USMLE - Official 2017 Step 2 CK Experiences and Scores Thread

[Jesus1]

Since there's no thread for the 2017 Step 2 CK, I figured I'd go ahead and create one. Happy new year in Step 2 CK land.

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[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

Stress.
My brain just doesn't calm down. I was chill pretty much all the time while studying and 2 days before it just hit me: palpitations, anxiety, and insomnia.
Tried meds and... they did not help. On the contrary, made it worse. I didn't sleep + was buzzed from meds. Didn't want to risk it before the exam.

I think Step 1 wasn't as demanding as Step 2 CK, so it was easier to go through with it with no sleep.

The same happened before Step 1 and CS.

I know this sounds super cliche, but my parents always tell me to stop worrying. As med students we are all type A personalities. But I've come to realize that no matter what, nothing is as important as your own health and happiness. Don't jeopardize that worrying about things you can't control! You did your best and sometimes that's all we can do. Things always work themselves out in the end, no matter how bad they seem at the start! So hang in there, trust in yourself and go rock those interviews!

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

 

[Joanna1987]

I know this sounds super cliche, but my parents always tell me to stop worrying. As med students we are all type A personalities. But I've come to realize that no matter what, nothing is as important as your own health and happiness. Don't jeopardize that worrying about things you can't control! You did your best and sometimes that's all we can do. Things always work themselves out in the end, no matter how bad they seem at the start! So hang in there, trust in yourself and go rock those interviews!

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

You are so right. I think it's about time to deal with it and finally change the attitude and approach to life. We are all crazy and it's important to have priorities in check.

Thank you so much for your kind words. It means a lot and I'm very grateful

Goodluck to you!!! I'm sure you will be more than fine!

 

[SaSSyBruin]

Hi Everybody. I have a friend that has failed his step 2 CK exam 4 times. This last time he scored a 208 and a 209 is passing! He has graduated medical school and has been studying this test for years. Does anyone know how of any time a score appeal has been granted from Fail to Passing? Obviously, I can elaborate on how unfortunate this is, but I am more so seeking guided help if any is out there! His medical school that he graduated from most likely won't grant him another chance to re-take.

Any help is appreciated!

 

[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

You are so right. I think it's about time to deal with it and finally change the attitude and approach to life. We are all crazy and it's important to have priorities in check.

Thank you so much for your kind words. It means a lot and I'm very grateful

Goodluck to you!!! I'm sure you will be more than fine!

Hey no problem! I'm a worrier too so I have to remind myself that if we focus too much on our worries we miss out on life itself. We will all be okay!! Thank you, you will match into neuro, I have no doubt of that!

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[NeurologyHopeful2018]

Hi Everybody. I have a friend that has failed his step 2 CK exam 4 times. This last time he scored a 208 and a 209 is passing! He has graduated medical school and has been studying this test for years. Does anyone know how of any time a score appeal has been granted from Fail to Passing? Obviously, I can elaborate on how unfortunate this is, but I am more so seeking guided help if any is out there! His medical school that he graduated from most likely won't grant him another chance to re-take.

Any help is appreciated!

His only mistake was attempting the exam for the 4th time after 3 failures.

 

[Yan11]

Guys had a question. I'm a nonUS IMG applying for anesthesiology. Will it hurt if I apply on 20th instead of 15th of sept? Will I lose out on interviews? I still have to work a little on my application and want to send it when it is completely ready instead of rushing for 15th.. Thank you in advance

 

[Yan11]

Step 1: 253
UWSA1 (baseline- 3 weeks before) 253
UWSA2 (2 weeks before) 258
NBME 4 (1 week before) 280

Real CK: 255; Relieved because I walked out of that thing feeling so defeated. Counted over 15 super easy gimme questions that I am sure I would've gotten any other day. Remembered a crap ton of questions that I wasn't sure about. Towards the end of the test, I stopped marking because it was just too much.

What I regret: Using First Aid CK. I wasted way too much time on it.
What I wished I did: Stick with a super barebones text like MTB and annotate it with whatever I found on UW; really memorize the charts/flowcharts. Also wish I went over the USPTF guidelines more thoroughly. Step 2 Secrets was good for last minute review.

Looks like I'm set to apply diagnostic rads!

