USMLE Official 2017 Step 1 Experiences and Scores Thread

[WeedForLunch]

I know this is quite early but most American Students have finished giving the test for this year.
I am an IMG and have been prepping for the steps since quite some time and have seen Phloston, Transposony's and others' threads for their respective years and how helpful they have been.

I intend on giving step in Jan.. let's share timetables, plans and other stuff on how everyone intends on taking on this beast.

P.S. : I think it is not that early.. the 2015/2016 threads were started in September/October.. but in true SDN gunner style..i wanna start it in August..

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[quincyfuturemd]

Thanks. So I should just hope these new weird questions are experimentals that don't count and focus on UFAPS?

For sure. If I were writing post change I would stick to 2017 FA and UW, Pathoma like you were saying. I think that's what you need for nbmes and UWSA and at the end of the day those will still be your best predictors for step. Also, Good luck!

 

[mw18]

For sure. If I were writing post change I would stick to 2017 FA and UW, Pathoma like you were saying. I think that's what you need for nbmes and UWSA and at the end of the day those will still be your best predictors for step. Also, Good luck!

I think this is the best bet. They've scaled these questions using test takers from the last however many months. So there's no reason to think that they would be killers for us. If they haven't been scaled then they're experimental.

 

[Eagles6389]

Can someone tell me how to approach studying during my dedicated period knowing that they've changed the pool of questions? I'm thinking that might be contributing to everyone posting here about seeing lots of weird stuff that wasn't in the core resources (UFAPS). Obviously, I will be going thru UFAPS and making sure I understand/memorize/re-learn/solidify as much of that as I possibly can, as well as do all the NBMEs and UWSAs. But is there any way to prepare for the new stuff? Like for Zika virus, I can look at some class notes (cuz we are in Zika territory...), but other crap maybe not.

I think that it's important to keep in mind that every Step 1 exam is going to have some WTF questions, or questions that are very detail-oriented that you can't really prepare for.
1. Many of these questions could be experimental
2. Many of these questions are meant to be super hard, and separate a 250 from a 270

In my opinion, the best strategy is to know UFAP very well and not worry so much about the experimental/super-detailed questions. The worst thing that could happen would be to get frazzled by some obscure questions and then miss some easy questions out of UFAP because of it. Heck, that's probably what the test makers want us to do.

 

[LAK84]

Thanks. So I should just hope these new weird questions are experimentals that don't count and focus on UFAPS?

That's what I'm thinking too...do the core resources and know that well instead of trying to do the random stuff (aka WTF questions on the exam). The exam is scaled/curved (or whatever) and plus there's numerous questions that are thrown out.

 

[Joanna1987]

So is the 1.4 x number correct formula still valid for the old NBMEs? Seems like that is what people are using as a rough estimate?

I'd just use 1.3 instead of 1.4.
It's harsh but so is the new NBME curve.



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[doc-Oc]

i guess we can only tell how bad the change is only after the people who took the exam (on april 24th and after) receive their scores?

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

i guess we can only tell how bad the change is only after the people who took the exam (on april 24th and after) receive their scores?

damn mines in june so i wont be the very first but i will in the some of the first waves of this change. Speaking of which what is the exact change ?

 

[LAK84]

In your guys' opinion how well does one need to do in order to pass simply with a 192?

~60% correct I'm thinking?

 

[quincyfuturemd]

In your guys' opinion how well does one need to do in order to pass simply with a 192?

~60% correct I'm thinking?

For nbmes? It's crazy how much it depends on the nbme sometimes. I remember getting something like 87 or 88% exactly on two different nbmes. One gave me a 232 and another a mid 240.

 

[pre med 2014]

In your guys' opinion how well does one need to do in order to pass simply with a 192?

~60% correct I'm thinking?

It ranges from 65-75% since they reduced the number of questions to 40 per block. Was around 60% or lower when it was 44 questions per block

Used to be 60% or less to pass when it was 44 per block


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[docbsb2015]

What's up guys. I just took NBME 16 and got sort of crushed... 205 (150/200). I know its going to take a lot of work, but just wondering if a 240 is even possible if my USMLE is a little over 5 weeks away. I'm like a week into dedicated but have been studying pretty consistently for ~3 weeks so far. Sorry for being "that guy" in advance, just sort of down about the results. Appreciate y'all.

 

[pre med 2014]

Thanks. So I should just hope these new weird questions are experimentals that don't count and focus on UFAPS?

