam, one third of the class used the qbanks tosimulate real exam condit ions (performing 7 blocks of 48questions).


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The KSOM curriculum prepared me well for:1) Pathology2) Gastrointestinal3) Endocrine4) Hematology5) Reproductive6) Cardiovascular7) Biostatistics

The KSOM curriculum did NOT prepare me as well for thefollowing subjects:1) Embryology2) Behavioral Science3) Biochemistry4) Psychiatry5) Pharmacology6) Microbiology

Special Recommendations for ICS:- I thought of study time as s eparate from ICS,and did not spendmuch time outside of ICSworking on it. I still learned from it buta lso covered material at home. But be sure to plan out looselyblocks of what you will study when so you do not skip things.

-U se ICSas a framework of what to review, at least at first. Payattention, participate, keep notes of topics you don't know well.Usethe afternoons to prep that material ; you should feel readyto teach that stuff to someone else if you had to. For Step 1,you'll spend a lot of time reading things, thinking "I get that," andmoving on. You might "get it" when it's written in front of you,but try to be sure you really KNOW the material and can workwith it. It would be golden if you didn't waste study time justreading without really ingesting the mater ial. This iswhat tak ingpractice tests wi ll real ly help you with: the q-banks wil l show youi f you truly understand the materia l. During ICS,make sure youtake time to take long hikes or go running.

- Do the bare minimum needed for ICS; ICSis good preparationfor third year, but poor preparation for Step 1. At home afterclass, sole ly study for the USMLE using First Aid and/or Gol jan. Itmay be possible to sneak in Step 1 studying during ICSsessions,which could be a better use of your time.- I made my study plan correlate with the weekly topics of ICS.Integrate ICSinto your study schedule by matching up chapterin First Aid with weekly ICStopics.Example schedule:Week 1: Headache (Neuro + Psych), Week 2: Abdominal Pain(Renal + GI), Week 3: Fatigue (Endo + Heme), Week 4: Dizziness(Repro, Biochem, Preventive Medicine)Week 5: SOB (Respiratory + Cardiovascular), Week 6: Fever(Microbiology, Pharm, Loose ends from core)Week 7: ER(MSK, Derm, Gross Anatomy)

- Make a schedule to go through all of FirstAlD (starting day 1 ofICS)by a week or two before the cumulative. Pay at tent ionduring ICSand schedule your boards studying around eachweek asmuch as possib le (Le. review fi rst AID section of neuroduring the headache week). Don't study for ICSi tsel f unti l aweek before the cumulative. Having a group of friends (5 or so)on the same study schedule can be very helpful for both askingquest ions, keeping yourselves motivated, and supporting eachother.

- I did not coordinate my study schedule with ICS,and just paidattention in ICSand learned as much as I could during ICSclasst ime, then studied according to my own schedule after class.- Take good notes and be present during ICSso that you haveconcise notes to study from for the comprehensive test. Butwhen you go home in the afternoon, study for the boards, NOTICS(really no reason to study for ICS).You can be studying thesame topic as ICSbut there is no reason to study specifically forICSuntil before the comp.

- Do what feels right - spend some time reviewing what youlearned that day and then study some USMlE stuff as well -whatever you feel l ike.

cinco


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General Advice from the c/o 2011:- The test is a lot harder than many of the NBME practice tests so don't be fooled by those high scores! Do quest ions early and be disciplined aboutgoing through First Aid in its entirety, and you will be able to do well.

- This is a marathon, pace yourself, and work hard. You will get two months into it and start to go crazy. Its important to sometimes just take thenight off and relax. Also, the best thing I ever did was take weekend off after IC5. I went to a wedding, hung out with friends, and did nothing fortwo days. I came back refreshed and ready to go for next two or three weeks before my exam.

- When you are miserable, st ressed and doubt ing everything about yourself, remember that you are in a school that historically scores high on theboards because they teach you for the test and remember that the your score really will end up similar to your med school exam scores.

- Ingeneral, try to be thorough and diligent, but don't beat yourself up. You will not be very productive if you feel too down on yourself. This is ahard time for everyone, especially for people who are not natural studiers. This is a test you can't get by without putting in a lot of hard work, Idon't care how smart you are or how well you test. It's a different breed of exam. Our school will give you the time to prep, but just try to use it ina smart way. Early on, use review books; transition to more and more practice questions as you go. This is a one-time thing, so give it your bestshot.

- Take breaks and days off. Focus on understanding the material rather than getting through it. You don't need to care about every Qbank questionyou get wrong (especially Kaplan). Try to guess what's important to know - some of the qbank material is too detailed and esoteric to bothermemorizing.- Remember to exercise/ take daily breaks to do things that make you feel good. Reduce drama in your life as much as possible around the test .Going the extra yard during ICSreal ly helps for both Step 1and clerkship years. Make sure to study something everyday. Focus on Pharm andMicrobio early and cont inually come back to it for review. Do as much Q-Bank as possible, but remember it will not cover all of the content.

- Try to make a good schedule but don't over do it with too much to cover each day, try hard to stick to the schedule so you don't get behind. Plan atrip or something very soon after your date for the boards so you can't change it, you will be so nervous the day before but you just need to takeit!! Most people didn't do any better by postponing. Even if you don't study with other people, find someone who you can study next to so that youwill stay motivated, it gets tough to spend soooo many hours in the library.

- Study 12 hours a day for 6 weeks straight then take the test and you'll get a 240 or above.-Usea flashcard software such as iFlash for Mac. I cannot emphasize this enough. For me this was as key as First Aid, Q banks, etc. Use a programwhere you can create your own flash cards (and which you can customize to quiz you more on the ones you missed, etc.) Do it every day along withreading and Q banks. You will knock this puppy out of the park. If you like studying around other people, use friends to help mot ivate you but don'tlet their goals or study styles drive you crazy. Remember: By this point you will have made it through two years of med school- your studystrategies obviously AREworking and you're allowed to stick to an independent study plan. Use First Aid as an out line, try to review as many topicsin more depth as you can, listen to Goljan multiple times, and do practice questions and practice tests whenever you're tired of reading.

- Allow yourself a weekend of f after the comprehensive. And, remember, it is a hard test, it is a huge amount of material, you can't memorizeeverything, you won't know it al l, and you'l l survive (you' ll excel) just like hundreds of your Keck predecessors have and col leagues around thecountry will. A small percentage of hard-working people have to take the exam more than once, but in general this test is not designed to weedpeople out . So just give it your best shot and be proud that you honestly set a new standard for yourself in this test of endurance. let it consumemost of your time (for a few months) but not your enthusiasm for medicine or your outlook on life, and get excited about the more fulfilling worldof clinical learning ahead of you. We'll be looking forward to seeing some friendly new faces around the hospital short ly.

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Class 2011Step 1 Prep Survey