OFFICIAL STEP I Results thread

[EctopicFetus]

I figured in honor of those who have gotten their scores back it would be interesting to create a single thread which could be used in the future.

Please post how you did on Q-bank (please differentiate between how your last 8-10 blocks went) and/or your final average.

How you did on NBME

Finally, your board score

Also if you want to add your study hints do that too.

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[Deuce 007 MD]

Oh and by the way, are you all talking about "score report date" on the NBME homepage? If so, mine is still blank also and don't think I'll be hearing anything directly from my school. Well, hopefully it'll update soon!

Wait a minute your avatar says class of 07, and you took step 1?

 

[Fermata]

Wait a minute your avatar says class of 07, and you took step 1?

MD/PhDer.

 

[Axon]

I've been a lurker on these boards for months now. I guess its time to own up and start posting. Here is my pre/test data:
USMLE STEP 1: 231 / 94
NBME (9 days before): 490
NBME (3 days before): 600
Final Q-Bank average: 65%
--First 15 Tests: 54%
--Lasts 15 tests: 75%
MCAT: 24
As my primary resource, I did Kaplan's Qreview: I read both the Organ Systems book and the General Principles. Also, did BRS Path and BRS Brain and Behavoir. I should mention that the last week, especially the time between the two NBME's, I only did FA and Step up, with a little Qbank.

I guess if you average the two NBME's, you roughly get a 231 as the predicted score.

Thanks for everyone's help on these boards over the last 3 months!

Axon

 

[lotanna]

I've been a lurker on these boards for months now. I guess its time to own up and start posting. Here is my pre/test data:
USMLE STEP 1: 231 / 94
NBME (9 days before): 490
NBME (3 days before): 600
Final Q-Bank average: 65%
--First 15 Tests: 54%
--Lasts 15 tests: 75%
MCAT: 24
As my primary resource, I did Kaplan's Qreview: I read both the Organ Systems book and the General Principles. Also, did BRS Path and BRS Brain and Behavoir. I should mention that the last week, especially the time between the two NBME's, I only did FA and Step up, with a little Qbank.

I guess if you average the two NBME's, you roughly get a 231 as the predicted score.

Thanks for everyone's help on these boards over the last 3 months!

Here is to show that the MCAT means JACK!!!! Just like I thought and know!!
Way to go and congrats!!

 

[NikkiDeee]

I've been a lurker for the past few months as well. Thanks to everyone for the inside scoop and valuable advice. Congrats to everyone that passed (no matter where you fall), this is truly an accomplishment!!!

USMLE STEP 1: 238

NBME (just took the first one two nights before): 550

Q-bank average: I used one of the ebay bootleg cds (i know i'm awful), so don't have an average, but actually didn't do that much of it (and was hoping I didn't pay for it in the end, but it all worked out) For me, the absolute best resource for questions was robins review. I did all of them and thought it was excellent!!!

MCAT: 27Q (9B 11P 7V); for those of you determined as I was to do better than your MCAT, it can be done.

 

[lotanna]

I've been a lurker for the past few months as well. Thanks to everyone for the inside scoop and valuable advice. Congrats to everyone that passed (no matter where you fall), this is truly an accomplishment!!!

USMLE STEP 1: 238

NBME (just took the first one two nights before): 550

Q-bank average: I used one of the ebay bootleg cds (i know i'm awful), so don't have an average, but actually didn't do that much of it (and was hoping I didn't pay for it in the end, but it all worked out) For me, the absolute best resource for questions was robins review. I did all of them and thought it was excellent!!!

MCAT: 27Q (9B 11P 7V); for those of you determined as I was to do better than your MCAT, it can be done.

Congrats!! yet anoda MCAT means jack story!!

 

[bigfrank]

Congrats!! yet anoda MCAT means jack story!!

Yeah, it really does mean nothing. In fact, I haven't heard those 4 letters since starting med. school

 

[merlin]

NikkiDeee,
Now that is what I like to hear. That 7 has been haunting me for the last couple of years as well. hope i can follow that...

