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USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

Salam everyone let me start in the name of Allah whorsquos the greatest benefactor of all mankind I am going towrite a detailed composition regarding preparation for USMLE Step 1 I am a final year student at King EdwardMedical University and I took my exam on June 10th Final year is the year before internship house job inPakistan I just got my scores 99266

Let me introduce some myths surrounding USMLE Step 1 which are especially prevalent within Pakistan I amnot too sure about India because I heard their students typically appear in their final years

Myth number 1Do not appear for USMLE Step 1 within your graduation

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

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Verdict Baseless illogical reasoning

Explanation This is so prevalent in Pakistan itrsquos almost pathetic One of the biggest concerns surrounding ourstudents is that Step 1 is a huge risk to be taken before graduation Let me put it in another way Step1 wouldalways remain a risk whenever it is taken whether during or after graduation whether with a preparation of 4months or a preparation 14 months It is an unpredictable exam Let me reassure you that taking Step1 withinyour graduation would 90 of times result in a score that would be substantially higher than when havingtaken after your graduation Why Itrsquos simple You have a habit of studying for prolonged time periods and youhavenrsquot yet stepped into your professional field Furthermore what you have been studying all along duringyour medical studies is still fresh in your mind Basic sciences is something that troubles even theexperienced doctors let alone a mere young student Itrsquos all about finding the right tempo to study forextended time and when you enter the profession that is something quite troublesome Take my advicerather than wasting your time during your medical studies spend it swimming through Step1 recommendedtextbooks Remember you are in direct competition with medical students of US They typically appear for Step1 at theend of their 2nd year and Step2 at the end of their 4th year

Myth number 2 You need clinical exposure to fully understand Step1rsquos clinical vignettes Verdict Not necessarily

Explanation Remember US medical students donrsquot have any clinical exposure leading up to their Step1 examWhile attending wards may help you understand the methodology leading to diagnosis and management youdefinitely do not need to wait till you acquire maximal clinical experience for Step1 Most of the cases can befully understood easily by simply applying knowledge of basic sciences you just learnt Radiographs and grossspecimens can be practiced by simply getting help from the world wide web and selected universitydepartment websites Similarly heart sounds can be made available through a simple Google search You justneed to be active enough to utilize the internet as an aid to your studies You would only be rarely tested formanagement of the patient which is the primary focus of Step2 CK and not Step1 In majority of occasionsapplication of knowledge of basic sciences is what is expected of you

Myth number 3 Cram by heart all of Kaplan series Verdict Wrong and time wasting

Explanation Let me begin by stating US medical students only rarely if ever turn to Kaplan for their study Ata later stage of this article I would lay out the recommended books for you Kaplan definitely is a good seriesbut thinking that it lays out the syllabus content of Step1 for you is nonsense Step1 does not have a very welldefined syllabus The closest you can get is finding the syllabus release on usmleorg for Step1 Instead ofspending time cramming all of it itrsquos more useful to concentrate on selected areas more

You can totally skip out its Physiology book and replace it with BRS Physiology You can do the same toPathology book and replace with Goljan Yoursquod need to supplement biostatistics with high yield biostatistics Alot of information written in Kaplan is vague especially the Genetics part of Biochemistry and very rarely if atall tested Some topics need more elaboration than whatrsquos published Cancer chemotherapy Lysosomalstorage diseases Microbiology typically requires substantial usage of Levinson to fully master the bugs At alater stage as stated already I would lay out the books you need to study for an efficient preparation

Myth number 4 First read Second read third read fourth read Step1 Verdict This depends

Explanation Remember everyone has his own way of studying This sequential method typically follows theKaplan series and has little significant benefit It is very rigid and cannot be modified A lot of people askedme repeatedly how many reads I have done My answer was always the same is the number of reads themethod to use to judge someonersquos preparation Thatrsquos the purpose of NBME sample assessment Donrsquot letthe ldquonumber of readsrdquo fool you Some people study fast and they find that spending little time on everythinggives them sufficient time to revise others find the opposite to be true This means a person who has done 2reads may be doing just about as good as another who has done 7 reads Besides some subjects need morereads than others pharmacology needs more commitment than does anatomy

Confused I am too When you try and follow ldquonumber of readsrdquo rule yoursquod end up even more confusedSolution Try and find your own best method If you get a good NBME score this means yoursquore doing fineFor more info on NBME read on

Myth number 5 If you get less than a two digit score of 95 yoursquore good as gone Verdict Ignorance

Explanation While Step1 is very important it is not the only thing required to judge a candidate Remembertherersquos Step2 CK as well number of attempts at Step2 CS Electives Research experience etc They all formpart of what is known as a ldquowell rounded candidaterdquo Not everyone gets a 99 at Step1 and those who donrsquotmust not lose their confidence Step1 is an exam just like every other exam and is prone to causing mishapsand accidents in results If that happens to you I guess hard luck but should you lose hope Go and read thefirst article written by Dr Umar on hope Try and compensate from Step 2 CK or the best of all researchDonrsquot make Step1 a matter of life and death because itrsquos not worth it

Myth number 6 Step 1 is all about conceptshellip Verdict andhellipcramming

Explanation Donrsquot be fooled into thinking you donrsquot have anything to learn in Step1 Microbiology Immunologyand Pathology have far more knowledge that has to be learnt compared to what you do in college in additionto making concepts By all means make maximal attempts as learning as much information as possible Ifyou donrsquot know the virus names and groups you cannot answer any question based simply on ldquoconceptsrdquoKnowledge in Step1 is tested very rigorously but it is typically very cleverly disguised as they simply form a

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part of the multiple process thinking Learn everything donrsquot leave things out Yes and that means you have tolearn Ebola virus Japanese Encephalitis Virus and Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis Virus too

Myth number 7 70shy80 of Step1 exam is full of Pathology Verdict Wrong

Explanation Itrsquos true that almost 95 of the exam has clinical vignettes that can be directly correlated toPathology however the subject matter that is being tested may not necessarily be pure Pathology You maybe given a vignette on AtaxiashyTelengiectasia but you may be tested on an immunological concept or amolecular biology concept Now that the current USMLE exams are full of clinical vignettes (as stated on theofficial usmleorg number of questions in clinical vignette forms to be increased) you would find this to beeven more prevalent

My purpose is to tell you to divide your attention equally amongst all subjects 70shy80 Pathology on examnever means 70shy80 time on Pathology and 20shy30 time on remaining subjects Infact Molecular Biology is adominant force Step1 reflects current standards of medicine You may infact realize that spending more timeon Microbiology than Pathology would be more high yield

Myth number 8 Delaying the exam by a month or two would increase my score Verdict What makesyou think the opposite may not happen

Explanation Read the verdict again and again and again Do you have any guarantee that you woulddefinitely not slack off run the risk of forgetting important facts after breaking your study momentum anddecrease your score instead Remember momentum and sustained effort are extremely important When youchoose an exam date stick to it Try to carry your momentum straight uptil that date Breaking your rhythmwould only increase your anxiety and make you forget important facts

Myth number 9 My friend got a lot of virology in his exam I must spend all my time studying virology Verdict Fair enough but isnt all your time a bit too ambitious

Explanation The issue here is that there is little uniformity within a Step 1 exam and little comparative valuebetween Step 1 exams in terms of subject content NOT standardized 2 or 3 digit score For example yourfriend just gave Step 1 about 2 weeks prior to your final date He seemed to get a lot of questions fromvirology and defense mechanisms (behavioural sciences) Should that make you think you should spend yournext 2 weeks till your final date studying with full force these topics This is a common psyche of anyonewho is about to take his or her exam to rely a lot on what has already appeared Its fair enough but you haveto make sure you do not compromise the rest of your study Step 1 as stated already is an unpredictableexam You may be tested a lot instead of virology on mycology on a disproportionately high scale ie farmore questions than you might anticipate When you go through Step 1 forums you may see some peoplestating they got a lot of biochemistry but little anatomy and others attesting to the exact opposite

You should always make an effort to study each and every subject in Step 1 with equal time and honesty Asstated elsewhere yes there are subjects like Pharmacology and Microbiology that require disproportionatelymore time but this is not because they appear a lot on the exam but because of the nature of these subjectsthat warrant consistent revisions

If you can find any more myths please discuss them in comments and Irsquod include them here

Now let me talk about the recommended books for you

BOOKS

Get all of Kaplan series You may omit Physiology totally You may if you like also omit Pathology Buy theDVD lectures as well (remember the copies found in our country are illegal if possible they should be boughtat kaplanmedicalcom) Herersquos a little run through the individual subjects

Physiology All American students rely a lot on BRS Physiology Itrsquos a fantastic book that focuses on themost high yield content you need to know with all the necessary graphs The problem with Kaplan is that itincludes discussion of quite a few topics that are not tested on Step1 eg Vascular Physiology These arealso discussed in heavy details that entail a lot of time commitment BRS Physiology has everything youneed to know in Physiology plus an additional chapter on Neurophysiology which is not discussed even inKaplanrsquos neuroanatomy

Biochemistry Kaplan should suffice here Infact Kaplan is a good book Some topics needsupplementation You should consider studying lysosomal storage diseases from elsewhere first aid hasdetails of all lysosomal diseases Listen to the lectures as well if you like Dr Lionel Raymon explains theconcepts exceptionally well

Molecular BiologyAgain Kaplan should suffice here Some American students consider studying High Yield MolecularBiology I got it and found it to contain a lot more information in excess of whatrsquos required Other Americanstudents think the 1999 version has just about enough info But I donrsquot trust an old book Sticking to Kaplanshould suffice Techniques should be referred from High Yield Molecular Biology as they are poorly explained

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USMLE Step 1 Experience byAyaz Mehmood (Score 99266)USMLE Step 1 Experience byAyaz Mehmood (Score 99266) Salam everyone let

me start in the name of Allah whorsquos the g

Australian Medical Council AMC Part 1 Guide

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

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in Kaplan

GeneticsThe first three chapters are fine Add another chapter from Genetics chapter of the Pathology book The lastthree chapters are something of a lost sheep wandering aimlessly I have never heard LOD scores beingtested in Step1 Techniques of genetic analysis are very commonly tested but they havenrsquot explained it in asatisfactory way This problem also arises in the techniques chapter of Molecular Biology section whereirrelevant details hamper acquiring a good command of the actual subject Studying these techniques fromhigh yield molecular biology may be time consuming but they are well explained and may help you getquestions correct Although technique methodology is not tested knowing the techniques give you confidencein answering the question so study them in detail Donrsquot underestimate this topic

Anatomy

Neuroanatomy is good enough High yield neuroanatomy is also a good book I heard some Americansstudying it I cannot recommend other texts as I donrsquot know them Remember it is extremely important thatyou know the clinical scenarios very well CTshyscans MRIrsquos and gross specimen In this manner High yield isa very good book because it has many such illustrations and snaps You should have a very good orientationof the brain in all planes sagittal coronal and transverse Using help from university department websites canbe of immense help Search ldquowebpathrdquo on Google and navigate into the Pathology department of UtahUniversity

Histology is written in a way yoursquod forget as soon as you read When you go through again the samehappens Third time isnrsquot too lucky either Here use High Yield Histology At first glance this book seems tobe a lot more detailed than needed But that detail isnrsquot just histology Itrsquos the bridging knowledge andconcepts that spans physiology pharmacology biochemistry and pathology Try to find the original textbookas there are excellent illustrations and photographs at end of every chapter

Gross Anatomy is fair enough But you may need help from major texts such as Snell to study the Pelvicregion which is disappointingly poorly explained in Kaplan

Embryology is spread throughout Gross Anatomy Itrsquos useful enough Basic embryology needssupplementation from other texts I used a quick read through Langmanrsquos embryology to get a hang of theinitial development of the embryo Most American students state First Aid embryology is good enough Youcan trust that opinion You may also use High Yield embryology But you can just stick to First Aid here

Behavioural Science When I first went through it it looked out I didnrsquot go through it at all and only had a deacutejagrave vu that I did gothrough it On a serious note itrsquos a pathetic book Even when supplemented by lectures it doesnrsquot lose itspathetic appeal You will have to use High Yield Biostatistics to simply understand just what the hell is goingon around with all those lines and numbers and paranoid Pshyvalues

Herersquos how I learnt my behavioural sciences I used to study the explanations to behavioural sciencequestions in question banks I used First Aid Q and A book Explanations about respective questions werewell written and I would write them in a notebook and go through them regularly (number of reads anyoneplease) Eventually I just got a hang of it all The personality disorders the defense mechanisms DSMmanual etc Kaplan is jittered with useful info and yoursquod realize it once you study schizophrenia (cram all ofKaplan everyone raise your hands) I had BRS Behavioural science but I didnrsquot use it I didnrsquot want to feellike an uncertified tester of all the books that are medical just as I am of all the different web browsers (Safariis the worst of all)

Herersquos a tip for you Best way to learn behavioural science is to get a lot of questions incorrect in questionresources and then diligently study the explanations and promise by God you wonrsquot underestimate thissubject again ONCE you have done that now you can rely on Kaplan The only thing reliable is medicalethics Try and study the scenarios given in the two chapters Some Americans suggest Medical Ethics byConrad Fischer I didnrsquot use it (I told you I donrsquot want to be a unpaid tester of books) Unfortunately it seemsthat the American board examiners are extremely clever at finding just those special circumstances for youwhere yoursquod eventually pick the wrong answer that happens to be both morally and legally incorrect eventhough you thought the contrary

Guess what you can safely skip that mammoth table about human development in Kaplan and simply replaceit with whatrsquos written in First Aid Everytime I looked at that table I was more worried in counting how manymilestones I achieved when I was a young boy rather than learning it Not for a single time I had to repeatedlyremind myself I did have a hint of object permanence at age 1 but then againhelliphelliphellipwhatrsquos that

Immunology

Kaplan should suffice here I didnrsquot use the videos because I thought my concepts were clear courtesy ofLevinson Strangely enough the immune faculty was kind enough to write a continuous prose for us ratherthan shoot bullets (points) Remember again that immunology techniques similar to genetic and molecularbiology techniques are very important and should be clearly understood and learnt For example KNOW thedifference between ELISA and Western Blot very well Diseases are very frequently tested When yousupplement your study with First Aid Q and A book (Buy it) immunology diseases would becomeprogressively clear Stay loyal to Kaplan here you donrsquot have to spend too much time on other books

‐ Experience and TipsAMC Part 1 by Dr Asad KhizarMalik (Rank 77620)Australian Medical Council Guide ‐ Experience and TipsSalam peopl

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PATHO

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USMLE Step 2 CK experience byRizwan Khan (254)IN THE NAME OF ALLAH THEMOST BENEFICENT ANDMERCIFUL I recently gotdone with Step 2 CK exam amp I

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Actually I did use Levinson occasionally especially for diseases It takes time but itrsquos a fantastic book writtenby a UCSF professor who is an authority in Microbiology and Immunology At end of Kaplan there is anappendix detailing CD markers Learn it by heart

