[noone_123i]

Hi all,

I was wondering if it is okay to take like 5 to 10 mins before you begin your exam to write some stuff down on the marker board before you forget it? I always thought that it should be okay...but some of people have told me NOT to do that cause if i score well and ecfmg will watch the video and then will deduct points from score since I did that without starting my clock...is that true or bunch of BS?
They said it would be okay to write on the marker board if we start the clock and let the tutorial time get used up while we write on the marker board...is that what everyone does...or do you NOT start the clock and just take 5ish mins and write stuff down?:redcheeks;

 

[noone_123i]

Anyone have an answer? Please help me out...

 

[Sabio]

It's not cheating but it's not a good idea

It wouldn't be recognized as cheating, the marker board is for you and you can write anything you want to write on it.

However two important points:
Many Prometric centers do not allow you to delay starting your computer screen and therefore you don't have time to write on the marker board.
Also, you can't use the orientation block (15 minutes) to write on it because you have to keep clicking next and next and it will be a very difficult task for you.

The other point.
I seriously recommend you give up on this idea. Because the amount of knowledge required for the USMLE Step 1 is huge and there's nothing that you can possibly encompass in a single dry board or even two or a dozen of them.
This is not your quiz at school, this exam is about all of the basic sciences and there's no such very concentrated high yield concentration that can help you for the exam.
If you for example thought of writing down the list of autonomic drugs then what about lysosomal storage diseases, what about the different amino acids, what about the actions of all hormones, ...etc

I sincerely think that if you write on that board it will be confusing for you and it will put you at an extra stress which is the last thing you need for your exam.

An alternative which I think can help, is to make a list of forgettables before the exam and keep reviewing them during the week before your exam. For an example of such a list have a look here
http://www.usmle-forums.com/usmle-step-1-recommended-threads/1401-list-forgettables.html