TCOM average COMLEX approaches 600 (594)

[AnatomyGrey12]

Huh? Around 230 is what NBME tries to keep average (my score report said 228), but this change by the NBOME is the opposite of what NBME is doing.

All I'm saying is the average used to be a lot lower, in 2008 the mean score was a 221 with about the same standard deviation. Admittedly, a huge score increase like 520-570 is fairly drastic.

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[Drrrrrr. Celty]

All I'm saying is the average used to be a lot lower, in 2008 the mean score was a 221 with about the same standard deviation. Admittedly, a huge score increase like 520-570 is fairly drastic.

Which is why I'm skeptical of it happening. I sincerely doubt that when the dust has settled it is above a 530. I mean they have a whole month in between giving us our scores to avoid a mess like this.

 

[AlteredScale]

Which is why I'm skeptical of it happening. I sincerely doubt that when the dust has settled it is above a 530. I mean they have a whole month in between giving us our scores to avoid a mess like this.

Let's not forget that class of 2018 didn't get any COMLEX 1 info until last month for rankings and what not. I'm sure it'll take a whole year for NBOME to normalize the data and everything which is why I agree there's no way in hell the average is 570+ IMO.


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[MedLyfee]

ya'll are in denial

 

[JamesPotterMS-3]

Does it matter? Don't you need a 50% to pass the COMLEX anyway? The USMLE is the future but ~50% of DO students nationally still don't take it and COMs are still vehemently apposed to requiring students to take it.

 

[Azete]

I'm part of the 2019 group that just took COMLEX; every single person I've talked to scored above 570. I've also seen huge disparities in COMLEX vs USMLE percentile -- best example being a close friend that scored 730 on COMLEX but 207 on USMLE. I've also heard multiple students that were consistently in the bottom quartile of our class scored 600+.

Personally I thought COMLEX was a joke of an exam. If you just memorized a bunch of buzz words you could do well, whereas USMLE required actual medical knowledge and critical thinking.

 

[68PGunner]

The Comlex will be an obsolete test soon. There's a reason why PDs don't take the COMLEX seriously.

 

[Goro]

My post was not as much about comparing percentile as explaining phenomena this year, I had multiple people in my program complaining that they did 'better' on COMLEX rather than USMLE, saying they got a 600 or 80 percentile but only say a 235 on USMLE (more like 60th percentile). They were basing the idea that they got 80th percentile on the COMLEX using the average for last years COMLEX. They really didn't do way better on COMLEX, the mean shifted up. Which of course, means that just using a COMLEX score as a cutoff is a bad idea since it is so variable and thus further decreases the value of the test to residency directors who are already confused by it. Heck, I am a DO student who cares what the score means, and I still don't understand everything about it.

Actually this leads me to question: Is NBOME still 'readjusting' means down every 3 years or have they switched to a USMLE like model where a 230 this year is the same as a 230 was 15 years ago etc.

Believe, having taught at a DO schools for close to 20 years, and having written NBOME questions for half that time, I still can't figure out what those people who run the show are thinking. I *like* to think that my '19s did so well because they're all great students, but if everyone is getting a trophy, so to speak, how do we tell who the real champions are???

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

I'm part of the 2019 group that just took COMLEX; every single person I've talked to scored above 570. I've also seen huge disparities in COMLEX vs USMLE percentile -- best example being a close friend that scored 730 on COMLEX but 207 on USMLE. I've also heard multiple students that were consistently in the bottom quartile of our class scored 600+.

Personally I thought COMLEX was a joke of an exam. If you just memorized a bunch of buzz words you could do well, whereas USMLE required actual medical knowledge and critical thinking.

I don't think I've seen any of that, even on the Step 1 forum. I've seen plenty of people scoring similar to always with scores somewhere around 220 -> 580s, 230s -> 620-630s, 240s -> 640s+ and so on.

Either your friend fell apart during USMLE or they shined brighter than a star during COMLEX, but that's highly unusual to have an enormous disparity like that.

I think COMLEX honestly was far easier compared to USMLE. But I believe it honestly was that because it was a much more reasonable exam that tested reasonable content and within contexts that were probably much more clinically valid. The USMLE was cerebral and at many times bordered on being absurd.

