Q1. How do I apply to take Step 1 (or Step 2)?
Go to the NBME Interactive Website for Applicants and Examinees at
Complete Part A online, which includes your demographic information and choice of eligibility period, and submit it online. When you have submitted Part A online, Part B will be available for you to print and submit to OSA for certification.
Submit Part B to OSA for certification with a 2″ X 2″ picture attached as directed (and if you are paying by check, attach your check made out to NBME). Remember to sign Part B. The Office of the Registrar sends applications to NBME via UPS on Monday afternoons. Students who wish to mail Part B themselves should attach a note to their application, stating that they wish to pick up their certified form.
Students registering for Step 1 and Step 2 online may pay by check made out to the NBME or they may charge application fees to a Visa or Master Card account. Credit card payments are available only online and are not acceptable for eligibility extensions
Once you receive your scheduling permit from the NBME, you may schedule the USMLE examination appointment by telephone or by using Promotric’s web-based scheduling system at http://www.2test.com.
Q2. I can’t take my exam during the 3-month eligibility period I originally selected. Do I have to reapply and pay the exam fee again?
A. No, you do not need to reapply. If it looks like a student’s eligibility period will expire before he/she can sit for the exam, it can be extended for another three months. The form to request an extension can be found on the NBME website at
Q3. I sat for my initial attempt and/or my second attempt at USMLE: Step I and failed. Will I be allowed to complete the clerkship in which I am currently enrolled?
A. Yes, you are allowed to continue in your current scheduled clerkship, but you cannot continue further clerkship activity until you have retaken USMLE: Step I. You will be withdrawn from the next clerkship and the clerkship will be rescheduled during the following academic year. By policy, students who fail the first attempt will be scheduled into rotations after sitting for the second attempt. However, students who fail a second attempt will not be allowed to particpate in clerkships until a passing score is received.
Q4. I received my board scores yesterday (Step 1 or Step 2). What does the 2-digit score mean? Is it an indication of my percentile rank for the exam?
A. The 2-digit score is not a percentile. The 2-digit score is derived from the 3-digit score. It is used in score reporting to meet requirements of some medical licensing authorities that the passing score be reported as 75. The 2-digit score is derived in such a way that a score of 75 always corresponds to the minimum passing score.
The National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) no longer reports percentile ranks. Statistically, percentile rank is a valid measure only if all examinees are taking the exam at the same time and under the same conditions, which is no longer true for computer based testing.
Source of information: USMLE website at
Q4. Is it possible to take USMLE Step 2 prior to completing all of the third year requirements? The reason I ask this is based on how I am planning my fourth year and I am thinking of doing Psych at the end of August after I have done some electives, however, I would like to sit for Step 2 by early August (prior to psych). Is this possible?
A. There is no rule to prevent you from taking Step 2 before completing all the M3 clerkships, but we STRONGLY recommend that you first complete all M3 rotations. The reason is that Step 2 tests you on the knowledge you obtain by taking the clerkships. Taking Step 2 before you complete the clerkships would be like taking the final exam in a course when everyone else is just taking the mid-term. (As a matter of fact, students have told us that the Medicine Sub-Internship is also helpful for Step 2.)
Q6: What’s the best way to prepare to take Step 1?A: Preparing for the Step 1 exam is largely a matter of individual study preferences. Some students do well sitting through lectures and Kaplan would work well for them. Other students go crazy or go to sleep if they have to sit through hours of lecture; for them Kaplan would be a waste of time and money. Some students use review books, others do well doing lots of questions such as Q-Bank. Sometimes a study plan with lots of structure serves a student well; other times it does not. It really is an individual matter. See the advice of an M3 below.
That said, there are several things that are strongly recommended:
At the beginning of study students should do a diagnostic exam to establish a baseline for study. Kaplan has a free diagnostic exam that can be taken at a Kaplan center or one will probably be administered at UIC during the Spring Semester.