 

[Rod Farva]

Rod, you are one of the few people that I have seen here that Rocked the MCAT and Step 1. So I have to ask you, does Step 1 test the same reasoning, problem solving, integration skills like the MCAT. Or does it measure recall of obscure facts and minutia. I know that the two choices are not an absolute but a continum. Therefore if you would like to answer in percentages, that is fine with me.

thanks

I think the USMLE was more problem-solving oriented than I was expecting (certainly more so than QBank).... still a lot of minutiae though. I'll sit on the fence and say it's 50-50... I vaguely remember a lot of RANDOM tables, graphs, figures etc that require on-the-fly interpretation without any background info, but often these types of questions would also require 2 and 3 step thinking to get to the correct answer, which means you need to interpret and then apply info you've supposedly memorized. There were a bunch of questions that seemed to come out of left field. Another aspect about the boards I liked was the lack of a verbal reasoning section or essay section. I would say that it is more recall based than the MCAT from what I can remember, though I took the MCAT about 4 years ago and don't remember much about it other than hating the verbal stuff. But no matter how much you studied for the MCAT, you really need to study a lot more information for a lot longer than you did for the MCAT to get a good score, in my opinion.

 

[Idiopathic]

you really need to study a lot more information for a lot longer than you did for the MCAT to get a good score, in my opinion.

Totally agree. I did reasonably well on the MCAT (all 11's) and we will see what my Step 1 score was like soon. I think this is a dead-on statement.

 

[14022]

MCAT: 33P (8VR 14PS 11BS)
Q-Bank: 70%; did all of the questions, always random
Kaplan diagnostic (I took it 3 weeks before the exam): 83%
NBME 150 q's: 81% (5 days before exam)

USMLE: 245 (I would have loved this score if I hadn't read all of the other phenomenal scores on sdn before I received mine.)
Med School record: I would guess top 10-15% of the class overall.

Study methods...I read BRS Path and Phys and did Robbins Q Book with each organ system during MS2. I started studying first year material in April. Maybe studied for boards 1 hour a day (if that much) in April, and 6-12 hours per day in May and first part of June. Read first aid at least 3 times. This was my primary source especially for MICRO, ANATOMY, BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE, and PHARMACOLOGY. I also read high yield biochem and neuroanatomy and looked through high yield gross. I read Step up the week before the exam. I also did 75% of the questions in NMS Q book and half of each of the 5 books in the BSS series.

Looking back, I think the best advice is to learn as much as you can first and second year. You will be surprised how much you remember. Try and understand concepts, rather than memorize. Try and use first aid, brs path, brs phys, and step up a bit the first two years as well. First Aid is a great resource if you use it as a canvas for which you can add as much detail from other texts as you see fit. Memorize first aid for Pharm and Micro, and use it as your primary source for anatomy and behavioral science. Do as many questions as possible but don't use all of the sources as a guage of progress, use it as a learning tool. The NBME doesnt care how well you did on QBank or Robbins Q book. If you get questions wrong or right, read the explanations because they will often explain ways to get tripped up on questions regarding the same topic. Most importantly, once you schedule your exam, DO NOT CHANGE THE DATE!!!! You run the risk of burn out and forgetting stuff that you had studied earlier. It didnt happen to me, but it did to many of my friends. Best of luck!

 

[djipopo]

congrats to you all and your great scores!

keep 'em coming, especially those with "average" scores

 

[chavo]

Here are some scores and stats for you correlation people.

MCAT = 28M (M? I wasn't applying for novelist school)
SAT = 780 (math/science), 380 (english,reading comprehension, "I be smart")
HS GPA = 2.9 (with PE grades)
Undergrad GPA = 3.9 (take in mind, from Fresno state)
Qbank = 63% (random, 50 q blocks)
Basic science shelf = 69 (very good correlation)
NBME Assesment Tests = 460 (2 weeks before) and 510 (1 week before)
Released Questions = 76%
Kaplan Assesment Test = 38% (I took it before studying)
Class rank = 60 (my estimate, I usually score around average, 1 honors in neuro)
Favorite color = red

Step 1 = 235 (who knows where this score came from)

I studied about 4-6 hours a day for 4-5 weeks before the test, one of those weeks I went home so I didn't study too much. I used First Aid, BRS path, HY neuro, and HY Behavioral Science. I read these books over about 4 times each. I read over kaplan books for anatomy and microbiology. I only used first aid for pharm, and that was my best subject on step 1. I was not prepared at all for the molecular bio and cell bio stuff on my test, but I guess I guess well.