Pharmacology

Use Katzung Board Review series here Surprised Irsquom not That is the best book Again it is written by agroup of three UCSF professors who know whatrsquos needed for Step1 Some topics such as Chemotherapy andAnticancer drugs are so important you have to study them in detail Katzung is more than enough detail andyou can totally rely on it Because Dr Anthony Trevor is also a coshyauthor of Kaplanrsquos Pharmacology thereare some similarities between the two which means once you go through Katzung you can review Kaplaneasily You may consider annotating Kaplan with Katzungrsquos points They test each and every drug evenSitagliptin and Orlistat Be careful studying Toxicology because it is important You will have to study it fromkatzung to know whatrsquos it all about ANS and CVS drugs are definitely high yield

It would help you writing some points on a notebook and repeatedly revising it For example write all adverseeffects of all anticancer drugs and keep going through it Eventually yoursquod start remembering that pulmonaryfibrosis is a prominent side effect of bleomycin and busulfan Nephrotoxicity is not an issue with Sirolimus anda combination of Didanosine and Zidovudine has a high incidence of neutropaenia

Microbiology

Here they go again All of that written either in points form or tables form If you supplement it with lectures itends up becoming a complete mockery of those little bugs The bugs had to emerge resistant to it and nowonder theyrsquore doing it so well both in real life and on our exams It would seriously help you if you just goand buy Levinson and just go through it atleast once Some Americans recommend ldquoMade ridiculouslysimplerdquo Microbiology and you may use it if you like to I also went through High Yield Microbiology but itdidnrsquot sustain my interest Viruses need constant referencing with Levinson to simply learn whathaemorrhagic fever exactly is and what exactly is handshyfootshymouth disease Parasites are just sugarcoated intables Again study from Levinson You wonrsquot get the slightest hang of it from Kaplan Microbial genetics iswritten fair Remember you have to learn the mechanisms of resistant to different drugs for example theacetyltransferase against chloramphenicol You have to also learn which are plasmid mediated and which arechromosomal mediated Transposons plasmids lysogeny etc are all a fair game and must be understood

The case scenarios given at the end of Kaplan are slightly confusing but theyrsquore a fair game as well You canactually replace them with similar scenarios and common causative agents written in Levinson

Pathology

Goljan appears to be the undisputed king here You can also listen to Goljan lectures (remember theirpossession is illegal I donrsquot know if they even officially release any lectures in first place) But you can quitecomfortably rely on its 3rd edition that spans not only Pathology but also bridging concepts to PharmacologyBiochemistry and Physiology which ensure active revision and repetition of these subjects Some Americanstudents say they also relied on the side notes given in the book especially just a few days before theeventual exam and it was a massive help This is a detailed book so make sure you allocate enough timeMake sure to buy the original version so that all the micrographs and gross specimens are clear

Contrary to popular belief Pathology doesnrsquot make 70shy80 of your Step1 exam as already explained earlier inthe Myths section So donrsquot allocate time in excess of whatrsquos required that may compromise your study ofother subjects

But you can also study Kaplanrsquos Pathology Because I was studying Pathology alongside my medicalstudies I used Medium Robbins and annotated Kaplanrsquos Pathology with important topics Make sure you fullyunderstand that studying Robbins alone would result in low Step1 scores Robbins overemphasizes topics thathave little clinical value and understates the ones that are exceptionally high yield Still you may atleast like togo through it once (only if you are studying for Step1 during medical studies) to get a grip on what Pathology isall about Some students would suggest studying Big Robbins but again you need to know studying whatmaterial is higher yield Big Robbins is typically for students who have little else to do apart from studying Asyou go through Kaplan the point format may frustrate you so you may want to revert occasionally to MediumRobbins to study topics like Pneumoconiosis in detail before feeling confident about learning material fromKaplan

Some people suggest BRS Pathology I donrsquot know about that Itrsquos entirely up to your choice Perhaps youmay want to use its illustrations photomicrographs and gross specimens for supplementary study Be sureyou also utilize Utah University Pathology Departmentrsquos Webpath website

OTHER BOOKS

First Aid is a favourite amongst American medical students I only went through it twice but I found it to bequite helpful You may like to study it once early in your coursework and once later before the exam You caneven go one step further and make it your primary book In that case you may have to annotate it and makeup for the deficiencies in this book In my opinion it still has enough information to guarantee a 99 on Step1provided you study it comprehensively and carefully Kaplan medessentials is a similar book to First Aid It has essentially all of the Kaplan series condensedinto a single book Some Americans call it medsuperfluous Itrsquos unnecessarily detailed at some places andunderstated in others Still it has the benefit of complementing your Kaplan textbook study You may use it if

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you like a very quick glance at a lot of information typically arranged systemshywise eg Cardiovascularsystem This helps you to save time flipping through different books in case you like to apply a systemsapproach at some point during your coursework

Step1 secrets is another rather useful book I encountered I didnrsquot study it all so I cannot comment but basedon othersrsquo opinions it has everything arranged neatly in a questionshyandshyanswer format and written in simplelanguage Oversimplification is evident at a lot of places and requires rigorous supplementation by moredetailed textbooks If a high 99 is not your aim or if you realize that studying simple textbooks may ensuresomething like a 90shy99 score rather than pursuit of a high 99 having to utilize detailed textbooks and runningthe risk of losing score thatrsquos the book for you It has little of everything that should benefit you in the actualexam If nothing else works or you have run into anxiety throw every other book away even First Aid Pickthis book and just study it It is written in a beautiful manner utilizing a very student friendly approach anddoesnt run aggressively amok anywhere Studying this book alone carefully can give you a 90+ score

QUESTION RESOURCES You have the following question banks They are discussed separately

USMLE World

It can be found at usmleworldcom This question resource has consistently high ratings amongst studentsand Americans love using it to supplement their study of First Aid You can buy it for 100$ for one monthSubscriptions greater than a month have substantial discounts You can get their books but theyrsquore all piratedand illegal material I would highly recommend buying this for a single month at least Typically this should beused to maximum effect about 1shy2 months before your actual exam Others recommend using it as soon aspossible but I have a different opinion The explanations given in this resource are the best amongst all othersand some Americans actually solely rely upon the explanations for their revision If you start it late incoursework you ensure adequate revision and security of keeping it in memory Questions typically use 2shy3step thinking processes and require good integration of concepts so itrsquos a tough question resource My adviceis to solve all questions and read their explanation regardless of whether you get any question correct orincorrect

KAPLAN QbankThis can be accessed at kaplanmedicalcom It is very expensive 130$ per month and additional monthspurchased have substantial discounts You can get their books but again thatrsquos pirated and illegal They donrsquotrelease any textbooks Americans donrsquot prefer using this resource Kaplan Qbank relies quite extensively onknowledge given in their textbooks and at times it feels they are exclusively focused on specific knowledgepointers in their questions rather than good integration of concepts as done by usmleworld Furthermore it hasa habit of testing knowledge that is both Step1 irrelevant and not given in recommended textbooks (not evenin their own textbooks) Overall I would recommend this Qbank It has the advantage of using Qtutorials (referto their website) good media good explanations and a huge question resource You donrsquot have to attempt allof the questions given Itrsquos preferable to use this resource early in your coursework

USMLErx

This can be accessed at usmlerxcom This is the least expensive of all qbanks with a single monthsubscription at 70$ Instead of Kaplan you may want to utilize this resource early in your coursework This isthe work of contributors of First Aid So it heavily relies on info resource of First Aid This can be anadvantage if you are using First Aid as well Repetition of facts in first aid ensures adequate retention inmemory However some questions may not correctly reflect the standard and format of current USMLE examsand rely somewhat on typical case scenario facts and explanations In addition a lot more questions directlytest knowledge rather than careful integration of facts Best utilized early in coursework

First Aid Q amp A book Similar to usmlerx In fact they state questions are taken from usmlerx resource It has 1000 questions 650organized systems wise and 350 organized into a full length exam with 7 blocks (remember current USMLEhas only 322 questions in 7 blocks) I used this book late in my study but I recommend using it early It maybe a less expensive substitute to usmlerx questions resource as well Explanations are good and have crossreferencing to First Aid text which may help your revision Remember this is an official First Aid release

Mededia QbankSurprised Stay tuned for more updates in near future I assure you this would be a very high quality Qbankwith MCQs according to the new format of more clinical scenarios and quality better than all mentionedqbanks I am working with Dr Umar Tariq on it it would be available online in a few months times and wouldbe entirely free of cost so you may start using this questions resource early or late in your courseworkdepending upon your choice

If you are interested in authoring MCQs for this Qbank kindly contact me at drayazmkyahoocom or DrUmar Tariq and we would be happy to include you as a coshyauthor contributor on submission of some highshyquality MCQs and would mention your name on the main book cover I am sure it would prove to be a bigboost to your CV and provide help to your colleagues the same reason I am doing it for

The reason for its inception is to reflect the current trends in the USMLE Step 1 exam Step1 is an evershyevolving exam the examiners are very well aware of what guideshybooks and shortshycuts students love using Asan example heart sounds that appeared in previous Step1 exams could typically be resolved by simplycontemplating the question stem and not even listening to the sounds as stated by some examinees Nowyou must have a sound knowledge of heart sounds If you are as unlucky as I was you may get thosevarieties sometimes only cardiologists can decipher with a degree of confidence Apart from that the

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

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examiners know that many students rely heavily on First Aid By no means you cant get a 99 by studyingFirst Aid alone but this is to tell you that the style keeps evolving in order to maintain a very high standard ofthis exam Therefore we decided to make a brand new collection of questions resource that would adequatelyaid your Step 1 preparation

WikitestpreporgThis is a spinshyoff of Wikipedia with about 800+ questions free of cost contributed by various authors Becausethere is little quality check and control over the type of questions a lot more questions do not reflect theUSMLE style than questions that do Integration of concepts is rarely tested Since itrsquos free you may like touse it early in coursework but remember that some questions are factually incorrect others are vague andtheir explanations may not reflect high yield material

NBME examsThese exams can be purchased at NBME website for about 45$ each and has 200 questions each arranged in4 blocks You may buy about 2 or 3 such exams from a total of 7 It is very important to use atleast oneexam early in coursework and another late in coursework to gauge your performance levels strengths andweaknesses In addition a projected 3 digit score is given to you at the end of your exam that is highlypredictive of your actual USMLE Step 1 score NBMErsquos are also not reflective of current USMLE style Mostquestions are very easy making the marking very stringent and strict But you have to use these exams toquantitate your performance levels I recommend buying 3 Use one early another in the middle and the lastone late in your coursework to ensure adequate progression in your study

USMLE World SelfshyAssessment formsThey can be accessed at usmleworldcom and have a cost of 30$ each They are two in number Whenpurchased together they cost 50$ in total They have the added advantage of allowing you to study questionsyou got incorrect or correct and read all explanations over NBME which allows neither Best used late in yourcoursework and you should attempt to study all the explanations There are 192 questions in each exam

Kaplan QbookThis is an official release of Kaplan Medical I did go through it randomly at first It has various blocks of 50questions each organized in a subjectshywise manner (not systems wise) Unfortunately various questions areagain not reflective of current exam and are typically easy The most poorly composed section is asexpected Behavioural sciences Two blocks of 50 questions each of absolute madness It follows the samephilosophy of Kaplans Qbank somewhat hinting more at retrieval of an examinees memory rather thanintegration of concepts

GETTING STARTED WITH IT ALL You have the choice to study either during your medical studies or after your graduation As I alreadyexplained earlier studying during your medical school is substantially better than after your graduationHowever USMLE is a difficult exam that needs honesty and time commitment You cannot study this examfor the fun or sake of it because that may seriously backfire with a very low score Only sit this exam onceyou are sure of your preparation Using NBMEs is one way of assessing your preparedness

In case you wished to appear in Step 1 during your medical studies but became very anxious or your NBMEscore is not so good your time wasnrsquot lost You can carry that knowledge over to studying for Step2 CK aswell during your final year In that case you may begin to feel confident enough to give Step2 Ck before yourStep1 because you had already had some feel of how Step1 looks like

The best way is to begin as early as possible in your medical studies Study only good Americantextbooks I recommend you to study the following textbooks during your medical education

Snellrsquos AnatomySnellrsquos NeuroanatomyGanongrsquos PhysiologyLippincott Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyKatzungrsquos Pharmacology (Board Review Series)Levinsonrsquos Microbiology and ImmunologyMedium Robbins supplemented by Goljan or even Goljan aloneFor behavioural science you may have to rely on textbooks already stated above

The textbooks above ensure you get a sound grasp on the subject in question Using these resources ensureyoursquore automatically geared towards Step1 prep Strictly avoid using textbooks authored in the subcontinentas not one single such textbook lives up to the standard of the books above

Herersquos a tour through a Step1 preparation

First few months getting started

A lot of us subcontinent people use Kaplan Americans get about 2 months off at end of their 2nd year andstudy Goljan First Aid and Usmleworld

You may need to use the videos You donrsquot necessarily have to listen to all these videos You may form good

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 815

concepts but as soon as that happens yoursquod immediately forget later on Using videos for referencing againand again is time consuming and frustrating A good detailed textbook is a very good substitute If graspingDNA synthesis from Kaplanrsquos biochemistry textbook is difficult jump straight to Lippincott Unfortunately thiscross referencing is something yoursquod have to do extensively throughout your Step1 study So keep all themajor textbooks readied

First just go through the Kaplan Understand learn or not is not a matter Try to get a feel of what Step1syllabus content is like Next you may want to use video lectures to aid you in understanding difficultconcepts and also for the sake of simply touring through the Step1 In these first few months use your majortextbooks extensively Donrsquot be afraid to open Snellrsquos neuroanatomy or Ganongrsquos Physiology to clarify difficultconcepts Once done write them for your records somewhere You can maintain a notebook to serve thatpurpose Alternatively you may annotate the Kaplan books Choice is yours

Doing all of that would take quite a lot of time Be patient Donrsquot rush through your study schedule or tryjumping ahead Do justice to all your subjects Remember subjects like Pharmacology and Microbiologyrequire constant attention This means that as soon as yoursquore done with your first pass try to immediatelyjump back to these subjects and revise them Donrsquot limit these subjects to a mere 3 or 4 reads Itrsquos indefinitelyhigh yield to do as many quick reads of these subjects as is possible This ensures adequate retention offacts in your memory You donrsquot have to use question resources at this moment

So the initial stage of your study is simply quick pass through the syllabus content + careful pass throughselected and difficult topics with extensive cross referencing from major textbooks and maintenance ofimportant pointers in a notebook Donrsquot try to be a copycat and emulate othersrsquo timetables Find the rightsolution to studying yourself

Intermediate stage This stage introduces the question resources As already stated you can rely on Usmlerx or Kaplan QbankAlthough you can find illegally printed textbooks to these question resources they donrsquot give you theadvantage of mixing your questions making random timed or selfshypaced blocks and maintain a record of usedand unused questions As soon as MedEdia releases its questions resources free of cost you may like tocheck it out as well

