STEP 3 Score VS USMLE WORLD AVERAGE

[FirstMANdown]

There is a great thread for Step 2ck VS UW%. I though it might be helpful if anyone out there can give us there input with there Step 3 VS UW%...etc as well. Anyways Thanks for the contribution.

I'm do to take Step 3 in the next month. Will update this thread as well. For better or for worse.

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[123tcp]

Does anyone know the correlation with the free usmle practice test

 

[Creed_Bratton]

For anyone who is interested, I put the past ~2 years' worth of data from this thread into a spreadsheet and calculated equations to predict Step 3 scores (obviously excluding the CCS section) from UW, UWSA 1 & 2, and FRED. The equations are as follows (where x is the % correct for UWorld & FRED and predicted Step 3 score for UWSAs). The graphs are fit nicely with what one would expect with decent R^2 values (around 0.70-0.75) suggesting around 70-75% of one's score can be predicted by these results.

UWorld QBank
y = 7E-05x^3 - 0.037x^2 + 5.6889x
R² = 0.7407

FRED*
y = 0.0004x^3 - 0.0655x^2 + 5.9323x
R² = 0.9933
* Very small n, which inflates this R^2 value; however, the data points do seem to line up well and are consistent with one another, so I would consider this equation reasonable

UWSA 1
y = 3E-05x^3 - 0.016x^2 + 2.9917x
R² = 0.7111

UWSA 2
y = 5E-06x^3 - 0.0026x^2 + 1.3689x
R² = 0.7452



View attachment 298057

Does anyone know the correlation with the free usmle practice test

 

[azdoc7321]

I passed on my 2nd attempt. Went from 190s to 220s in 7wks.

What I did different from the first to 2nd attempt:
-UWorld STEP3 qbank (for the 2nd time)
-completed all step 2 qbank IM questions only
-ALL shelf exams
-ALL step 2 CK practice tests (NBME)
-hired a phenomenal tutor to help me with test taking skills and review concepts (very expensive but truly one of the best decisions)
-reviewed All of the CCS cases in UWorld twice and had a general template prepared for ex chest pain, abdominal pain...etc

Please PM with any questions. I’m not the best at test taking but I’m great clinically... going to be chief of my program next year so you can imagine how embarrassing it was to not pass the first time. I realized my basic sciences knowledge was weak so that’s why I reviewed step 2 material. Also, it seemed like Day 1 was a mix of step1/2 and I felt the most uneasy that day.

To the under dogs that suck on test taking.... if you do enough NBME like questions you’ll learn the language of the test!!! Best wishes.

Farewell USMLE!

Step 2 NBMEs: 200s
Step 3 NBME: form 5-330 (4weeks prior to exam)
UWorld step 2 IM questions: 68%
UWorld step 3 qbank: 71% (2nd pass)
Shelf exams: ranged from 16-22

 

[whatyoutalkingfor]

Hi everyone, I can't believe I get to write this. I hope it will help someone else.
Not my first time. I was close before but no dice.

Step 1 : 22X
Step 2 Ck: 23X
Step 3: 21X

UWORLD Qbank: 71%- (not first rodeo- so might not be as accurate)
NBME 5: 400 (4 weeks out)
NBME 4: 430 (1 week out)
UWSA 2: 241 (4 weeks out)
UWSA 1: 229 (10 days prior)

I think best predictor was NBME for me- didn't do them before. I had to go back to basics and redo all of uworld Step 2 CK- did all 3300 questions- averaged poorly- like 52%- but this was 2 months prior to exam- started uworld step 3 qbank- 5 weeks out and did all questions- all my blocks were 65%+- 90% of the time.

this time I did ccscases.com the 100 cases. are good practice- did them once 1 month out then did randomly throughout- you will fee good to know what procedures are needed for diagnosis and the pharma needed-

I started the interactive mainly cases on uworld 1 month out- I honestly didn't do the cases. i just read the tables for each case. I did maybe 5- 10 cases then read the tables multiple times.

Day 1 felt good for me. I was able to nail down the stats-which there were maybe 8-10 per block- not exaggerating. You have to know your stats really well where you can do calculations not just correct but very quick. I watched the biostats videos from YouTube, biostats from MTB Step3, biostats from uworld step 2 ck and uworld step 3
- Day before exam- I did ALL of uworld step 2 cK biostats and uworld step 3 qbank biostats questions- again
I also did all of ethics from step 2 ck and uworld step 3 day before exam- was scoring 90% on all
Step 1 material is easy pharma mechanism questions
I read first aid step 1- 2020 edition all of microbiology and pharma sections day before Day1- you wouldn't think that's high yield, but believe it, there will be maybe 5-10 questions on day 1 from just those 2 sections.
My opinion is you need enough cushion from day 1 to soften the blow in Day 2 cases
Some blocks on day 1 I felt I knew 25-30 out 0f 38/39- some were more random and difficult where I knew i probably wouldn't get more than 20-25 correct.

