Is Kaplan still the best video resource for USMLE Step 1 in 2020 when there are a lot of other good resources like Physeo, Lecturio, BnB, DIT, etc
Of all the ones you mentioned, BnB is the only one that cuts it. In my humble opinion, I don’t think all the ones you mentioned put together can replace Kaplan 2010 and 2014 videos for someone who wants to cover the material thoroughly. BnB is probably more useful than Kaplan for cardio and renal and if you want to review things quickly before the exam. Lecturio may be useful if you are studying for medical school exams, but for USMLE I do not believe that it is appropriate.
DIT is trash by any standard. Compare their pharmacology series for example to Kaplan 2010 pharmacology videos by Lionel Raymon. These two can placed together only on a logarithmic scale.
Unfortunately I haven’t tried Physeo.
Kaplan videos are too long(40min+) for anyone to sit and hear an hour long lecture, only to forget it after 2–3 days.
I believe only short videos(5–10min) the kind Osmosis(step1) and Onlinemeded(step2) have mastered will workout for students.
Osmosis - A Better Way To Learn
OnlineMedEd
These resources make concepts stick because they are short and sweet. Also, they free up the time and allow the students to learn from books/flashcards/qbanks.
What I duly consider is that they all do not even consider it worth their time to answer queries about such a brand like Kaplan, leave alone using it for USMLE exams.
Nonetheless, here I am, a US medical graduate, showing you the real facet of this much-known US brand.
Bitter truth is that you’ll hardly encounter any US medical graduate using Kaplan for review purpose.
Well, no one here is interested to spend thousands of dollars on their review course for USMLE exams. Of course there are other resources available around us.
This can be the main reason why Kaplan is longing to operate on a global platform.
Had the US students been taking its USMLE courses, it would have been working pretty much fine for Kaplan. However, such is not the scenario.
Therefore, the Kaplan tended to target the global audience in the name of an international company.
What’s more to find out is that the material that they have been selling for thousands of dollars doesn’t correspond with the latest medical advancements. Only reason being, they haven’t updated the material for quite a while now.
To mention in figures, let’s say the course hasn’t undergone any upgrades for the last 10–15 years.
So, if you are one of those who go for brand value and have got enough cash to expend, feel free to join Kaplan.
For those who do not fall into this category, go find an institute in your region for USMLE test prep only as I can guarantee that you will find it much better that attending the recorded lectures of Kaplan.
Hi, I watched kaplan videos a long time ago. And when i started studying the FA I realized that there is still a lack in many concepts. So, i started looking into youtube videos. Finally I found a channel called Ninja Nerd Science where the guy explains very clearly all th basic concepts. Those are definitely worth watching. Najeeb lectures take very long time, if u are a first or second year student u can start with Najeeb videos, but if u dont have enough time, just go with the youtube videos which explain the same content in less time. Another resource called Boards and beyond is a very good one, they give all the high yield concepts in every video. Coming to kaplan videos,i dont find them useful at all, except for Behavioral science explained by Dr. Steven Daugherty, u can watch them if you have time, i havent found any other behavioral science video resource until now except boards and beyond. Kaplan vidoes are long and not straight to the point, also very boring. If u have difficulty understanding any concept, just search youtube, there are a lot of people who teach very well. It is ultimately your decision to find the videos that make you understand better.Best of luck!!