I see that this group has a lot of IMGs and I want to help calm some of your anxiety over the Step 1 scoring change

Hello Everyone!!! I see that this group has a lot of IMGs and I want to help calm some of your anxiety over the Step 1 scoring change :sparkles:

I work with a professional USMLE Tutoring company and we have thoroughly read the entire report, so here’s what the change means for everyone here!

:bangbang:USMLE STEP 1 DOES NOT CHANGE TO PASS/FAIL UNTIL JANUARY 1ST, 2022​:bangbang:

:pushpin: This means that if you are taking USMLE Step 1 BEFORE 2022, keep preparing for your test the way you normally would! You will still be getting a regular numerical score the way that everyone has gotten for years past. Do not stop studying!!! Your score is still just as important as it was before the decision!

:pushpin: Since USMLE Step 1 is usually taken at the end of the 2nd year of medical school, that means that people who take the USMLE as pass/fail in 2022 will not be applying to residency until their 4th year of medical school (~2024). If you plan to apply to residency BEFORE 2024, everyone will still have numerical scores and the selection will go as normal! So, even if you are applying to residency in 2022, you have nothing worry about! :blush:

:pushpin:As a safety net, make sure you do the best that you possibly can on USMLE Step 2CK and your Shelf Exams (which you should be doing anyway!). Residency programs have been looking at these scores for years and while there will be a larger focus on them in the future, this is nothing new!

:pushpin:If you are planning to take USMLE Step 1 now but apply to residency programs during the same time that the Class of 2022 (~2024) you will be going up against people with pass/fail scores even though you have a numerical score. This may actually work out to your ADVANTAGE if you are allowed to submit your numerical score! If you are not, just make sure you do well on Step 2CK and everything should be just fine!

:exclamation:The problem will likely come only for future students once YOU are already doing your residencies. It is possible that in the future there may be a bias against IMGs or medical students coming from smaller/low ranked schools, especially if one day they change Step 2CK to pass/fail. HOWEVER, this is not something that you should be worried about right now!!! THIS WILL NOT AFFECT CURRENT MEDICAL STUDENTS! So don’t worry!