Either way most people I've spoken too have scored within reason to previous years. No one went from bottom tier to being >600.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Does it matter? Don't you need a 50% to pass the COMLEX anyway? The USMLE is the future but ~50% of DO students nationally still don't take it and COMs are still vehemently apposed to requiring students to take it.

This is why neither test really give you a percent correct. I think COMLEX has a wider pass range, but I don't think you need more than a 55-60% to pass USMLE either. I did well and I don't think I got more than 70% correct.

 

[jw3600]

I thought averages weren't released for calendar years until the following spring? I know I took my comlex in June of 2016 and sometime in May 2017 the averages came out.

 

[AlteredScale]

I'm part of the 2019 group that just took COMLEX; every single person I've talked to scored above 570. I've also seen huge disparities in COMLEX vs USMLE percentile -- best example being a close friend that scored 730 on COMLEX but 207 on USMLE. I've also heard multiple students that were consistently in the bottom quartile of our class scored 600+.

Personally I thought COMLEX was a joke of an exam. If you just memorized a bunch of buzz words you could do well, whereas USMLE required actual medical knowledge and critical thinking.

strange because I know a lot of more 700+ with 240-250+ USMLE vs the example you provided above. There's still a positive correlation between USMLE and COMLEX scores. Yes r isn't super close to 1 but it's STILL a positive correlation.

The quality of the USMLE is much better because NBME actually has the manpower and expertise in writing these questions. They have many, many full time professors and statisticians who work in Chicago at the main NBME center to write questions and analyze them with a fine tooth comb. NBOME has much less manpower and so the quality of question that gets accepted and itemized for each administration is widely variable.


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[jw3600]

strange because I know a lot of more 700+ with 240-250+ USMLE vs the example you provided above. There's still a positive correlation between USMLE and COMLEX scores. Yes r isn't super close to 1 but it's STILL a positive correlation.

The quality of the USMLE is much better because NBME actually has the manpower and expertise in writing these questions. They have many, many full time professors and statisticians who work in Chicago at the main NBME center to write questions and analyze them with a fine tooth comb. NBOME has much less manpower and so the quality of question that gets accepted and itemized for each administration is widely variable.


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And they test on pseudoscience? Tough to write appropriate test questions about hocus pocus.

 

[AlteredScale]

And they test on pseudoscience? Tough to write appropriate test questions about hocus pocus.

OMM isn't anywhere near a majority portion of the comlex . It may feel that way since it's ten more questions than the step within the same allotted block hour.




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[jrlob91]

I don't think I've seen any of that, even on the Step 1 forum. I've seen plenty of people scoring similar to always with scores somewhere around 220 -> 580s, 230s -> 620-630s, 240s -> 640s+ and so on.

Either your friend fell apart during USMLE or they shined brighter than a star during COMLEX, but that's highly unusual to have an enormous disparity like that.

I think COMLEX honestly was far easier compared to USMLE. But I believe it honestly was that because it was a much more reasonable exam that tested reasonable content and within contexts that were probably much more clinically valid. The USMLE was cerebral and at many times bordered on being absurd.

Either way most people I've spoken too have scored within reason to previous years. No one went from bottom tier to being >600.

Just FYI i scored 654 on comlex and 216 on usmle, top 5 in my class, and 660+ on level 2. Sometimes it's just one of those days with the usmle that tests knowledge I wasn't as good at. My usmle had a lot of crazy stuff I had never seen in Pathoma or uworld, and yes it was bordering on absurd. Just thought I'd throw my scores out there; I'm a Fantastic top tier student, but the day I took the usmle I just wasn't.

 

[Geraltofrivia]

I can say that NSU curriculum is antiquated as all hell. They literally think an "integrated exam" means just mixing questions for an organ system. For example, a test on Nephro, Cardio, and Pulmonary will have unique questions but it'll just be all mixed up. Also the questions are very poorly written and do not reflect USMLE or Comlex at all. Prolly averages are well below the national mean. Sad!

 

[Goro]

OMM isn't anywhere near a majority portion of the comlex . It may feel that way since it's ten more questions than the step within the same allotted block hour.




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I agree. At the most, from the questions I've seen when I've sat for COMLEX (yes, we Faculty can take COMLEX), OPP/OMM is maybe 10% of the exam. Pathophysiology, med micro, pharm, anatomy+neuro are consistently the biggest components.