Day 2- 3 days after- was similar to uworld for me- either you know it or don't for easy management questions or b/w 2 options
not very random questions like day 1, but still I believe easier than day 1

Cases- most I would say diagnosis were straightforward. but not all- 3 of my cases- I had to do some extra diagnostics that were invasive to come up with the dx. I couldn't properly come up with diagnosis for 3 cases- just ran out of time and tricks.

overall felt good about day 2 as well.

if anyone is struggling, contact me, I will do my best to help you. I hated how I felt, how unconfident after first attempt. I would like to help others. thank you and peace out usmle

 

[PersistentDoc21]

So I found out today I failed step 3, Pretty devastated and cried all day. I have no clue how it went so wrong. Got a 187 and the new score report doesn't even tell you how or why you failed something, it doesn't tell you what sections you failed or how you did on CCS. I need advice, I dont even know how to register again. I just need help really. Got a 214 on UWSA 2 and a 198 on UWSA1 so really just at a loss

 

[ArchEnemy]

Resources: uWorld only (QBank + CCS + Biostats)

Total study time: 3 weeks (completed ~18 blocks of 40 questions in untimed, tutor mode)
Completed ~ 40 cases of CCS interactive cases
Reviewed Biostats section

UWSA1 (4 days before exam): 183
UWSA2 (2 day before exam): 191

Actual: 215

I am sharing my experience as I was freaking out a tad when I saw my UWSA1 and UWSA2 scores just 4 days before my actual exam. I came on here and /r/step3 and was a bit relieved to find out the UWSA tended to under-predict. Nonetheless, it did not feel good to fall within the lower echelons of scores, so I am hoping that my post will help anyone who might find themselves in a similar position.

So glad to be done this final exam. Good luck to all future candidates! Don't be discouraged by a lower UWSA score!

 

[The Helpful Aye Aye]

Study period: 2 weeks in February (got resceduled because of COVID), 1 week in April (got rescheduled again last minute), then 2 weeks in October. UWorld + CCS + Biostats plus the free NBME interactive cases.

UWorld first pass average: 69% (nice)

UWSA 1 (2 weeks out): 181
UWSA 2 (1 week out): 224

Actual: 211

Full disclosure, I only took 1 break/day because I had a "the NBME is a profit driven organization and nobody is held accountable for the content of these exam questions" moment after my second block. COVID really dominated the end of my intern year, leading to rescheduling and extra costs to extend my UWorld subscription. I really don't understand why an exam with 97% pass rate for AMGs is a priority in the middle of a pandemic, but here we are. I wanted to get out as quickly as possible and I have no regrets. PGY-2 IM, wouldn't recommend this strategy if you're not a medicine person.

 

[CGB1078]

Resources: uWorld only (QBank + CCS + Biostats)

Total study time: 3 weeks (completed ~18 blocks of 40 questions in untimed, tutor mode)
Completed ~ 40 cases of CCS interactive cases
Reviewed Biostats section

UWSA1 (4 days before exam): 183
UWSA2 (2 day before exam): 191

Actual: 215

I am sharing my experience as I was freaking out a tad when I saw my UWSA1 and UWSA2 scores just 4 days before my actual exam. I came on here and /r/step3 and was a bit relieved to find out the UWSA tended to under-predict. Nonetheless, it did not feel good to fall within the lower echelons of scores, so I am hoping that my post will help anyone who might find themselves in a similar position.

So glad to be done this final exam. Good luck to all future candidates! Don't be discouraged by a lower UWSA score!

a big congrats! got similar UWSA scores to yours. But felt absolutely terrible leaving the exam. Studied for about two months dedicated. I think I'll be getting my scores next week. how did you feel walking out the exam?

 

[ArchEnemy]

a big congrats! got similar UWSA scores to yours. But felt absolutely terrible leaving the exam. Studied for about two months dedicated. I think I'll be getting my scores next week. how did you feel walking out the exam?

Thank you. I was only aiming for a pass in this examination, so my hopes weren't high to begin with so YMMV.

For Day 1, I felt it was fairly reasonable, besides the few of the Drug Ad questions which were too long. Questions were comparable to uWorld QBank. The biostats questions were much easier than QBank.

Day 2 was rough. The first 6 blocks were ridiculous and I found myself guessing between two options very often. I bombed the first CCS station as I was too slow (and the system was very slow too), but was fortunate that 10/13 CCS cases ended prematurely.

 

[stemingen]

Just took Step 3 back to back (yesterday and today). Here is my experience, hope it helps for folks ready to take step 3 soon.

Preparation:
- UWorld only, did QBank once (completed in about 4 weeks with 62% correct), made notes (reviewed once 2 days before day 1 exam); did sim form1 2 weeks prior to test day, score 219; didn't do sim form 2;
- Completed ~30 CCS interactive cases and scanned quickly the rest in my final week of preparation
- Biostatistic: completed ~ 1/3 of the biostatistic review, reviewed Step1 biostatistic, and watched Youtube Biostatistic Review by Dr. Neil

Day 1 experience:
Lots of biostatistic Qs, almost at least one drug ad question per block, and good number of ethics questions (which are comparable or more difficult than UW); I feel the Step1 biostatistic and Biostatistic Review by Dr. Neil are sufficient enough to answer at least 80% of biostatistic Qs. There are some Qs with some type of bias or statistic method I just have never heard of.
There are good number of step 1 type questions, such as pathology of genetic diseases (mutation vs deletion vs triplication ,etc ), downstream signaling pathway of certain receptors, also embryology questions (to identify which embryo structure is responsible for certain birth defect). Definitely know your EKG, CXR, head CT, Abd x-ray. There are also good number of rheum Qs.