I would recommend studying at least 8-10 hours a day. Also, lock up your xbox and uninstall games from your laptop and home computer. Also, STUDY biochem and molecular bio. They actually test you on that worthless BS. Crap like SHH gene and specifics on homeobox genes.

 

[Jalby]

Finally went in to get my scores from the school office. First, again I would like to thank the people who have posted on this site for the past three years. Your advice has been invaluable and definately helped me a ton.

Here is how I prepared for the test:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=130364

What I thought of the test:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=130656

I must say, I'm estatic about my score. I thought I got lucky on a lot of questions. As for correlations (as someone who believe in this things as they correlate to USMLE's):

High School GPA: 4.17. 21st out of 451
SAT: Math 780 Verbal 620 (took the test 5 times. My Math avg was like 760. My verbal was about 550. I kept taking it because my parent signed me up)
College GPA: 3.27 GPA (2.7 Freshman, and with an upward trend)
Grad school GPA: 3.78 (Got B's in the only two classes. Got A's in all the units I had for research)
MCAT: 14B, 13P, 10V and O
Class rank: I would esitmate about 20-25 out of 150 or so.
Q-bank (totally Random): 77%

And finally, my test score: 259. Definately happy about this.

Again, thanks to everybody who helped out.


On a side note, I did decide that I shouldn't give people in an online community an unfair advantage over other people. Whenever I have went out of my way to help other people, something has alway happened to make me regrette helping out, so I decided just to totally stop. (this is added much later to this post than the original date)

 

[bigfrank]

Jalby,

Fantastic Job. I'm sure you're very proud. Maybe you'll get a break off of surgery for 24h or so, to give you time to really celebrate!!!

 

[Idiopathic]

Fantastic...I will be proven the black sheep of the bunch.

 

[DireWolf]

Fantastic...I will be proven the black sheep of the bunch.

i doubt it.

 

[bigfrank]

Fantastic...I will be proven the black sheep of the bunch.

I DON'T think so, Idiopathic!

 

[AlexRusso]

congrats all. I'm still waiting. Anyone get the hard copy in the mail yet or are all these scores from the deans?

 

[pxz]

Holy smoke, now I know why I was stressed out during my step 1 preparation. I was comparing my Qbank scores, knowledge level or NBME release items with some 250+ folks. I thought everyone else was scoring 80% on Qbank, remembered every side effect of 10,000 jitter drugs, knew every detail of all dead-people named sydromes, and still struggled to pass.

Congrats to all. You worked hard and deserve the best. Idio, do not worry. Your score will rock.

 

[lotanna]

wayyyyyyyy to go Jalby!! Since u started preparing, I've been eager to know what u got!!

 

[Ramoray]

Congrats jalby! man class act all the time.. awsome score, discreet about it and a very very thorough and helpful thread about your experience and always great and helpful answers.. seriously big congrats well done!

 

[Mystique]

Jalby,

I'm so glad your hard work payed off! Congratulations; that rocks. It's great to see folks like you who've been around the block and then some (j/k ) sticking around and offering so much helpful advice.

*Cheers*

 

[OneStrongBro]

Jalby, Congrats...You deserve the fruits of your hard labor....

Looks like you are one step closer to season package for courtside tickets at a LA Lakers game. Unfortunately, with the recent implosion, in the next 5 years the Clippers might be the team with the better team in Los Angeles.

Finally went in to get my scores from the school office. First, again I would like to thank the people who have posted on this site for the past three years. Your advice has been invaluable and definately helped me a ton.

