Which Qbank to use for rotations? UW or kaplan

[NJMD]

I have about 6 months before I take my Step 2 CK. Obviously UW is the better qbank, however I wanted to know should I purchase Kaplan for 3 months and then do UW for 3 months or should I just purchase UW for the 6 months?


Please advise,

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[NJMD]

Come on, 35 view and no replies....Any input?????

 

[Man In White]

Don't waste your money with Kaplan for Step 2.

 

[Frugal Traveler]

I felt that UWorld was not the panacea for all shelf exams.

For instance:
If you are taking the medicine shelf, do MKSAP questions (not similar to the exam but a good experience)
If you are taking the OBGYN shelf, do the ACOG questions

Case-in-point: I used UWorld for the pediatrics shelf and my score was secondary to reading and NOT UWorld questions for the most part.

I think the best preparation for Step 2CK is studying hard during your MS3 rotations. UWorld gives you good prep for Step 2CK, but there are going to be questions on Step 2CK about certain subjects like peds, OBGYN, etc that are not covered in any qbank... they would have been covered if you studied.

I don't have experience with using the Kaplan Qbank for Step 2CK. I did use their question book, which was good in some parts during the MS3 year as supplemental questions. However, I think UWorld has the monopoly on the best qbank for Step 2CK for now... probably because the questions they create are similar to the NBME practice exams (and are subsequently phrased 5 different ways throughout the qbank for repetition).

 

[Doctor4Life1769]

how did u get access to ACOG Questions?

Honestly, this "study hard" thing is so vague. I've read and done UW Qs and I've kept reading and stuff ... I don't know what you guys consider "studying hard" if none of the material is going to help for the shelf.

 

[pohma]

I have about 6 months before I take my Step 2 CK. Obviously UW is the better qbank, however I wanted to know should I purchase Kaplan for 3 months and then do UW for 3 months or should I just purchase UW for the 6 months?


Please advise,

I am trying to decide the same thing. I have 6 months as well (clerkships, etc), with about 3 weeks of dedicated study time pre-Step 2 CK. Those 3 weeks I was going to pound through UW. In addition to a previous poster on this thread, a lot of people say Kaplan qbank isn't great for CK. I would prefer to have UW to focus on during those 3 weeks instead of repeating q's if I was to go through it now, but I don't know where this leaves me... does anyone have thoughts on USMLE Rx? or any positive reviews of Kaplan qbank?

 

[Man In White]

Don't worry about repeating questions - you won't remember a significant # of them. I got the 1-yr UW sub back in the beginning of 3rd year - did them all once. Then during 4th year did them all again. Worked well for me.

 

[docbill]

Don't worry about repeating questions - you won't remember a significant # of them. I got the 1-yr UW sub back in the beginning of 3rd year - did them all once. Then during 4th year did them all again. Worked well for me.

I am using them during my 3rd year. I strongly don't think I will be memorizing that the answer is "A". The whole point is to learn from doing the questions. I hope I remember something from them.

 

[docbill]

Don't worry about repeating questions - you won't remember a significant # of them. I got the 1-yr UW sub back in the beginning of 3rd year - did them all once. Then during 4th year did them all again. Worked well for me.

I am using them during my 3rd year. I strongly don't think I will be memorizing that the answer is "A". The whole point is to learn from doing the questions. I hope I remember something from them.

Oh but I will have to let you know how well this worked next year.

 

[pohma]

Don't worry about repeating questions - you won't remember a significant # of them. I got the 1-yr UW sub back in the beginning of 3rd year - did them all once. Then during 4th year did them all again. Worked well for me.

I am using them during my 3rd year. I strongly don't think I will be memorizing that the answer is "A". The whole point is to learn from doing the questions. I hope I remember something from them.

Oh but I will have to let you know how well this worked next year.

good points, thanks. thought about it and I think UW is the way to go. after all, it is arguably the best resource out there.

 

[kazuma]

I'd vote for UW. I had a subscription to kaplan and UW for step 1 and I thought kaplan questions were a joke compared to UW and they didn't have in depth explanations.

I can't say what kaplan is like for step 2 but I have been pleased with UW for step 2 preparation.