Worried, need advice

[mercaptovizadeh]

OK, so I'm 2 weeks from the test and I need advice. I took NBME 5 (which I heard was ultraeasy) one week ago, before I had covered a number of subjects in FA which seemed pretty prominent (like neuro, musculoskeletal, micro, etc.). I got a 232 which seems OK but perhaps inflated. I'm nearly done with all the organ systems in FA for a first pass and my memory is pretty good since I've gone through it really slowly. I still need to cover FA neuro, micro, and biochem. Of other sources, I've read Micro Made Ridiculously simple, BRS Phys and Path, Levinson's Immuno, HY Cell/Molec and HY Gross Anatomy, but I'd still like to get a crack at RR Biochem, BRS behavioral, and HY Neuroanatomy.

I'm taking UW tests and still getting scores in the range of 65% on average. Not much improvement! Neuro and biochem still seem to be substantial weaknesses. I expect to finish up FA by Wednesday and will then have ~10 days left. What's the best way to use this time? I was thinking of going through FA again with quick skimming through relevant BRS Phys/Path chapters, and then leave some cramming for the few days before the test, i.e. FA/BRS Phys/Path Neuro + HY Neuroanatomy, FA Psych and stats + BRS behavioral, and FA biochem + RR biochem. Is this a wise plan, or should I drop going through the other books and just stick to FA until the end of the test? Also, given the 232 on the (easy) NBME 5 and 65% on UW, should I be worried about failing or getting significantly below the average. I was originally shooting for a 240+ but I'm thinking that may not happen.

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[78222]

Worrying isn't going to help. Just keep on working. I was stuck in tht range for a long time too and only recently have my scores gone up towards 70%. 2 weeks ago I took NBME IV and scored roughly 220 - yesterday I took UW SelfAssessment I (validity of score dubious) and scored 245.

 

[Blesbok]

I don't think you have anything to worry about. I jumped 110 points (20 points in USMLE scoring) on my NBME in about 2 weeks and that was going from an easier test to a harder one. It is amazing what you can learn in two weeks when you have already covered all the info before. Just stick to your schedule and work your *** off for the next two weeks and I bet you can get that 240+ that you were hoping for.

 

[blz]

here's my experience.

I took a NBME 1 about halfway through my studying, so I didn't cover a number of topics (pharm, path, some others) similar to your situation and I scored a 235 (on this supposedly "supereasy" NBME). I never did another NBME but once I actually finished studying and reviewing like mad my qbank an usmleworld scores shot up to avg around 75-80%. I also ended up doing 28 points better than I did on that "supereasy" NBME exam.

You are still in great shape to hit over 240. Definitely not in danger of failing. If I were you I would just focus on finishing studying and reviewing like crazy. I wouldn't even bother with another NBME exam since you are already in great shape to pass.

You guys are wasting too much effort getting caught up in all these weird score assessments.