Congratulations

 

[Yan11]

That is excellent. Are you from a 3rd world country (China/India..etc) or 1st world (Canada/Europe..etc). Believe it or not it makes a big difference.

Hi.. just needed your thoughts on this. Even I graduated almost 6 years back, in 2011. And I did anesthesia residency in home country and completed in 2015. Will my chances reduce? And I'm from India.
Thank you

 

[ILoveFoodAlways]

Guys had a question. I'm a nonUS IMG applying for anesthesiology. Will it hurt if I apply on 20th instead of 15th of sept? Will I lose out on interviews? I still have to work a little on my application and want to send it when it is completely ready instead of rushing for 15th.. Thank you in advance

I've heard that for a lot of programs, program directors often wait to look at apps because our MSPE deans' letter isn't even allowed to be uploaded til 10/1. It probably will make some kind of difference but I can't imagine it being that much of a difference.

 

[sss2g2]

So for someone started CK prep...should we completely forego First Aid for Step 2 CK? Is it really that useless?

 

[Yan11]

I've heard that for a lot of programs, program directors often wait to look at apps because our MSPE deans' letter isn't even allowed to be uploaded til 10/1. It probably will make some kind of difference but I can't imagine it being that much of a difference.

Oh ok.. thank you. Even I was just thinking that 16th & 17th being weekend, may be they won't look into our applications till 18th. So wanted to make use of those two days. I'm not sure of the 18th thing, but just a thought.

 

[Yan11]

So for someone started CK prep...should we completely forego First Aid for Step 2 CK? Is it really that useless?

I feel it is less helpful. It gives you the material, but not in the way we need it. Like MTB gives you most of the exam related stuffs like how to choose initial test v/s best test. And the sample questions and answers in every page kind of gives you a fair idea of when is a particular option the correct answer.
I started doing first aid but gave up cuz I felt it didn't help me with UW questions. Felt MTB was better for this exam pattern.

 

[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

So for someone started CK prep...should we completely forego First Aid for Step 2 CK? Is it really that useless?

Do not use step 2 ck, it's effectively useless. Just do all of UW thoroughly and understand the concepts. I supplemented with step 2 secrets like 3 days before the exam but didn't feel it was super helpful. UW is where you need to focus. Maybe supplement with MTB. I studied for 3 weeks using basically exclusively UW and scored 248 on ck. Best of luck!

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[sss2g2]

[

Do not use step 2 ck, it's effectively useless. Just do all of UW thoroughly and understand the concepts. I supplemented with step 2 secrets like 3 days before the exam but didn't feel it was super helpful. UW is where you need to focus. Maybe supplement with MTB. I studied for 3 weeks using basically exclusively UW and scored 248 on ck. Best of luck!

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

QUOTE="Yan11, post: 19286196, member: 860979"]I feel it is less helpful. It gives you the material, but not in the way we need it. Like MTB gives you most of the exam related stuffs like how to choose initial test v/s best test. And the sample questions and answers in every page kind of gives you a fair idea of when is a particular option the correct answer.
I started doing first aid but gave up cuz I felt it didn't help me with UW questions. Felt MTB was better for this exam pattern.[/QUOTE]

Thank you so much guys. For MTB do we need both MTB 2 and 3??

 

[sss2g2]

Should I do Uworld subject wise or random if I'm about 2 months out?

 

[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

Should I do Uworld subject wise or random if I'm about 2 months out?

For me, I did UW by systems so I could better organize the information but I think it is all personal preference. It probably shouldn't matter which edition of MTB you use, but I always try to use the most recent version of any resource! When do you plan on taking CK?

 

[gok]

NBME 6 - 237 - 4 weeks out(all tests within 4 weeks of my exam)
NBME 7 - 233 - 3 weeks out
NBME 4 - 243 - 3 weeks out
UWSA1 - 267 - 7 days out
UWSA2 - 258 - 3 days out

Real Deal : 256, so UWSA2 was spot on for me.

 

[jpwsurf21]

Step I: 259
3rd year shelf scores - 82-92 raw, 87-100 percentile
Uworld (during clerkships): mid-70's
Uworld (during dedicated): 89%
Read SU2M for chapters I was weak in
UWSA: 273 and 266
CK: 267

Test impression: I actually came out feeling pretty good - felt like I didn't make many "dumb" mistakes but obviously there were a lot of head-scratchers that I just didn't dwell on. I thought the test was very similar to the UWSA's and my timing was pretty similar, having 10-15 minutes per block to go over my questions. Definitely felt less stressed than Step I and knew that as long as I scored similarly, it'd be fine.
Little bummed I missed on the elusive 260/270 marks since my practice tests for both Step 1 and Step 2 were in those ranges but that's just my ego speaking and so maybe that's a good thing in the end lol.