Day 2 experience:
Compared to the Qs on day 1, the 6 blocks of MCQs on day 2 are way more similar/comparable to UW Qbank. Almost all clinical oriented, such as underlying pathology, what's the next step, and risk factor questions. There is ZERO biostatistic Qs and ZERO drug Ad Qs, still several ethics Qs.

CCS: very similar to UW CCS interactive Qs. Most cases are straightforward, there were 3 cases I could not figure out, lol. I wrote down a few key words/ things to counsel/order as I went through H&P, which helped a bit when I was rushing for all my final orders during the last 2 minutes. For inpatient: remember to order bedrest or ambulation, NPO or diet, head elevation if SOB, compressing stocking or heparin subq, PT/INR if any invasive procedure. Always consider vaccines, counseling for ETOH/ smoking/drug use, med side effect, seatbelt, exercise, etc.

 

[BeaHero]

Took Step 3 back to back in October, this is what I did:

My exam was delayed due to COVID so I took it during PGY-2. I'm in a ROAD specialty, but I did do a IM prelim year which was helpful. I took 4 weeks to study, the first three weeks I did ~40 questions after work and anki flashcards. I took a week off before my exam and pushed though 120-150 questions a day.

Resources: UWorld Q Bank + CCS interactive cases + Biostats Module. Zanki Step II Anki deck. OnlineMedEd for stats, and review of topics I haven't seen since med school (OBGYN, Peds). Multiple YouTube videos as described below.

UW: finished ~95% of the qbank with a 62% first pass average + the 25 dollar biostats modules. I didn't take any of the UWSA or NBME practice exams. A couple days before the exam, I re-did most of the biostat Q's.

Did the UW interactive CCS cases twice, starting a week before the exam. I did watch this youtube vid from Archer: .
He really gives a good algorithm on how to approach cases.

I watched the OnlineMedEd biostats videos, and these two YouTube vids to review stats (Dr. Neil): .
I made a notecard with basic stats equations that I memorized and wrote down on the laminated sheet they give you before the actual exam.

I used anki extensively over the 4 weeks I studied, specifically the Zanki step 2 deck. I probably did 2-300 cards a day over the 4 weeks, mostly focused on IM.

Day 1: Know your stats! I think I had 5-10 per block. I felt pretty confident about my answers, those Dr. Neil youtube vids were very helpful. Some step 1 biochem Q's..

Day 2: Have an an idea of basic labs to get for each CCS case. For example, don't forget PT/INR, crossmatch, IV access, NPO orders pre surgery. Always consult the correct surgeon before you order a procedure! I think 11 of my 13 cases ended early.

Step 1: 240's
Step 2: 240's
Step 3: 230's

 

[Creed_Bratton]

passed.
used UW step 3 + UW biostats review + briefly reviewed some old notes from step 2 + CCScases.com + UW interactive cases + kinda skimmed through UW practice cases
UW 78% avg
Fred: somewhere around 83-85% give or take, don't remember exactly
UWSA1 237
UWSA 2 255 (also give or take, don't remember exactly)
NBME 5/4 650/high 700s, don't remember exactly
Didn't sleep a wink both nights prior, idk why I guess anxiety
Day 1: as mentioned before, some stats, some ethics, some step 1 material. nothing crazy besides some really odd ethics scenarios, A lot of qns can be reasoned through
Day 2: felt much worse. I know I made a lot of errors b/c many qns came down to straight up knowing or not knowing some factoid.
Cases sucked. 11/13 ended early. had no clue what the hell was going on in one. Another one - diagnosed right, but treated completely wrong. Another one - forgot to add one of the required med for treatment. Another one - used the wrong imaging modality for cancer staging.
Felt like garbage walking out. For the next few days kept looking up the questions I missed.
real deal - mid 260s.
Feels good to be done with usmle.
Good luck to everyone taking it, stay chill, stay hydrated, get good sleep and you'll get through it.

 

[nebuchadnezzarII]

What minimum score should I be aiming for on UWSA-2 in order to take the test? Scheduled for next week. UWSA-1 (4 weeks ago, 199). UW average 62%.

 

[SNAMJ]

What minimum score should I be aiming for on UWSA-2 in order to take the test? Scheduled for next week. UWSA-1 (4 weeks ago, 199). UW average 62%.

210-215

 

[nebuchadnezzarII]

210-215

Thanks! I just got 225 on UWSA-2 today so I'm feeling much better. Gonna go ahead with it.

