***Official 2006 Step 1 Results Thread***

[AwesomeO-DO]

I may not be the first to take Step one in 2006, but I gotta be close, so I declare the 2006 Step 1 forum OPEN. It may lay dormant for some time, but some day the class of 2008 will thank me for getting things ready for them. Don't worry, I set the bar pretty low. How low you ask? well.... less than 240 and more than 182. All I care is that I don't have to take that damn test again. They say then next few are easier. We'll see........

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[Sean2tall]

Didn't get it today . . Maybe Monday.
You don't have to request a score report for your first copy do you?

Thanks,
Sean

 

[thackl]

I want to commend nrosigh on his/her sage study advice -- it's probably the most lucid and approachable USMLE wisdom that I've seen on here. I just hope future test-takers can find this thread.

I copied and pasted his advice into an email to my little sib (who wants to do rads.) It was very close to the advice I had already given him with several nice additions (I'm just too lazy to chase a 270, but he isn't).

 

[thackl]

wow, 260+ scores are being thrown around like candy on this thread...

I got 250+... I'm happy.

Considering that 245ish is the cut-off for top 10%, all the gunners must be hanging out here

 

[silvergirl]

MCAT: 40
NBME forms: never took them
Qbank: didn't use Qbank
Qbook: ranged from 48% (which terrified me) to 80%
Kaplan's 2002 7-part USMLE simulator, taken 8 days before the test: 56%
150 released items - 5 days before the test: 84%
Goal: 220ish until the week before the test, and after taking the Kaplan simulator, I FREAKED OUT and was just hoping for a pass
Actual: 241/97


I used Goljan's lectures and slides, First Aid, and BRS Path and Phys. I also used flash cards from BRS for Micro and Pharm. I'd recommend taking notes in BRS Path while listening to Goljan... that's what really worked for me.

Qbank would have been a huge waste of energy and time for me, I think. Qbook was perfectly adequate to show you what topics you needed more work on....

After taking the USMLE itself, I thought for sure I had failed it. There were SO MANY ridiculously hard questions that I had no idea what was going on. I guess most of those were experimental Yay for me!

 

[thackl]

Oh man.. I thought 240+ was a nice decent goal...

Are you kidding!!! That represents a top 15% score amongst ALL test takers from ALL schools in the WHOLE WORLD. I guess all the top 2% like to hang out here though....

 

[velo]

Oh, I absolutely agree with that. What I mean to say is that people who are scoring that well have been preparing for boards throughout the first two years by really wrestling with the concepts they're presented with, rather than cramming for each test as they come.

ah, yeah that's true for sure. I was just trying to discourage people from using First Aid to study for classes during 2nd year or some such foolishness.

 

[thackl]

ah, yeah that's true for sure. I was just trying to discourage people from using First Aid to study for classes during 2nd year or some such foolishness.

It may, however, be a good idea to read and anotate the FA during 2nd yr. I didn't, but some familiarity may have helped speed things up come review time

 

[epic1044]

Well, I don't want to burst yer' bubble but people who are scoring 260+ are not waiting until classes are out to begin studying for this thing. They've systematically and probably repetitively studied the concepts of the first two years until they're reflexive in nature. Not only that but hard work will only take you so far.

I disagree. I believe in something called the law of diminishing returns. I scored a 262, and my study schedule began around May 20th, and ended when I took the test on June 20th. What people don't realize is that you *are* studying for Step 1 all the way through medical school, even if you're not trying to. Step 1 more than anything tests your general command of the basic science concepts and the classic facts/findings. This is the stuff that gets wired into your brain automatically as you go through med school, and the "final" specific studying for Step 1 just strengthens the knowledge and jogs your memory.

If you did a lot of Kaplan Qbank, you could easily convince yourself that there's something to gain from studying for six months for Step 1. Qbank, though, is a minutia-fest. In my opinion, it's best used as a subject-by-subject review after you review a topic, just to make sure you weren't passively reading. I don't think it has much use as a USMLE simulator (unless you are a so-so test taker and want to test your stamina). Content-wise, it's an entirely different kind of test. I did 50% of Qbank, 10 questions at a time, usually on single-subject blocks after I had studied them.