 

[ortnakas]

My personal theories on why DO students tend to perform better on COMLEX:
1) Faculty were open with us at my school that our exams were designed to prepare us for the COMLEX. Which, since that's what we need to graduate and become doctors, kind of makes sense. In the past USMLE wasn't as necessary, so designing a curriculum (heavier on the micro/pharm, easier on the biochem) and more for COMLEX and writing questions in an NBOME style made sense. The few faculty members I talked to about it did mention that they were starting to try to prepare us more for the USMLE as well, but, as in just about everything, change moves at snail's pace.

2) Additionally, I know quite a few of our faculty are COMLEX question writers, and I don't think any write for USMLE. Either consciously or subconsiously, this would make them write in-house questions more similar to COMLEX.

I doubt either of those things are unique to my school.

Edited: fixed a typo

 

[Eagles6389]

My personal theories on why DO students tend to perform better on COMLEX:
1) Faculty were open with us at my school that our exams were designed to prepare us for the COMLEX. Which, since that's what we need to graduate and become doctors, kind of makes sense. In the past USMLE wasn't as necessary, so designing a curriculum (heavier on the micro/pharm, easier on the biochem) and more for COMLEX and writing questions in an NBOME style made sense. The few faculty members I talked to about it did mention that they were starting to try to prepare us more for the USMLE as well, but, as in just about everything, change moves at snail's pace.

2) Additionally, I know quite a few of our faculty are COMLEX question writers, and I don't think any write for USMLE. Either consciously or subconsiously, this would make them write in-house questions more similar to COMLEX.

I doubt either of those things are unique to my school.

Edited: fixed a typo

Agreed. Unfortunately, many faculty members and students arrive at the misconception that USMLE and COMLEX are very similar exams since they are testing the same source material (not including OPP). It was only when some of my classmates were one month out from their scheduled USMLE date and took an NBME for the first time, did they realize how different the exams are. The biochemistry knowledge needed for COMLEX is basically nothing when compared against the biochemistry and cell bio knowledge required for USMLE. And all that biochemistry knowledge must be self-taught since most schools won't teach it since it's beyond whats needed for COMLEX.

It's going to be very interesting to see if/how DO schools try to teach to USMLE after the merger happens. I'm afraid that if DO schools start actually pushing students to take USMLE (which they should) without teaching to the exam, it will be a complete disaster. A lot of my classmates dropped out of taking the USMLE not because they were poor students, but because it was too close to their exam dates to learn the extra knowledge required for USMLE. The USMLE average for DO schools is in the 220s I think and that's with about 50% of students taking it which is self-selective for the stronger students. If 90-100% of DO students took USMLE w/o DO schools teaching to the exam, I wouldn't be surprised if the average drops to the 210 range.

 

[jw3600]

Agreed. Unfortunately, many faculty members and students arrive at the misconception that USMLE and COMLEX are very similar exams since they are testing the same source material (not including OPP). It was only when some of my classmates were one month out from their scheduled USMLE date and took an NBME for the first time, did they realize how different the exams are. The biochemistry knowledge needed for COMLEX is basically nothing when compared against the biochemistry and cell bio knowledge required for USMLE. And all that biochemistry knowledge must be self-taught since most schools won't teach it since it's beyond whats needed for COMLEX.

It's going to be very interesting to see if/how DO schools try to teach to USMLE after the merger happens. I'm afraid that if DO schools start actually pushing students to take USMLE (which they should) without teaching to the exam, it will be a complete disaster. A lot of my classmates dropped out of taking the USMLE not because they were poor students, but because it was too close to their exam dates to learn the extra knowledge required for USMLE. The USMLE average for DO schools is in the 220s I think and that's with about 50% of students taking it which is self-selective for the stronger students. If 90-100% of DO students took USMLE w/o DO schools teaching to the exam, I wouldn't be surprised if the average drops to the 210 range.

Dude what? Any DO student can do fine on the USMLE with the normal DO curriculum. Just add on First Aid, Uworld, and pathoma, JUST LIKE the MD students do. The differences in the USMLE scores has zero to do with curriculum and all to do with the difference in caliber of students going to MD vs DO schools. It's not rocket science.

Edit: and somewhat DO students just planning on residencies not needing USMLE

 

[IslandStyle808]

That's what happens when DO students don't actually crack opening board prep resources from the start of second year. They end up realizing how much stuff has not been covered by the curriculum and end up with not enough time studying what they need to know.