My recommendation would be to use either question resource and try attempting questions systems wise Ifyou just finished a revision of Biochemistry hit the questions Read the explanations to all questions pick upa notebook and write the important facts in that Go through those facts at regular stages This wouldespecially help you in Biochemistryrsquos case learn all the rate limiting enzymes and hormonal and allostericcontrols Allosteric controls form an important testing component and is especially tricky to understandespecially in the whole context of all metabolic pathways

Use this approach and apply to all subjects You donrsquot have to attempt the whole question resource but makesure you do attempt atleast a sufficient number of questions At this stage you may use either timed or selfshypaced mode

At the end try and attempt an NBME exam This should give you an idea where you land and how far are youfrom your goal Depending upon your goal and the difference from your goal you can modify that final stage ofyour preparation in whatever manner you like

Final stage

Once again quickly hit Pharmacology Microbiology and especially Behavioural science and revise thesesubjects At least go through remaining subjects once but the aforementioned ones should be given specialattention to because of the ease with which they are forgotten Remember now your momentum is veryimportant If you remain consistent in this stage you would drastically improve your final score If you takebreaks or delay your exam you would only end up wasting time

Now is the time to start usmleworldcomrsquos question resource Americans at this stage do 2 blocks of 48questions (46 in real exam) everyday and spend time reading all explanations They supplement thoseexplanations into First Aid You can try doing that too to good effect Mix in another NBME andor Usmleworld Self Assessment forms which have already been referenced to above

Herersquos an important point IF your NBME score is far off from your goal NOW you may contemplate delayingyour exam Always aim for the very high but you have to have a realistic appraisal of your own intellect andability You must have both a very high goal and a very realistic goal Itrsquos only you who can tell you what yourabilities are NBMEs usually are a very accurate gauge of your performance What they state is approximatelywhat your abilities are

Keep using First Aid also especially towards the week leading up to your eventual exam Make sure you havebeen following CTs MRIs photomicrographs gross specimens and XshyRays all along because these areheavily tested Keep focused on learning heart sounds as well Last but definitely not least all those notesyou made into your notebook using your own familiar handwriting towards the end of your preparation wouldmost likely keep your anxiety levels in check Do not even think about opening a new book at this stage

When yoursquore done with your Kaplan throw those books away and concentrate only on First Aid and your ownnotes from Kaplan and question resource explanations in last two weeks

In your final day you may take a day off after a stressful spell that spanned several months Make a list ofthings you need to take Check your permit Prometric appointment passport and National ID card

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 915

Some tips about what to do during your last day and exam day

I had the biggest misfortune of totally screwing up my sleep the very last day It wasnrsquot anxiety It happenssometimes to me that I canrsquot go to sleep even after 4shy5 hours and by chance it happened the very last nighttoo Eventually I took a pill of Bromazepam slept for 4 hours and went to the exam The whole day was abattle with drowsiness Energy drinks did some trick but really my first and second blocks were almostsacrificed which must have led to reduction in my eventual score

I would advise you to take a sleeping pill the last night and ensure a good nightrsquos sleep This is criticallyimportant before your exam that drowsiness doesnrsquot take over You can use energy drinks during the day ofyour exam but make sure you have used them before to be sure they donrsquot end up causing diarrhoea insteadduring the exam

My experience with Step 1 preparation

I started at the beginning of my fourth year I was confident because I had the fortune of having studied goodtextbooks in preference to local ones I started as usual Buy Kaplan textbooks and the Video lectures But Ididnt use all the video lectures because quartershyway through I realized that although they are helping mesolidify my concepts they are of little value in revision I listened to Dr Lionel Raymons biochemistrylectures Dr Anthony Trevors Pharmacology lectures and Dr James Neuroanatomy lectures I mayhave listened to others too somewhat but I dont clearly remember All these mentioned lectures were theworks of genius people indeed and by all means you should listen to what they have to say about theirsubjects You may elect to skip the other lectures

As I have stated in the ideal preparation above crossshyreferencing to good textbooks is important and I felt theneed always to do that From February through June I managed to cover some subjects atleast once(Pharmacology Biochemistry Anatomy) others twice (Microbiology) still others only less than half(Immunology Pathology) and remaining none (Physiology Behavioural sciences) You can try thissame methodology with the exception of including Behavioural sciences in the twice category withMicrobiology So much for a first read I guess

In July I managed to cover some major portions of usmleworld questions resource especially microbiology andpharmacology This helped strengthen my knowledge of these subjects Later I finished my first passthrough Physiology and Behavioural science (I told you I developed a deja vu right after studying this)

I would cover Pathology text with my medical studies in fourth year For example when they had a classtest Id study Goljan and Medium Robbins

Time passed and I started wasting time too Perhaps I realized that attempting the Step1 at end of my fourthyear was overly ambitious It would have been very realistic if I started in 3rd year which is why if you are astudent in 3rd year by all means start your exam preparation Till November I had managed another pass atleast once through most subjects with the exception of Physiology and Behavioural sciences (yet again) InNovember I picked up First Aid and went through it in 2 weeks I registered for NBME form 3 I attempted it onNovember27th I think (right after that was EidshyulshyAzha day) My score was projected 244 I realized thatthis was very decent given that I had yet to seriously cover behavioural sciences and Physiology also

After that time for my professional exams at end of fourth year arrived ENT Eye Community Medicine andSpecial Pathology were the subjects and I somehow managed a third position and distinction in PathologyThe latter was significant because it motivated me once again for Step 1 But this exam had seriously upsetmy rhythm and because my first ward in final year was a maternity duty (day and night for 2 weeks = no timefor Step 1 prep) I lost my way This was why I stated how important is your study momentum when takinginto the final date I somehow managed to pick myself up had to spend substantial time applying for electivesand finally started seriously in April I finalized my date for June 10th and immediately started coveringPhysiology and Behavioural sciences which I had neglected (and Id advise you to not do as I did)

In that time I also went through Katzung board review pharmacology and some part of Levinson especiallyParasitology I also immediately revised all of Pathology which I hadnt touched ever since I gave my fourthyear exam All of a sudden it turned into a hishyoctane study mode Cursing myself for wasting time I graduallynavigated my way through immediate revisions and then picked up First Aid Q and A book I attempted all1000 questions and wrote a majority of explanations in my notebook Afterwards I went through that onceespecially revising the behavioural science explanations This really helped me immensely Now it wasalready May 12th I picked up first aid and finished it in next 8 days I had attempted Usmle world selfshyassessment form 1 on May 18th and my projected score was 256 Needless to say I felt more relieved thanhappy that the break in my tempo didnt destroy my hopes Then I picked up usmleworld once again andnavigated my way through it studying the majority of explanations and combining with the very final quickrevision of kaplan series This continued on into June

On June 5th I attempted the second usmle world self assessment form online My projected score was 265+Usmleworld doesnt give a score beyond 265 so it states it as 265+ instead I was happy In the final few daysI went through explanations to the exam questions I just gave and my own notebook Id occasionally open afew books but I would advise you against it to guard against unnecessary anxiety induction Then the finalday came I arranged my things together Passport permit ID etc went and bought snacks a sandwich andenergy drinks At 930 PM I went to bed I thought I fell asleep at 10PM only to wake up moments laterSleeplessness continued till late night at 3AM when I finally took Bromazepam and went to sleep for good Butthe damage was done and damage continued into the first block of my exam Second block suffered as wellbut after that through sheer willpower I fought with my drowsiness and the exam and eventually finished it

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1015

Posted by McFearless

Labels USMLE

Reactions funny (2) interesting (3) cool (1) thanks (9)

Moral of the story A good nights sleep before your exam

The exam really was very much like what usmleorg described it as 46 questions per block framed intoclinical vignettes more so than not so At some stages I felt that questions were unnecessarily stretched withclinical information Exam has increased in difficulty overall and timing did become an issue for me especiallyin the first block where I had to resort to guesswork towards the end but this was more attributable to my sleepproblems rather than the exam itself The new Mededia Qbank is designed to therefore reflect this trend andstyle I will not write what topics were tested or what was the distribution of subjects and I strictly advise younot to do that either The repercussions include ban from taking USMLE exam for a limited number of yearsSo dont disseminate exam information anywhere even under the veil of anonymity internet provides you

Word of special thanks

First of all all thanks to God Second to parents

The journey started when Dr Umar Tariq explained to me how getting started with Step1 might bring somegood fortune That happened at the very start of my fourth year I thought this sounded too cool Then I gotstarted on it Who knows I might not even have started if he didnrsquot tell me to True words of inspiration Thefirst person who stated the true words of guidance that was honest and sincere The only senior at that timewho encouraged me to gear up for Step1 and now I am happy to carry out that legacy Going through the preparation I got in contact with another senior Dr Mustafa Mumtaz He also encouragedme to give it as soon as possible His contribution was really important for me because he introduced theNBME concept to me and explained how it helps in measuring up the candidate potential He also gave memany other tips about the exam for which I am very thankful I would also like to carry that legacy and guidethe juniors just like that in a positive and encouraging way the same way he did to me

My brother Dr Ather (not a medical doctor PhD) also had contribution in keeping me motivated about myeventual goal Later I also got in contact with Dr Hassan Aziz and Dr Sultan Mahmood which helped mecarry over my preparationIf you are lucky enough to get seniors and friends like these no one can bet against you going 270+ in Step1Good luck in the pursuit of your ambitions

If you have any comments that you want added to this article please write them in the comments below

Regards

Ayaz

+2 Recommend this on Google

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zainab bull a year agosalamthanku for the guidelinesi am starting my 3rd yrso if start usinggoljankaplankatzung series along with the standard textbooks amp then in 4th yr i dothe same exercise ie using the above prescribed books for the respective subjectsin addition to the standard textbooksplus through the two years ahead if i reviseanatomyphysiology amp biochemistry plus appear for the NBME examthen can iappear in the summers of 4th yr before sendups easily i mean final yr ka stuffdekhey baghair bhi ho jae ga na

19

bull Reply bull

waqar bull a year agoThat was one of the Best I have every read on USMLE (dont be too happy it is thefirst one I read)

Lets come back to topic Thank You so Dr Ayaz Mehmood for sharing yourexperience with us I am like not sure should I go for USMLE or not but after readingyour post I can say I now know how to go for USMLE

Please suggest me some of the advantages of giving USMLE except a job inAmerica

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 615

you like a very quick glance at a lot of information typically arranged systemshywise eg Cardiovascularsystem This helps you to save time flipping through different books in case you like to apply a systemsapproach at some point during your coursework

Step1 secrets is another rather useful book I encountered I didnrsquot study it all so I cannot comment but basedon othersrsquo opinions it has everything arranged neatly in a questionshyandshyanswer format and written in simplelanguage Oversimplification is evident at a lot of places and requires rigorous supplementation by moredetailed textbooks If a high 99 is not your aim or if you realize that studying simple textbooks may ensuresomething like a 90shy99 score rather than pursuit of a high 99 having to utilize detailed textbooks and runningthe risk of losing score thatrsquos the book for you It has little of everything that should benefit you in the actualexam If nothing else works or you have run into anxiety throw every other book away even First Aid Pickthis book and just study it It is written in a beautiful manner utilizing a very student friendly approach anddoesnt run aggressively amok anywhere Studying this book alone carefully can give you a 90+ score

QUESTION RESOURCES You have the following question banks They are discussed separately

USMLE World

It can be found at usmleworldcom This question resource has consistently high ratings amongst studentsand Americans love using it to supplement their study of First Aid You can buy it for 100$ for one monthSubscriptions greater than a month have substantial discounts You can get their books but theyrsquore all piratedand illegal material I would highly recommend buying this for a single month at least Typically this should beused to maximum effect about 1shy2 months before your actual exam Others recommend using it as soon aspossible but I have a different opinion The explanations given in this resource are the best amongst all othersand some Americans actually solely rely upon the explanations for their revision If you start it late incoursework you ensure adequate revision and security of keeping it in memory Questions typically use 2shy3step thinking processes and require good integration of concepts so itrsquos a tough question resource My adviceis to solve all questions and read their explanation regardless of whether you get any question correct orincorrect

KAPLAN QbankThis can be accessed at kaplanmedicalcom It is very expensive 130$ per month and additional monthspurchased have substantial discounts You can get their books but again thatrsquos pirated and illegal They donrsquotrelease any textbooks Americans donrsquot prefer using this resource Kaplan Qbank relies quite extensively onknowledge given in their textbooks and at times it feels they are exclusively focused on specific knowledgepointers in their questions rather than good integration of concepts as done by usmleworld Furthermore it hasa habit of testing knowledge that is both Step1 irrelevant and not given in recommended textbooks (not evenin their own textbooks) Overall I would recommend this Qbank It has the advantage of using Qtutorials (referto their website) good media good explanations and a huge question resource You donrsquot have to attempt allof the questions given Itrsquos preferable to use this resource early in your coursework

USMLErx

This can be accessed at usmlerxcom This is the least expensive of all qbanks with a single monthsubscription at 70$ Instead of Kaplan you may want to utilize this resource early in your coursework This isthe work of contributors of First Aid So it heavily relies on info resource of First Aid This can be anadvantage if you are using First Aid as well Repetition of facts in first aid ensures adequate retention inmemory However some questions may not correctly reflect the standard and format of current USMLE examsand rely somewhat on typical case scenario facts and explanations In addition a lot more questions directlytest knowledge rather than careful integration of facts Best utilized early in coursework

First Aid Q amp A book Similar to usmlerx In fact they state questions are taken from usmlerx resource It has 1000 questions 650organized systems wise and 350 organized into a full length exam with 7 blocks (remember current USMLEhas only 322 questions in 7 blocks) I used this book late in my study but I recommend using it early It maybe a less expensive substitute to usmlerx questions resource as well Explanations are good and have crossreferencing to First Aid text which may help your revision Remember this is an official First Aid release

Mededia QbankSurprised Stay tuned for more updates in near future I assure you this would be a very high quality Qbankwith MCQs according to the new format of more clinical scenarios and quality better than all mentionedqbanks I am working with Dr Umar Tariq on it it would be available online in a few months times and wouldbe entirely free of cost so you may start using this questions resource early or late in your courseworkdepending upon your choice

If you are interested in authoring MCQs for this Qbank kindly contact me at drayazmkyahoocom or DrUmar Tariq and we would be happy to include you as a coshyauthor contributor on submission of some highshyquality MCQs and would mention your name on the main book cover I am sure it would prove to be a bigboost to your CV and provide help to your colleagues the same reason I am doing it for

The reason for its inception is to reflect the current trends in the USMLE Step 1 exam Step1 is an evershyevolving exam the examiners are very well aware of what guideshybooks and shortshycuts students love using Asan example heart sounds that appeared in previous Step1 exams could typically be resolved by simplycontemplating the question stem and not even listening to the sounds as stated by some examinees Nowyou must have a sound knowledge of heart sounds If you are as unlucky as I was you may get thosevarieties sometimes only cardiologists can decipher with a degree of confidence Apart from that the

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 715

examiners know that many students rely heavily on First Aid By no means you cant get a 99 by studyingFirst Aid alone but this is to tell you that the style keeps evolving in order to maintain a very high standard ofthis exam Therefore we decided to make a brand new collection of questions resource that would adequatelyaid your Step 1 preparation