It would be useful to meet with a faculty advisor or another mentor on a regular basis during the course of study.
About 10 days to 1 week before the scheduled exam date, students should take a full 8-hour mock exam to determine readiness to sit for the exam. It is recommended that the exam be postponed by a few days or a week for extra study if the score is not in a desired range. Kaplan has several mock exams as does the University of Missouri at Kansas City (these can be ordered on line - see website below).
Don’t shoot to just pass the exam (the pass level is 182). You want to aim for a score at least at the mean level, which is approximately 215-217.
A new basic science self-assessment is being offered by the National Board of Medical Examiners. There are two forms, the cost is $45 each, and you get immediate feedback with profiles that indicate strengths and weaknesses. You can get information at http://www.nbme.org/programs/sas.asp.
Here are some of the review courses:Kaplan, website -
www.kaplanmedical.com
Princeton Review, website -
http://testprep.princetonreview.com/coursefinder/search.asp
Chicago Medical School, website -
http://www.finchcms.edu/cms/educationalaffairs/USMLEboardReview.cfm
University of Missouri at Kansas City, website -
www.umkc.edu/ipp/
. This site also has links to useful study material.
AOA Honor Society Study TipsAs USMLE Step 1 scores are one of the factors in the AOA election process, members have typically performed well. See study tips from AOA members at
M3 advice on Step I preparation: (1/25/06)Below are a few links to USMLE prep sites that provide free review material or accounts of exam experiences/study methods.
M3 advice on Step I preparation: (9/9/03)
USMLE STEP 1 Study Materials
You’ll find that, like the MCAT, etc., Kaplan dominates the market. But other company’s stuff can be really good (e.g.First Aid as the almost universally-recognized best source of concise info for step 1, NMS practice tests many think are closer to the real thing than Kaplan Q-Bank, etc.) I can only comment on what I have used or heard a great deal about, which is what I’m doing here.
I feel that if I had some of the Step 1 material SOONER our M2 year could have progressed a little sooner. Personally, I felt that when I bought my Kaplan books and audio supplementary lectures (Webprep), I felt that I understood things much better as the material helped me to see the bigger picture and served to help integrate various concepts that I hadn’t throughout classes. If I had one thing that I could have done differently for M2 year, I would have gotten my Step 1 stuff earlier..
Many students feel that they need:
core study materials
other material to help supplement & present the info (e.g. classes, audio lectures, etc.)
practice tests & question banks, and
other miscellaneous [very] concise review materials (e.g. 1st aid or step up, recall books, etc.).
I’ll give a bit of info about each one of the things that I know about:
CORE STUDY MATERIALS
Many use Kaplan sets for this. Basically there’s a few different sets of books that Kaplan releases (cost b/w $500-1000 new), but many students feel that all of these sets contain similar information, just organized and presented a bit differently. There’s Lecture Notes (although you definitely don’t have to get/use their lectures to use these, as the name is a bit of a misnomer; the books are straightforward to use by themselves and many if not most students end up doing just this), Home Study Review books, and various other sets. I’ve heard that really the major notable difference b/w the different sets is the degree of information in them — some have much more details than others. For example, I’ve heard that this is true for the Home Study & Organ Review books (even though the Lecture Notes may appear bigger, they have a lot of extra space for taking notes, etc.). The Lecture notes are outline-based, whereas the other read more like concise review books. There are pros and cons for each style: the concise outline format can be quicker to get through, but sometimes the ones w/ more info & detail may allow the material to be understood & remembered easier, more complete, etc. But I’ve heard some students complain that they take a little longer to get through, though, which can be a problem the closer you get to the exam.