Yes still focus on ufap still and btw the weird questions were still kind of in ufap just not that next level of detail. If you are reviewing core material and have to ask yourself out of interest "why" is that the case for a particular fact or drug and want to google it then do. Obviously you want to understand Moa type stuff around any fact but what I'm talking about is stuff where you know the moa up to certain point and then they ask that next level detail cause they know everyone memorizes that series of mechanisms. The whole exam is a complete blur so I'm having a hard time really explaining what I mean hope it sort of makes sense


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[Theppunisher]

What's up guys. I just took NBME 16 and got sort of crushed... 205 (150/200). I know its going to take a lot of work, but just wondering if a 240 is even possible if my USMLE is a little over 5 weeks away. I'm like a week into dedicated but have been studying pretty consistently for ~3 weeks so far. Sorry for being "that guy" in advance, just sort of down about the results. Appreciate y'all.

dude first off,
you will not succeed unless you are a yankees fan....
sorry as a hardcore yankee fan I had to do it

 

[pre med 2014]

What's up guys. I just took NBME 16 and got sort of crushed... 205 (150/200). I know its going to take a lot of work, but just wondering if a 240 is even possible if my USMLE is a little over 5 weeks away. I'm like a week into dedicated but have been studying pretty consistently for ~3 weeks so far. Sorry for being "that guy" in advance, just sort of down about the results. Appreciate y'all.

I went from 205 -> 213 -> 219 on the nbmes in the final 10 days or so... so yea possible to beat 240 with 5 weeks. My goal was 230 but I didn't push it back cause I was scared I was gonna plateu and start forgetting info faster than I could put it in my head


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[Joanna1987]

In your guys' opinion how well does one need to do in order to pass simply with a 192?

~60% correct I'm thinking?

This is crazy.

87% on NBME (and possibly on a real deal) gives you 37 mistakes.
So, you might be able to make only 37 mistakes to get 230 something.

I can't imagine the % of correct answers you need to have to get over 240. Like, 92%?
Damn.

 

[docbsb2015]

dude first off,
you will not succeed unless you are a yankees fan....
sorry as a hardcore yankee fan I had to do it

I'll take a 205 over becoming a Yankees fan lol

 

[quincyfuturemd]

This is crazy.

87% on NBME (and possibly on a real deal) gives you 37 mistakes.
So, you might be able to make only 37 mistakes to get 230 something.

I can't imagine the % of correct answers you need to have to get over 240. Like, 92%?
Damn.

It depends on the nbme. In my experience usually a 87-90% is a 240-245. Some curves are pretty harsh and the last curve update I think made it even harder in general (I took all my nbmes after the last curve update). You can't rely on those % tables very much anymore that are floating around where an 85/86 is an automatic 240. I think long gone are those days lol.

I remember in basic sciences everyone talking like a 240 is so easily obtainable if you just try but it's honestly super hard for most people, myself included, and it takes alot of work for 230s nbmes alone. It took some beast like effort out of me to hit mid 230s and I've been working hard since day 1 of med school. People probably shouldn't be so hard on themselves if they don't hit 240+ especially since a few questions could knock you down that 1% you need for a 240 etc

Not that I'm saying it's not achievable or anything but it's not some cake walk like just read FA, do some UW and score a 240 like how people sometimes talk in med school. And you're not dumb or lazy for not hitting that mark.

 

[docbsb2015]

I went from 205 -> 213 -> 219 on the nbmes in the final 10 days or so... so yea possible to beat 240 with 5 weeks. My goal was 230 but I didn't push it back cause I was scared I was gonna plateu and start forgetting info faster than I could put it in my head


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Thanks. Yeah there's no possible way I'm postponing my exam. 5 weeks is plenty whether I am at my goal or not.

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

So im gonna try this again since i didnt get a response from earlier, exactly what is changing soon on the usmle ? everyones talking about change but no one is saying what it is ?

 

[quincyfuturemd]

So im gonna try this again since i didnt get a response from earlier, exactly what is changing soon on the usmle ? everyones talking about change but no one is saying what it is ?

As far as I know the only change is the questions were updated on the 24th like they do every year around this time. I think as long as you see any changes in 2017 FA and catch those zika questions or whatnot it should be fine.

 

[Joanna1987]

It depends on the nbme. In my experience usually a 87-90% is a 240-245. Some curves are pretty harsh and the last curve update I think made it even harder in general (I took all my nbmes after the last curve update). You can't rely on those % tables very much anymore that are floating around where an 85/86 is an automatic 240. I think long gone are those days lol.

I remember in basic sciences everyone talking like a 240 is so easily obtainable if you just try but it's honestly super hard for most people, myself included, and it takes alot of work for 230s nbmes alone. It took some beast like effort out of me to hit mid 230s and I've been working hard since day 1 of med school. People probably shouldn't be so hard on themselves if they don't hit 240+ especially since a few questions could knock you down that 1% you need for a 240 etc

Not that I'm saying it's not achievable or anything but it's not some cake walk like just read FA, do some UW and score a 240 like how people sometimes talk in med school. And you're not dumb or lazy for not hitting that mark.