Here is how I prepared for the test:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=130364

What I thought of the test:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=130656

I must say, I'm estatic about my score. I thought I got lucky on a lot of questions. As for correlations (as someone who believe in this things as they correlate to USMLE's):

High School GPA: 4.17. 21st out of 451
SAT: Math 780 Verbal 620 (took the test 5 times. My Math avg was like 760. My verbal was about 550. I kept taking it because my parent signed me up)
College GPA: 3.27 GPA (2.7 Freshman, and with an upward trend)
Grad school GPA: 3.78 (Got B's in the only two classes. Got A's in all the units I had for research)
MCAT: 14B, 13P, 10V and O
Class rank: I would esitmate about 20-25 out of 150 or so.
Q-bank (totally Random): 77%

And finally, my test score: 259. Definately happy about this.

Again, thanks to everybody who helped out. And to the one person who reads this from USC, I don't want the rest of the class knowing my score, so you will be cut off if it leaks. Thanks again everybody on here.

 

[Pril]

Step 1: 233/94
NBME Diagnostic: 500/510
Q-Bank: 62%
MCAT: 30

 

[kafka]

I just got my scores back a couples days ago.

Q-bank -- high 70s first time through but mostly did questions specific to what I'd studied for the day, not random questions.

Released items -- 92% 2 1/2 weeks prior exam.

NBME -- Form I: 690 (2 1/2 weeks priot exam), Form II: 800 (3 days prior exam)

Step I - 265

I studied about 12 hours a day for 35 days. I used a lot of books but found BRS path and the Robbin's path Q book probably to be the most helpful. I'm obviously happy with my Step I score but definitely had high expectations with my score on the NBME test. In the end, I'm just glad this silly test won't limit what specialty I can choose. Congrats to everyone on getting through this stressful time, and best of luck on the wards.

 

[tega]

noice , some pretty neat scores...congrats jalby, and the rest of u guys....kafka..800..wow!!...

 

[lotanna]

I just got my scores back a couples days ago.

Q-bank -- high 70s first time through but mostly did questions specific to what I'd studied for the day, not random questions.

Released items -- 92% 2 1/2 weeks prior exam.

NBME -- Form I: 690 (2 1/2 weeks priot exam), Form II: 800 (3 days prior exam)

Step I - 265

I studied about 12 hours a day for 35 days. I used a lot of books but found BRS path and the Robbin's path Q book probably to be the most helpful. I'm obviously happy with my Step I score but definitely had high expectations with my score on the NBME test. In the end, I'm just glad this silly test won't limit what specialty I can choose. Congrats to everyone on getting through this stressful time, and best of luck on the wards.

wow 800!! no wonder ur confidence level must have been in the skies somewhere!!

Congrats!!! Can u post any tips that you would advice doing 1st and 2yr in order to be ready when it comes time to review?

 

[bigfrank]

NBME -- Form I: 690 (2 1/2 weeks priot exam), Form II: 800 (3 days prior exam)

Step I - 265

Awesome job!!! I'll bet you were thinking 290 though, with that 800! Best wishes and congratulations!!!

 

[alphazan]

hmm...29 on mcat, 8 phys sci, 9 bio sci, 12 verbal
60-70% on qbank, varied wildly the week before the exam
230/93 on step I

questions questions questions!! also i studied my nutz off learning the nitty gritty of biochemical pathways and there were NO QUESTIONS that required my knowing anything but the "big picture" that's sometimes hard to get while learning details. many big picture questions overall, actually.

 

[Idiopathic]

Form II: 800 (3 days prior exam)

Possibly a more impressive achievement than your 265. I thought Form II was much harder.

 

[Stinger86]

Congratulations on your scores, guys! And Jalby, I told you posting was good karma.

 

[kafka]

Thanks, guys. Yeah, that 800 was a bit of a fluke. Too bad I can't put it on my residency apps, huh? My advice for the first two years of medical school is to study to truly learn the material, rather than just trying to study toward the exams. Also, just relax and don't start studying for the boards until 2nd year is over. You really can do it in a month, and you'll be surprised how much you've learned in two years. Best of luck to all of you.

 

[AlexRusso]

Finally got mine in the mail today.

253/99

I am amazed. Did not expect it. Had to check that the name on top was really mine several times. It is so true that most people do much better than they expect.