The best way to prepare for Step 1 is to put forth effort all throughout medical school, and then give yourself a few weeks for a serious review of the material -- First Aid as a framework, with HY or BRS or Road-Map to supplement subjects at your discretion.

 

[thackl]

I just got the mailed results. Can someone remind me what the 99 means?

 

[epic1044]

I just got the mailed results. Can someone remind me what the 99 means?

That's the postage due. Send it to your local post office, cheapo.

 

[cd1998]

Just received my scores today and wanted to post them:
SAT 1330
MCAT 26
Middle of the class at an average med school in the southeast
Step 1: 234 (95%)

My goal was originally a 240, but I am ecstatic about my score nonetheless and hopefully it will get me anywhere I want to go in the future. My advice to anyone is that HARD WORK REALLY PAYS OFF IN THE END, especially on this exam. I studied for about 6.5 months and everyone at my school told me I was crazy, but I knew that I was someone who needed the extra time. In the end, there was no way that I would have achieved my score if I had not studied for the length of time I did. My advice is to know yourself and your study habits and DO WHAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU and you will succeed. There are hundreds of ways to study for step 1; find the strategy that is best for you and go with it. After coming up with my strategy/schedule, I checked this forum periodically for encouragement and ways that other people were studying and modified my approach (for example, I added HY Molecular Bio during my last 2 weeks after many people on this post recommended it, and I definitely got a few q's right on the exam due to that book).

Of the resources I used, I felt that Goljan audio and rapid review pathology (the only path book I used) was the #1 best use of my time-- I would not have achieved my score without him. I listened to the entire audio 4-5 times in total over the course of my study time and transcribed notes from the audio into Rapid Review Pathology. My school was very weak in pharm and biochem, and so I also thought that the kaplan biochem and pharm subject books combined with the kaplan liveprep lectures for these subjects were paramount (if you do not have access to the liveprep lectures, i would still recommend using these books, but not necessarily wasting your time on the online videos which, aside from the physiology which i thought were actually pretty good, all in all were a waste of time for me because I had a hard time understanding them... just my opinion). Again, a big thank you to everyone who posted on this forum-- I saved some of the motivating posts and would look at them from time to time as a source of motivation. Best of luck to all. If I can answer any questions, I would be happy to do so.

--cd1998

I posted this under the wrong thread last night. I took it yesterday (6/15/06).

Well, I can hardly believe it but I am finally done. First of all, I really want to send a genuine thank you to everyone in this forum who has posted their experiences-- it was an invaluable resource for planning my study plan and kept me motivated and encouraged these past several months. I took my test today and wanted to go ahead and post my experience for anyone that it may help; i will attach my scores after i get them in about 6 weeks.

I studied for about six and a half months (more concentrated for the last 7 weeks once classes ended), getting through all of the material 4-5 times in total. I first attacked the subjects I was weakest at (physio and path), and then moved on from there. At first it took me at least 1 week to get through each subject, but by the end I could review a subject in a few days or less. I also took the live prep kaplan course in the city where i go to school for 3 weeks (but i skipped the path and most of the phys).

Sources
Physiology-
1)BRS (i was very weak in this subject and i thought the explanations were basic and easy to understand. i read all of the chapters except for the first 2 and i also did all the questions in the back of each chapter.
2)Kaplan webprep videos (cardio and renal only-- i used these to fill in any blanks, things not covered in BRS)
3)i bought a big, detailed physio reference book to read up on anything that i really didn't understand after BRS and Kaplan

Path-
GOLJAN. I followed along in his Rapid Review path book and used this as my sole path source. Personally, this was my weakest subject going in and I felt that these resources brought it up to one of my best. Goljan really worked for me-- he is an amazing teacher and gets down to explaining WHY things are going on, not just the what, which is what the exam really focuses on.

Pharm-
First aid, Kaplan webprep, Kaplan live prep lectures. This is where live prep really worked for me, but most people i talked to just focused on FA. I never used notecards for course work, but i made pharm notecards a few weeks before i took the exam and thought that was a helpful way to learn it. I focused mainly on the cardio drugs, CNS, and antibiotics (cancer drugs are minimally tested).