 

[philthebill2902]

These correlations are worthless in my eyes. The question is whether you have grasped the content of the question. If you guess like 40% but guess good and get nice scores on practice, you might guess wrong on the real thing.
Better find out after each assessment, if you answered both correct and wrong for a specific reason that you know you can maintain or correct, respectively.

or whether it was just clicking it through and having some luck. If you get 70% right coz you knew the stuff, then its sufficient. With some luck in the exam you got more, but you should not be worse than 70% then, that also has some buffer for a "bad day"

 

[BH.MD]

I would appreciate any advice here.

I am an IMG, struggling to match ( this is my 3rd cycle, I got 1 IV so far). I have low scores in Step1 & 2 and I am aiming for a higher score for step 3. My exam supposed to be next week but I canceled it because I did UWSA1 and I scored 180.
I have already finished UWorld Qbank and scored 52% on average (timed, random) I used it as a studying resource, not to test my knowledge. I went over all my notes and wrong Qs before I did the UWSA1.
So, I did a reset to the Qbank and started doing a few blocks, and now I am scoring 70%-90%! I think this is happening because I remember the Qs and As ( I am not sure).
How can overcome this issue? do you think it is better to use different resources for studying?
I work a full-time job ( related to medicine but not as a physician ) so my studying time is limited and I prefer to just focus on UWorld, but I feel like I have "burned it".


Anyone had the same problem?


Thanks!

 

[SNAMJ]

These correlations are worthless in my eyes. The question is whether you have grasped the content of the question. If you guess like 40% but guess good and get nice scores on practice, you might guess wrong on the real thing.
Better find out after each assessment, if you answered both correct and wrong for a specific reason that you know you can maintain or correct, respectively.

or whether it was just clicking it through and having some luck. If you get 70% right coz you knew the stuff, then its sufficient. With some luck in the exam you got more, but you should not be worse than 70% then, that also has some buffer for a "bad day"

That's why you should score 10-15 points more than the target score in the UWSA and should take 2 of them to see your average.

 

[nebuchadnezzarII]

Never thought I’d get to post a success story here...

Study Time:
2 months on and off with first month veeeeery light studying and 2nd month more serious studying.
Sources:
UWorld MCQs 1x + some incorrects
UWorld Statistics
CCScases.com (did all cases , did some hard cases twice)
UWorld CCS Cases (read through practice cases, did all interactive cases and took notes)
Crush Step 3 CCS (read through practice cases and took notes)
FA Step 1 Statistics
FA Step 3 (skimmed a few chapters, useless)
Test Scores:
Step 1: 23x
Step 2: 24x
UWorld percentage (random, untimed): 62%
UWSA1 (4 weeks out): 199
UWSA2: (1 week out): 225
Step 3: 228

Test Experience:
- Day 1: Ran out of time on a couple of blocks so guessed on some drug ad questions. Found it similar to UWSAs with a good spread of management, biostats, and ethics. Didn’t feel great after the test.
- Day 2: The questions were straight up STEP 2 IM questions. Lots of disease/treatment. Guessed on literally half. CCS cases were not good for me. One of them I accidentally ordered fluids instead of checking telemetry and the case ended within 30 seconds. Out of the remaining, about 6/12 ended early on a positive note and 6/12 I didn’t finish on time.

Don’t take this exam lightly, especially if you’re not ED, IM, or a preliminary IM intern. Maybe I overstudied a little but I’m glad I did, as I know very little medicine. Maybe overkill on the CCS studying but if you’re like me and doing something like pathology, you’ll have to.

 

[medinmich]

Feeling wayyy more anxious about this test than I thought I would. I have been lightly studying for about 2 months and more seriously in the last 3 weeks. Psych resident so I don't see any medicine like at all.

UWSA1 (2.5 weeks out) 194
UWSA2 (1.5 weeks out) 207
UWorld 100% completed with about 55% average untimed and tutor mode, currently working through my incorrects with averages 65-70%.
Working through CCScases.com plan to do at least 60% of them prior to my test
Have gone through Uworld Biostats x 2

Step 1 : 21X
Step 2 : 22X

Test next Thursday and Friday. Any tips? I want to do some very brief review of pharmacology MOA and pathophys but I don't know if I'll have enough time for that

 

[nebuchadnezzarII]

Feeling wayyy more anxious about this test than I thought I would. I have been lightly studying for about 2 months and more seriously in the last 3 weeks. Psych resident so I don't see any medicine like at all.

UWSA1 (2.5 weeks out) 194
UWSA2 (1.5 weeks out) 207
UWorld 100% completed with about 55% average untimed and tutor mode, currently working through my incorrects with averages 65-70%.
Working through CCScases.com plan to do at least 60% of them prior to my test
Have gone through Uworld Biostats x 2

Step 1 : 21X
Step 2 : 22X

Test next Thursday and Friday. Any tips? I want to do some very brief review of pharmacology MOA and pathophys but I don't know if I'll have enough time for that

You will pass.

 

[Kira]

So no score releases until March 17?

 

[NotJustAnotherIMG]

Could someone let me know how many corrects correlate to a given score in NBME 4? I have my exam in 5 days and decided to do the offline version as a "learning tool" because I did not want to see a bad score and freak out. But now I kind of want to know the correlation.