 

[Shams al Deen]

Is OME + UWorld enough for 260 range on CK? I've been using that formula (except on medicine, just did UW) on shelf exams so far and can't seem to get above an 82 on any of the 4 shelfs I've taken so far.

My step 1 was good so I know I have more ability, just can't seem to hack these shelf exams. I'm hoping I can make up for lower shelf scores by doing good on step 2, showing programs that I have good clinical knowledge and not just basic science.

I have a month long rotation coming up that is pass/fail so I'm dgaf mode for that shelf. So I want to use that month to get myself up to speed on Step 2. What's the best use of my time, just watch all those medicine OME vids? What's the UFAP for step 2?

 

[Usama17]

Step I: 259
3rd year shelf scores - 82-92 raw, 87-100 percentile
Uworld (during clerkships): mid-70's
Uworld (during dedicated): 89%
Read SU2M for chapters I was weak in
UWSA: 273 and 266
CK: 267

Test impression: I actually came out feeling pretty good - felt like I didn't make many "dumb" mistakes but obviously there were a lot of head-scratchers that I just didn't dwell on. I thought the test was very similar to the UWSA's and my timing was pretty similar, having 10-15 minutes per block to go over my questions. Definitely felt less stressed than Step I and knew that as long as I scored similarly, it'd be fine.
Little bummed I missed on the elusive 260/270 marks since my practice tests for both Step 1 and Step 2 were in those ranges but that's just my ego speaking and so maybe that's a good thing in the end lol.

Can you please share some tips on time management, clearly you were amazing at time management. Having 10-15 min at the end of each block is beyond impressive. I struggle with time management a lot, finishing World blocks right on time or sometimes guessing on the last two questions due to shortage of time.
Thanks in advance, and congrats!

 

[sss2g2]

For me, I did UW by systems so I could better organize the information but I think it is all personal preference. It probably shouldn't matter which edition of MTB you use, but I always try to use the most recent version of any resource! When do you plan on taking CK?

November sometime before thanksgiving

 

[azetronam]

Hii congrats to all those who completed the exam and scored well..
Just a request, does anyone have Uworld with subscription left, I have the exam in a month's time, already finished Uworld and my subscription is over..Just wanna do in random mode a few blocks and see my average score..thanks

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[baraa123]

NBME 6 - 237 - 4 weeks out(all tests within 4 weeks of my exam)
NBME 7 - 233 - 3 weeks out
NBME 4 - 243 - 3 weeks out
UWSA1 - 267 - 7 days out
UWSA2 - 258 - 3 days out

Real Deal : 256, so UWSA2 was spot on for me.

how did u prepare for the exam ?
& what your advises for learning & scoring higher ?

 

[jpwsurf21]

Can you please share some tips on time management, clearly you were amazing at time management. Having 10-15 min at the end of each block is beyond impressive. I struggle with time management a lot, finishing World blocks right on time or sometimes guessing on the last two questions due to shortage of time.
Thanks in advance, and congrats!

In general, I'm a fast test-taker (~1min/q) so my advice may not be that helpful but overall, I would say the most helpful things for me were if I couldn't figure out a question quickly, I'd just flag it and move on, and I kept a pretty low threshold for doing so, whereas in the past, I would stick on a question for several minutes before skipping it. It's much more important to get the easy q's right than dwell on the "20-40%" correct questions. Obviously this is not unique advice but it's important to remember that each question is weighted equally so its best to make sure you see all the questions instead of getting bogged down with the harder ones and then not having time to score those easy ones that may be stacked at the end. Best of luck!

 

[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

Can you please share some tips on time management, clearly you were amazing at time management. Having 10-15 min at the end of each block is beyond impressive. I struggle with time management a lot, finishing World blocks right on time or sometimes guessing on the last two questions due to shortage of time.
Thanks in advance, and congrats!

