Opinion on My Step 1 Study Plan

Dr. A · Oct 26, 2013

Hello all,

I'm a new member to these Forums. However I've been lurking around here for quite some time and I found these forums to be REALLY helpful

I'm an IMG and I'm planning to take my Step 1 this summer. I had trouble looking for the sources I need to prepare for the exam. However, the USMLE polls in this website helped massively!

I'm planning to study for 4-5 months in order to prepare for this beast. PLEASE let me know if my plan is good or not. Anything I need to add or remove? Should I spend more time on a specific subject? etc...

Your feedback is highly appreciated

So here's an outline of my plan:

First Read and take notes: (about 2 months)

HY Gross Anatomy
BRS Physiology
Kaplan Lecture notes Biochemistry
Lange Biochem/Genetics Flash Cards
Goljan Pathology Book in conjunction with Goljan audio lectures
Pathoma Audio
Kaplan Pharmacology flash cards
Clinical Microbiology Made Ridiculously Simple
Kaplan Lecture Notes - Behavioral Science
Conrad Fischer Ethics

Do USMLE - Rx subject wise after each subject!

Then Read: (about 1.5 months)

First Aid + 50% of U World

Do NBME 6

Goljan Rapid Review (second pass)

DIT + 50% of U world (Is DIT really necessary?)

NBME 11

Last month:

First Aid (second pass)

NBME 13

Review High Yield concepts (Blue text on the margins) in Goljan RR
U World (Second pass)

NMBE 12

First Aid in the last week (third pass)
NBME 15 ( 1 week out)
NBME 7 (2 days out)
------

What do you guys think? Should I change anything?

Waiting to hear your responses!! Suggestions are welcome

USMLE-Success-Academy · Oct 26, 2013

Hi there,

I'd suggest taking an NBME prior to starting in order to identify your weakest areas... you asked which areas you should focus on more - by doing an NBME you can answer that one for yourself.

Ideally you should also do all of UW before attempting your 2nd NBME, because if you only do 50% of UW, you are still missing a TON of information that can be learned from this QBank - so by doing an NBME at that point you are clearly not going to get a good idea of your true knowledge base and capabilities, you will fall short in certain areas. If you finish the QBank before starting your 2nd NBME, you will have a better idea of true weaknesses since you've been exposed to everything.

Just as a general observation as well, you seem to have a lot of different tools (ie. different books and/or tools for each subject). I would suggest choosing a couple of good sources or even your basic sciences textbooks in order to do the first portion you mentioned (read + notes) - for maximum detail on all subjects Kaplan is a good option.

Good luck.

Dr. Paul

Dr. A · Oct 27, 2013

USMLE-Success-Academy said:
Hi there,

I'd suggest taking an NBME prior to starting in order to identify your weakest areas... you asked which areas you should focus on more - by doing an NBME you can answer that one for yourself.

Ideally you should also do all of UW before attempting your 2nd NBME, because if you only do 50% of UW, you are still missing a TON of information that can be learned from this QBank - so by doing an NBME at that point you are clearly not going to get a good idea of your true knowledge base and capabilities, you will fall short in certain areas. If you finish the QBank before starting your 2nd NBME, you will have a better idea of true weaknesses since you've been exposed to everything.

Just as a general observation as well, you seem to have a lot of different tools (ie. different books and/or tools for each subject). I would suggest choosing a couple of good sources or even your basic sciences textbooks in order to do the first portion you mentioned (read + notes) - for maximum detail on all subjects Kaplan is a good option.

Good luck.

Dr. Paul

Thank you very much for your advice. I was thinking of taking an NBME early on, too.

What do you think of DIT? Do you think it's worth the time & money or do you think that FA alone is sufficient?

Opinion on My Step 1 Study Plan

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