I agree. It really is very hard to get even mid-230. I would be more than happy if I got it.
I don't think it's that easy to get 240 and above anymore. Maybe it was a little easier before but yeah, now it's gone.

 

[ridethecliche]

I can't see the retired NBME exams hurting if done wayyy out just for practice-ish. Who the hell really knows though.

 

[LAK84]

For nbmes? It's crazy how much it depends on the nbme sometimes. I remember getting something like 87 or 88% exactly on two different nbmes. One gave me a 232 and another a mid 240.

I was actually talking about the real thing. It's just me being curious lol

I was just guesstimating as to what the lower limits are that's all. I was probably low when i said 60, I think it's more like 65% for a minimum of 192.

 

[LAK84]

This is crazy.

87% on NBME (and possibly on a real deal) gives you 37 mistakes.
So, you might be able to make only 37 mistakes to get 230 something.

I can't imagine the % of correct answers you need to have to get over 240. Like, 92%?
Damn.

Hmm...yeahh I think 37 mistakes on the real thing is quite low...that should be a pretty high score.

I guess no one truly knows because the curves/scaling is different for the real thing. I was just trying to figure out the lower end of scoring that's all lolll

I know you did amazing Joanna, you were helpful in providing advice to me too which I'm greatful for. I sincerely hope you're in the 230+ range!

 

[quincyfuturemd]

Hmm...yeahh I think 37 mistakes on the real thing is quite low...that should be a pretty high score.

I guess no one truly knows because the curves/scaling is different for the real thing. I was just trying to figure out the lower end of scoring that's all lolll

I know you did amazing Joanna, you were helpful in providing advice to me too which I'm greatful for. I sincerely hope you're in the 230+ range!

Oh yeah for sure, no one knows about the real deal especially when you try to factor in experimental questions which no one knows how many there are for a given exam. It gets even trickier when not everyone has the same number of questions real deal.

Part of what makes waiting so stressful is it's even harder to tell how you did real deal then it is on an nbme which already can be a bit all over the place with the curves and other factors.

 

[Foot Fetish]

I can't see the retired NBME exams hurting if done wayyy out just for practice-ish. Who the hell really knows though.

How far out is wayyy out? Like 4 months?

 

[ridethecliche]

Pre dedicated.

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

Why not do some of the free 120s or free 132 if you got last years instead of the old nbmes ?

 

[ridethecliche]

Why not do some of the free 120s or free 132 if you got last years instead of the old nbmes ?

A lot of people like to do those after a CBSSA to simulate a full exam.

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

A lot of people like to do those after a CBSSA to simulate a full exam.

hmm i could see that but its only 3 blocks , the real thing is what 7 ? i guess it sort of simulates it but id rather do 7 blocks of uworld straight if thats the case

 

[ridethecliche]

hmm i could see that but its only 3 blocks , the real thing is what 7 ? i guess it sort of simulates it but id rather do 7 blocks of uworld straight if thats the case

A CBSSA is 4 blocks. If the free questions are 3 blocks, then a session of a CBSSA followed by all the questions is exactly 7 blocks.

It 'sort of' simulates it better than UWorld because all the questions used are NBME questions. I.e. it is likely the most predictive data that one can get.

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

A CBSSA is 4 blocks. If the free questions are 3 blocks, then a session of a CBSSA followed by all the questions is exactly 7 blocks.

It 'sort of' simulates it better than UWorld because all the questions used are NBME questions. I.e. it is likely the most predictive data that one can get.

Very true, i find my biggest issue right now with stamina, idk about y'all but beginning of third block straight i start falling asleep. I need to start taking breaks

 

[ridethecliche]

Very true, i find my biggest issue right now with stamina, idk about y'all but beginning of third block straight i start falling asleep. I need to start taking breaks

My tutor basically said that taking a CBSSA without simulating test taking conditions as closely as possible was a total waste of an exam and decreased its predictive value. I'm inclined to agree.

Start the exam at your selected start time, take breaks at the times you would take them, eat when you would eat, etc etc etc.

 

[chromuffin]

Very true, i find my biggest issue right now with stamina, idk about y'all but beginning of third block straight i start falling asleep. I need to start taking breaks

I usually do a 10 minute break between the second and third block of NBMEs. This is my plan going into the exam. 10 minutes between 2 and 3. 5 minutes between 4 and 5. 5 minutes between 5 and 6. And 5 minutes between 6 and 7. It usually does me good stamina wise. I will say that if you prep by studying long hours then a 4.5 hour practice exam seems like nothing.

 

[bruno21222]

I took the test yesterday (28th April). It was so bizarre. Random questions asked very vaguely .. I had a lot of neuroanatomy/random Immuno and micro/ a lot of PHARM/REPRO. I did not have many biochem based questions. LOTS of antimicrobials AND those arrow questions (increase/ decrease types) .. I don't know but I feel like I guessed on 90% of the test. Came out feeling like crap.

uworld: 64% first time pass: random/timed mode
nbme 13: 209
nbme 15: 223

Now I have to wait till June 28th to get the results. It's going to be torture.