WikitestpreporgThis is a spinshyoff of Wikipedia with about 800+ questions free of cost contributed by various authors Becausethere is little quality check and control over the type of questions a lot more questions do not reflect theUSMLE style than questions that do Integration of concepts is rarely tested Since itrsquos free you may like touse it early in coursework but remember that some questions are factually incorrect others are vague andtheir explanations may not reflect high yield material

NBME examsThese exams can be purchased at NBME website for about 45$ each and has 200 questions each arranged in4 blocks You may buy about 2 or 3 such exams from a total of 7 It is very important to use atleast oneexam early in coursework and another late in coursework to gauge your performance levels strengths andweaknesses In addition a projected 3 digit score is given to you at the end of your exam that is highlypredictive of your actual USMLE Step 1 score NBMErsquos are also not reflective of current USMLE style Mostquestions are very easy making the marking very stringent and strict But you have to use these exams toquantitate your performance levels I recommend buying 3 Use one early another in the middle and the lastone late in your coursework to ensure adequate progression in your study

USMLE World SelfshyAssessment formsThey can be accessed at usmleworldcom and have a cost of 30$ each They are two in number Whenpurchased together they cost 50$ in total They have the added advantage of allowing you to study questionsyou got incorrect or correct and read all explanations over NBME which allows neither Best used late in yourcoursework and you should attempt to study all the explanations There are 192 questions in each exam

Kaplan QbookThis is an official release of Kaplan Medical I did go through it randomly at first It has various blocks of 50questions each organized in a subjectshywise manner (not systems wise) Unfortunately various questions areagain not reflective of current exam and are typically easy The most poorly composed section is asexpected Behavioural sciences Two blocks of 50 questions each of absolute madness It follows the samephilosophy of Kaplans Qbank somewhat hinting more at retrieval of an examinees memory rather thanintegration of concepts

GETTING STARTED WITH IT ALL You have the choice to study either during your medical studies or after your graduation As I alreadyexplained earlier studying during your medical school is substantially better than after your graduationHowever USMLE is a difficult exam that needs honesty and time commitment You cannot study this examfor the fun or sake of it because that may seriously backfire with a very low score Only sit this exam onceyou are sure of your preparation Using NBMEs is one way of assessing your preparedness

In case you wished to appear in Step 1 during your medical studies but became very anxious or your NBMEscore is not so good your time wasnrsquot lost You can carry that knowledge over to studying for Step2 CK aswell during your final year In that case you may begin to feel confident enough to give Step2 Ck before yourStep1 because you had already had some feel of how Step1 looks like

The best way is to begin as early as possible in your medical studies Study only good Americantextbooks I recommend you to study the following textbooks during your medical education

Snellrsquos AnatomySnellrsquos NeuroanatomyGanongrsquos PhysiologyLippincott Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyKatzungrsquos Pharmacology (Board Review Series)Levinsonrsquos Microbiology and ImmunologyMedium Robbins supplemented by Goljan or even Goljan aloneFor behavioural science you may have to rely on textbooks already stated above

The textbooks above ensure you get a sound grasp on the subject in question Using these resources ensureyoursquore automatically geared towards Step1 prep Strictly avoid using textbooks authored in the subcontinentas not one single such textbook lives up to the standard of the books above

Herersquos a tour through a Step1 preparation

First few months getting started

A lot of us subcontinent people use Kaplan Americans get about 2 months off at end of their 2nd year andstudy Goljan First Aid and Usmleworld

You may need to use the videos You donrsquot necessarily have to listen to all these videos You may form good

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 815

concepts but as soon as that happens yoursquod immediately forget later on Using videos for referencing againand again is time consuming and frustrating A good detailed textbook is a very good substitute If graspingDNA synthesis from Kaplanrsquos biochemistry textbook is difficult jump straight to Lippincott Unfortunately thiscross referencing is something yoursquod have to do extensively throughout your Step1 study So keep all themajor textbooks readied

First just go through the Kaplan Understand learn or not is not a matter Try to get a feel of what Step1syllabus content is like Next you may want to use video lectures to aid you in understanding difficultconcepts and also for the sake of simply touring through the Step1 In these first few months use your majortextbooks extensively Donrsquot be afraid to open Snellrsquos neuroanatomy or Ganongrsquos Physiology to clarify difficultconcepts Once done write them for your records somewhere You can maintain a notebook to serve thatpurpose Alternatively you may annotate the Kaplan books Choice is yours

Doing all of that would take quite a lot of time Be patient Donrsquot rush through your study schedule or tryjumping ahead Do justice to all your subjects Remember subjects like Pharmacology and Microbiologyrequire constant attention This means that as soon as yoursquore done with your first pass try to immediatelyjump back to these subjects and revise them Donrsquot limit these subjects to a mere 3 or 4 reads Itrsquos indefinitelyhigh yield to do as many quick reads of these subjects as is possible This ensures adequate retention offacts in your memory You donrsquot have to use question resources at this moment

So the initial stage of your study is simply quick pass through the syllabus content + careful pass throughselected and difficult topics with extensive cross referencing from major textbooks and maintenance ofimportant pointers in a notebook Donrsquot try to be a copycat and emulate othersrsquo timetables Find the rightsolution to studying yourself

Intermediate stage This stage introduces the question resources As already stated you can rely on Usmlerx or Kaplan QbankAlthough you can find illegally printed textbooks to these question resources they donrsquot give you theadvantage of mixing your questions making random timed or selfshypaced blocks and maintain a record of usedand unused questions As soon as MedEdia releases its questions resources free of cost you may like tocheck it out as well

My recommendation would be to use either question resource and try attempting questions systems wise Ifyou just finished a revision of Biochemistry hit the questions Read the explanations to all questions pick upa notebook and write the important facts in that Go through those facts at regular stages This wouldespecially help you in Biochemistryrsquos case learn all the rate limiting enzymes and hormonal and allostericcontrols Allosteric controls form an important testing component and is especially tricky to understandespecially in the whole context of all metabolic pathways

Use this approach and apply to all subjects You donrsquot have to attempt the whole question resource but makesure you do attempt atleast a sufficient number of questions At this stage you may use either timed or selfshypaced mode

At the end try and attempt an NBME exam This should give you an idea where you land and how far are youfrom your goal Depending upon your goal and the difference from your goal you can modify that final stage ofyour preparation in whatever manner you like

Final stage

Once again quickly hit Pharmacology Microbiology and especially Behavioural science and revise thesesubjects At least go through remaining subjects once but the aforementioned ones should be given specialattention to because of the ease with which they are forgotten Remember now your momentum is veryimportant If you remain consistent in this stage you would drastically improve your final score If you takebreaks or delay your exam you would only end up wasting time

Now is the time to start usmleworldcomrsquos question resource Americans at this stage do 2 blocks of 48questions (46 in real exam) everyday and spend time reading all explanations They supplement thoseexplanations into First Aid You can try doing that too to good effect Mix in another NBME andor Usmleworld Self Assessment forms which have already been referenced to above

Herersquos an important point IF your NBME score is far off from your goal NOW you may contemplate delayingyour exam Always aim for the very high but you have to have a realistic appraisal of your own intellect andability You must have both a very high goal and a very realistic goal Itrsquos only you who can tell you what yourabilities are NBMEs usually are a very accurate gauge of your performance What they state is approximatelywhat your abilities are

Keep using First Aid also especially towards the week leading up to your eventual exam Make sure you havebeen following CTs MRIs photomicrographs gross specimens and XshyRays all along because these areheavily tested Keep focused on learning heart sounds as well Last but definitely not least all those notesyou made into your notebook using your own familiar handwriting towards the end of your preparation wouldmost likely keep your anxiety levels in check Do not even think about opening a new book at this stage

When yoursquore done with your Kaplan throw those books away and concentrate only on First Aid and your ownnotes from Kaplan and question resource explanations in last two weeks

In your final day you may take a day off after a stressful spell that spanned several months Make a list ofthings you need to take Check your permit Prometric appointment passport and National ID card

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 915

Some tips about what to do during your last day and exam day

I had the biggest misfortune of totally screwing up my sleep the very last day It wasnrsquot anxiety It happenssometimes to me that I canrsquot go to sleep even after 4shy5 hours and by chance it happened the very last nighttoo Eventually I took a pill of Bromazepam slept for 4 hours and went to the exam The whole day was abattle with drowsiness Energy drinks did some trick but really my first and second blocks were almostsacrificed which must have led to reduction in my eventual score

I would advise you to take a sleeping pill the last night and ensure a good nightrsquos sleep This is criticallyimportant before your exam that drowsiness doesnrsquot take over You can use energy drinks during the day ofyour exam but make sure you have used them before to be sure they donrsquot end up causing diarrhoea insteadduring the exam

My experience with Step 1 preparation

I started at the beginning of my fourth year I was confident because I had the fortune of having studied goodtextbooks in preference to local ones I started as usual Buy Kaplan textbooks and the Video lectures But Ididnt use all the video lectures because quartershyway through I realized that although they are helping mesolidify my concepts they are of little value in revision I listened to Dr Lionel Raymons biochemistrylectures Dr Anthony Trevors Pharmacology lectures and Dr James Neuroanatomy lectures I mayhave listened to others too somewhat but I dont clearly remember All these mentioned lectures were theworks of genius people indeed and by all means you should listen to what they have to say about theirsubjects You may elect to skip the other lectures

As I have stated in the ideal preparation above crossshyreferencing to good textbooks is important and I felt theneed always to do that From February through June I managed to cover some subjects atleast once(Pharmacology Biochemistry Anatomy) others twice (Microbiology) still others only less than half(Immunology Pathology) and remaining none (Physiology Behavioural sciences) You can try thissame methodology with the exception of including Behavioural sciences in the twice category withMicrobiology So much for a first read I guess

In July I managed to cover some major portions of usmleworld questions resource especially microbiology andpharmacology This helped strengthen my knowledge of these subjects Later I finished my first passthrough Physiology and Behavioural science (I told you I developed a deja vu right after studying this)

I would cover Pathology text with my medical studies in fourth year For example when they had a classtest Id study Goljan and Medium Robbins

Time passed and I started wasting time too Perhaps I realized that attempting the Step1 at end of my fourthyear was overly ambitious It would have been very realistic if I started in 3rd year which is why if you are astudent in 3rd year by all means start your exam preparation Till November I had managed another pass atleast once through most subjects with the exception of Physiology and Behavioural sciences (yet again) InNovember I picked up First Aid and went through it in 2 weeks I registered for NBME form 3 I attempted it onNovember27th I think (right after that was EidshyulshyAzha day) My score was projected 244 I realized thatthis was very decent given that I had yet to seriously cover behavioural sciences and Physiology also

After that time for my professional exams at end of fourth year arrived ENT Eye Community Medicine andSpecial Pathology were the subjects and I somehow managed a third position and distinction in PathologyThe latter was significant because it motivated me once again for Step 1 But this exam had seriously upsetmy rhythm and because my first ward in final year was a maternity duty (day and night for 2 weeks = no timefor Step 1 prep) I lost my way This was why I stated how important is your study momentum when takinginto the final date I somehow managed to pick myself up had to spend substantial time applying for electivesand finally started seriously in April I finalized my date for June 10th and immediately started coveringPhysiology and Behavioural sciences which I had neglected (and Id advise you to not do as I did)

In that time I also went through Katzung board review pharmacology and some part of Levinson especiallyParasitology I also immediately revised all of Pathology which I hadnt touched ever since I gave my fourthyear exam All of a sudden it turned into a hishyoctane study mode Cursing myself for wasting time I graduallynavigated my way through immediate revisions and then picked up First Aid Q and A book I attempted all1000 questions and wrote a majority of explanations in my notebook Afterwards I went through that onceespecially revising the behavioural science explanations This really helped me immensely Now it wasalready May 12th I picked up first aid and finished it in next 8 days I had attempted Usmle world selfshyassessment form 1 on May 18th and my projected score was 256 Needless to say I felt more relieved thanhappy that the break in my tempo didnt destroy my hopes Then I picked up usmleworld once again andnavigated my way through it studying the majority of explanations and combining with the very final quickrevision of kaplan series This continued on into June

On June 5th I attempted the second usmle world self assessment form online My projected score was 265+Usmleworld doesnt give a score beyond 265 so it states it as 265+ instead I was happy In the final few daysI went through explanations to the exam questions I just gave and my own notebook Id occasionally open afew books but I would advise you against it to guard against unnecessary anxiety induction Then the finalday came I arranged my things together Passport permit ID etc went and bought snacks a sandwich andenergy drinks At 930 PM I went to bed I thought I fell asleep at 10PM only to wake up moments laterSleeplessness continued till late night at 3AM when I finally took Bromazepam and went to sleep for good Butthe damage was done and damage continued into the first block of my exam Second block suffered as wellbut after that through sheer willpower I fought with my drowsiness and the exam and eventually finished it

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1015

Posted by McFearless

Labels USMLE

Reactions funny (2) interesting (3) cool (1) thanks (9)

Moral of the story A good nights sleep before your exam

The exam really was very much like what usmleorg described it as 46 questions per block framed intoclinical vignettes more so than not so At some stages I felt that questions were unnecessarily stretched withclinical information Exam has increased in difficulty overall and timing did become an issue for me especiallyin the first block where I had to resort to guesswork towards the end but this was more attributable to my sleepproblems rather than the exam itself The new Mededia Qbank is designed to therefore reflect this trend andstyle I will not write what topics were tested or what was the distribution of subjects and I strictly advise younot to do that either The repercussions include ban from taking USMLE exam for a limited number of yearsSo dont disseminate exam information anywhere even under the veil of anonymity internet provides you

Word of special thanks

First of all all thanks to God Second to parents

The journey started when Dr Umar Tariq explained to me how getting started with Step1 might bring somegood fortune That happened at the very start of my fourth year I thought this sounded too cool Then I gotstarted on it Who knows I might not even have started if he didnrsquot tell me to True words of inspiration Thefirst person who stated the true words of guidance that was honest and sincere The only senior at that timewho encouraged me to gear up for Step1 and now I am happy to carry out that legacy Going through the preparation I got in contact with another senior Dr Mustafa Mumtaz He also encouragedme to give it as soon as possible His contribution was really important for me because he introduced theNBME concept to me and explained how it helps in measuring up the candidate potential He also gave memany other tips about the exam for which I am very thankful I would also like to carry that legacy and guidethe juniors just like that in a positive and encouraging way the same way he did to me

My brother Dr Ather (not a medical doctor PhD) also had contribution in keeping me motivated about myeventual goal Later I also got in contact with Dr Hassan Aziz and Dr Sultan Mahmood which helped mecarry over my preparationIf you are lucky enough to get seniors and friends like these no one can bet against you going 270+ in Step1Good luck in the pursuit of your ambitions

If you have any comments that you want added to this article please write them in the comments below