 

[TravelingGentile]

Taking the test this Friday.

Uworld first pass 65%
UWSA 1 3 weeks out: 225
UWSA 2 today: 231

Step 1: 234
Step 2: 242

Just hoping to pull off a nice 200+ Pass on Friday. My patience for this garbage is at an all time low.

 

[PersistentDoc21]

So my 2nd time taking this.
Took part 1 today and literally marked like 40% of each block. Pretty bummed and angry and scared now. It’s like what exactly am I doing wrong. How do I get a
233 on form 1
240 on form 2
650 on NBME 5
78% correct on uworld step 3
And then still feel like I got hit by a bus after this exam.
I just don’t understand. I expected day 1 to feel doable yet here I was failing even the most basic of questions. So yeah I literally just going to leave residency if I fail again because clearly I am not qualified to be here since I am failing an exam tht most people pass. Just super frustrated 😞.

 

[TravelingGentile]

Well that was terrible.

I marked about 50% on average of each block. There were a number of topics that I didn't expect to see. Extremely nervous that I failed. Does anyone know how the MCQ portion is scored? Wondering if I can save this on the second day of MCQs.

Just praying for a pass.

 

[Dr. USMLE]

So my 2nd time taking this.
Took part 1 today and literally marked like 40% of each block. Pretty bummed and angry and scared now. It’s like what exactly am I doing wrong. How do I get a
233 on form 1
240 on form 2
650 on NBME 5
78% correct on uworld step 3
And then still feel like I got hit by a bus after this exam.
I just don’t understand. I expected day 1 to feel doable yet here I was failing even the most basic of questions. So yeah I literally just going to leave residency if I fail again because clearly I am not qualified to be here since I am failing an exam tht most people pass. Just super frustrated .

I understand how you must feel but try not to get too discouraged.

Do not quit residency over this. You will be able to pass the exam.

Feel free to PM me for help.

 

[KnightofBaldMt]

Oof. Took Step 3 this week. Day 1 on Tuesday and Day 2 on Thursday.

UW: averaged 57% correct and 20th percentile, got 74% of the way done. Read through all interactive CCS cases, practiced about 20 (after using CCScases).
UWSA1: 199
CCScases.com: used about 40ish% of their cases.

Day 1 was pretty rough. I was hoping that their would be more calculations with biostats. LOTS of interpretation and there was one where I wasn't sure the abstract matched my questions it was so odd lol. But there were lots of method of action questions, some genetics/inheritance/mutations Step 1 type stuff on there. Felt very much like I was narrowing down 50/50 and guessing. Ethics...crazy scenarios.

Day 2 more of the same, though more clinically relevant and reasonable. Lots of "next best step/test/medication", side effects, prognosis/risks. CCS was more difficult than I had imagined, don't be overly confident going in. Also, I would shy away from a shotgun lab approach merely because of how long it takes for you to get labs back/click through them, especially the 10 min cases.

Never really felt confident after taking any of the steps, but this one made me feel embarrassed I've gotten this far! I'm just hoping the curve is as generous as people discuss. UWSA1 was 199 so hopefully that will translate to the low 200s at least, though I'd be happy with a 198!

 

[TravelingGentile]

Finished the exam today.

Day 2 MCQ were much more in line with previous step exams than Day 1. I marked probably between 1/4 and 1/3 of each block. The cases were more difficult than I thought. CCScases was definitely a huge help in terms of preparing however there were little differences that ended up hurting me. One case I didn't get a diagnosis because I was trying to forward time to get the results of a test and it just ended. On another, I figured out the diagnosis late and wrote orders into the last two minutes that will hopefully buy me points. Finally, I gave the wrong drug on another just out of fatigue and that case ended. The other 10 went well.

Here's hoping it was enough to pass.

UWSA1 225
UWSA2 231
UW first pass 65%

 

[FMDoge2020]

Got a lot of reassurance from this thread. Thank you to those who contributed to it.

Numbers:
PGY-1
Step1: 23x
Step2:22x
UWSA1:210 (1.5week before)
UWSA2:239 (4days before)
Actual step 3: 221

Study:
4months on and off throughout lighter rotations and vacations(total ~2w of step2 study time for reference)
-Uworld 63% untimed tutor; repeat about 70% of wrong, particularly the stats
-Crush step 3 CCS x1 and UWorld CCS only did the simulations

Test day:
Day1:
~6% of random pathology slide/step1 q
-Marked 40-50% of the questions each blocks; barely finished each block on time
-Lots of stats, was sure for 70% of them
-Drug ads sucks, too many words not enough time marked all of them
-Walking out feeling horrible
Day2:
-Lots of prognosis questions. 2 MCQ blocks went well, the rest marked up to 75% of the block
-CCS cases were straightforward all but one ended early
-Finished the test 1.5 hours early. Still feel horrible due to the MCQ blocks being disasters

Most people pass. do take time to study for it if you're not the best test taker (like me).