How I prepared, my thoughts on the test, and all my stats can be found here

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?p=1556467#post1556467


Good luck to those still waiting for their results and congrats to everyone here on their awesome score.

I only discovered these forums a month or so before I started studying and have found them to be an amazing resource. Thanks to all who post and help out.

 

[Idiopathic]

Fantastic job. Congratulations. Now if only mine would come...

 

[bigfrank]

Finally got mine in the mail today.

253/99.

Fantastic score Alex!!!!

 

[sundevil1]

My stats:

MCAT 9v, 12ps, 12bs
Qbank - around 76% whether used repeats of didn't
NBME Form I 610
Released Items 80%
Step 1 240

Congrats to all with stellar scores. I don't want to take anything away from them, because they earned it. This advice is for the 1st years and entering 1st years. Med school is all about time. It will take as much time as you are willing to give it. Sure, intelligence helps but there is actually less brain power involved than you think. There is no mystery why the students who did well got those scores, they studied hard, for a long time and were focused. That's all it takes. No secret sources or books. Really straightforward. Just ask yourself how much you are willing to put in. Congrats again.

 

[automaton]

is the mean higher this year than in recent past? i thought that a score of 260 was nearly unheard of, much like a 41/42 mcat. i see so many with 250+, which to me is shocking.

 

[AlexRusso]

The mean for my form was 221 which is slightly higher than last years mean of 217. I think the reason that you're seeing all these high scores is selection bias. Most people concerened enough to browse these forums and actually post are very serious about getting a good score so they study their ass off. Not all med students are this way. This site kind of selects out the people who care most. Thats why you see susch stellar scores on here.

 

[Legion560]

234/95

1 week before taking this, I gave myself a range of 232-238, just to keep things real based on what I have been getting in qbank etc.

Qbank randomized always: Starting out = 54-64% Ending = low 70s Overall= 68%

150 released items = 81%
NBME self assessment (the one our school demanded that I take-bastards!): 73%
BRS phys: Once through during step 1 (3 times through overall)
BRS path: Once through during step 1 (about 4 times through overall)
High yeild biochem, behav, gross, neuro, immuno, cell and molecular: all one time through
Ridiculously simple micro: 1 time through
Pharm recall: 1 time through
FA for the rest of it.
Q bank: finished
Q book: half finished
Hours per day studied: 6-10. But this was really variable. But I made sure my quota was met at the end of the week.

Things I sucked at on step 1: Behav, heme/lymp, respiratory, gross/embryo
Things I did great on: path and physio (surprise surprise), cardio, respiratory.
Everything else: average

MCAT: (which doesnt really correlate IMO): 31
Class rank: Not sure, but probably in the top 1/3
Favorite color: Blue

Conclusions:
One thing I would do differently:
QBank= good for a while until things get repetitive. Should have ditched Qbank halfway through and hit BSS. Really kicking myself in the arse for this one since I have all the BSS books gathering dust on my shelves.

My results: Disappointed in my score, at first: very! Now that Ive had some time to think about it: Still mildly disappointed and feeling very lukewarm about the whole thing. Am I glad I fell into my desired range: You bet. Am I glad I didnt bomb it totally: Hell yeah!

This is my report, and I feel that it is very reflective of the average med student.

Congrats to all!!!!!

Legion

 

[NebelDO]

hey guys..score came finally came in..

237/96.. im stoked!! score one more for the DO's!The mean also on my sheet said 221/21

I want to thank everyone on this thread who have given so much advice.Esp, bigfrank, Idiopathic, jalby, everyone had great info.
This is how i prepared
Kaplan Comlex Review at school
Read BRS path,phys
HY Neuro, BS
CMRS
Qbank 73% all random
I did not do any of the NBME assesments.
Read step up and First Aid like 5 times.
class stats- rank 22/175

Ill be 25 on tuesday so this is the best early birthday present i could imagine

 

[Legion560]

All you guys reading this that got below 240, lets hear about it! Dont leave me hanging alone out here

Legion

 

[bigfrank]

Legion and Nebel,

Great job guys!!!! I'm sure you're VERY proud -- and you should be!