I think the dude is just smart....lmao

 

[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

In general, I'm a fast test-taker (~1min/q) so my advice may not be that helpful but overall, I would say the most helpful things for me were if I couldn't figure out a question quickly, I'd just flag it and move on, and I kept a pretty low threshold for doing so, whereas in the past, I would stick on a question for several minutes before skipping it. It's much more important to get the easy q's right than dwell on the "20-40%" correct questions. Obviously this is not unique advice but it's important to remember that each question is weighted equally so its best to make sure you see all the questions instead of getting bogged down with the harder ones and then not having time to score those easy ones that may be stacked at the end. Best of luck!

#beastmode right here

 

[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

Is OME + UWorld enough for 260 range on CK? I've been using that formula (except on medicine, just did UW) on shelf exams so far and can't seem to get above an 82 on any of the 4 shelfs I've taken so far.

My step 1 was good so I know I have more ability, just can't seem to hack these shelf exams. I'm hoping I can make up for lower shelf scores by doing good on step 2, showing programs that I have good clinical knowledge and not just basic science.

I have a month long rotation coming up that is pass/fail so I'm dgaf mode for that shelf. So I want to use that month to get myself up to speed on Step 2. What's the best use of my time, just watch all those medicine OME vids? What's the UFAP for step 2?

82's are pretty good scores on the shelfs, you must be gunning for something super competitive lol

 

[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

November sometime before thanksgiving

best of luck!! you must be applying next cycle?

 

[CT-trp90]

Is OME + UWorld enough for 260 range on CK? I've been using that formula (except on medicine, just did UW) on shelf exams so far and can't seem to get above an 82 on any of the 4 shelfs I've taken so far.

My step 1 was good so I know I have more ability, just can't seem to hack these shelf exams. I'm hoping I can make up for lower shelf scores by doing good on step 2, showing programs that I have good clinical knowledge and not just basic science.

I have a month long rotation coming up that is pass/fail so I'm dgaf mode for that shelf. So I want to use that month to get myself up to speed on Step 2. What's the best use of my time, just watch all those medicine OME vids? What's the UFAP for step 2?

Yes it is (except I would maybe add Step Up to Medicine for your Med rotation or to review topics youre a little hazy on). I am an MD/PhD so my first two shelves were in the 70s and then they jumped into the high 80s/90s. I only used Uworld and OME for my dedicated time but did spend 8-10 hours a day for 3.5 weeks with nothing else distracting me. I got a 264 and step 1 was only 234 so def possible I think a lot of my success was from my dedicated time. As you said, you know you can do well so there is not much more other than putting in the time and hard work.

 

[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

Yes it is (except I would maybe add Step Up to Medicine for your Med rotation or to review topics youre a little hazy on). I am an MD/PhD so my first two shelves were in the 70s and then they jumped into the high 80s/90s. I only used Uworld and OME for my dedicated time but did spend 8-10 hours a day for 3.5 weeks with nothing else distracting me. I got a 264 and step 1 was only 234 so def possible I think a lot of my success was from my dedicated time. As you said, you know you can do well so there is not much more other than putting in the time and hard work.

those are good scores! what're you applying?

 

[CT-trp90]

those are good scores! what're you applying?

gen surg. decided against the I6 pathway just because theres like a 2% chance that I like playing in the belly more than the chest

 

[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

gen surg. decided against the I6 pathway just because theres like a 2% chance that I like playing in the belly more than the chest

you're a better person than me haha, surgery was cool just not my cup of tea. Best of luck on interviews!

 

[rockyriver]

2 days ago, UWSA1: 249
Today, UWSA2: 209

I already did UWSA2 in May, thus I was remembering the answers. Apparently this did not help.

Exam in 5 days! I would appreciate any suggestion.

Thanks

 

[takeitdownanotch]

Hey guys! I guess this is just anxiety talking because I think I get my CK score tomorrow. Anyway, I got 236 in my Step 1 and I was happy because I want IM. When I studied for CK my NBME 4 was 243, UWSA1 252 and UWSA 243. However, I left the test center feeling like ABSOLUTE ****, and even thinking I might have failed. Felt like I was guessing every other question. People with a similar experience... is there a chance that I could have actually failed? I need perhaps a more objective opinion than my own since I'm paranoid lol. Any feedback would be cool, thank you.

Pd: to all of you going through post-Harvey, post-Irma, or Maria, my sincerest hugs.