 

[PersistentDoc21]

So my 2nd time taking this.
Took part 1 today and literally marked like 40% of each block. Pretty bummed and angry and scared now. It’s like what exactly am I doing wrong. How do I get a
233 on form 1
240 on form 2
650 on NBME 5
78% correct on uworld step 3
And then still feel like I got hit by a bus after this exam.
I just don’t understand. I expected day 1 to feel doable yet here I was failing even the most basic of questions. So yeah I literally just going to leave residency if I fail again because clearly I am not qualified to be here since I am failing an exam tht most people pass. Just super frustrated 😞.

Passed!!!!!!! I am over the moon. Taking step while 7.5 months pregnant was no joke. But I did it. Glad this is over. Long motivational post coming soon

 

[Redpancreas]

Took both days this week.

Study strategy:
-I'm a PGY2, was initially planning on taking step 3 last summer but due to COVID put it off until now. So kind of had a long, drawn out, sporadic study process.
-Worth noting I'm in FM - so I am doing a little bit of everything on a daily basis including inpatient and outpatient grown ups, kids, and pregnant ladies, and am using some FM boards study material along with all of this. So putting off the exam til later was probably to my benefit due to having more clinical experience under my belt. Obviously this would probably not be the case if you're in something like derm or ortho where you're more focused in on one specific area of medicine.
-Did UWorld blocks on days off on heavy rotations, most days on lighter rotations. Finished it all a month or two ago, got 62% correct.
-Made Anki cards from UWorld incorrects, was pretty consistent with those at first but then kinda slowed down and stopped
-Over the last month: all UWorld CCS cases (I really struggled with getting the hang of the software), UWorld stats review, and redid incorrects from qbank.

Old test scores:
-UWSA1: 207. Actually took it almost a year ago - at the time I thought I would be taking step 3 within the next few months.
-UWSA2: 229. 1-2 weeks before exam.
-Step 1: 20X
-Step 2: 23X

Test experience:
-Day 1: Pretty tough. Felt very much like step 1. Mostly second and third order questions on things like drug mechanisms and pathophys. Some biostats most of which was fairly basic. Some WEIRD ethics stuff. 1-2 drug ads or abstracts in each block.
-Day 2 MCQs: Much more reasonable imo. More step 2-esque. What's the next step, what test or treatment do you want, etc. Lots of preventive care as well which is certainly my jam. No drug ads or abstracts.
-Day 2 CCS: Mostly pretty straightforward, bread and butter type stuff with the exception of one case that was more of a zebra. Cases seemed to end pretty quickly, even sometimes when I was still waiting for some key lab results that weren't supposed to come back until day 2 or 3...not sure if that's because I made the right choices for empiric tx or because I was just that far off base lol. I wrote out kind of an algorithm/flowsheet on my scratch paper at the beginning of the cases to help keep me organized (e.g. if they're unstable, order iv access, tele, oximetry, morphine if severe pain, etc. before anything else, if you admit don't forget to order dvt ppx, diet and activity orders, routine labs, etc.), which was really helpful in keeping me from getting ahead of myself and keeping things systematic.

Step 3 score: TBD! Will post when I get it.

@cj_cregg post your experience in the Step 3 thread I made. Feel like these experience posts are scattered all over the place. This exam was complete randomness and chaos with no guidance. I felt like no one on SDN was posting about it until I saw all the experiences were in the "The Trick Works" group.

 

[KnightofBaldMt]

Oof. Took Step 3 this week. Day 1 on Tuesday and Day 2 on Thursday.

UW: averaged 57% correct and 20th percentile, got 74% of the way done. Read through all interactive CCS cases, practiced about 20 (after using CCScases).
UWSA1: 199
CCScases.com: used about 40ish% of their cases.

Day 1 was pretty rough. I was hoping that their would be more calculations with biostats. LOTS of interpretation and there was one where I wasn't sure the abstract matched my questions it was so odd lol. But there were lots of method of action questions, some genetics/inheritance/mutations Step 1 type stuff on there. Felt very much like I was narrowing down 50/50 and guessing. Ethics...crazy scenarios.

Day 2 more of the same, though more clinically relevant and reasonable. Lots of "next best step/test/medication", side effects, prognosis/risks. CCS was more difficult than I had imagined, don't be overly confident going in. Also, I would shy away from a shotgun lab approach merely because of how long it takes for you to get labs back/click through them, especially the 10 min cases.

Never really felt confident after taking any of the steps, but this one made me feel embarrassed I've gotten this far! I'm just hoping the curve is as generous as people discuss. UWSA1 was 199 so hopefully that will translate to the low 200s at least, though I'd be happy with a 198!

Got a 22X on the real deal guys. You will feel horrible after both days, CCS cases don't necessarily end early, but things often turn out to be okay!

 

[Retropatronus]

Uworld: was sharing with my gf, so did UWorld about 1.5 times, average was 76 the second time round when I was the only one doing it so probs not accurate.

UWSA 1: 213
UWSA 2: 225

NBME 5 124/176 (70.5%) - 430

Step 3: 219

 

[bananasewq]

On NBME 5 I scored a 600- 79.5% correct (140/176). Is that a good score or passable score? They don't have the 3 digit correlates anymore so I have no clue what that means :/

Thanks!