 

[goodvibes27]

In your guys' opinion how well does one need to do in order to pass simply with a 192?

~60% correct I'm thinking?

I gave NBME 13 a month ago, got 182 with 69.5% (139/200). So I guess with a little over 70%, one should be able to pass. Hope this helps

 

[quincyfuturemd]

I gave NBME 13 a month ago, got 182 with 69.5% (139/200). So I guess with a little over 70%, one should be able to pass. Hope this helps

13 is a tough curve too in my experience (maybe because it's the oldest) so 70% or a bit above should be passing for alot of nbmes if not all of them.

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

I took the test yesterday (28th April). It was so bizarre. Random questions asked very vaguely .. I had a lot of neuroanatomy/random Immuno and micro/ a lot of PHARM/REPRO. I did not have many biochem based questions. LOTS of antimicrobials AND those arrow questions (increase/ decrease types) .. I don't know but I feel like I guessed on 90% of the test. Came out feeling like crap.

uworld: 64% first time pass: random/timed mode
nbme 13: 209
nbme 15: 223

Now I have to wait till June 28th to get the results. It's going to be torture.

was it stuff that was at least in first aid ? and im guessing non sketchy things for pharm and anti microbial ?

 

[mymembernames]

13 is a tough curve too in my experience (maybe because it's the oldest) so 70% or a bit above should be passing for alot of nbmes if not all of them.

Is it 70 or 75 with the new curve? Thought someone wrote 75 before?


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[quincyfuturemd]

Is it 70 or 75 with the new curve? Thought someone wrote 75 before?


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If goodvibes wrote a month ago it should be the new curve. I'm not entirely sure though but nbme 13 is a tough curve so I would guess 70 is probably good enough to pass most nbmes. It could be 75 for nbme 13 to get that extra 10 points for a 192.

 

[2332740]

.

 

[quincyfuturemd]

My form had many items not in UW/FA/Pathoma. Micro and Pharm were the worst offenders for being "out there". I concur with bruno - the immunology was very strange. At its core, it was still looking for the mechanisms of actions of certain inflammatory mediators. But the way they asked the questions was just... bizarre...

Also, I had no idea that they were updating the question pool or that I'd have to wait until June to get my scores back. Is it standard for them to update questions? Do you think it's possible they took out all the questions that you can answer with Sketchy, or am I just being paranoid?

Yeah, I wouldn't worry. You can see word for word announcements about question pool updates around this time way back in 2011, 2010 etc. Everything should still be standardized and they updated the nbme curves last November for a reason. I don't think there should be a major change in scoring since the updated questions. Also I could be wrong but the way I read the announcement it sounded like some score reports may not be as delayed as others and not everyone will have to wait until June 28.

 

[Brorthopedic]

It's silly to think that just because you came across questions that weren't covered in the mainstream resources that they're experimental. These resources are not going to cover everything.

Not trying to make people feel bad, but you can also find peace in the fact that if they weren't in the mainstream resources, chances are others have not seen the material either.

 

[kthxbai]

It's silly to think that just because you came across questions that weren't covered in the mainstream resources that they're experimental. These resources are not going to cover everything.

Not trying to make people feel bad, but you can also find peace in the fact that if they weren't in the mainstream resources, chances are others have not seen the material either.

I agree; I had too many of these weirdo questions to dismiss them as experimental. One thing is sure: lecture goers were likely rewarded.

 

[Theppunisher]

I agree; I had too many of these weirdo questions to dismiss them as experimental. One thing is sure: lecture goers were likely rewarded.

Just cause you went doesnt mean you listened haha

 

[Dr.Jekyll75]

I agree; I had too many of these weirdo questions to dismiss them as experimental. One thing is sure: lecture goers were likely rewarded.

I doubt people are going over there lecture notes for boards so I'm not sure that's a feasible connection. Does anybody know ifuworld updated their curve as well?


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[kthxbai]

Just cause you went doesnt mean you listened haha

Wait, so osmosis doesn't work like this?

 

[kthxbai]

I doubt people are going over there lecture notes for boards so I'm not sure that's a feasible connection. Does anybody know ifuworld updated their curve as well?


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I had lots of weirdly detailed questions that were covered in lecture at some point. It's amazing what comes back to you when your back's to the wall...

 

[chromuffin]

So for those that are using Boards and Beyond.. was this sufficient? It's quite discouraging hearing that the exam is essentially a different test than what I'm studying for.

 

[quincyfuturemd]

I would be very surprised if in the span of a few days step 1 all of a sudden wasn't based mostly on high yield material. This would also make all the nbme and uwsa and free 120 assessments useless.