 

[sss2g2]

best of luck!! you must be applying next cycle?

Yeah will just end up taking a research year.

 

[GrandBuckeyeOH91]

Hey guys! I guess this is just anxiety talking because I think I get my CK score tomorrow. Anyway, I got 236 in my Step 1 and I was happy because I want IM. When I studied for CK my NBME 4 was 243, UWSA1 252 and UWSA 243. However, I left the test center feeling like ABSOLUTE ****, and even thinking I might have failed. Felt like I was guessing every other question. People with a similar experience... is there a chance that I could have actually failed? I need perhaps a more objective opinion than my own since I'm paranoid lol. Any feedback would be cool, thank you.

Pd: to all of you going through post-Harvey, post-Irma, or Maria, my sincerest hugs.

I felt like absolute crap leaving CK also. Didn't do any UWSA but did NBME 4 and got a 251 on that one. Got a 248 on the real thing, for whatever that's worth. You'll be fine!

 

[traumaqueen18]

Scores came out today! This forum was super helpful for me, so I thought I'd post my experience for others.
Studying: I took 4 weeks of dedicated, about 2 months after the end of my clerkships. Definitely did not study every day. I did DIT and UWorld, no books or annotating - just made some post-it notes of subjects I kept missing repeatedly and I rapid reviewed them the day before the exam.

UWorld: 1 pass through third year, reset and did 2nd pass during dedicated. Had 22% left that I did not get to. I did random tutor for all blocks. Overall on 2nd pass: 79%/85th p. Got to about half of my incorrects, but had 190 left of those.
NBME 6: 265; 9 days out (cheated a little, looked up 2-3 questions)
UWSA 1: 255; 7 days out
NBME 4: 260; 4 days out
UWSA 2: 248; 3 days out
Step 1: 236
Step 2CK: 259

Looks like UWSA 1 and NBME 4 were best predictors for me. I think UWorld is gold, no books needed. Good luck everyone!

 

[Dr27th]

Scores came out today! This forum was super helpful for me, so I thought I'd post my experience for others.
Studying: I took 4 weeks of dedicated, about 2 months after the end of my clerkships. Definitely did not study every day. I did DIT and UWorld, no books or annotating - just made some post-it notes of subjects I kept missing repeatedly and I rapid reviewed them the day before the exam.

UWorld: 1 pass through third year, reset and did 2nd pass during dedicated. Had 22% left that I did not get to. I did random tutor for all blocks. Overall on 2nd pass: 79%/85th p. Got to about half of my incorrects, but had 190 left of those.
NBME 6: 265; 9 days out (cheated a little, looked up 2-3 questions)
UWSA 1: 255; 7 days out
NBME 4: 260; 4 days out
UWSA 2: 248; 3 days out
Step 1: 236
Step 2CK: 259

Looks like UWSA 1 and NBME 4 were best predictors for me. I think UWorld is gold, no books needed. Good luck everyone!

Congratulations!! Must be nice to score higher than your uwsa. How was the exam for you? Easier than uwsa? How many did you feel you got wrong?

 

[traumaqueen18]

Congratulations!! Must be nice to score higher than your uwsa. How was the exam for you? Easier than uwsa? How many did you feel you got wrong?

Scores came out today! This forum was super helpful for me, so I thought I'd post my experience for others.
Studying: I took 4 weeks of dedicated, about 2 months after the end of my clerkships. Definitely did not study every day. I did DIT and UWorld, no books or annotating - just made some post-it notes of subjects I kept missing repeatedly and I rapid reviewed them the day before the exam.

UWorld: 1 pass through third year, reset and did 2nd pass during dedicated. Had 22% left that I did not get to. I did random tutor for all blocks. Overall on 2nd pass: 79%/85th p. Got to about half of my incorrects, but had 190 left of those.
NBME 6: 265; 9 days out (cheated a little, looked up 2-3 questions)
UWSA 1: 255; 7 days out
NBME 4: 260; 4 days out
UWSA 2: 248; 3 days out
Step 1: 236
Step 2CK: 259

Looks like UWSA 1 and NBME 4 were best predictors for me. I think UWorld is gold, no books needed. Good luck everyone!