 

[pyknosis]

Just posting this for whoever is feeling distressed about their upcoming exam and has very little time to study.

Step 1: 240s
Step 2: 240s
Step 3: Pass

Studied for 2-3 weeks, maybe 1-2 hours after work M-F and maybe 4 hours on the weekend after work. Did about 80% of UWORLD only scoring about 50% correct, most helpful section was biostats as I had forgotten everything about it. Nothing on UWORLD was truly reflective of what was on the exam aside from the biostats. Did about 50% of the ccscases which I found to be very helpful and very similar to the actual CCS component of the exam.

Waited 2 weeks and got my score, this was the quickest turnaround the NBME has ever provided and I am very grateful for it.

My 5 cents on the exam is that it's tough, but the bar to passing is probably not too high. There are more than 400 questions, you can probably miss 150 questions and still pass the exam, given you do decent on the CCS component.

Hope this helps somebody! If anyone has further questions feel free to reach out.

 

[NYCdude]

PGY2 in generalist field

Uworld untimed tutor mode first time pass: 66%

Score: 240

Did UWorld 1.5x, biostats module, and all the interactive cases. Briefly skimmed the print only ones. Did the 6 official USMLE ones.

 

[TravelingGentile]

Appreciated all the contributions to this thread and have tried to make some as my timeline progressed.

Got my score a few weeks ago. Check earlier posts for how the questions felt (spoilers terrible).

UWorld 1st pass 66% mostly on Tutor
UWSA1: 225
UWSA2: 231 i think

Real Deal Step 3: 238

The test felt brutal. I made some of the dumbest mistakes possible on the cases but all is well and I never have to think about this garbage again. Goodbye USMLE.

 

[Olive14]

Appreciated all the contributions to this thread and have tried to make some as my timeline progressed.

Got my score a few weeks ago. Check earlier posts for how the questions felt (spoilers terrible).

UWorld 1st pass 66% mostly on Tutor
UWSA1: 225
UWSA2: 231 i think

Real Deal Step 3: 238

The test felt brutal. I made some of the dumbest mistakes possible on the cases but all is well and I never have to think about this garbage again. Goodbye USMLE.

Thanks for sharing your experience. How many weeks after your second day did you get your score?

 

[ItsADocsLife]

PGY1 here...need some honest advise...
UW average - 55% (covered about 90% of the questions)
took UWSA 1 today - 189
My exam is in 11 days.

Should I postpone? I thought I would be in a better situation for this exam but *sigh*

 

[kshf1847]

I was told that there are several questions about pharmacology on the actual exam (not many on UW).
I was wondering which reference I should be using.
Would FA step 1 pharmacology part be enough? Or are there a more efficient ways to cover pharmacology questions?

 

[Redpancreas]

I was told that there are several questions about pharmacology on the actual exam (not many on UW).
I was wondering which reference I should be using.
Would FA step 1 pharmacology part be enough? Or are there a more efficient ways to cover pharmacology questions?

I agree there is basic science, second/third order questions asking about MOAs of drugs, etc. on USMLE Step 3. I say you ignore that though. You will either know the mechanism or you won't. Re-learning M2 information for this exam during residency's not worth it. Now, if you're on a non-trad path where you've been away from clinical medicine and are trying to get relicensed, shell out $$$, buy SketchyPharm, First Aid, etc. and start learning again!

 

[Redpancreas]

PGY1 here...need some honest advise...
UW average - 55% (covered about 90% of the questions)
took UWSA 1 today - 189
My exam is in 11 days.

Should I postpone? I thought I would be in a better situation for this exam but *sigh*

What were your Step 1/2 scores? IMO, those end up being more predictive than UW IMO. The UWSAs seem to terribly under predict in my experience unlike for Step 1 where it was the NBME that under predicted and UWSA was pretty on par. Repeat UW, mix in Step 2 CK if you want, use OnlineMedEd, review biostats, CCScases.com. There’s another expensive resource called MedQuest which is a video lecture series covering what is the new version of master the boards. Highly recommend but it’s $300. Your score may not be superb but I’m pretty sure you’ll pass. Emphasize biostats. It’s one of the areas you can control. When it comes to the medical science questions, you can do a million UW practice questions but then the actual questions are designed to test whether or not you went to medical school and if you learnt it, you’ll remember it. If not, you’re probably not going to encounter that while studying. All studying does is get the nerves firing and refreshing connections. It’s hardly a time to be learning things new for the first time.

 

[kshf1847]

I agree there is basic science, second/third order questions asking about MOAs of drugs, etc. on USMLE Step 3. I say you ignore that though. You will either know the mechanism or you won't. Re-learning M2 information for this exam during residency's not worth it. Now, if you're on a non-trad path where you've been away from clinical medicine and are trying to get relicensed, shell out $$$, buy SketchyPharm, First Aid, etc. and start learning again!