 

[BorntobeDO?]

That's what happens when DO students don't actually crack opening board prep resources from the start of second year. They end up realizing how much stuff has not been covered by the curriculum and end up with not enough time studying what they need to know.

I think a good amount of students think that the ones pushing USMLE are chicken little, or they just get tired of trying to do everything. Its not easy to fit extra stuff in your curriculum.

 

[JamesPotterMS-3]

Dude what? Any DO student can do fine on the USMLE with the normal DO curriculum. Just add on First Aid, Uworld, and pathoma, JUST LIKE the MD students do. The differences in the USMLE scores has zero to do with curriculum and all to do with the difference in caliber of students going to MD vs DO schools. It's not rocket science.

Agree and Disagree.
Agree that the "caliber" of students makes a big difference. Some of these schools have very low admission standards, accepting students with subpar MCAT scores. Heck, some DO schools don't even require the MCAT anymore. It's impossible, even with the "best" of "curriculums" to train these students to take an 8 hour long monster of an exam like the USMLE.
But also disagree that schools do not influence how students do on these exams. Also disagree that the USMLE and COMLEX are just the same exam with more path. COMLEX and USMLE each require a different approach to answering questions and looking at illness. Often, a couple of weeks is not sufficient to prepare for both exams separately. This is why schools adapt their curriculum to reflect how the COMLEX or USMLE expects students to look at clinical vignettes. Many students start out thinking they can take both but end up canceling, sometimes even a couple weeks before, their USMLE date because they realize that they are not meeting their goal score and they simply do not have enough time to catch up.

 

[jw3600]

Agree and Disagree.
Agree that the "caliber" of students makes a big difference. Some of these schools have very low admission standards, accepting students with subpar MCAT scores. Heck, some DO schools don't even require the MCAT anymore. It's impossible, even with the "best" of "curriculums" to train these students to take an 8 hour long monster of an exam like the USMLE.
But also disagree that schools do not influence how students do on these exams. Also disagree that the USMLE and COMLEX are just the same exam with more path. COMLEX and USMLE each require a different approach to answering questions and looking at illness. Often, a couple of weeks is not sufficient to prepare for both exams separately. This is why schools adapt their curriculum to reflect how the COMLEX or USMLE expects students to look at clinical vignettes. Many students start out thinking they can take both but end up canceling, sometimes even a couple weeks before, their USMLE date because they realize that they are not meeting their goal score and they simply do not have enough time to catch up.

Lol to quotes around "caliber." If MD students didn't do outside board prep (UFAP) they would get murdered by boards as well. You're putting too much stock into the curriculum. I will give you that there is some definitely some propaganda about PD's knowing/caring about the COMLEX (they don't) and the USMLE not being as hard as everyone says it is (it certainly is) coming out of the DO schools. I'm sure that has an effect on the smaller population taking step 1 and their poorer performances.

 

[Eagles6389]

Dude what? Any DO student can do fine on the USMLE with the normal DO curriculum. Just add on First Aid, Uworld, and pathoma, JUST LIKE the MD students do. The differences in the USMLE scores has zero to do with curriculum and all to do with the difference in caliber of students going to MD vs DO schools. It's not rocket science.

Edit: and somewhat DO students just planning on residencies not needing USMLE

I agree that the caliber of students going to MD vs DO schools plays a factor. But strongly disagree when you say it has zero to do with school curriculum. If a MD student pulls out FA and starts reading through the biochem section during board prep, he/she will have had previous exposure to most of the content since the MD school teaches to the USMLE. If a DO student pulls out FA and starts reading through the biochem section, 50% of it hasn't been covered in the DO curriculum. So both of these students are on equal footing for comparing for the USMLE, even though the DO student is self-teaching biochem?

DO students are definitely at a disadvantage when taking USMLE compared to MD students. That doesn't mean a DO student can't succeed on the USMLE, of course they can with supplementing FA, pathoma, etc. But I don't know how you can think that the curriculums put each student on equal footing. I remember studying OPP for an OPP Practical one month before my exam date that basically took up 3-5 days of board studying, and thinking about while I'm sitting here BSing some OPP, MD students are studying for the USMLE.