Micro-
Read micro ridic simple to get a broad overview. Then I really focused on FA. I also took the kaplan micro live prep and thought this was pretty helpful for explaining actions of toxins and replication, but you could prob get the same info from just reading the kaplan micro subject book.

Biochem-
FA and kaplan biochem subject book/kaplan biochem liveprep (used webprep, but it was only minimally helpful for me bc i had a hard time understanding it). I thought this book was great for explaining and pointing out the important enxymes, and liveprep helped with this. For molecular bio, i took the advice from so many on this forum and used HYMolecular Bio-- to my surprise, there were definitely some q's from my test today that i prob got bc of that book.

Anatomy-
Kaplan anatomy subject book and kaplan webprep (for anatomy, neuroanatomy, and embryo). I also read through FA, HY Anatomy, and HY Neuroanatomy and looked at all of the images.

Behavioral Sciences-
Kaplan webprep videas and FA.

Question sources-
#1- QBank (i saved these for the last 6 weeks. scoring in the low-mid 50s at the beginning and low-mid 70s by the end, with the occasional score lower or higher. I stopped doing QBank the last week and so only finished about 86% of the Q's.)
#2- QBook-- all questions except one anatomy test and the path tests. Thought this book had GREAT explanations and helped me to brush up on unclear concepts.
#3- Kaplan Full Length (71%, 3 weeks before my real exam).
#4- 150 USMLE released items (74%, 2 weeks out)
#5- NBME exam #2 (520, 1 week out)

I also used a few questions (about 50-100 max from each) of the blue Lange Q. book and the Rapid Review question book (thought these q's were GREAT, but didn't have time to really incorporate them into my study schedule, i probably should have).

I really tried to push myself and, due to a lot of self-motivation and incredible support from my family and some close friends, i really didn't feel any burn-out until the very last week.

I really hope this helps someone out there still studying or first starting to study for this. I will post my scores when i get them and anything else that comes to mind that could help in the coming weeks. Best of luck to all.

-cd1998

 

[OSUdoc08]

Just received my scores today and wanted to post them:
SAT 1330
MCAT 26
Middle of the class at an average med school in the southeast
Step 1: 234 (95%)

My goal was originally a 240, but I am ecstatic about my score nonetheless and hopefully it will get me anywhere I want to go in the future. My advice to anyone is that HARD WORK REALLY PAYS OFF IN THE END, especially on this exam. I studied for about 6.5 months and everyone at my school told me I was crazy, but I knew that I was someone who needed the extra time. In the end, there was no way that I would have achieved my score if I had not studied for the length of time I did. My advice is to know yourself and your study habits and DO WHAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU and you will succeed. There are hundreds of ways to study for step 1; find the strategy that is best for you and go with it. After coming up with my strategy/schedule, I checked this forum periodically for encouragement and ways that other people were studying and modified my approach (for example, I added HY Molecular Bio during my last 2 weeks after many people on this post recommended it, and I definitely got a few q's right on the exam due to that book).

Of the resources I used, I felt that Goljan audio and rapid review pathology (the only path book I used) was the #1 best use of my time-- I would not have achieved my score without him. I listened to the entire audio 4-5 times in total over the course of my study time and transcribed notes from the audio into Rapid Review Pathology. My school was very weak in pharm and biochem, and so I also thought that the kaplan biochem and pharm subject books combined with the kaplan liveprep lectures for these subjects were paramount (if you do not have access to the liveprep lectures, i would still recommend using these books, but not necessarily wasting your time on the online videos which, aside from the physiology which i thought were actually pretty good, all in all were a waste of time for me because I had a hard time understanding them... just my opinion). Again, a big thank you to everyone who posted on this forum-- I saved some of the motivating posts and would look at them from time to time as a source of motivation. Best of luck to all. If I can answer any questions, I would be happy to do so.

--cd1998

Thanks for posting your SAT score.

Could you please provide us with your elementary school GPA, as well?

Thanks.

 

[thackl]

Congrats! Even though it may not feel like it on these boards, your hard work did pay off A 234 opens lots of doors.