Thank you! This is very helpful. I will just focus on stats

 

[Redpancreas]

Thank you! This is very helpful. I will just focus on stats

Really drill it home. I didn’t mean to be this person doling out all this advice on Step 3 but guess I had nothing better to do than study a bit more for it. The best thing you can do is ensure your CCS is up to par and your biostats skills are as practiced and warmed up as possible for the real deal. The medicine questions come out left field. UWorld helps only in maybe refreshing your memory you likely already had on an entire topic but you’re not going to find many questions that you got because you spent an hour outlined the diagnostic approach to XYZ. The best analogy I can give is that studying for Step 3 is like a vaccine booster you can to renew your body’s acquired immunity/knowledge. It doesn’t any knowledge from scratch but if you do a question on nerve lesions and get guess it’s MS when it’s really Transverse Myelitis, you’ll be able to recognize and differentiate the two on exam day so if there’s a question about one of those two, your mind will be able to recognize it more effectively.

 

[Bbqchickenman]

Took step 3 day 2 today. Feel like i absolutely bombed both days. My hope is that I can squeeze by the 3% fail rate, bc I felt like I was guessing on every single question. I did Uworld once over the course of several months (i.e. already forgot most of the questions I learned 2 months ago). I did blocks by subject, which I would only recommend if your studying for a brief time period, if your studying for months like me you will forget all of the subjects you did early on. Mostly tutor mode but towards the last week on timed. For css I did like 25 uworld cases, read throught like 10. I did the 6 NBME sample css cases, would def recommend. I regret not finishing reading through all the uworld css cases. If you only have 1-2 days I recommend reading most of the cases before the test rather than rushing to do them 2 days before, just do a few to get a feel for the flow. Would recommend you brush up on the classic antibiotic MOA (only the main ones) or like classic obgyn questions (like managing peripartum sepsis or like risk factors for placenta pre/accre/abrup). Majority of questions I did not feel like Uworld was similar to unfortunately, maybe in length and style but the answer choices were more grey area on the exam. Felt very step 1-2. Some way tol many questions I had no clue and just picked the pretty answer choice. Felt very angry at the exam the whole time bc it was not indicative of anything real I learned in intern year, just testing insignificant information. What helped me most on CSS was preparing a list of orders that I wrote down during the tutorial to reference during cases so I dont forget anything (Ex: lipids, tsh, urine output, ng tube, npo, ancef, bedrest, foley, pap smear, esr, crp, smoking cessation, alcohol cessation etc whatever I would typically forget). I would glance at my scratch paper during cases to jog my memory. Day 2 surprisingly shorter than planned bc cases tend to finish early and its easier to go through them without breaks unlike mcq.

Step 1: mid 240s
Step 2: low 260s
Step 3: 249
Uworld CK ended right at median percentile but was just below it for a while going through the bank

 

[ItsADocsLife]

PGY1 here...need some honest advise...
UW average - 55% (covered about 90% of the questions)
took UWSA 1 today - 189
My exam is in 11 days.

Should I postpone? I thought I would be in a better situation for this exam but *sigh*

Update:
Ended up pushing my exam by 8 days

UWSA 1 189
NBME 5 128/174 (72%)
UWSA 2 213

Exam in 3 days. I still dont feel great about going into it. But at this point...it is what it is.

 

[burningmoon]

For anyone who is interested, I put the past ~2 years' worth of data from this thread into a spreadsheet and calculated equations to predict Step 3 scores (obviously excluding the CCS section) from UW, UWSA 1 & 2, and FRED. The equations are as follows (where x is the % correct for UWorld & FRED and predicted Step 3 score for UWSAs). The graphs are fit nicely with what one would expect with decent R^2 values (around 0.70-0.75) suggesting around 70-75% of one's score can be predicted by these results.

UWorld QBank
y = 7E-05x^3 - 0.037x^2 + 5.6889x
R² = 0.7407

FRED*
y = 0.0004x^3 - 0.0655x^2 + 5.9323x
R² = 0.9933
* Very small n, which inflates this R^2 value; however, the data points do seem to line up well and are consistent with one another, so I would consider this equation reasonable

UWSA 1
y = 3E-05x^3 - 0.016x^2 + 2.9917x
R² = 0.7111

UWSA 2
y = 5E-06x^3 - 0.0026x^2 + 1.3689x
R² = 0.7452



View attachment 298057

Thank you for the figure! But it cannot ignore publication bias

 

[izchief360]

USMD about to start PGY1 in July, but decided to take this before start of residency (December graduate). Step 1 223, Step 2 239.

Studied for a few months - used UW 1.5x + CCS + Biostats, and CCSCases. Also reviewed some Sketchy Pharm and Micro.
UW average was around 55%. Never took a practice exam except Free 137 (78% correct).

Step 3 - 224.

Felt pretty okay after Day 1 (I had spent a good amount of time reviewing biostats and Step 1 material). On Day 2 CCS, I did not get the diagnosis for ~4 of my cases, but felt like I had an appropriate and thorough workup for these and managed my other cases well. Did not feel particularly confident walking out of Day 2, for what it's worth.

From what I've seen, the Step 3 score tends to mirror Step 1 score for a lot of people. Certainly the case here.

 

[doc-Oc]

Scored 184 on UWSA 1 after finishing all of uworld. Exam in a month and im kinda tired. Dont know what to expect :S