 

[jw3600]

I agree that the caliber of students going to MD vs DO schools plays a factor. But strongly disagree when you say it has zero to do with school curriculum. If a MD student pulls out FA and starts reading through the biochem section during board prep, he/she will have had previous exposure to most of the content since the MD school teaches to the USMLE. If a DO student pulls out FA and starts reading through the biochem section, 50% of it hasn't been covered in the DO curriculum. So both of these students are on equal footing for comparing for the USMLE, even though the DO student is self-teaching biochem?

DO students are definitely at a disadvantage when taking USMLE compared to MD students. That doesn't mean a DO student can't succeed on the USMLE, of course they can with supplementing FA, pathoma, etc. But I don't know how you can think that the curriculums put each student on equal footing. I remember studying OPP for an OPP Practical one month before my exam date that basically took up 3-5 days of board studying, and thinking about while I'm sitting here BSing some OPP, MD students are studying for the USMLE.

Dozens of kids at my school broke 230. Many broke 240. It just seems like a lot of excuses.

 

[Eagles6389]

Dozens of kids at my school broke 230. Many broke 240. It just seems like a lot of excuses.

I'm not arguing that DO students cannot achieve a good USMLE score. Any DO student can succeed on USMLE regardless of curriculum if they are dedicated and prepare accordingly.

My argument is that it is tougher for DOs to succeed at USMLE than MDs since DO schools teach to COMLEX, not to USMLE. And MD schools teach to USMLE, not COMLEX. Seems like pretty common sense to me.

 

[jw3600]

I'm not arguing that DO students cannot achieve a good USMLE score. Any DO student can succeed on USMLE regardless of curriculum if they are dedicated and prepare accordingly.

My argument is that it is tougher for DOs to succeed at USMLE than MDs since DO schools teach to COMLEX, not to USMLE. And MD schools teach to USMLE, not COMLEX. Seems like pretty common sense to me.

And that's where we have a complete disagreement. This whole "teaching to" crap is word speak. Anatomy is anatomy. Physio is physio. Pharm is most definitely god damn pharm. But honestly 2-3 posts is all I can muster for this tired outdated debate. Have fun.

 

[Eagles6389]

And that's where we have a complete disagreement. This whole "teaching to" crap is word speak. Anatomy is anatomy. Physio is physio. Pharm is most definitely god damn pharm. But honestly 2-3 posts is all I can muster for this tired outdated debate. Have fun.

You're right, the quality of teaching doesn't matter because at the end of the day, physiology is physiology and since anyone can learn it on their own, who cares. If there's a crappy curriculum at a school, why even change it since students can always learn the material by themselves.

lol.

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

That's what happens when DO students don't actually crack opening board prep resources from the start of second year. They end up realizing how much stuff has not been covered by the curriculum and end up with not enough time studying what they need to know.

I die a little inside every time I hear a classmate tell another classmate to not look through FA until next year. You don't have to study it, but you should at least flick through it as you go through classes to get an idea of what parts of that topic are relevant. I've even heard people telling others that taking USMLE is now irrelevant because "everyone will take the COMLEX."

Heck, some DO schools don't even require the MCAT anymore.

Lol.... there is one school (LECOM), with one application option that uses ACT with very very few students that get accepted that way. There is no "some."

he/she will have had previous exposure to most of the content since the MD school teaches to the USMLE

True to an extent, however honestly my friends at MD schools actually voice a lot of the same complaints we do when we complain about DO schools not teaching to boards.

 

[IslandStyle808]

I die a little inside every time I hear a classmate tell another classmate to not look through FA until next year. You don't have to study it, but you should at least flick through it as you go through classes to get an idea of what parts of that topic are

Sorry I should clarify. You should be seriously looking at the start of second year only. Having a glance at FA during first is year is fine, you can even do B&B since there is a lot of first year stuff. However, just don't be that guy who uses pathoma during their first year, there is a limit to how early to use board resources (yes, I know somebody who did this//and yes there schools where this is an exception).

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

Sorry I should clarify. You should be seriously looking at the start of second year only. Having a glance at FA during first is year is fine, you can even do B&B since there is a lot of first year stuff. However, just don't be that guy who uses pathoma during their first year, there is a limit to how early to use board resources (yes, I know somebody who did this//and yes there schools where this is an exception).

Oh no I would never study or use board materials this early. But it only takes 5 minutes at the end of the day to flick through FA and see what is relevant. An example, our Biochem has very little that is board relevant (i.e. Nothing) and it's easy to see just by glancing through FA. I'm not advocating to board study, but you should at least know what kind of stuff is on the test.