Most students say that Kaplan “pretty much only changes the cover and organization” b/w years. Obviously you don’t want to get something from 1969, but as long as it’s a version that’s from the past few years, you should be fine (in fact, there may be less than 100 word difference total b/w a slightly older year and 2003). In fact, when I compared 2003 versions to older versions page-by-page, I literally found nothing after 15 mins of doing this.. so, the advantage is that it’s a whole lot cheaper to buy books slightly dated, but on the flipside if you enroll in a live-lecture course you’ll get a set included.
I met only a couple students who used Princeton Review core books.. I remember them saying that they liked them early on, but haven’t heard from them or anyone else using them, since.
Some students I know will opt to not get any commercial review book sets,and go with the same material they used for classes, e.g. textbooks, lecture notes, etc. The advantage here is they you’re already familiar w/ the material (which could be a disadvantage too if you eventually become kind of desensitized to it).. and that this will save you a couple hundred bucks. But many students are hesitant to do this b/c they feel like it won’t be concise or thorough enough w/ covering the wide range of topics for step 1 (and you can always turn back to old texts, coops, or review books as a backup if you feel a topic isn’t presented well in a commercial set). If the going-it-alone option might be for you, you probably already know it and know who you are (if you really feel the lecture handouts, coops, your notes, etc.. will be good enough). But I’d say the vast majority of students that I ran into used SOME sort of commercial review books.
OTHER RESOURCES TO SUPPLEMENT/PRESENT THE MATERIAL
You’ll have to eventually come up with a good regimen for studying, whether that’s now, in January, or closer to the exam. Some people opt to go it individually (w/ kaplan books or their own, etc.), some sign up for classes (e.g. Kaplan intense prep), and some feel very good using supplementary resources (e.g. Kaplan Webprep audio lectures). Take into account how the 1st couple years in med school have been for you — if you’ve enjoyed the structure of going to class and made most, then this may be option for you. the cons, though, are time (some say it’s hard to study at the end of a hardcore 9 hr day when the test is just a few weeks away). If you didn’t go to class much, then obviously the individual or audio/visual supplemented approach may be more flexible for you.
As an example of the supplementary-individual approach.. I personally used Kaplan Webprep audio along with their set of books. I really felt that this was awesome for me as their audio lectures correlated perfectly w/ their books, and times that I was getting tired this would keep me into it, etc. plus I felt that this was much more time-efficient than going to class all day long and still having to just start to crack the books at night. In fact, when I started using the webprep audio/Kaplan book combo for classes 2nd semester, I felt that it helped me tremendously, and in retrospect, wish I had gotten them earlier..
Money, too, is a factor for some.. most commercial live lecture courses are $1000+ (not even counting practice tests/question banks).
PRACTICE TESTS AND QUESTION BANKS
I’ve heard many students say that regardless how you choose to study for step 1, you want to be sure to do a lot of questions. As many as you can before the test. Questions are always an active way of learning, as with reading texts you can become tired, passive, etc..
Kaplan has a huge amount of questions in this arena. There are, however, alternatives, which I’ll try to talk about too. But all together Kaplan probably easily has 5000+ practice questions. There is Q-Bank (2000 Q’s, ~$250), probably one of the most popular prep resources for step 1, which is an online-only resource w/ questions, images, etc.. many people say that if you hammer away at these and finish most of them off (reading & learning the explanations), that while they might not be the exact style as the real step 1 exam, they will certainly help tremendously in practice & learning. Kaplan also has their new, more integrative, clinical Integrated Vignettes, which is very similar to Q-bank but in a slightly different style (1200 Q’s, also ~ $250). These two q-banks are extremely popular among students (IV being newer and still not as popular, though). Kaplan also has the Q-Book, just a regular old book with ~ 850 questions in all the subject areas. I think it only comes w/ purchasing their course, but you can always buy an older one from another student. Kaplan also has questions snuck away in their various sets of books (lecture notes, organ review books, etc.) - I think all of them. They also have q’s in the form of practice tests (similar CD’s, diagnostic, etc).