Honestly, I walked out feeling a little annoyed. I felt I had prepared pretty well, and there were a handful of questions each block that were just some random aspect of a topic I knew very well, just had never been asked that ridiculously minute detail? But what can you do I did feel, in that sense, the level of difficulty and "randomness" was very close to UWSA 2.
As far as how many wrong - I usually flag any questions I am not 95-100% sure on, and was flagging about 10-15 per 40Q block? That percentage is about equal to what I was flagging on my shelf exams all year. Had about 10 minutes at the end of each block to go back through my flagged ones.

 

[Dreman0810]

I looked at this forum before my exam and thought it was helpful so here is my scores and experience
- US. IMG (Caribbean)
- Step 1: 245

I took my surgery shelf on August 18th and Step 2 CK on August 29th. So I didn't have a whole lotta time of dedicated. I knew this would be my schedule at the end of 3rd year since the beginning of clinicals so I was basically planning for these 2 exams in close succession of one another.

- UWorld: 1st Pass: 78%
- UWorld: 2nd Pass: 91%

- NBME 4 (16 days out) - 265
- NBME 6 (9 days out) - 265
- NBME 7 (9 days out) - 256
- UWSA 1 (5 days out) - 271
- UWSA 2 (5 days out) - 267

- Step 2 CK: 271

It felt just like UWSA 1 and 2

Yes, what everyone has been saying I can agree with. It was certainly a very hard exam, and harder than how I felt Step 1 was like. It came down to choosing the most correct answer even though all the answer choices seemed incorrect. It was wild.

Def recommend doing two back to back practice exams in a day at least once to increase stamina.

I believe that the reason I did well, is because I studied throughout the year. I knew the end of 3rd year would be tough, so I made sure I was studying in general for Step 2 CK throughout my rotations. I was always mixing in IM questions with OBGYN, Peds, etc while on the respective rotations.

I did honor all the shelf exams. My 4 go to resources and my only 4 resources all year were.
1. UWorld
2. NBMEs (all of them)
3. Online Med Ed - Read the notes and then watched the videos during the rotation.
4. Holliday Packets

Bottom line advice: Keep IM fresh all year long. Ohhh and even when u think you are reading every single line of the UWorld explanations...you probably aren't doing as good a job as you can. I can't tell you how many times I was reviewing the NBME's and told myself "how could I know this, this is nowhere in UWorld or other resources" and then in the next UWorld block or block after that I did, lord and behold, there it is, the exact answer from the NBME nearly word for word in the UWorld explanation.

Lmk if you got any specific questions!

 

[Dr27th]

Honestly, I walked out feeling a little annoyed. I felt I had prepared pretty well, and there were a handful of questions each block that were just some random aspect of a topic I knew very well, just had never been asked that ridiculously minute detail? But what can you do I did feel, in that sense, the level of difficulty and "randomness" was very close to UWSA 2.
As far as how many wrong - I usually flag any questions I am not 95-100% sure on, and was flagging about 10-15 per 40Q block? That percentage is about equal to what I was flagging on my shelf exams all year. Had about 10 minutes at the end of each block to go back through my flagged ones.

Thanks for replying. Lol @ annoyed. Congratulations again.

 

[iamironman]

I looked at this forum before my exam and thought it was helpful so here is my scores and experience
- US. IMG (Caribbean)
- Step 1: 245

I took my surgery shelf on August 18th and Step 2 CK on August 29th. So I didn't have a whole lotta time of dedicated. I knew this would be my schedule at the end of 3rd year since the beginning of clinicals so I was basically planning for these 2 exams in close succession of one another.

- UWorld: 1st Pass: 78%
- UWorld: 2nd Pass: 91%

- NBME 4 (16 days out) - 265
- NBME 6 (9 days out) - 265
- NBME 7 (9 days out) - 256
- UWSA 1 (5 days out) - 271
- UWSA 2 (5 days out) - 267

- Step 2 CK: 271

It felt just like UWSA 1 and 2

Yes, what everyone has been saying I can agree with. It was certainly a very hard exam, and harder than how I felt Step 1 was like. It came down to choosing the most correct answer even though all the answer choices seemed incorrect. It was wild.

Def recommend doing two back to back practice exams in a day at least once to increase stamina.

I believe that the reason I did well, is because I studied throughout the year. I knew the end of 3rd year would be tough, so I made sure I was studying in general for Step 2 CK throughout my rotations. I was always mixing in IM questions with OBGYN, Peds, etc while on the respective rotations.