 

[Howard Roark]

qbank: 70% or so - did not finish all of qbank (probably finished 80%)
did not do NBME
MCAT:34

USMLE Step 1: 235 (much much better than I thought I did after taking the exam)

I'm in rochester MN. Score arrived via mail today. Check your mailboxes. Good Luck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[14022]

I am in the Midwest and got my score in the mail today. Mailed from Philadelphia, so western coast should expect their scores monday.

My read out said...

Range: 144-288
Mean: 221
SD: 21

Therefore 242 would be 84th percentile. 263 would be 97th percentile.

 

[mellow yellow]

Step 1: 250/99 avg = 221, sd = 21 --> corresponds to 92% percentile

NBME practice test #1 610 (took 4 days before)
NBME practice test #2 650 (took 2 days before) thought this version was much harder than #1...
NBME comprehensive basic science self assessment #1 79 (222) 3 mo before
NBME comprehensive basic science self assessment #2 80 (225) 6 w before
150 released items: 85%
Class average: probably top 20%; average year 1, honored all but one class year 2.
Kaplan qbank: overall 74%; ~78% average during last 2-3 weeks of studying.
MCAT: 30 8/11/11 v/ps/bs Doesn't really correlate w/ my step 1 scores IMHO... (thankfully).

Best preparation for Step 1: STUDY HARD DURING YEAR 2!!!! I think that this is the best advice I could give anyone. Study your ass off and don't cram during year two or you won't achieve your potential for step 1. The only class from year one that you absolutely must understand is physio... All the rest you can re-study for step 1.

Best correlation w/ Step 1 scores: NBME practice tests. Just look at all the other posts and you'll find a very very very strong correlation between your performance on these and your actual step 1 score.

Worst correlation w/ Step 1 scores: from the above parameters, probably MCAT scores although there is some, just not nearly as strong as NBME practice tests.

Most important determinant in performing well on Step 1: HARD WORK >>> Intelligence... Work hard, work smart, and find what works best for you and you will do well. You MUST memorize a lot of stuff if you want to do well. Work your ass off and you should achieve your potential.

My study sources were the following...
Path: my own notes
Physio: my own notes
Micro: class charts
Pharm: my own charts
Gross/neuro/embryo: first aid only (memorized)
Immuno: first aid only w/ my notes of clinical presentation of dzs.
Biochem/genetics: my own super-condensed notes (essentially all the things in first aid plus my notes w/ clinical presentation of dzs).
Behavioral sciences: my own notes.

Another technique I used was to write down any pertinent points that I thought were 'high yield' from qbank and I completely memorized them. Additionally I was part of a small study group that met about 10 times throughout year 2 to review old subjects. Overall, I'm very happy with my score and exceeded my expectations...

 

[DistantMets]

I got a 236 and I was very pleased. That's about 80th percentile or so. Here's a link for some Derm stats from a couple years ago for some perspective. http://dermatology.cdlib.org/93/editorial/residency/wu2.html. Let's be realistic...you don't have to beat the mean or be a std dev. above it, to get to do the speciality you want in most cases...unless you're gunning for something really competitive. Even still, the work ethic and interpersonal skills you show on rotations will go a long way. Congrats to everyone who passed and good luck on rotations!

For those of you keeping track:

Q-Bank: 70% final avg, about 75% for the last couple weeks before the test. Released items about the same.
I'm in the top 1/4 of my class at a DO school.

Also, for any DOers not sure about whether to take the USMLE or not, TAKE IT! All your review materials are geared toward it. The COMLEX is really random, long, and nothing I've seen really simulates the question style (if you can say there is one).

 

[csmith1]

stupid question...how do you figure your corresponding percentile?

 

[Idiopathic]

Estimate using mean and standard deviation to determine what percentage of students scored below you.

 

[DistantMets]

stupid question...how do you figure your corresponding percentile?

the numbers scholes quoted earlier for percentiles is the same as I calculated.

In a bell curve, 1 SD on either side of the mean is 68% of all test takers leaving 16% on either end being more than 1 SD from the mean. If you got a 242 (1 SD above mean), you beat all the people on the low end of the curve so you add 16% to 68%, which is 84%.