USMLE Step 2CK experience from Zahoor Ur Rehman

I started with Kaplan lecture notes and videos and it took me 45 days to complete all the subjects. It’s very helpful to make a strong foundation of clinical knowledge. After that did master the boards 2 medicine section only (15 days). Then started step 3 UWorld in a systematic matter and lasted around 45 days. After step 3 UW, I did UWorld step 2 system wise and completed it in two months.

3 months to my exam, I redid UW2 but by random questions in 2 months and I think it’s the best resource of all. During the last month I revised step 3 UWorld, CMS, read UW 2 NOTES and MTB2 and kaplan Lecture notes and Ob-Gyn and surgery.

One day before exam I read all the screening tests, vaccinations. I made sure I slept for complete 8 hours at night which is very important to stay fresh and wide awake throughout the exam.

On the big exam day, make sure you eat well before you go, check your scheduling permit before you leave your house. Don’t panic as worrying makes you more fearful of the exam. Just keep in mind that "this is the day" and afterwards you will be free like a bird.

During exam don’t try to correct every question otherwise you will lose time for the easy questions. Whenever I encountered a question with 2 confusing answers, choose the one that would benefit the patient. When you move to the next question, leave the past behind and don’t think of the previous question but rather focus on what is on the screen now. Try not to change answers unless you are very much sure as the first guess is usually the correct one.

Manage your break time according to your stamina, I did 2 blocks then 10 minutes break, then 2 blocks followed by 20 minutes break. Then I did 2 more blocks followed by 15 minutes break, then 1 block, 10 minutes break and then the last block. Don't worry as question stems were comparable to the questions you see on UWorld.

For the assessments:

NBME 1. 255 - 4 months before exams NBME 4: 260 - 3 months before exam NBME 7: 269 - 2 months before exam NBME 6: 267 - 45 days before exam UWSA 2: 246 - 40 days before exam- had time issue and left 12 questions un-attempted

Prep duration: 9 months (4-6 hours study in first 6 months, 10-12 hours in last 3 months)

But in the Real Exam I got a score of 263!

Final advice:

1. Step 3 UWorld helps if you have time to solve it 2. Do as many questions you can, as practice helps you save time on real exam. 3. Notes very beneficial in last days 4. Focus on understanding preventive medicine as you will have a good number showing up in your exam 5. Don’t memorize everything as exam questions are usually very general and diverse.