Regards

Ayaz

+2 Recommend this on Google

28 Comments [KemUnited] Login

Share⤤ Sort by Best

Join the discussionhellip

bull Reply bull

zainab bull a year agosalamthanku for the guidelinesi am starting my 3rd yrso if start usinggoljankaplankatzung series along with the standard textbooks amp then in 4th yr i dothe same exercise ie using the above prescribed books for the respective subjectsin addition to the standard textbooksplus through the two years ahead if i reviseanatomyphysiology amp biochemistry plus appear for the NBME examthen can iappear in the summers of 4th yr before sendups easily i mean final yr ka stuffdekhey baghair bhi ho jae ga na

19

bull Reply bull

waqar bull a year agoThat was one of the Best I have every read on USMLE (dont be too happy it is thefirst one I read)

Lets come back to topic Thank You so Dr Ayaz Mehmood for sharing yourexperience with us I am like not sure should I go for USMLE or not but after readingyour post I can say I now know how to go for USMLE

Please suggest me some of the advantages of giving USMLE except a job inAmerica

9

Recommend 3

Share rsaquo

Share rsaquo

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 715

examiners know that many students rely heavily on First Aid By no means you cant get a 99 by studyingFirst Aid alone but this is to tell you that the style keeps evolving in order to maintain a very high standard ofthis exam Therefore we decided to make a brand new collection of questions resource that would adequatelyaid your Step 1 preparation

WikitestpreporgThis is a spinshyoff of Wikipedia with about 800+ questions free of cost contributed by various authors Becausethere is little quality check and control over the type of questions a lot more questions do not reflect theUSMLE style than questions that do Integration of concepts is rarely tested Since itrsquos free you may like touse it early in coursework but remember that some questions are factually incorrect others are vague andtheir explanations may not reflect high yield material

NBME examsThese exams can be purchased at NBME website for about 45$ each and has 200 questions each arranged in4 blocks You may buy about 2 or 3 such exams from a total of 7 It is very important to use atleast oneexam early in coursework and another late in coursework to gauge your performance levels strengths andweaknesses In addition a projected 3 digit score is given to you at the end of your exam that is highlypredictive of your actual USMLE Step 1 score NBMErsquos are also not reflective of current USMLE style Mostquestions are very easy making the marking very stringent and strict But you have to use these exams toquantitate your performance levels I recommend buying 3 Use one early another in the middle and the lastone late in your coursework to ensure adequate progression in your study

USMLE World SelfshyAssessment formsThey can be accessed at usmleworldcom and have a cost of 30$ each They are two in number Whenpurchased together they cost 50$ in total They have the added advantage of allowing you to study questionsyou got incorrect or correct and read all explanations over NBME which allows neither Best used late in yourcoursework and you should attempt to study all the explanations There are 192 questions in each exam

Kaplan QbookThis is an official release of Kaplan Medical I did go through it randomly at first It has various blocks of 50questions each organized in a subjectshywise manner (not systems wise) Unfortunately various questions areagain not reflective of current exam and are typically easy The most poorly composed section is asexpected Behavioural sciences Two blocks of 50 questions each of absolute madness It follows the samephilosophy of Kaplans Qbank somewhat hinting more at retrieval of an examinees memory rather thanintegration of concepts

GETTING STARTED WITH IT ALL You have the choice to study either during your medical studies or after your graduation As I alreadyexplained earlier studying during your medical school is substantially better than after your graduationHowever USMLE is a difficult exam that needs honesty and time commitment You cannot study this examfor the fun or sake of it because that may seriously backfire with a very low score Only sit this exam onceyou are sure of your preparation Using NBMEs is one way of assessing your preparedness

In case you wished to appear in Step 1 during your medical studies but became very anxious or your NBMEscore is not so good your time wasnrsquot lost You can carry that knowledge over to studying for Step2 CK aswell during your final year In that case you may begin to feel confident enough to give Step2 Ck before yourStep1 because you had already had some feel of how Step1 looks like

The best way is to begin as early as possible in your medical studies Study only good Americantextbooks I recommend you to study the following textbooks during your medical education

Snellrsquos AnatomySnellrsquos NeuroanatomyGanongrsquos PhysiologyLippincott Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyKatzungrsquos Pharmacology (Board Review Series)Levinsonrsquos Microbiology and ImmunologyMedium Robbins supplemented by Goljan or even Goljan aloneFor behavioural science you may have to rely on textbooks already stated above

The textbooks above ensure you get a sound grasp on the subject in question Using these resources ensureyoursquore automatically geared towards Step1 prep Strictly avoid using textbooks authored in the subcontinentas not one single such textbook lives up to the standard of the books above

Herersquos a tour through a Step1 preparation

First few months getting started

A lot of us subcontinent people use Kaplan Americans get about 2 months off at end of their 2nd year andstudy Goljan First Aid and Usmleworld

You may need to use the videos You donrsquot necessarily have to listen to all these videos You may form good

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 815

concepts but as soon as that happens yoursquod immediately forget later on Using videos for referencing againand again is time consuming and frustrating A good detailed textbook is a very good substitute If graspingDNA synthesis from Kaplanrsquos biochemistry textbook is difficult jump straight to Lippincott Unfortunately thiscross referencing is something yoursquod have to do extensively throughout your Step1 study So keep all themajor textbooks readied

First just go through the Kaplan Understand learn or not is not a matter Try to get a feel of what Step1syllabus content is like Next you may want to use video lectures to aid you in understanding difficultconcepts and also for the sake of simply touring through the Step1 In these first few months use your majortextbooks extensively Donrsquot be afraid to open Snellrsquos neuroanatomy or Ganongrsquos Physiology to clarify difficultconcepts Once done write them for your records somewhere You can maintain a notebook to serve thatpurpose Alternatively you may annotate the Kaplan books Choice is yours

Doing all of that would take quite a lot of time Be patient Donrsquot rush through your study schedule or tryjumping ahead Do justice to all your subjects Remember subjects like Pharmacology and Microbiologyrequire constant attention This means that as soon as yoursquore done with your first pass try to immediatelyjump back to these subjects and revise them Donrsquot limit these subjects to a mere 3 or 4 reads Itrsquos indefinitelyhigh yield to do as many quick reads of these subjects as is possible This ensures adequate retention offacts in your memory You donrsquot have to use question resources at this moment

So the initial stage of your study is simply quick pass through the syllabus content + careful pass throughselected and difficult topics with extensive cross referencing from major textbooks and maintenance ofimportant pointers in a notebook Donrsquot try to be a copycat and emulate othersrsquo timetables Find the rightsolution to studying yourself

Intermediate stage This stage introduces the question resources As already stated you can rely on Usmlerx or Kaplan QbankAlthough you can find illegally printed textbooks to these question resources they donrsquot give you theadvantage of mixing your questions making random timed or selfshypaced blocks and maintain a record of usedand unused questions As soon as MedEdia releases its questions resources free of cost you may like tocheck it out as well

My recommendation would be to use either question resource and try attempting questions systems wise Ifyou just finished a revision of Biochemistry hit the questions Read the explanations to all questions pick upa notebook and write the important facts in that Go through those facts at regular stages This wouldespecially help you in Biochemistryrsquos case learn all the rate limiting enzymes and hormonal and allostericcontrols Allosteric controls form an important testing component and is especially tricky to understandespecially in the whole context of all metabolic pathways

Use this approach and apply to all subjects You donrsquot have to attempt the whole question resource but makesure you do attempt atleast a sufficient number of questions At this stage you may use either timed or selfshypaced mode

At the end try and attempt an NBME exam This should give you an idea where you land and how far are youfrom your goal Depending upon your goal and the difference from your goal you can modify that final stage ofyour preparation in whatever manner you like

Final stage

Once again quickly hit Pharmacology Microbiology and especially Behavioural science and revise thesesubjects At least go through remaining subjects once but the aforementioned ones should be given specialattention to because of the ease with which they are forgotten Remember now your momentum is veryimportant If you remain consistent in this stage you would drastically improve your final score If you takebreaks or delay your exam you would only end up wasting time

Now is the time to start usmleworldcomrsquos question resource Americans at this stage do 2 blocks of 48questions (46 in real exam) everyday and spend time reading all explanations They supplement thoseexplanations into First Aid You can try doing that too to good effect Mix in another NBME andor Usmleworld Self Assessment forms which have already been referenced to above

Herersquos an important point IF your NBME score is far off from your goal NOW you may contemplate delayingyour exam Always aim for the very high but you have to have a realistic appraisal of your own intellect andability You must have both a very high goal and a very realistic goal Itrsquos only you who can tell you what yourabilities are NBMEs usually are a very accurate gauge of your performance What they state is approximatelywhat your abilities are

Keep using First Aid also especially towards the week leading up to your eventual exam Make sure you havebeen following CTs MRIs photomicrographs gross specimens and XshyRays all along because these areheavily tested Keep focused on learning heart sounds as well Last but definitely not least all those notesyou made into your notebook using your own familiar handwriting towards the end of your preparation wouldmost likely keep your anxiety levels in check Do not even think about opening a new book at this stage

When yoursquore done with your Kaplan throw those books away and concentrate only on First Aid and your ownnotes from Kaplan and question resource explanations in last two weeks

In your final day you may take a day off after a stressful spell that spanned several months Make a list ofthings you need to take Check your permit Prometric appointment passport and National ID card

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 915

Some tips about what to do during your last day and exam day

I had the biggest misfortune of totally screwing up my sleep the very last day It wasnrsquot anxiety It happenssometimes to me that I canrsquot go to sleep even after 4shy5 hours and by chance it happened the very last nighttoo Eventually I took a pill of Bromazepam slept for 4 hours and went to the exam The whole day was abattle with drowsiness Energy drinks did some trick but really my first and second blocks were almostsacrificed which must have led to reduction in my eventual score

I would advise you to take a sleeping pill the last night and ensure a good nightrsquos sleep This is criticallyimportant before your exam that drowsiness doesnrsquot take over You can use energy drinks during the day ofyour exam but make sure you have used them before to be sure they donrsquot end up causing diarrhoea insteadduring the exam

My experience with Step 1 preparation

I started at the beginning of my fourth year I was confident because I had the fortune of having studied goodtextbooks in preference to local ones I started as usual Buy Kaplan textbooks and the Video lectures But Ididnt use all the video lectures because quartershyway through I realized that although they are helping mesolidify my concepts they are of little value in revision I listened to Dr Lionel Raymons biochemistrylectures Dr Anthony Trevors Pharmacology lectures and Dr James Neuroanatomy lectures I mayhave listened to others too somewhat but I dont clearly remember All these mentioned lectures were theworks of genius people indeed and by all means you should listen to what they have to say about theirsubjects You may elect to skip the other lectures

As I have stated in the ideal preparation above crossshyreferencing to good textbooks is important and I felt theneed always to do that From February through June I managed to cover some subjects atleast once(Pharmacology Biochemistry Anatomy) others twice (Microbiology) still others only less than half(Immunology Pathology) and remaining none (Physiology Behavioural sciences) You can try thissame methodology with the exception of including Behavioural sciences in the twice category withMicrobiology So much for a first read I guess

In July I managed to cover some major portions of usmleworld questions resource especially microbiology andpharmacology This helped strengthen my knowledge of these subjects Later I finished my first passthrough Physiology and Behavioural science (I told you I developed a deja vu right after studying this)

I would cover Pathology text with my medical studies in fourth year For example when they had a classtest Id study Goljan and Medium Robbins

Time passed and I started wasting time too Perhaps I realized that attempting the Step1 at end of my fourthyear was overly ambitious It would have been very realistic if I started in 3rd year which is why if you are astudent in 3rd year by all means start your exam preparation Till November I had managed another pass atleast once through most subjects with the exception of Physiology and Behavioural sciences (yet again) InNovember I picked up First Aid and went through it in 2 weeks I registered for NBME form 3 I attempted it onNovember27th I think (right after that was EidshyulshyAzha day) My score was projected 244 I realized thatthis was very decent given that I had yet to seriously cover behavioural sciences and Physiology also

After that time for my professional exams at end of fourth year arrived ENT Eye Community Medicine andSpecial Pathology were the subjects and I somehow managed a third position and distinction in PathologyThe latter was significant because it motivated me once again for Step 1 But this exam had seriously upsetmy rhythm and because my first ward in final year was a maternity duty (day and night for 2 weeks = no timefor Step 1 prep) I lost my way This was why I stated how important is your study momentum when takinginto the final date I somehow managed to pick myself up had to spend substantial time applying for electivesand finally started seriously in April I finalized my date for June 10th and immediately started coveringPhysiology and Behavioural sciences which I had neglected (and Id advise you to not do as I did)

In that time I also went through Katzung board review pharmacology and some part of Levinson especiallyParasitology I also immediately revised all of Pathology which I hadnt touched ever since I gave my fourthyear exam All of a sudden it turned into a hishyoctane study mode Cursing myself for wasting time I graduallynavigated my way through immediate revisions and then picked up First Aid Q and A book I attempted all1000 questions and wrote a majority of explanations in my notebook Afterwards I went through that onceespecially revising the behavioural science explanations This really helped me immensely Now it wasalready May 12th I picked up first aid and finished it in next 8 days I had attempted Usmle world selfshyassessment form 1 on May 18th and my projected score was 256 Needless to say I felt more relieved thanhappy that the break in my tempo didnt destroy my hopes Then I picked up usmleworld once again andnavigated my way through it studying the majority of explanations and combining with the very final quickrevision of kaplan series This continued on into June

On June 5th I attempted the second usmle world self assessment form online My projected score was 265+Usmleworld doesnt give a score beyond 265 so it states it as 265+ instead I was happy In the final few daysI went through explanations to the exam questions I just gave and my own notebook Id occasionally open afew books but I would advise you against it to guard against unnecessary anxiety induction Then the finalday came I arranged my things together Passport permit ID etc went and bought snacks a sandwich andenergy drinks At 930 PM I went to bed I thought I fell asleep at 10PM only to wake up moments laterSleeplessness continued till late night at 3AM when I finally took Bromazepam and went to sleep for good Butthe damage was done and damage continued into the first block of my exam Second block suffered as wellbut after that through sheer willpower I fought with my drowsiness and the exam and eventually finished it

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1015

Posted by McFearless

Labels USMLE

Reactions funny (2) interesting (3) cool (1) thanks (9)

Moral of the story A good nights sleep before your exam

The exam really was very much like what usmleorg described it as 46 questions per block framed intoclinical vignettes more so than not so At some stages I felt that questions were unnecessarily stretched withclinical information Exam has increased in difficulty overall and timing did become an issue for me especiallyin the first block where I had to resort to guesswork towards the end but this was more attributable to my sleepproblems rather than the exam itself The new Mededia Qbank is designed to therefore reflect this trend andstyle I will not write what topics were tested or what was the distribution of subjects and I strictly advise younot to do that either The repercussions include ban from taking USMLE exam for a limited number of yearsSo dont disseminate exam information anywhere even under the veil of anonymity internet provides you