I actually went through the nightmare of printing out most of Kaplan q-bank & iv q-bank. I’d never heard of anyone else ever doing this.. and I guess I found out why (it was a HUGE headache, and basically killed my printer in the process). But I felt that it was really great to have - doing the online stuff hour after hour can really become tiresome, you feel that your eyes are burning out, etc. but the coolest thing about having printed versions is that you don’t have to be around a computer w/ internet access to do them - you could be in a library or coffee shop and still do them, etc. if you don’t wanna go thru the hassle of printing them, etc., just use another set of questions that’s printed (e.g. Kaplan Q-book, lecture books, Princeton review questions, etc).
The NBME releases a practice exam that many students say is similar in STYLE to the real exam. Definitely get a copy of this and do it somewhat close to the exam. There is also “NBME Retired Questions,” which are actual past questions but really old (e.g. <1990). Students I talked to, and myself, found these to be too easy, not integrated / clinical enough, and kind of a waste of time.. but I know that some liked them better, too..
NMS also releases a Step 1 practice test book & CD-ROM w/ about 800 questions. If you talk around, a heck of a lot of students say that they find these Q’s are the most similar to the real thing, even more than Q-bank. I would have to agree with this. While Q-bank was a good learning tool, sometimes the questions were a bit picky w/ details (not necessarily difficulty), while the NMS stuff was more similar in style and content to the real thing. Their explanations are good, too - not too terribly detailed. oh,and regarding the Kaplan q-bank stuff, I’ve heard some say they thought it was a lot harder than the actual thing and I’ve heard some say they thought it waseasier.
Board Simulator Series - I can’t remember how many Q’s there are w/ this one, but I know there are a lot, too. I started w/ these but quickly kinda opted to focus on other stuff, so I can’t say a whole lot here. I just know that the major complaint about these is that they’re good, but can be far too picky compared to the real thing and take a long time to get through.
Then there are still other practice test/q-bank options (e.g. A&L book w/ 1200+ Q’s, Princeton review stuff, medrevu.com online stuff, etc..). I can’t say a lot about these, though.
OTHER MISC & CONCISE REVIEW RESOURCES
Basically you’re probably gonna end up w/ a huge stack of step 1 prep books (whether it’s Kaplan, your old texts, etc.).. and this can be overwhelming. Many students find it EXTREMELY useful to have one very concise and broad review book hitting the major points from the different subjects. Some even take extensive notes in the book they choose from the other review materials that they’re using.
By far the most popular book at all for Step 1 would probably be First Aid. Although it has other sections (strategies, scheduling tips, blah blah) it has about 200+ pages of high-yield info for the different subjects.. that many students feel is darn good, considering the brevity. In fact, the book has progressed thru the years by students writing in w/ their own mnemonics, Q’s they remembered seeing, etc.. bottom line, this one is popular. I myself remember two questions on my exam that were STRAIGHT out of it..
I’ve heard people like a book called Step-Up to the Boards (or something like that). It’s more of a text than first aid, so it kinda hits different areas. I’ve been told Step-up kind of integrates everything you’ve learned in the first couple med years w/ brief chapters on each integrative topic, but that it can be a bit risky before the exam as it can take some real time to read.
A week before my exam, I ran out and bought a book called USMLE Step 1 Recall: Buzzwords for the Boards. I heard it’s a good book to try in the days before the test.. which I would have to agree with.. it’s really straightforward - quick questions & answers. You definitely wouldn’t use this to learn from, but in the days before can be a good resource for when you start getting burned out..
I’ve heard a good number of students recommend re-reading BRS Path before the test. I did this and felt that it helped - there are things that you definitely notice this time around that you never did before (or at least, never understood as well and just kinda memorized).
The Underground Clinical Vignette book series can be good prep for Step 1. it’s written by the same people who make First Aid, so there are references in First Aid for them. I know some people really loved these for step 1, I wasn’t a huge, huge fan but they were good. I used them for M2 classes as well..