I did honor all the shelf exams. My 4 go to resources and my only 4 resources all year were.
1. UWorld
2. NBMEs (all of them)
3. Online Med Ed - Read the notes and then watched the videos during the rotation.
4. Holliday Packets

Bottom line advice: Keep IM fresh all year long. Ohhh and even when u think you are reading every single line of the UWorld explanations...you probably aren't doing as good a job as you can. I can't tell you how many times I was reviewing the NBME's and told myself "how could I know this, this is nowhere in UWorld or other resources" and then in the next UWorld block or block after that I did, lord and behold, there it is, the exact answer from the NBME nearly word for word in the UWorld explanation.

Lmk if you got any specific questions!

congratulations!! I think you already meant from your post that UW is the most imp. resource for this exam.
What part of the real deal you think makes it more difficult than any self-assessment??
the questions? answer choices? How you kept yourself calm?
what you studied for shelves??

 

[baraa123]

I looked at this forum before my exam and thought it was helpful so here is my scores and experience
- US. IMG (Caribbean)
- Step 1: 245

I took my surgery shelf on August 18th and Step 2 CK on August 29th. So I didn't have a whole lotta time of dedicated. I knew this would be my schedule at the end of 3rd year since the beginning of clinicals so I was basically planning for these 2 exams in close succession of one another.

- UWorld: 1st Pass: 78%
- UWorld: 2nd Pass: 91%

- NBME 4 (16 days out) - 265
- NBME 6 (9 days out) - 265
- NBME 7 (9 days out) - 256
- UWSA 1 (5 days out) - 271
- UWSA 2 (5 days out) - 267

- Step 2 CK: 271

It felt just like UWSA 1 and 2

Yes, what everyone has been saying I can agree with. It was certainly a very hard exam, and harder than how I felt Step 1 was like. It came down to choosing the most correct answer even though all the answer choices seemed incorrect. It was wild.

Def recommend doing two back to back practice exams in a day at least once to increase stamina.

I believe that the reason I did well, is because I studied throughout the year. I knew the end of 3rd year would be tough, so I made sure I was studying in general for Step 2 CK throughout my rotations. I was always mixing in IM questions with OBGYN, Peds, etc while on the respective rotations.

I did honor all the shelf exams. My 4 go to resources and my only 4 resources all year were.
1. UWorld
2. NBMEs (all of them)
3. Online Med Ed - Read the notes and then watched the videos during the rotation.
4. Holliday Packets

Bottom line advice: Keep IM fresh all year long. Ohhh and even when u think you are reading every single line of the UWorld explanations...you probably aren't doing as good a job as you can. I can't tell you how many times I was reviewing the NBME's and told myself "how could I know this, this is nowhere in UWorld or other resources" and then in the next UWorld block or block after that I did, lord and behold, there it is, the exact answer from the NBME nearly word for word in the UWorld explanation.

Lmk if you got any specific questions!

awesome score , congrats doctor

 

[Dreman0810]

congratulations!! I think you already meant from your post that UW is the most imp. resource for this exam.
What part of the real deal you think makes it more difficult than any self-assessment??
the questions? answer choices? How you kept yourself calm?
what you studied for shelves??

Thank you.
1. And yes, UWorld is the most important resource by far.

2. I thought the exam was just like the UWSA 1 and 2 that I had taken 5 days before the actual exam in terms of ambiguity and level of difficulty. Honestly I recognized the content for nearly 100% of the exam, but when it comes to finding the correct answer, it isn't always there which also made me walk about feeling a bit annoyed. This makes you have to tease out what is the most correct and the least incorrect answer choice. This was frustrating and is difficult to do while under time constraints, so having a strong fund of knowledge allows you do it more quickly and efficiently. I can't talk about specifics but I feel the self assessments hit on that. In the simplest way, the exam requires a lot of common sense in addition to teasing out info. Did I answer your question? haha

3. How do I keep calm? I keep it. No but seriously, I have never been the nervous or stressed out type when it comes to exams. Even in exams that I knew were very difficult. I did not walk out feeling great but I did not think it was absolute worst thing in the world. I know I went in there and did the best I could and worrying or stressing about the exam result would not change the result nor help my mood. Also, doing 2 full practice exam days to when I wake up, to when I took my breaks I feel helped, because it just felt like another practice day...but it was the real thing.

