My step 3 experience:
…and finally, the day has come… Good-bye USMLE!!!
Warning: this post is long and I WILL NOT share any step 3 content. Well, I created a FB fake account to upload my experience and write more freely, but the administrators blocked me : (. You can thank to the guys trying to sell leaked questions -__- !!
I’ll try not to repeat the same experiences that other people had share.
Materials and how I used them:
-UW CK notes (you can find them on USMLE CK forum)
-MTB step 3: I started with this and spent around 3 weeks to get the big picture of everything.
-UW step 3: 2 full rounds, and did all my flashcards in there. All my summaries are in the UW flashcards.
-FA step 1: biostats, microbiology, pharmacology (all), and skimmed through the important stuff only.
-FA step 3 (only for specific topics that I felt weak)
-AMBOSS for step 3: do it if you have time, but the important stuff is not in the questions themselves, but the full explanation around that particular topic. For you to get advantage, you’ll need time.
-UW interactive + CCScases. com: did it once, and summarize them in paper and repeat the cases in my head every time I could. So, I studied 152 cases.
-Biostats: I used UW step 3, UW biostats review, FA step 1, MTB 3, a lot of videos in YouTube and patience. This was my weak spot! Try to deeply understand the subjects, since you’ll need to be quick on the test.
In summary:
I started with CK material. After that, I used MTB for understanding the big picture. Then, then I did a UW first pass, FA step 1, NBME 5 and UWSA 1. Finally, did a UW second pass, review my flashcards, AMBOSS, CCS part, and took UWSA 2.
Assessment exams:
-First pass: +70%
-UW second pass: 93%
-NBME 5: 510
-UWSA 1: 222
-UWSA 2: 233
Test strategy:
-Day 1: take all breaks, leave abstracts until the end, and moderate your fluid intake.
-Day 2: did first two blocks, then took a break after every block until CCS cases started. In the CCS part, I took a break after every 3 cases.
First day:
-This old grandpa’ Cuban Uber driver blamed me for him not using the GPS correctly and not knowing where to pick me up. So, I arrived 15 min before my test started. Surprisingly, I was angry and not nervous, which believe me, help me a lot!! The questions where very tough since they require you really know your basics in depth. Overall, this was a double part. My only advice here is: read carefully!!! Don´t rush!!
-Biostats: since this has been my weakness in step 1 and 2, I took around 1 extra week full-time to fix it. Watching YouTube and reading material again. This really helped me, since biostats was insane in my test. Please, practice biostats!
Second day:
-No fighting with anyone, but I was pretty confident since the first day was doable. After my first 3 blocks, I really understood that this was a really tough test. Questions were harder and UW didn’t help me that much : /. They test your logic and the deep understanding of things. What really helped me was the years working in the medical field, experiences with hands-on patients in my country, and all the knowledge I have accumulated doing questions. My advice here is: calm yourself, read very carefully, look for traps, and let your intuition be your guide.
*Extra comment: UW helped in less than 20% of the content in day 2. However, it prepared me for having a strong intuition. Believe me, you’ll know what I’m talking about when you take the test.
-The CCS cases were not easy, as other experiences that I had read. I believed that UW and CCScases. com, help me with 3/13 cases. The other 10 cases, I solved them with experience and basic knowledge that UW and CCScases prepares you for.
After day 2, I felt awkward. I was little concerned that my test was insanely tough. However, I thank God that didn’t let me take the test in June, since that would have been a mistake.
Final tips:
*Visit the test center the day before
*Eat and sleep well
*Don’t study the day before
*Time is the key. Learn how to know how much time you are spending on each question. It’s like having a mental clock. Don’t rush nor delay in each question.
*Think that every question may have a trap. Beware of traps!
*Leave abstracts for the end.
*Control your emotions: learn how to breath, or 0.25 mg sublingual clonazepam. You know this stuff!! Use them in your advantage!
*Sleep: there are good videos on how to relax and sleep better on YouTube, buy a white noise machine on amazon, or eszopiclone a day before.
Final words for people how already take the exam and are waiting results:
-Despite feeling awkward after the test like me, rely on your UWSA 2. The best way to predict if you’ll pass, is with the UWSA 2 score.
My final score: 248
I’ll be around a couple of days in this group and try to answer questions. I’ll be glad to answer but give me some time to reply : )
I want to thank some people in this group that helped me a lot: [
Dina Abdelrahman