Word of special thanks

First of all all thanks to God Second to parents

The journey started when Dr Umar Tariq explained to me how getting started with Step1 might bring somegood fortune That happened at the very start of my fourth year I thought this sounded too cool Then I gotstarted on it Who knows I might not even have started if he didnrsquot tell me to True words of inspiration Thefirst person who stated the true words of guidance that was honest and sincere The only senior at that timewho encouraged me to gear up for Step1 and now I am happy to carry out that legacy Going through the preparation I got in contact with another senior Dr Mustafa Mumtaz He also encouragedme to give it as soon as possible His contribution was really important for me because he introduced theNBME concept to me and explained how it helps in measuring up the candidate potential He also gave memany other tips about the exam for which I am very thankful I would also like to carry that legacy and guidethe juniors just like that in a positive and encouraging way the same way he did to me

My brother Dr Ather (not a medical doctor PhD) also had contribution in keeping me motivated about myeventual goal Later I also got in contact with Dr Hassan Aziz and Dr Sultan Mahmood which helped mecarry over my preparationIf you are lucky enough to get seniors and friends like these no one can bet against you going 270+ in Step1Good luck in the pursuit of your ambitions

If you have any comments that you want added to this article please write them in the comments below

Regards

Ayaz

+2 Recommend this on Google

28 Comments [KemUnited] Login

Share⤤ Sort by Best

Join the discussionhellip

bull Reply bull

zainab bull a year agosalamthanku for the guidelinesi am starting my 3rd yrso if start usinggoljankaplankatzung series along with the standard textbooks amp then in 4th yr i dothe same exercise ie using the above prescribed books for the respective subjectsin addition to the standard textbooksplus through the two years ahead if i reviseanatomyphysiology amp biochemistry plus appear for the NBME examthen can iappear in the summers of 4th yr before sendups easily i mean final yr ka stuffdekhey baghair bhi ho jae ga na

19

bull Reply bull

waqar bull a year agoThat was one of the Best I have every read on USMLE (dont be too happy it is thefirst one I read)

Lets come back to topic Thank You so Dr Ayaz Mehmood for sharing yourexperience with us I am like not sure should I go for USMLE or not but after readingyour post I can say I now know how to go for USMLE

Please suggest me some of the advantages of giving USMLE except a job inAmerica

9

Recommend 3

Share rsaquo

Share rsaquo

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 815

concepts but as soon as that happens yoursquod immediately forget later on Using videos for referencing againand again is time consuming and frustrating A good detailed textbook is a very good substitute If graspingDNA synthesis from Kaplanrsquos biochemistry textbook is difficult jump straight to Lippincott Unfortunately thiscross referencing is something yoursquod have to do extensively throughout your Step1 study So keep all themajor textbooks readied

First just go through the Kaplan Understand learn or not is not a matter Try to get a feel of what Step1syllabus content is like Next you may want to use video lectures to aid you in understanding difficultconcepts and also for the sake of simply touring through the Step1 In these first few months use your majortextbooks extensively Donrsquot be afraid to open Snellrsquos neuroanatomy or Ganongrsquos Physiology to clarify difficultconcepts Once done write them for your records somewhere You can maintain a notebook to serve thatpurpose Alternatively you may annotate the Kaplan books Choice is yours

Doing all of that would take quite a lot of time Be patient Donrsquot rush through your study schedule or tryjumping ahead Do justice to all your subjects Remember subjects like Pharmacology and Microbiologyrequire constant attention This means that as soon as yoursquore done with your first pass try to immediatelyjump back to these subjects and revise them Donrsquot limit these subjects to a mere 3 or 4 reads Itrsquos indefinitelyhigh yield to do as many quick reads of these subjects as is possible This ensures adequate retention offacts in your memory You donrsquot have to use question resources at this moment

So the initial stage of your study is simply quick pass through the syllabus content + careful pass throughselected and difficult topics with extensive cross referencing from major textbooks and maintenance ofimportant pointers in a notebook Donrsquot try to be a copycat and emulate othersrsquo timetables Find the rightsolution to studying yourself

Intermediate stage This stage introduces the question resources As already stated you can rely on Usmlerx or Kaplan QbankAlthough you can find illegally printed textbooks to these question resources they donrsquot give you theadvantage of mixing your questions making random timed or selfshypaced blocks and maintain a record of usedand unused questions As soon as MedEdia releases its questions resources free of cost you may like tocheck it out as well

My recommendation would be to use either question resource and try attempting questions systems wise Ifyou just finished a revision of Biochemistry hit the questions Read the explanations to all questions pick upa notebook and write the important facts in that Go through those facts at regular stages This wouldespecially help you in Biochemistryrsquos case learn all the rate limiting enzymes and hormonal and allostericcontrols Allosteric controls form an important testing component and is especially tricky to understandespecially in the whole context of all metabolic pathways

Use this approach and apply to all subjects You donrsquot have to attempt the whole question resource but makesure you do attempt atleast a sufficient number of questions At this stage you may use either timed or selfshypaced mode

At the end try and attempt an NBME exam This should give you an idea where you land and how far are youfrom your goal Depending upon your goal and the difference from your goal you can modify that final stage ofyour preparation in whatever manner you like

Final stage

Once again quickly hit Pharmacology Microbiology and especially Behavioural science and revise thesesubjects At least go through remaining subjects once but the aforementioned ones should be given specialattention to because of the ease with which they are forgotten Remember now your momentum is veryimportant If you remain consistent in this stage you would drastically improve your final score If you takebreaks or delay your exam you would only end up wasting time

Now is the time to start usmleworldcomrsquos question resource Americans at this stage do 2 blocks of 48questions (46 in real exam) everyday and spend time reading all explanations They supplement thoseexplanations into First Aid You can try doing that too to good effect Mix in another NBME andor Usmleworld Self Assessment forms which have already been referenced to above

Herersquos an important point IF your NBME score is far off from your goal NOW you may contemplate delayingyour exam Always aim for the very high but you have to have a realistic appraisal of your own intellect andability You must have both a very high goal and a very realistic goal Itrsquos only you who can tell you what yourabilities are NBMEs usually are a very accurate gauge of your performance What they state is approximatelywhat your abilities are

Keep using First Aid also especially towards the week leading up to your eventual exam Make sure you havebeen following CTs MRIs photomicrographs gross specimens and XshyRays all along because these areheavily tested Keep focused on learning heart sounds as well Last but definitely not least all those notesyou made into your notebook using your own familiar handwriting towards the end of your preparation wouldmost likely keep your anxiety levels in check Do not even think about opening a new book at this stage

When yoursquore done with your Kaplan throw those books away and concentrate only on First Aid and your ownnotes from Kaplan and question resource explanations in last two weeks

In your final day you may take a day off after a stressful spell that spanned several months Make a list ofthings you need to take Check your permit Prometric appointment passport and National ID card

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 915

Some tips about what to do during your last day and exam day

I had the biggest misfortune of totally screwing up my sleep the very last day It wasnrsquot anxiety It happenssometimes to me that I canrsquot go to sleep even after 4shy5 hours and by chance it happened the very last nighttoo Eventually I took a pill of Bromazepam slept for 4 hours and went to the exam The whole day was abattle with drowsiness Energy drinks did some trick but really my first and second blocks were almostsacrificed which must have led to reduction in my eventual score

I would advise you to take a sleeping pill the last night and ensure a good nightrsquos sleep This is criticallyimportant before your exam that drowsiness doesnrsquot take over You can use energy drinks during the day ofyour exam but make sure you have used them before to be sure they donrsquot end up causing diarrhoea insteadduring the exam

My experience with Step 1 preparation

I started at the beginning of my fourth year I was confident because I had the fortune of having studied goodtextbooks in preference to local ones I started as usual Buy Kaplan textbooks and the Video lectures But Ididnt use all the video lectures because quartershyway through I realized that although they are helping mesolidify my concepts they are of little value in revision I listened to Dr Lionel Raymons biochemistrylectures Dr Anthony Trevors Pharmacology lectures and Dr James Neuroanatomy lectures I mayhave listened to others too somewhat but I dont clearly remember All these mentioned lectures were theworks of genius people indeed and by all means you should listen to what they have to say about theirsubjects You may elect to skip the other lectures

As I have stated in the ideal preparation above crossshyreferencing to good textbooks is important and I felt theneed always to do that From February through June I managed to cover some subjects atleast once(Pharmacology Biochemistry Anatomy) others twice (Microbiology) still others only less than half(Immunology Pathology) and remaining none (Physiology Behavioural sciences) You can try thissame methodology with the exception of including Behavioural sciences in the twice category withMicrobiology So much for a first read I guess

In July I managed to cover some major portions of usmleworld questions resource especially microbiology andpharmacology This helped strengthen my knowledge of these subjects Later I finished my first passthrough Physiology and Behavioural science (I told you I developed a deja vu right after studying this)

I would cover Pathology text with my medical studies in fourth year For example when they had a classtest Id study Goljan and Medium Robbins

Time passed and I started wasting time too Perhaps I realized that attempting the Step1 at end of my fourthyear was overly ambitious It would have been very realistic if I started in 3rd year which is why if you are astudent in 3rd year by all means start your exam preparation Till November I had managed another pass atleast once through most subjects with the exception of Physiology and Behavioural sciences (yet again) InNovember I picked up First Aid and went through it in 2 weeks I registered for NBME form 3 I attempted it onNovember27th I think (right after that was EidshyulshyAzha day) My score was projected 244 I realized thatthis was very decent given that I had yet to seriously cover behavioural sciences and Physiology also

After that time for my professional exams at end of fourth year arrived ENT Eye Community Medicine andSpecial Pathology were the subjects and I somehow managed a third position and distinction in PathologyThe latter was significant because it motivated me once again for Step 1 But this exam had seriously upsetmy rhythm and because my first ward in final year was a maternity duty (day and night for 2 weeks = no timefor Step 1 prep) I lost my way This was why I stated how important is your study momentum when takinginto the final date I somehow managed to pick myself up had to spend substantial time applying for electivesand finally started seriously in April I finalized my date for June 10th and immediately started coveringPhysiology and Behavioural sciences which I had neglected (and Id advise you to not do as I did)

In that time I also went through Katzung board review pharmacology and some part of Levinson especiallyParasitology I also immediately revised all of Pathology which I hadnt touched ever since I gave my fourthyear exam All of a sudden it turned into a hishyoctane study mode Cursing myself for wasting time I graduallynavigated my way through immediate revisions and then picked up First Aid Q and A book I attempted all1000 questions and wrote a majority of explanations in my notebook Afterwards I went through that onceespecially revising the behavioural science explanations This really helped me immensely Now it wasalready May 12th I picked up first aid and finished it in next 8 days I had attempted Usmle world selfshyassessment form 1 on May 18th and my projected score was 256 Needless to say I felt more relieved thanhappy that the break in my tempo didnt destroy my hopes Then I picked up usmleworld once again andnavigated my way through it studying the majority of explanations and combining with the very final quickrevision of kaplan series This continued on into June

On June 5th I attempted the second usmle world self assessment form online My projected score was 265+Usmleworld doesnt give a score beyond 265 so it states it as 265+ instead I was happy In the final few daysI went through explanations to the exam questions I just gave and my own notebook Id occasionally open afew books but I would advise you against it to guard against unnecessary anxiety induction Then the finalday came I arranged my things together Passport permit ID etc went and bought snacks a sandwich andenergy drinks At 930 PM I went to bed I thought I fell asleep at 10PM only to wake up moments laterSleeplessness continued till late night at 3AM when I finally took Bromazepam and went to sleep for good Butthe damage was done and damage continued into the first block of my exam Second block suffered as wellbut after that through sheer willpower I fought with my drowsiness and the exam and eventually finished it

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1015

Posted by McFearless

Labels USMLE

Reactions funny (2) interesting (3) cool (1) thanks (9)

Moral of the story A good nights sleep before your exam

The exam really was very much like what usmleorg described it as 46 questions per block framed intoclinical vignettes more so than not so At some stages I felt that questions were unnecessarily stretched withclinical information Exam has increased in difficulty overall and timing did become an issue for me especiallyin the first block where I had to resort to guesswork towards the end but this was more attributable to my sleepproblems rather than the exam itself The new Mededia Qbank is designed to therefore reflect this trend andstyle I will not write what topics were tested or what was the distribution of subjects and I strictly advise younot to do that either The repercussions include ban from taking USMLE exam for a limited number of yearsSo dont disseminate exam information anywhere even under the veil of anonymity internet provides you

Word of special thanks

First of all all thanks to God Second to parents

The journey started when Dr Umar Tariq explained to me how getting started with Step1 might bring somegood fortune That happened at the very start of my fourth year I thought this sounded too cool Then I gotstarted on it Who knows I might not even have started if he didnrsquot tell me to True words of inspiration Thefirst person who stated the true words of guidance that was honest and sincere The only senior at that timewho encouraged me to gear up for Step1 and now I am happy to carry out that legacy Going through the preparation I got in contact with another senior Dr Mustafa Mumtaz He also encouragedme to give it as soon as possible His contribution was really important for me because he introduced theNBME concept to me and explained how it helps in measuring up the candidate potential He also gave memany other tips about the exam for which I am very thankful I would also like to carry that legacy and guidethe juniors just like that in a positive and encouraging way the same way he did to me

My brother Dr Ather (not a medical doctor PhD) also had contribution in keeping me motivated about myeventual goal Later I also got in contact with Dr Hassan Aziz and Dr Sultan Mahmood which helped mecarry over my preparationIf you are lucky enough to get seniors and friends like these no one can bet against you going 270+ in Step1Good luck in the pursuit of your ambitions

If you have any comments that you want added to this article please write them in the comments below

Regards

Ayaz

+2 Recommend this on Google

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zainab bull a year agosalamthanku for the guidelinesi am starting my 3rd yrso if start usinggoljankaplankatzung series along with the standard textbooks amp then in 4th yr i dothe same exercise ie using the above prescribed books for the respective subjectsin addition to the standard textbooksplus through the two years ahead if i reviseanatomyphysiology amp biochemistry plus appear for the NBME examthen can iappear in the summers of 4th yr before sendups easily i mean final yr ka stuffdekhey baghair bhi ho jae ga na

19

bull Reply bull

waqar bull a year agoThat was one of the Best I have every read on USMLE (dont be too happy it is thefirst one I read)

Lets come back to topic Thank You so Dr Ayaz Mehmood for sharing yourexperience with us I am like not sure should I go for USMLE or not but after readingyour post I can say I now know how to go for USMLE

Please suggest me some of the advantages of giving USMLE except a job inAmerica

9

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

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Some tips about what to do during your last day and exam day

I had the biggest misfortune of totally screwing up my sleep the very last day It wasnrsquot anxiety It happenssometimes to me that I canrsquot go to sleep even after 4shy5 hours and by chance it happened the very last nighttoo Eventually I took a pill of Bromazepam slept for 4 hours and went to the exam The whole day was abattle with drowsiness Energy drinks did some trick but really my first and second blocks were almostsacrificed which must have led to reduction in my eventual score

I would advise you to take a sleeping pill the last night and ensure a good nightrsquos sleep This is criticallyimportant before your exam that drowsiness doesnrsquot take over You can use energy drinks during the day ofyour exam but make sure you have used them before to be sure they donrsquot end up causing diarrhoea insteadduring the exam