Just received my scores today and wanted to post them:
SAT 1330
MCAT 26
Middle of the class at an average med school in the southeast
Step 1: 234 (95%)

My goal was originally a 240, but I am ecstatic about my score nonetheless and hopefully it will get me anywhere I want to go in the future. My advice to anyone is that HARD WORK REALLY PAYS OFF IN THE END, especially on this exam. I studied for about 6.5 months and everyone at my school told me I was crazy, but I knew that I was someone who needed the extra time. In the end, there was no way that I would have achieved my score if I had not studied for the length of time I did. My advice is to know yourself and your study habits and DO WHAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU and you will succeed. There are hundreds of ways to study for step 1; find the strategy that is best for you and go with it. After coming up with my strategy/schedule, I checked this forum periodically for encouragement and ways that other people were studying and modified my approach (for example, I added HY Molecular Bio during my last 2 weeks after many people on this post recommended it, and I definitely got a few q's right on the exam due to that book).

Of the resources I used, I felt that Goljan audio and rapid review pathology (the only path book I used) was the #1 best use of my time-- I would not have achieved my score without him. I listened to the entire audio 4-5 times in total over the course of my study time and transcribed notes from the audio into Rapid Review Pathology. My school was very weak in pharm and biochem, and so I also thought that the kaplan biochem and pharm subject books combined with the kaplan liveprep lectures for these subjects were paramount (if you do not have access to the liveprep lectures, i would still recommend using these books, but not necessarily wasting your time on the online videos which, aside from the physiology which i thought were actually pretty good, all in all were a waste of time for me because I had a hard time understanding them... just my opinion). Again, a big thank you to everyone who posted on this forum-- I saved some of the motivating posts and would look at them from time to time as a source of motivation. Best of luck to all. If I can answer any questions, I would be happy to do so.

--cd1998

 

[chocomorsel]

Thanks for posting your SAT score.

Could you please provide us with your elementary school GPA, as well?

Thanks.

You are such an ASS!!! After all the good things he said about the professor whom you think is GOD, you shouldn't be so darn sarcastic. So friggin what if he gave us his SAT score?

 

[BRUINMD]

I dont know what bubble that you'r trying to burst..

I, ,like those top students, I spent most of my time understanding the CONCEPTS during my first 2 yrs. I simply hate memorizing stuff without understanding it first! It's the challenge that triggers my interest and the joy I get once I tackle them all down!! It just makes everything a lot easier after understanding the concepts! Sometimes I didnt even have to memorize stuff! What I'm having trouble with is the memorization part. There's a big chunk of medicine is about FACTS! I was practicing Qbanks and realized that there were tons of mintues stuff that I didnt memorize! Thats whats really scared me!

I never used FA along with my studying during first 2 yrs. I just read the text books for each subjects and tried my best to learn them solid! I was not a big fan of just grab some review books and memorize them cover to cover, and scored high on some exams like others did!

I just have not truely focus on studying for the board. I dont sit and study for 8 or 10+ hrs everyday! I know what I'm supposed to be doing, but I just get distracted a lot.

I need a boost to my confidence and need people to kick on my lazy butt!!

What are you top scorers' tips on memorizing things that are just PURE facts within such a short time? you know some stuff there's no way to find concepts in them!!

 

[OSUdoc08]

You are such an ASS!!! After all the good things he said about the professor whom you think is GOD, you shouldn't be so darn sarcastic. So friggin what if he gave us his SAT score?

If you can't learn to take criticism, recognize sarcasm, gain a sense of humor, and get a think skin, then you'll never make it through rotations.

Chillax.

 

[epic1044]

What are you top scorers' tips on memorizing things that are just PURE facts within such a short time? you know some stuff there's no way to find concepts in them!!

BRUINMD, if you do well with concepts, you're probably in good shape. The "facts" are just a matter of paying attention in med school, then going through F/A and subject review books, and sorta automatically remembering things that appeared in multiple places -- the high-yield stuff. That's really the only reason I used First-Aid -- as a framework and for USMLE trivia. But, honestly, trivia is not where the money is.