(end M3 advice 9/9/03)
Q7. How did you study for a high Step II score? (advice from high scoring M4’s)
A. #1. I studied for approximately 4 weeks, 2 of which were pretty solid. I read and took notes on the entirety of “Prescription for the Boards”. I also did all of the tests in the NMS Step 2 question book and read through all of the answer descriptions. In addition, I read most of “Secrets for Step 2″ and did all of the sample step 2 questions put out by the NBME. That is most of what I did during those 4 weeks. I think that the studying I had done over the preceding several years also played a big role that I can’t really measure.
A. #2 I studied two weeks, maybe 5 hours a day. I mainly used Boards and Wards for Step 2. I did not do all, but some of the questions from NMS question book. I read through First Aid for Step 2 during my clerkships. I also did pretest and apple and lange question books during my clerkships. I think trying hard to learn during M3 and M4 clerkships really helped. I found myself knowing a lot of the questions from experience, especially from the subspecialty M4 clerkships, without every reveiwing them before the exam. Ent, ortho, urology were all pretty helpful.
A. #3 I used USMLE Step 2 secrets, Boards and Wards, and NMS Questions (although I didn’t finish this last one). It took about 10 days to get through these, and I also skimmed through First Aid for Step 2 as I had used that during rotations in 3rd year. My best advice is to stick to high yield stuff and know it well. Also, NMS questions is a good book, but is more difficult than the actual exam, so don’t let it intimidate you.
A. #4 I didn’t prepare very much for Step 2 immediately beforehand (probably not the answer our rising M4 wants to hear), but I felt that the MASSIVE reading I did as an M3 is what paid off. I also identified my weakest areas from my shelf exams and my own assessment (Ob/gyn and psych) and reviewed those (especially Ob/gyn) far more than the others. Very important. I also took it later in my M4 year (December) and after I took many of the 2 week selectives, all of which had questions on the actual exam so I felt those rotations helped (I also read for every one of them too). I set aside 4 weeks to study, but 2 of them were over Derm and I really didn’t study that much and the next 2 were over Christmas and interviews so I really didn’t study that much then either. I waited too long to set my date with the scheduling permit in hand. Be sure to schedule earlier than you think to make sure you get what you want, just like Step 1.The materials I used were the Boards & Wards book (read most of it), First Aid for Step 2 (read barely any), Medicine Blueprints (waste of time for me), Ob/Gyn Blueprints (AWESOME! Saved my butt), NMS Step 2 questions (did 186 questions, got sick of studying), the USMLE practice questions and answers from Kaplan’s website (pretty good, did all 136 questions the day before and was scoring in the 90%s; wasn’t too worried at that point). I knew my medicine, surgery, and peds cold, so I really didn’t review them too much.I had kind of a non-regimented approach. I wasn’t too motivated since the score wouldn’t appear on residency apps anyway if I didn’t want it to. I felt very confident going into that exam and actually did better than I thought I would.I don’t know if I would’ve done as well earlier on in the year, but then, I probably would’ve studied harder if I’d been more concerned. If student is worried, then they need to do more questions. I recommend the Kaplan Qbank online and read up on each of the questions in larger texts. Also, IDENTIFY weak areas to focus on and find a good (but readable)review book. Blueprints are variable, sometimes they have enough info). The best are Blueprints Ob/Gyn and Peds. I maintain it was my 3rd year preparation that laid the groundwork for my knowledge today.
A # 5 As an overview, I used First Aid for Step2. I then reread Blueprints. I also used NMS questions (the Internet version which gives breakdowns by medical discipline and is a computer interface), Underground Clinical Vignettes for Step2, slected parts of NMS Medicine, and portions of NMS Surgery. I did some additional questions from Peds PreTest and Medicine PreTest. Idid this over a 16 day period after my Medicine Sub-I ( a good review by itself).
A #6 I used NMS questions, and qbank and then a couple of the blue prints books for review
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