My experience with Step 1 preparation

I started at the beginning of my fourth year I was confident because I had the fortune of having studied goodtextbooks in preference to local ones I started as usual Buy Kaplan textbooks and the Video lectures But Ididnt use all the video lectures because quartershyway through I realized that although they are helping mesolidify my concepts they are of little value in revision I listened to Dr Lionel Raymons biochemistrylectures Dr Anthony Trevors Pharmacology lectures and Dr James Neuroanatomy lectures I mayhave listened to others too somewhat but I dont clearly remember All these mentioned lectures were theworks of genius people indeed and by all means you should listen to what they have to say about theirsubjects You may elect to skip the other lectures

As I have stated in the ideal preparation above crossshyreferencing to good textbooks is important and I felt theneed always to do that From February through June I managed to cover some subjects atleast once(Pharmacology Biochemistry Anatomy) others twice (Microbiology) still others only less than half(Immunology Pathology) and remaining none (Physiology Behavioural sciences) You can try thissame methodology with the exception of including Behavioural sciences in the twice category withMicrobiology So much for a first read I guess

In July I managed to cover some major portions of usmleworld questions resource especially microbiology andpharmacology This helped strengthen my knowledge of these subjects Later I finished my first passthrough Physiology and Behavioural science (I told you I developed a deja vu right after studying this)

I would cover Pathology text with my medical studies in fourth year For example when they had a classtest Id study Goljan and Medium Robbins

Time passed and I started wasting time too Perhaps I realized that attempting the Step1 at end of my fourthyear was overly ambitious It would have been very realistic if I started in 3rd year which is why if you are astudent in 3rd year by all means start your exam preparation Till November I had managed another pass atleast once through most subjects with the exception of Physiology and Behavioural sciences (yet again) InNovember I picked up First Aid and went through it in 2 weeks I registered for NBME form 3 I attempted it onNovember27th I think (right after that was EidshyulshyAzha day) My score was projected 244 I realized thatthis was very decent given that I had yet to seriously cover behavioural sciences and Physiology also

After that time for my professional exams at end of fourth year arrived ENT Eye Community Medicine andSpecial Pathology were the subjects and I somehow managed a third position and distinction in PathologyThe latter was significant because it motivated me once again for Step 1 But this exam had seriously upsetmy rhythm and because my first ward in final year was a maternity duty (day and night for 2 weeks = no timefor Step 1 prep) I lost my way This was why I stated how important is your study momentum when takinginto the final date I somehow managed to pick myself up had to spend substantial time applying for electivesand finally started seriously in April I finalized my date for June 10th and immediately started coveringPhysiology and Behavioural sciences which I had neglected (and Id advise you to not do as I did)

In that time I also went through Katzung board review pharmacology and some part of Levinson especiallyParasitology I also immediately revised all of Pathology which I hadnt touched ever since I gave my fourthyear exam All of a sudden it turned into a hishyoctane study mode Cursing myself for wasting time I graduallynavigated my way through immediate revisions and then picked up First Aid Q and A book I attempted all1000 questions and wrote a majority of explanations in my notebook Afterwards I went through that onceespecially revising the behavioural science explanations This really helped me immensely Now it wasalready May 12th I picked up first aid and finished it in next 8 days I had attempted Usmle world selfshyassessment form 1 on May 18th and my projected score was 256 Needless to say I felt more relieved thanhappy that the break in my tempo didnt destroy my hopes Then I picked up usmleworld once again andnavigated my way through it studying the majority of explanations and combining with the very final quickrevision of kaplan series This continued on into June

On June 5th I attempted the second usmle world self assessment form online My projected score was 265+Usmleworld doesnt give a score beyond 265 so it states it as 265+ instead I was happy In the final few daysI went through explanations to the exam questions I just gave and my own notebook Id occasionally open afew books but I would advise you against it to guard against unnecessary anxiety induction Then the finalday came I arranged my things together Passport permit ID etc went and bought snacks a sandwich andenergy drinks At 930 PM I went to bed I thought I fell asleep at 10PM only to wake up moments laterSleeplessness continued till late night at 3AM when I finally took Bromazepam and went to sleep for good Butthe damage was done and damage continued into the first block of my exam Second block suffered as wellbut after that through sheer willpower I fought with my drowsiness and the exam and eventually finished it

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1015

Posted by McFearless

Labels USMLE

Reactions funny (2) interesting (3) cool (1) thanks (9)

Moral of the story A good nights sleep before your exam

The exam really was very much like what usmleorg described it as 46 questions per block framed intoclinical vignettes more so than not so At some stages I felt that questions were unnecessarily stretched withclinical information Exam has increased in difficulty overall and timing did become an issue for me especiallyin the first block where I had to resort to guesswork towards the end but this was more attributable to my sleepproblems rather than the exam itself The new Mededia Qbank is designed to therefore reflect this trend andstyle I will not write what topics were tested or what was the distribution of subjects and I strictly advise younot to do that either The repercussions include ban from taking USMLE exam for a limited number of yearsSo dont disseminate exam information anywhere even under the veil of anonymity internet provides you

Word of special thanks

First of all all thanks to God Second to parents

The journey started when Dr Umar Tariq explained to me how getting started with Step1 might bring somegood fortune That happened at the very start of my fourth year I thought this sounded too cool Then I gotstarted on it Who knows I might not even have started if he didnrsquot tell me to True words of inspiration Thefirst person who stated the true words of guidance that was honest and sincere The only senior at that timewho encouraged me to gear up for Step1 and now I am happy to carry out that legacy Going through the preparation I got in contact with another senior Dr Mustafa Mumtaz He also encouragedme to give it as soon as possible His contribution was really important for me because he introduced theNBME concept to me and explained how it helps in measuring up the candidate potential He also gave memany other tips about the exam for which I am very thankful I would also like to carry that legacy and guidethe juniors just like that in a positive and encouraging way the same way he did to me

My brother Dr Ather (not a medical doctor PhD) also had contribution in keeping me motivated about myeventual goal Later I also got in contact with Dr Hassan Aziz and Dr Sultan Mahmood which helped mecarry over my preparationIf you are lucky enough to get seniors and friends like these no one can bet against you going 270+ in Step1Good luck in the pursuit of your ambitions

If you have any comments that you want added to this article please write them in the comments below

Regards

Ayaz

+2 Recommend this on Google

28 Comments [KemUnited] Login

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Join the discussionhellip

bull Reply bull

zainab bull a year agosalamthanku for the guidelinesi am starting my 3rd yrso if start usinggoljankaplankatzung series along with the standard textbooks amp then in 4th yr i dothe same exercise ie using the above prescribed books for the respective subjectsin addition to the standard textbooksplus through the two years ahead if i reviseanatomyphysiology amp biochemistry plus appear for the NBME examthen can iappear in the summers of 4th yr before sendups easily i mean final yr ka stuffdekhey baghair bhi ho jae ga na

19

bull Reply bull

waqar bull a year agoThat was one of the Best I have every read on USMLE (dont be too happy it is thefirst one I read)

Lets come back to topic Thank You so Dr Ayaz Mehmood for sharing yourexperience with us I am like not sure should I go for USMLE or not but after readingyour post I can say I now know how to go for USMLE

Please suggest me some of the advantages of giving USMLE except a job inAmerica

9

Recommend 3

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1015

Posted by McFearless

Labels USMLE

Reactions funny (2) interesting (3) cool (1) thanks (9)

Moral of the story A good nights sleep before your exam

The exam really was very much like what usmleorg described it as 46 questions per block framed intoclinical vignettes more so than not so At some stages I felt that questions were unnecessarily stretched withclinical information Exam has increased in difficulty overall and timing did become an issue for me especiallyin the first block where I had to resort to guesswork towards the end but this was more attributable to my sleepproblems rather than the exam itself The new Mededia Qbank is designed to therefore reflect this trend andstyle I will not write what topics were tested or what was the distribution of subjects and I strictly advise younot to do that either The repercussions include ban from taking USMLE exam for a limited number of yearsSo dont disseminate exam information anywhere even under the veil of anonymity internet provides you

Word of special thanks

First of all all thanks to God Second to parents

The journey started when Dr Umar Tariq explained to me how getting started with Step1 might bring somegood fortune That happened at the very start of my fourth year I thought this sounded too cool Then I gotstarted on it Who knows I might not even have started if he didnrsquot tell me to True words of inspiration Thefirst person who stated the true words of guidance that was honest and sincere The only senior at that timewho encouraged me to gear up for Step1 and now I am happy to carry out that legacy Going through the preparation I got in contact with another senior Dr Mustafa Mumtaz He also encouragedme to give it as soon as possible His contribution was really important for me because he introduced theNBME concept to me and explained how it helps in measuring up the candidate potential He also gave memany other tips about the exam for which I am very thankful I would also like to carry that legacy and guidethe juniors just like that in a positive and encouraging way the same way he did to me

My brother Dr Ather (not a medical doctor PhD) also had contribution in keeping me motivated about myeventual goal Later I also got in contact with Dr Hassan Aziz and Dr Sultan Mahmood which helped mecarry over my preparationIf you are lucky enough to get seniors and friends like these no one can bet against you going 270+ in Step1Good luck in the pursuit of your ambitions

If you have any comments that you want added to this article please write them in the comments below

Regards

Ayaz

+2 Recommend this on Google

28 Comments [KemUnited] Login

Share⤤ Sort by Best

Join the discussionhellip

bull Reply bull

zainab bull a year agosalamthanku for the guidelinesi am starting my 3rd yrso if start usinggoljankaplankatzung series along with the standard textbooks amp then in 4th yr i dothe same exercise ie using the above prescribed books for the respective subjectsin addition to the standard textbooksplus through the two years ahead if i reviseanatomyphysiology amp biochemistry plus appear for the NBME examthen can iappear in the summers of 4th yr before sendups easily i mean final yr ka stuffdekhey baghair bhi ho jae ga na

19

bull Reply bull

waqar bull a year agoThat was one of the Best I have every read on USMLE (dont be too happy it is thefirst one I read)

Lets come back to topic Thank You so Dr Ayaz Mehmood for sharing yourexperience with us I am like not sure should I go for USMLE or not but after readingyour post I can say I now know how to go for USMLE

Please suggest me some of the advantages of giving USMLE except a job inAmerica

9

Recommend 3

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1115

bull Reply bull

Anonymous bull 4 years agoCongrats on ur success The article was greatbut I feel theres somethingmissingHow EXACTLY did u study in the midst of your regular studies From wheredid u get all that time I remember MCAT and FScand it was a frustrating routine ofstudystudy breakmoodswings and studyIs USMLE prep like that And how do ucope with it Im emphasizing on the human factor hereI guess u were selfshymotivatedand no one can teach u that shybut PLZ cud u put in some human detailsurstudy routinemanaging with frustrationand time managementThe USMLE can behard on the nerves

5

bull Reply bull

saad bull 2 years agoayaz bhai i read ur experience almost 2 yrs ago u mentioned in ur guide k USMLESTEP 1 SECRETS is a good book n can guarantee u somewhere between 90 to 99on 2 figure score wt i read on many forums is that everybody recommends FA nwhen i llok at it it jus freaks the hell out of me its a kind of collection of facts n meraparhne ka style is more of a kind of RATTA bt cant cope wd FA wd my style of studyso i bought the 3rd edition of USMLE STEP 1 SECRETS n hav started reading it itsgood n easy so actually im planning to do my step 1 prep from this is it still gudenough to get me a respectable score of above 230 on 3 figures i mean agar mekaplan n first aid ko skip krta hun n do this book n afterwards practice USMLEWORLD SERIES tou ye plan theek hoga i mean should i do it ya risk na lunnapkya suggest krte han ayaz bhai looking fwd to ur generous guidence ) thankyou

3

bull Reply bull

Ayaz bull 4 years ago Anonymous Please do introduce yourself It feels slightly awkward responding toan anonymous post Apologies for a late response for a quicker response pleaseask questions at httpmedediacomnode162

Its all about priorities in life Its not impossible to do Seniors before me have done itand a few have scored a 99 Recently a person from Allama Iqbal Ali Khalid hasscored 24799 before his final year

Yes USMLE study is just like that but its much more prolonged and intense thanMCAT My preparation was also fraught with breaks in tempo including theprofessional exam break which was as long as 25 months I realize its not easy tocontinue it parallel to college life but the incentive of doing USMLEs within graduationis great indeed

You cope with it the same way youd cope with any stressful situation in life albeityoud have to give way for some activities including societies

RegardsAyaz

3

bull Reply bull

kanza noor bull 2 years agogt Ayaz

as im getting admission in KE this yeari wanted to ask if i should startpreparing for USMLE straight awayor it would be way too ambitious please guideand how to manage all i mean university exams and USMLE andcombining them allit would be a hell lot of bookshow to studyi meanroutine etcetraplease guide )

6

bull Reply bull

Stephanie Murray bull 2 months agoIf anyone needs further help on this matter Residents Medical assists with all 3Steps of USMLE tutoring It is based on a customized curriculum and is highlyindividualized private oneshyonshyone sessions Please feel free to review our websiteResidents Medical and contact us for further information by sending an email toinforesidentsmedicalcom or calling us at 3104449700

Sara John bull 5 months agoI think the question comes down to whether people want a qbank to help expand theirknowledge base or simply as one to simulate the real exam Congrats on finishing

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

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bull Reply bull

knowledge base or simply as one to simulate the real exam Congrats on finishing

gre practice

bull Reply bull

Aneeqa bull 5 months agoAoai have heard that u can appear in Step 1 after 4rth yearis that so is it good toappear before having mbbs degree

bull Reply bull

Saad Sohail bull 5 months agoThank you so much Dr Ayaz I just gave my 4th year professional exam and imstarting today for my USLME preparation iA I had already done half of biochemistryfrom kaplan notes and lectures a few months back It took me 15 months to do justhalf of biochemistry (as im relatively weak in that subject and find it really hard) Istudied Pathoma book and lectures for my 4th year special pathology so in a wayive covered my pathology (one read) using pathoma Still have to do Goljan

Im starting physiology today and after that ill do micro and then pharma Wish meluck Planning to give Step 1 in marchmay (my 5th year rotations would be going onand i hope im able to cope with that along with my step 1 prep and still get a score ofaround 255 iA

Once again Thank you for this post

Also I would like to know your current status right now Where are you working nowand how much time did it take for you to get a match

Thank you again

bull Reply bull

james hendersen bull a year agoReally great advise thank you very much This is probably the best write up I haveseen this entire month I am curious how did a University in Pakistan get namedafter King Edward I am in the middle of my usmle prep upto my glottis in kaplannotes and denver notes and first aid notes

bull Reply bull

Chandler Bing bull a year agoFrom USMLE to US ResidencyDedicated to medical students pursuing career inUShttpusmlebuzzblogspotcom

bull Reply bull

Star bull a year agoThanks so much for your time You are so concise God bless

bull Reply bull

Shan Rose bull a year agothanks for sharing information really it is very useful

gre practice study

bull Reply bull

zainab bull a year agomoreover step 1 is an online examhaina tou do i need to hav a passport at allcosts or would it do without it as well

bull Reply bull

danish bull a year agou wrote good brother but what is benefit of clearing us mle

bull Reply bull

Usama Iqbal bull 2 years ago(y) Ayaz bhai for such a detailed tour to step1IA walking on ur footsteps ill also start by fourth yearspecial thanks for the recomamded Book section

sa493 bull 2 years agoAoa you are such a blessing for all of us May Allah bless you with success for your