 

[werd]

Well, I don't want to burst yer' bubble but people who are scoring 260+ are not waiting until classes are out to begin studying for this thing. They've systematically and probably repetitively studied the concepts of the first two years until they're reflexive in nature. Not only that but hard work will only take you so far.


hmm... i got a 264 and didn't use said strategy. our 2nd year finals are cumulative for the entire year so maybe that helped. i didnt think about boards til 3.5 weeks before (ie, right after finals), when i did qbank, kaplan's 4-book series, and first aid. everyone probably has a different strategy that works for them. i highly recommed the kaplan books even though they're expensive... think about it this way - they increase your future earning potential much more than they cost. at least it was that way for me... at least i think so... you know what i mean...

 

[deleted9493]

BruinMD and Epic (and now Werd),
Read all of the posts in a thread or at least get a context for what is being said before jumping to the end and making comments. Read post #299 for further clarification.

 

[CaptKirk]

I dont know what bubble that you'r trying to burst..

I, ,like those top students, I spent most of my time understanding the CONCEPTS during my first 2 yrs. I simply hate memorizing stuff without understanding it first! It's the challenge that triggers my interest and the joy I get once I tackle them all down!! It just makes everything a lot easier after understanding the concepts! Sometimes I didnt even have to memorize stuff! What I'm having trouble with is the memorization part. There's a big chunk of medicine is about FACTS! I was practicing Qbanks and realized that there were tons of mintues stuff that I didnt memorize! Thats whats really scared me!

I never used FA along with my studying during first 2 yrs. I just read the text books for each subjects and tried my best to learn them solid! I was not a big fan of just grab some review books and memorize them cover to cover, and scored high on some exams like others did!

I just have not truely focus on studying for the board. I dont sit and study for 8 or 10+ hrs everyday! I know what I'm supposed to be doing, but I just get distracted a lot.

I need a boost to my confidence and need people to kick on my lazy butt!!

What are you top scorers' tips on memorizing things that are just PURE facts within such a short time? you know some stuff there's no way to find concepts in them!!

I'm not a top scorer (238) but im damn happy with my score so I'm posting anyway. First of all please don't panic. I haven't read much in medical school so far, period (excluding pleasure reading which entails mostly star trek novels, go figure). I didn't use review books during the year either like everyone said to do. I learn better by reviewing lectures, writing things out, making diagrams, tables, charts, and so on. I didn't really start studying for Step 1 *earnestly* until school was out. I did a little before school got out but ended up redoing most of it because studying for boards and classes didn't work for me and ended up just making me feel like i was doing lousy in both.

I dunno, my point is dont panic because you didnt do "top scorers" did. You can do well enough doing your own thing and you'll have your sanity at the end of it all which is worth the 3-4 extra points i might have gotten had i decided to become a step 1 studying machine.

 

[werd]

i see what you mean... the clarification is a positive one. this thread is gi-normous though, i'm not sure it's reasonable to read everything in it before making a comment about a single post. anyway, hope i didn't offend. cheers.

BruinMD and Epic (and now Werd),
Read all of the posts in a thread or at least get a context for what is being said before jumping to the end and making comments. Read post #299 for further clarification.

 

[deleted9493]

i see what you mean... the clarification is a positive one. this thread is gi-normous though, i'm not sure it's reasonable to read everything in it before making a comment about a single post. anyway, hope i didn't offend. cheers.

It is long that's why I encouraged you to at minimum get a context before you speak. No offense taken.

BruinMD and Epic (and now Werd),
Read all of the posts in a thread or at least get a context for what is being said before jumping to the end and making comments. Read post #299 for further clarification.

 

[Catalyst]

Considering that 245ish is the cut-off for top 10%, all the gunners must be hanging out here

dude seriously... I was going insane when I got my score b/c I was so happy... and then I come on here and I'm like HOLY GOD

 

[(nicedream)]

Step 1: 234 (95%)

The 2-digit score is not a percentage/percentile.