 

[IslandStyle808]

Oh no I would never study or use board materials this early. But it only takes 5 minutes at the end of the day to flick through FA and see what is relevant. An example, our Biochem has very little that is board relevant (i.e. Nothing) and it's easy to see just by glancing through FA. I'm not advocating to board study, but you should at least know what kind of stuff is on the test.

I actually glanced over FA during first year so I know what you mean. Made it easier to get the bigger picture.

 

[Geraltofrivia]

I'm the first person to hate on DO schools, but a lot of the complaints in this topic are echoed at MD schools as well. The place where it's drastically different is feedback. I have found that most DO schools do not care for student feedback at all and do not believe in QI, probably not holistic enough. MD schools though value feedback, sometimes excessively so, at least what my MD colleagues tell me. They take the feedback and actually try to make improvements with it. At a DO school, at least mine, you will end up being reported to the Student Progress Committee or something lol, at least that's what it feels like.

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

Regardless, I fully expect more of the same with 70-80% of my class to stay in MI, many in our GME.

Yeah I can't decide if it is just a result of most of our class aiming to stay in our home programs (also have a large network of GME, i'm at one of the other state programs) and these programs have said they will still consider COMLEX the same way they did before or if my classmates just don't understand what it means to be a competitive residency applicant. It's probably a bit of both. It isn't uncommon to have people from our school only apply to the programs that are in the network.

 

[clamsauce]

I'm the first person to hate on DO schools, but a lot of the complaints in this topic are echoed at MD schools as well. The place where it's drastically different is feedback. I have found that most DO schools do not care for student feedback at all and do not believe in QI, probably not holistic enough. MD schools though value feedback, sometimes excessively so, at least what my MD colleagues tell me. They take the feedback and actually try to make improvements with it. At a DO school, at least mine, you will end up being reported to the Student Progress Committee or something lol, at least that's what it feels like.

My school valued feedback more during our second year last year. Some teachers sure don't though. But honestly our curriculum was pretty good and had plenty of time to board up during second year and break 700/250+ comlex usmle. Could have been better yeah our clinical skills class takes more time than it should but if people sucked on boards it was more cuz they lazy not due to school

 

[clamsauce]

Wow, all the people I've talked to so far about it are aware of the merger and the need to take both exams. Regardless, I fully expect more of the same with 70-80% of my class to stay in MI, many in our GME.



What other books, apart from FA, would you recommend having during first year just to glance over/get a big picture?

Know physiology like the top of your third extremity and or equivalent. Makes second year much easier. Pharm comes in close second

 

[polylux]

Just an FYI but CUSOM also has a first time pass rate of 99% right now. Do not know average yet. Was told ~35% of students scores >600, and I know multiple 700+ scores, but I doubt our average is 590+.

 

[BorntobeDO?]

I'm the first person to hate on DO schools, but a lot of the complaints in this topic are echoed at MD schools as well. The place where it's drastically different is feedback. I have found that most DO schools do not care for student feedback at all and do not believe in QI, probably not holistic enough. MD schools though value feedback, sometimes excessively so, at least what my MD colleagues tell me. They take the feedback and actually try to make improvements with it. At a DO school, at least mine, you will end up being reported to the Student Progress Committee or something lol, at least that's what it feels like.

I want to say this is just your school, but I feel the same way about mine. They recently switched one of the most complained about classes from anonymous survey to 'just email your student liaison with any thoughts you have!' I may not be 'MD caliber' but I'm not that dumb. That course director is trying to smoke people out.

 

[shadowlightfox]

What is the curriculum at TCOM like that allowed the board scores to be well above national average?

 

[IslandStyle808]

What is the curriculum at TCOM like that allowed the board scores to be well above national average?

Well it was the school that founded the 2 year systems curriculum that RVU, KCU, and BCOM use.

 

[IslandStyle808]

What other books, apart from FA, would you recommend having during first year just to glance over/get a big picture?

Sorry, I didn't see your question. I've used First aid and have the Kaplan workbook (forgot the title), they have been very helpful for first year. When you are drowning in the details, these books help you focus on whats important and you build off of those big picture concepts.