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

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bull Reply bull

Aoa you are such a blessing for all of us May Allah bless you with success for yourefforts in helping others This was remarkable guide for me before starting my waytowards giving USMLE (currently in first year)

bull Reply bull

jaja bull 3 years agoThanks again for your experience but I have 2 questions from where can I masterthe CT MRIphotomicrographs gross specimens and XshyRays AND What aboutECG is it essential to get his own separate bookThanks

bull Reply bull

jaja bull 3 years agoThank you so much for such a great advises and experience

bull Reply bull

Queen bull 3 years agoWOW ur story is so wonderful Is it possible to give Step 1 at the mid of fourth year imean if one starts preparing well before in 3rd year

bull Reply bull

Waqar Arshad Bhatti bull 3 years agoThank You so very much )May ALLAH bless you you with success in future too

bull Reply bull

Zain Rana bull 3 years agoA Motivating stuff indeedThnaks a lot Ayaz Bhai)))

bull Reply bull

Dr Kashif Iqbal bull 3 years agoFrom Dr Kashif Iqbal FCPS FRCS Ed Fellowship in VitreoretinaConsultant OphthalmologistVR Surgeon LRBT Lahorekashifmdhotmailcom 0300 94 39 026I am really impressed by the information you have put in (I did not read through all)but more importantly you are encouraging others to follow your pathwell done andkeep spreading knowledge and guidance to othersdont let this flame die

bull Reply bull

Anum Asad bull 3 years agoIndeed v useful info fr Kemcolianz who really dnt hv ny idea abt all thez thngs n needguidance

bull Reply bull

fahad bull 3 years agoAssalamalaikum my name is fahad n im a student of 3rd yr mbbs i want to ask that ifsomeone gets supplementary in any subject say physiology or anatomy in profexam then does it affect the usmle or residency matching or not

Ayaz bull 4 years agoDear Dr HF

Thank you for such a kind feedback I really appreciate it

Regarding your question I do not happen to have a lot of information because thisissue is very variable with different residency programmes Most residencyprogrammes prefer that the residency applicant be a fresh graduate and has donehis USMLE exams in close proximity to his graduation date however this is variable

Most IMGs who get accepted into competitive surgical residency programmes areones who infact have already completed a surgical residency in their home countryand then completed their USMLE exams So by that time they are automaticallybeyond 5 years from their graduation

It really depends on how a specific residency programme director views hisapplicants

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

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bull Reply bull

Please do visit this website wwwmedediacom for more information regarding this inthe residency section Thank you and have a nice day

Warm regardsAyaz

bull Reply bull

Dr H F bull 4 years agoMabrookMabrook

Excellent job and wellshywritten explanation Although I am new to the USMLEcommunity your explanations are the very extract of what I learnt from my friendswho have taken USMLE I am interested in USMLE for my students (at a medicalfaculty here in Afghanistan) some of them I believe could pass the exam easily ifthey recieve guidance Your experience clarified my concept about some pointsOne more issue needs to be labeled either as Myth or Fact Any IMG with graduationof gt5 years earlier is seldom successful in finding a match even if he colud he canonly go to family practice etc Whats your info about this isuue Thanks DrHF

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1215

bull Reply bull

knowledge base or simply as one to simulate the real exam Congrats on finishing

gre practice

bull Reply bull

Aneeqa bull 5 months agoAoai have heard that u can appear in Step 1 after 4rth yearis that so is it good toappear before having mbbs degree

bull Reply bull

Saad Sohail bull 5 months agoThank you so much Dr Ayaz I just gave my 4th year professional exam and imstarting today for my USLME preparation iA I had already done half of biochemistryfrom kaplan notes and lectures a few months back It took me 15 months to do justhalf of biochemistry (as im relatively weak in that subject and find it really hard) Istudied Pathoma book and lectures for my 4th year special pathology so in a wayive covered my pathology (one read) using pathoma Still have to do Goljan

Im starting physiology today and after that ill do micro and then pharma Wish meluck Planning to give Step 1 in marchmay (my 5th year rotations would be going onand i hope im able to cope with that along with my step 1 prep and still get a score ofaround 255 iA

Once again Thank you for this post

Also I would like to know your current status right now Where are you working nowand how much time did it take for you to get a match

Thank you again

bull Reply bull

james hendersen bull a year agoReally great advise thank you very much This is probably the best write up I haveseen this entire month I am curious how did a University in Pakistan get namedafter King Edward I am in the middle of my usmle prep upto my glottis in kaplannotes and denver notes and first aid notes

bull Reply bull

Chandler Bing bull a year agoFrom USMLE to US ResidencyDedicated to medical students pursuing career inUShttpusmlebuzzblogspotcom

bull Reply bull

Star bull a year agoThanks so much for your time You are so concise God bless

bull Reply bull

Shan Rose bull a year agothanks for sharing information really it is very useful

gre practice study

bull Reply bull

zainab bull a year agomoreover step 1 is an online examhaina tou do i need to hav a passport at allcosts or would it do without it as well

bull Reply bull

danish bull a year agou wrote good brother but what is benefit of clearing us mle

bull Reply bull

Usama Iqbal bull 2 years ago(y) Ayaz bhai for such a detailed tour to step1IA walking on ur footsteps ill also start by fourth yearspecial thanks for the recomamded Book section

sa493 bull 2 years agoAoa you are such a blessing for all of us May Allah bless you with success for your

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1315

bull Reply bull

Aoa you are such a blessing for all of us May Allah bless you with success for yourefforts in helping others This was remarkable guide for me before starting my waytowards giving USMLE (currently in first year)

bull Reply bull

jaja bull 3 years agoThanks again for your experience but I have 2 questions from where can I masterthe CT MRIphotomicrographs gross specimens and XshyRays AND What aboutECG is it essential to get his own separate bookThanks

bull Reply bull

jaja bull 3 years agoThank you so much for such a great advises and experience

bull Reply bull

Queen bull 3 years agoWOW ur story is so wonderful Is it possible to give Step 1 at the mid of fourth year imean if one starts preparing well before in 3rd year

bull Reply bull

Waqar Arshad Bhatti bull 3 years agoThank You so very much )May ALLAH bless you you with success in future too

bull Reply bull

Zain Rana bull 3 years agoA Motivating stuff indeedThnaks a lot Ayaz Bhai)))

bull Reply bull

Dr Kashif Iqbal bull 3 years agoFrom Dr Kashif Iqbal FCPS FRCS Ed Fellowship in VitreoretinaConsultant OphthalmologistVR Surgeon LRBT Lahorekashifmdhotmailcom 0300 94 39 026I am really impressed by the information you have put in (I did not read through all)but more importantly you are encouraging others to follow your pathwell done andkeep spreading knowledge and guidance to othersdont let this flame die

bull Reply bull

Anum Asad bull 3 years agoIndeed v useful info fr Kemcolianz who really dnt hv ny idea abt all thez thngs n needguidance

bull Reply bull

fahad bull 3 years agoAssalamalaikum my name is fahad n im a student of 3rd yr mbbs i want to ask that ifsomeone gets supplementary in any subject say physiology or anatomy in profexam then does it affect the usmle or residency matching or not

Ayaz bull 4 years agoDear Dr HF

Thank you for such a kind feedback I really appreciate it

Regarding your question I do not happen to have a lot of information because thisissue is very variable with different residency programmes Most residencyprogrammes prefer that the residency applicant be a fresh graduate and has donehis USMLE exams in close proximity to his graduation date however this is variable

Most IMGs who get accepted into competitive surgical residency programmes areones who infact have already completed a surgical residency in their home countryand then completed their USMLE exams So by that time they are automaticallybeyond 5 years from their graduation

It really depends on how a specific residency programme director views hisapplicants

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1415

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bull Reply bull

Please do visit this website wwwmedediacom for more information regarding this inthe residency section Thank you and have a nice day

Warm regardsAyaz

bull Reply bull

Dr H F bull 4 years agoMabrookMabrook

Excellent job and wellshywritten explanation Although I am new to the USMLEcommunity your explanations are the very extract of what I learnt from my friendswho have taken USMLE I am interested in USMLE for my students (at a medicalfaculty here in Afghanistan) some of them I believe could pass the exam easily ifthey recieve guidance Your experience clarified my concept about some pointsOne more issue needs to be labeled either as Myth or Fact Any IMG with graduationof gt5 years earlier is seldom successful in finding a match even if he colud he canonly go to family practice etc Whats your info about this isuue Thanks DrHF

WHATS THIS

Artificial intelligence and thefridge

Financial Times for Cap Gemini

Universities Get Smarter WithStorage and Network

Bloomberg by Huawei

Wine Words Port | RecipeWall

Recipe Wall The Collection of ShortStories In the Book WereRecommending This Spring

Esquire | The Dunning Man

Subscribe Add Disqus to your sited Privacy

Share rsaquo

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Step 2 CS MockTest

Taught by MDs in a OSCEfacility with pro SPs + Live

lecture in NYC

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1315

bull Reply bull

Aoa you are such a blessing for all of us May Allah bless you with success for yourefforts in helping others This was remarkable guide for me before starting my waytowards giving USMLE (currently in first year)

bull Reply bull

jaja bull 3 years agoThanks again for your experience but I have 2 questions from where can I masterthe CT MRIphotomicrographs gross specimens and XshyRays AND What aboutECG is it essential to get his own separate bookThanks

bull Reply bull

jaja bull 3 years agoThank you so much for such a great advises and experience

bull Reply bull

Queen bull 3 years agoWOW ur story is so wonderful Is it possible to give Step 1 at the mid of fourth year imean if one starts preparing well before in 3rd year

bull Reply bull

Waqar Arshad Bhatti bull 3 years agoThank You so very much )May ALLAH bless you you with success in future too

bull Reply bull

Zain Rana bull 3 years agoA Motivating stuff indeedThnaks a lot Ayaz Bhai)))

bull Reply bull

Dr Kashif Iqbal bull 3 years agoFrom Dr Kashif Iqbal FCPS FRCS Ed Fellowship in VitreoretinaConsultant OphthalmologistVR Surgeon LRBT Lahorekashifmdhotmailcom 0300 94 39 026I am really impressed by the information you have put in (I did not read through all)but more importantly you are encouraging others to follow your pathwell done andkeep spreading knowledge and guidance to othersdont let this flame die

bull Reply bull

Anum Asad bull 3 years agoIndeed v useful info fr Kemcolianz who really dnt hv ny idea abt all thez thngs n needguidance

bull Reply bull

fahad bull 3 years agoAssalamalaikum my name is fahad n im a student of 3rd yr mbbs i want to ask that ifsomeone gets supplementary in any subject say physiology or anatomy in profexam then does it affect the usmle or residency matching or not

Ayaz bull 4 years agoDear Dr HF

Thank you for such a kind feedback I really appreciate it

Regarding your question I do not happen to have a lot of information because thisissue is very variable with different residency programmes Most residencyprogrammes prefer that the residency applicant be a fresh graduate and has donehis USMLE exams in close proximity to his graduation date however this is variable

Most IMGs who get accepted into competitive surgical residency programmes areones who infact have already completed a surgical residency in their home countryand then completed their USMLE exams So by that time they are automaticallybeyond 5 years from their graduation

It really depends on how a specific residency programme director views hisapplicants

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3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1415

Newer Post Older PostHome

The King Edward Medical University BlogWhat We can Do 2 comments

The King Edward Medical University BlogTaaray Zameen Par 1 comment

The King Edward Medical University BlogPHYSIOLOGY 2013 hellip 1 comment

The King Edward Medical University BlogFCPSshy I preparation hellip 1 comment

AROUND THE WEB

ALSO ON [KEMUNITED]

bull Reply bull

Please do visit this website wwwmedediacom for more information regarding this inthe residency section Thank you and have a nice day

Warm regardsAyaz

bull Reply bull

Dr H F bull 4 years agoMabrookMabrook

Excellent job and wellshywritten explanation Although I am new to the USMLEcommunity your explanations are the very extract of what I learnt from my friendswho have taken USMLE I am interested in USMLE for my students (at a medicalfaculty here in Afghanistan) some of them I believe could pass the exam easily ifthey recieve guidance Your experience clarified my concept about some pointsOne more issue needs to be labeled either as Myth or Fact Any IMG with graduationof gt5 years earlier is seldom successful in finding a match even if he colud he canonly go to family practice etc Whats your info about this isuue Thanks DrHF

WHATS THIS

Artificial intelligence and thefridge

Financial Times for Cap Gemini

Universities Get Smarter WithStorage and Network

Bloomberg by Huawei

Wine Words Port | RecipeWall

Recipe Wall The Collection of ShortStories In the Book WereRecommending This Spring

Esquire | The Dunning Man

Subscribe Add Disqus to your sited Privacy

Share rsaquo

Share rsaquo

Step 2 CS MockTest

Taught by MDs in a OSCEfacility with pro SPs + Live

lecture in NYC

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1415

Newer Post Older PostHome

The King Edward Medical University BlogWhat We can Do 2 comments

The King Edward Medical University BlogTaaray Zameen Par 1 comment

The King Edward Medical University BlogPHYSIOLOGY 2013 hellip 1 comment

The King Edward Medical University BlogFCPSshy I preparation hellip 1 comment

AROUND THE WEB

ALSO ON [KEMUNITED]

bull Reply bull

Please do visit this website wwwmedediacom for more information regarding this inthe residency section Thank you and have a nice day

Warm regardsAyaz

bull Reply bull

Dr H F bull 4 years agoMabrookMabrook

Excellent job and wellshywritten explanation Although I am new to the USMLEcommunity your explanations are the very extract of what I learnt from my friendswho have taken USMLE I am interested in USMLE for my students (at a medicalfaculty here in Afghanistan) some of them I believe could pass the exam easily ifthey recieve guidance Your experience clarified my concept about some pointsOne more issue needs to be labeled either as Myth or Fact Any IMG with graduationof gt5 years earlier is seldom successful in finding a match even if he colud he canonly go to family practice etc Whats your info about this isuue Thanks DrHF

WHATS THIS

Artificial intelligence and thefridge

Financial Times for Cap Gemini

Universities Get Smarter WithStorage and Network

Bloomberg by Huawei

Wine Words Port | RecipeWall

Recipe Wall The Collection of ShortStories In the Book WereRecommending This Spring

Esquire | The Dunning Man

Subscribe Add Disqus to your sited Privacy

Share rsaquo

Share rsaquo

Step 2 CS MockTest

Taught by MDs in a OSCEfacility with pro SPs + Live

lecture in NYC

3122015 KemUnited shy The King Edward Medical University Blog USMLE Step 1 Experience by Ayaz Mehmood (Score 99266)

httpwwwkemunitedcom201001usmleshystepshy1shyexperienceshybyshyayazshymehmoodhtml 1515

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