4. Yes, what I studied for the shelf exams carried over to helping me for the exam. There were 2 questions where I was "wow, I have not seen this topic in several months, good thing I read about it back then". And no, I did not go back to and review peds or obgyn online med ed. I just did it once.

5. Quick point on UWorld explanations. I have friends who would do a 40Q block in UWorld and review it in 2 hours. They are cheating themselves, especially if you are just reading the educational objective and or just reading the explanations for the wrong ones.

 

[col.hanslanda]

Step 1- 245 (Comlex 641 LOL)

Uworld first pass tutor mode by section 75%
I made anki cards for uworld over a period of 6 months.
Dedicated 3.5 weeks of lazy studying where I finished uworld and re-did my anki deck 2x. I started reading Usmle 2 secrets but ran out of time.

Actual Test: I felt like I was running out of time on every single block. With 10 minutes left I would often have 5-8 questions left. I only finished 3 blocks without feeling rushed. Straight up had to guess for 2 questions at the end of 2 blocks due to timing. I was really surprised as timing is not normally an issue for me. I finished UWSA early and all my other blocks as well. The week before I should have just been slamming questions all day instead of reviewing anki.

I honestly think I could have hit the 260 mark if I had really powered through the last 10 days and not had so many timing errors. UWORLD IS ALL YOU NEED. Overall, I beat my Step 1 and I want to do General Surgery So I'm Happy.

UWSA1-253
REAL Step 2 CK-248

 

[JJArms22]

Feeling pretty crummy right now. Studying for this test has killed my confidence. I did great on step 1, but can't seem to do well on CK. UWSA2 (2 wks out-262), NBME 7 (1 wk out-235), UWSA1 (253). My goal was 260. Doesn't seem like I'm going to get there. I don't even know where I stand. UWSA2 definitely feels like luck now. I'm 5 days out and feel like postponing, but the closest date is October 4th. So stressed with this test.

 

[Brorthopedic]

Anyone starting Uworld scoring low? 3 months into M3 and ~200 questions in and averaging low 60s. I feel like I'm doing something wrong lol, averaged much higher on step 1 Uworld.

 

[iamironman]

Thank you.
1. And yes, UWorld is the most important resource by far.

2. I thought the exam was just like the UWSA 1 and 2 that I had taken 5 days before the actual exam in terms of ambiguity and level of difficulty. Honestly I recognized the content for nearly 100% of the exam, but when it comes to finding the correct answer, it isn't always there which also made me walk about feeling a bit annoyed. This makes you have to tease out what is the most correct and the least incorrect answer choice. This was frustrating and is difficult to do while under time constraints, so having a strong fund of knowledge allows you do it more quickly and efficiently. I can't talk about specifics but I feel the self assessments hit on that. In the simplest way, the exam requires a lot of common sense in addition to teasing out info. Did I answer your question? haha

3. How do I keep calm? I keep it. No but seriously, I have never been the nervous or stressed out type when it comes to exams. Even in exams that I knew were very difficult. I did not walk out feeling great but I did not think it was absolute worst thing in the world. I know I went in there and did the best I could and worrying or stressing about the exam result would not change the result nor help my mood. Also, doing 2 full practice exam days to when I wake up, to when I took my breaks I feel helped, because it just felt like another practice day...but it was the real thing.

4. Yes, what I studied for the shelf exams carried over to helping me for the exam. There were 2 questions where I was "wow, I have not seen this topic in several months, good thing I read about it back then". And no, I did not go back to and review peds or obgyn online med ed. I just did it once.

5. Quick point on UWorld explanations. I have friends who would do a 40Q block in UWorld and review it in 2 hours. They are cheating themselves, especially if you are just reading the educational objective and or just reading the explanations for the wrong ones.

thank you for the perfect explanations! what resources you used for shelves?

 

[Dreman0810]

thank you for the perfect explanations! what resources you used for shelves?

I believe I touched on it on my original post. I used those 4 resources for all the shelf exams which carried my studying through 3rd year.
1. UWorld
2. NBME's (All of them)
3. Online Med Ed
4. Emma Holliday Packets (Google them)

 

[baraa123]

The University of Texas Health Science Center - School of Medicine

here is emma holiday lectures for those who looks for it