 

[mattorama]

Step 1: 241

NBME 1:236 (4 weeks before)
NBME 4:236 (3 weeks before)
NBME 3:244 (2 weeks before)
NBME 2:242 (1 week before)

150 released questions: 83%
Q-bank (all random blocks of 50, most done the week before the exam): 76%

path shelf: 96th percentile
physio shelf: 98th percentile
neuro shelf: 97th percentile
pharm shelf: 86th percentile
anatomy shelf: 90th percentile
histo shelf: 90th percentile

Honestly, I wish I had of taken the exam closer to the end of finals. I took 4 weeks and probably studied about half of the time. I mainly used first aid and BRS path. The week before the exam I just did Qbank. If I could do it all over again I would take 1 week to review first year material, 1 week to do Qbank, then take the exam and have a couple of weeks of vacation before 3rd year. I honestly didn't find anything tht I studied the month before all that useful for the actual test. It wasn't as nearly nitpicky as I thought going in. While my score isn't sky high, I am content enough.

 

[OSUdoc08]

The 2-digit score is not a percentage/percentile.

The 2 digit score is on a scale of 0-100, with a 75 being the passing grade.

(Reference: First Aid for the USMLE Step I, 2006)

 

[(nicedream)]

Wrong again.

It IS. The 2 digit score is on a scale of 0-100, with a 75 being the passing grade.

(Reference: First Aid for the USMLE Step I, 2006)

You're a f*cking idiot, why do you continue to post here? It's not a percentage/percentile and I'm not going to waste time explaining it to you.

NBME:
"The 2-digit score is not a percentile.The 2-digit score is derived from the 3-digit score. It is used in score reporting to meet requirements of some medical licensing authorities that the passing score be reported as 75. The 2-digit score is derived in such a way that a score of 75 always corresponds to the minimum passing score."

 

[VincentAdultman]

Wrong again.

It IS. The 2 digit score is on a scale of 0-100, with a 75 being the passing grade.

(Reference: First Aid for the USMLE Step I, 2006)

Not this again.

The two digit score is there because some programs don't like the 3 number format. It is not a percentage, since a 99 = anything above 240. And I can tell you right now that a 240 =/= the top 1% of the test takers.

 

[(nicedream)]

And I can tell you right now that a 240 =/= the top 1% of the test takers.

I do have to take issue with that, because the average is usually around 220 and the SD is usually around 20, which would make a 240 around 85th percentile.

 

[Samoa]

It can't possibly be a percentile, because ~70% of all people taking the test pass it, yet the passing two-digit score is a 75. If it were a percentile, then 74% of test takers would be failing it every year. Instead the failure rate is more like 30%.

 

[OSUdoc08]

Not this again.

The two digit score is there because some programs don't like the 3 number format. It is not a percentage, since a 99 = anything above 240. And I can tell you right now that a 240 =/= the top 1% of the test takers.

What does the percentage of test takers have to do with this conversation?

 

[mattorama]

It is not a percentage, since a 99 = anything above 240.

yeah, I don't get it...I had a 241 yet my 2 digit score was 97

 

[kito]

Wrong again.

It IS. The 2 digit score is on a scale of 0-100, with a 75 being the passing grade.

(Reference: First Aid for the USMLE Step I, 2006)

NBME: "The 2-digit score is not a percentile."

 

[OSUdoc08]

It can't possibly be a percentile, because ~70% of all people taking the test pass it, yet the passing two-digit score is a 75. If it were a percentile, then 74% of test takers would be failing it every year. Instead the failure rate is more like 30%.

I'm not sure what kind of math you people took, but if you make a 90% on an exam, that doesn't mean that you are in the top 10% of the class.

 

[Samoa]

Percentile equals percentage of test takers.

 

[OSUdoc08]

Percentile equals percentage of test takers.

Percentage = % correct on the exam

 

[Samoa]

I'm not sure what kind of math you people took, but if you make a 90% on an exam, that doesn't mean that you are in the top 10% of the class.

I'm not sure what kind of statistics you took, but 90% on a test is not the same thing as 90th percentile on a test.

 

[OSUdoc08]

I'm not sure what kind of statistics you took, but 90% on a test is not the same thing as 90th percentile on a test.

You are taking the word "percentile" and the word "percentage" and getting them confused.

I am referring to the word "percentage" only.

 

[(nicedream)]

Look, the 2-digit score is simply a conversion of the 3-digit score. 75 is always passing, and other than that, it's simply another version of the scale. The NBME does not provide any percentage/percentile information.

