Yesterday 10/01/14 since 6 am I was checking my email like crazy, every 2 minutes. From 9 to 10:10 am I had an appointment and I couldn't check. At 10:15 am. the feared email was there!!! I opened OASIS with my mouth dry and with palpitations (without telling my husband anything). First thing I saw was a message in red letters: you have meet the qualifications to be ECFMG certified. My poor husband almost had a heart attack with all my screaming hahahahaha. Then I looked at my score :235. Nothing impressive, but with all the comments on this forum about the test and my own experience on 9/11 when I sat for it I was really scared about he outcome.
Step 2 CK is a test that leave you with a feeling that you maybe failed. I only recall 2 short questions but all the others where super long vignettes. Concepts from UWorld and Kaplan Q bank, but ways longer than the questions you have on both banks ( and QBank vignettes are long). A lot of questions that are pure Step 1. I didn't have time left at the end of the blocks (with Step 1 I had like 3-5 minutes left).
But, finally I passed and got ECFMG certified.
Step 3: Here I come!!!!!

congratulations i have few questions : did you do nbme"s
i just did nbme 7 and good=430 correlates to 223
what do you think
edited by on 10/2/2014

I just did form 4 (225) 1 month before the test. I kept doing banks from 9am to 9pm with a lunch break. I did uworld assessment 2 days before the test and I go 242. I heard NBME 7 is more difficult and also similar to the real test. I didn't because lack of time
I also did the practice material for CK on the USMLE website.
I think you are on the correct track.
Good luck

Hello, congrats and thank your for sharing.
When you say:¨I kept doing banks from 9am to 9pm with a lunch break¨.
a) How many days did you do that?
b) Which form: Random, by subject, 44 Qs each, timed, tutor, etc? Please let me know
c) Did you take notes from UW QBank or just read it?
Thank you in advance for the 3 answers and my best wishes for you next step!
edited by on 10/2/2014

Hi. I did banks in that way for 2 months. Two banks a day (44 questions each). Time tutor mode, mixed questions, unused. It worked for me on Step 1, so I did it again for CK. I reviewed the explanation very well for all the questions, no only the wrong ones and check with Kaplan main books when not sure and also some in MTB 2 and 3 (not much info in my opinion on MTB). I extended my membership for 2 more weeks to finish with my incorrect and do more random banks timed before the test. When traveling on the train I did Kaplan Q bank also, time tutor mode. Few questions in your spare time is better than none.
Good luck!!!

Congratulations.

I have a couple of questions if you dont' mind.

1) Can you please tell the total time you studied for this CK exam (how many months)?

2) So you only used uworld qbank and kaplan qbank for this exam?

3) did u read kaplan books fully or just used them as reference along with qbanks?

thanks and all the best with Step 3.

Hi!
Total of serious, more dedicated study it was like 4 months. Before that I was scheduled to work 40 hours/week, every week and I did my best reading here and there in my short "free" time and I read Kaplan book along with the videos. I went fast on that material except Internal Medicine and for this I took more time (like over a month, including 1 Cramathon session I went on 6/16 from 9 am to 9 pm with Dr. Fisher in Touros College, where he reviewed a lot and shattered our brains hahahaha)

UWorld and Kaplan banks were my practice and active learning source for 2 months (2 banks of 44 questions of UWorld and 1 of Kaplan, mixed questions, unused, time tutor mode). I renewed my UWorld for 2 more weeks to do incorrect and random blocks, timed, but my test was 2 days before the expiration date (Kaplan bank is still active until November). UWorld concepts are on the real test, but the questions are way short compared to the exam. Kaplan bank is though and questions are long, but the exam questions are even longer (and Kaplan bank was updated during this year, so, it is not outdated anymore). In my opinion, with a combination of both, you will be in good shape. Oh, I also won a 1 year subscription of WSMLE Rx bank and did like 4 simulated 4 hour tests. I didn't finished that bank (I am only a human being hahahaha) but it was extra help.
I am kind of OCP with the questions thing and I used every time I had (train, waiting for my kids, etc.) to do at least few question on my phone.

Since I passed fast over Kaplan books (except IM), I used them as complement in the topics I really need to check more and when the MTB 2 or 3 don't have enough (like Peds, OB-Gyn, Psych, etc)

Also, but not all the time I watched some Dr. Najeeb lectures videos. This was a great source for my Step 1 and let me tell you, Step 2 CK exam has A LOT of material from Step 1. And Step 3 is on that direction too (Step 1 is like a ghost following us)

I wish you all the best

Hi..
Congratulations for that high score..it's really a decent score given the fact that many are failing nowadays!Could you please let us know has the exam changed in terms of difficulty? My exam is scheduled in the last week of October, I wonder if you could let me go through Kaplan Qbank until my exam at least.

Hi

My score is what I call a "decent" one hahaha. So, we agree. Although after the test day (when you don't know what to expect) and closer to the score release day I just asked God to pass lol.

It has a lot of concepts of Step 1. They are asking for mechanisms of actions. Some friends of mine agree on that point. I forgot to mention before to have your First Aid from step 1 as a source of reference while doing banks (and your notes from step 1). I also had Step 2 First Aid and it's a good source, but I didn't had time left to go over it completely.

In what is related with step 2 you have to be clear in what they are asking: best initial diagnosis, best next step, best test (plain, that means "gold standard"), or best initial test (not necessarily the gold standard and something that simple like: perform a physical exam, or a urinalysis, etc) You have to be clear on that while doing banks.

Be sure that you have at least 10 minutes left doing your UWorld bank, because the test is really SUPER LONGER than the banks; even longer than Kaplan Qbank. 90% of the vignettes (if not more) are LONGER than our practice vignettes.

The best in your test

Hi there

you mentioned that u attended the cramathon by Dr.Fischer. I'm planning to attend the same .I'd like to know if it was useful