 

[FourniersGreenGang]

Agree and Disagree.
Agree that the "caliber" of students makes a big difference. Some of these schools have very low admission standards, accepting students with subpar MCAT scores. Heck, some DO schools don't even require the MCAT anymore. It's impossible, even with the "best" of "curriculums" to train these students to take an 8 hour long monster of an exam like the USMLE.
But also disagree that schools do not influence how students do on these exams. Also disagree that the USMLE and COMLEX are just the same exam with more path. COMLEX and USMLE each require a different approach to answering questions and looking at illness. Often, a couple of weeks is not sufficient to prepare for both exams separately. This is why schools adapt their curriculum to reflect how the COMLEX or USMLE expects students to look at clinical vignettes. Many students start out thinking they can take both but end up canceling, sometimes even a couple weeks before, their USMLE date because they realize that they are not meeting their goal score and they simply do not have enough time to catch up.

I personally know several students at MD schools who never took the MCAT or did and got the equivalent of a 22 and they are not URM. They recruit from their undergrad class and allow students to be accepted without MCAT scores. MD and DO schools are much more similar than sdn would have you believe, especially most of the newer MD programs opening up without a university hospital or home programs. Community medicine is becoming the wave of the future and the line between MD and DO is getting fuzzier all the time. A lot of MDs are either interested in or have learned omm as well.

 

[Skynnyrd]

Comlex scores have been odd this year. Among my friends and I, there is now zero correlation between usmle and comlex.

That is ridiculous. Does anyone know what the national SD was? Also what did y'alls score report say the national average was? The score report for my level 2 exam stated a national average of 540 with a SD of 100, its just hard to believe that that the level 1 average is higher than the level 2 average.

 

[Rekt]

That is ridiculous. Does anyone know what the national SD was? Also what did y'alls score report say the national average was? The score report for my level 2 exam stated a national average of 540 with a SD of 100, its just hard to believe that that the level 1 average is higher than the level 2 average.

It doesn't say anything useful. It just says "Historically, average scores have ranged from 500 to 550", even though it's almost always been around the 520s for the past several years.

But my school recently did confirm a somewhat similar number, but did not offer much other information about it. So if you're a student that scored around 570s-580s, this may be the new average and may be important to keep in mind until official numbers come out next year.

 

[Eagles6389]

It doesn't say anything useful. It just says "Historically, average scores have ranged from 500 to 550", even though it's almost always been around the 520s for the past several years.

But my school recently did confirm a somewhat similar number, but did not offer much other information about it. So if you're a student that scored around 570s-580s, this may be the new average and may be important to keep in mind until official numbers come out next year.

Your school confirmed a national mean of about 570?

I can believe a 10-20 point increase in the national mean in one year, but it's tough to believe a 50 point increase in one year unless the NBOME intentionally made it this way

 

[kenjixshadow]

Your school confirmed a national mean of about 570?

I can believe a 10-20 point increase in the national mean in one year, but it's tough to believe a 50 point increase in one year unless the NBOME intentionally made it this way

Naw man, it could also be that class of 2019 are insanely smarter. I don't personally know anyone got lower than 550 (N=20+). To below classmen, if you guys are freaking out about the high average, then take the USMLE. It's a superior exam in every way.

 

[Eagles6389]

Naw man, it could also be that class of 2019 are insanely smarter. I don't personally know anyone got lower than 550 (N=20+). To below classmen, if you guys are freaking out about the high average, then take the USMLE. It's a superior exam in every way.

Yeah, that could also be the case. Took USMLE and definitely don't regret it. Wonder if NBOME will make some sort of announcement on the higher average or if PDs are just going to have to figure it out themselves when they suddenly have a lot more 550+ scores rolling in. Either way, the increased average just makes USMLE that much more valuable.

 

[Staphylococcus Aureus]

My school said the national mean was 563 currently, BUT those who have yet to take it here are the ones that didn't meet the Comsae cut off. I'm assuming all the students that take it late in the year (until January?) aren't getting high scores, which is would make the final mean not all that astonishing.

 

[Rekt]

My school said the national mean was 563 currently, BUT those who have yet to take it here are the ones that didn't meet the Comsae cut off. I'm assuming all the students that take it late in the year (until January?) aren't getting high scores, which is would make the final mean not all that astonishing.

I really doubt it could affect it that much. How many are still waiting to take it across the nation? 100? 200 at most? Thousands of students have already taken it. There's likely single digit numbers waiting to take it from my school.