However, if you know the average and the SD, then you can estimate your percentile from the Gaussian curve (it's in FA if you don't know it). With an avg of 220 and an SD of 20, which is about what it is usually, a 240 is about 85th percentile, 260 would be about 98th percentile. It has nothing to do with the 2-digit score.

 

[OSUdoc08]

Look, the 2-digit score is simply a conversion of the 3-digit score. 75 is always passing, and other than that, it's simply another version of the scale. The NBME does not provide any percentage/percentile information.

However, if you know the average and the SD, then you can estimate your percentile from the Gaussian curve (it's in FA if you don't know it). With an avg of 220 and an SD of 20, which is about what it is usually, a 240 is about 85th percentile, 260 would be about 98th percentile. It has nothing to do with the 2-digit score.

You tackled the "percentile" head on, but did not disprove that it was a percentage.....

 

[Samoa]

No. Percentile does equal percentage of test takers. It does NOT equal percentage of questions. The two-digit score is neither of these.

 

[OSUdoc08]

No. Percentile does equal percentage of test takers. It does NOT equal percentage of questions. The two-digit score is neither of these.

Wow, I feel like we are talking in circles.

I am NOT referring to percentile.

I AM referring to percentage of questions.

What proof do you have that the score doesn't demonstrate this?

 

[epic1044]

Hudsontc (or would you prefer "Forum Deputy Hudson"), it seemed like you were implying that high-scorers were going over boards material for months until the information was "a reflex." I apologize if you're upset that I took your words at face value prematurely.

 

[(nicedream)]

You tackled the "percentile" head on, but did not disprove that it was a percentage.....

It's simply not. Nowhere is there any indication that it is. Clearly getting 75% of questions correct is not how they gauge a passing score, and you don't need to get over 90% correct to get a 240! Admit you were wrong.


"It is used in score reporting to meet requirements of some medical licensing authorities that the passing score be reported as 75. The 2-digit score is derived in such a way that a score of 75 always corresponds to the minimum passing score."

 

[epic1044]

Wow, I feel like we are talking in circles.

I am NOT referring to percentile.

I AM referring to percentage of questions.

What proof do you have that the score doesn't demonstrate this?

Well, I know I missed more than 1/100 questions, so the 2-digit score is probably not a percentage of questions. The USMLE website and their score reports describe it as the same exact score as the three-digit score, but on a different scale. Like Farenheit and Celcius. If you're asking where *that* score comes from, I think it's based on the percentage of Q's answered correctly, and based on the statistical difficulty of your form.

 

[OSUdoc08]

It's simply not. Nowhere is there any indication that it is. Clearly getting 75% of questions correct is not how they gauge a passing score, and you don't need to get over 90% correct to get a 240! Admit you were wrong.


"It is used in score reporting to meet requirements of some medical licensing authorities that the passing score be reported as 75. The 2-digit score is derived in such a way that a score of 75 always corresponds to the minimum passing score."

As soon as proof has been provided that I am. Your quote does not indicate that the score is not a percentage.

 

[Samoa]

Wow, I feel like we are talking in circles.

I am NOT referring to percentile.

I AM referring to percentage of questions.

What proof do you have that the score doesn't demonstrate this?

Straight from USMLE:

Scoring for Multiple-Choice Items

Multiple-choice items are provided in blocks of approximately 45 to 60 minutes. Blocks of items are constructed to meet specific content specifications. As a result, the combination of blocks of items creates a form of the examination that is comparable in content to all other forms. The percentage of correctly answered items required to pass varies from form to form. However, examinees typically must answer 60 to 70 percent of items correctly to achieve a passing score.

 

[OSUdoc08]

Well, I know I missed more than 1/100 questions, so the 2-digit score is probably not a percentage of questions. The USMLE website and their score reports describe it as the same exact score as the three-digit score, but on a different scale. Like Farenheit and Celcius. If you're asking where *that* score comes from, I think it's based on the percentage of Q's answered correctly, and based on the statistical difficulty of your form.

BINGO

 

[(nicedream)]

BINGO

You forgot the 2nd part of that sentence bud. Of course that's where it comes from, that's where the 3-digit score comes from too, WITH ADJUSTMENT FOR DIFFICULTY. It's not a percentage.

 

[YouDontKnowJack]

hey.

Quit The Pissing Contest