your road to USMLE

1. Dr. Mahmoud Majed Mansour

3. * Don’t jump between study resources
* Limit your study period as much as you can (i.e 6
months, after sixth year etc…)
* Don’t over study
* Don’t distract yourself with many resources, just study
Use assessments to evaluate yourself
* You are studying for your medical career

4.  Should you do it after 3rd year??
 Best time is before the October of 6th year
 It will help you get electives
 It will help you with your clinical rotations
 It will make room for you to do step 2 CK and CS during your
sixth year

5. 1. First Aid
2. Pathoma (videos)
3. Uworld question bank

6. * Back bone of your study
* Maps the information in your brain
* Covers every thing you need
* It’s growing year after year to include what you need
* Memorize it really well/understand everything in it
* Start with F.A as early as you can
* Look things up online, but don’t spend too much time on
that
* With Uworld and Pathoma you will master it
* Write notes on it efficiently

7. Depends on your preference
System based (most used method):
Less boring
Create better associations between topics
Goes well with your basic/clinical years
Subject based:
Appears less time consuming
Can become quite boring and exhausting

8. Fills in your knowledge gaps
Teaches you how to deal with questions and how to think with
clinical cases
Consolidates first aid (makes memorization easier)
Write down what you feel is important
Do it twice if you can
Random VS system based?
Offline VS online

9. Depending on where you are in your studying?
Depends on your preference
Each has its advantages
Final outcome is the same
For subject based studying: Make sure your do it random the
second time
For random based studying: You can skip the repeat if you
don’t have time.
Try to do the exam after 1-4 weeks from your final Uworld
study (To make sure the questions stay fresh in your mind)

10. The videos are extremely important
They make pathology a relatively easy subject
They Improve your way of thinking
Covers histology, and a bit of physiology
You don’t have to refer to the book (First Aid copied the
extra stuff)
Write notes efficiently

11. Do as much as you can from First Aid and Pathoma
with systems (2nd and 3rd year)
Will help you master the basic sciences
Will prepare you for clinical years

12. A lot of time on your hand especially 6th year
USMLE step 1 and 2 helps you with your clinical
rotations
Exams are only at the end of semester
Study at your own pace
Step 2 material is very similar to your clinical exams
during 4th, 5th, and 6th years

13. How important are they?

14. Is there a correlation?

16. First Aid covers what you need
Understand the concepts related to different disease
Becker videos (help you understand): you don’t have to write
many notes on First Aid (especially for biochemistry)
Master molecular biology and genetics (Tough questions target
those subjects)
Uworld will also enhance your understanding

17. Need to study it really well from First Aid once then it
becomes easier
Sketchy Micro videos make it more fun … Don’t write
notes
Uworld will fill the gaps and make you put things into
perspective

18. First Aid is enough. Study the tables and you will cover
everything you need for the exam
Pay special attention to mechanism of action and side effect of
drug
Kaplan videos are optional
Except for basic pharmacology: Autonomic nervous system and
pharmacokinetic and dynamics. You need to study them from
kaplan

19. 1. First Aid
2. Uworld

20. Many find it a tough, especially at first
Cummulative knowledge, learn the general principles
First Aid
Uworld
NBMEs
Khan cases: Medical ethics
Conrad Fisher 100 cases

21. First Aid: memorize and understand it
Uworld biostat review

22. 1. First Aid
2. Uworld

24. 1. First Aid
2. Pathoma videos
3. Uworld

25. First Aid: Make sure you really understand it
Uworld
Look things up (Don’t spent too much time on that)
Use BRS if still in doubt

26. 1. First Aid
2. Uworld

27. 1. First Aid
2. Uworld
3. Pathoma (For histology)

29. Tells you if you are ready
Helps you with time management
Analyze your mistakes, adjust your thinking and studying
accordingly
Exam questions are a bit longer
NBMES (19,18,17,16, 15): Accurate assessments:
Do at least two Uworld Self Assessment: Not accurate (over
predict)

30. Make a plan and study!
Stay focused especially last 1-2 months
Don’t distract yourself with resources … Remember First Aid and
Uworld are enough
How you deal with questions is very important. Work on that
skill.
Self assessments will tell you where you are … Don’t overstudy

32. Uworld is your main source
You can start by reading Master the Boards book or Kaplan books
or any other resource you feel comfortable with
Print Uworld tables
Do it as early as you can after step 1 (You can allow room for Step
2CS)
Subjects are very similar to clinical years (Medicine, peds,
gynecology, surgery, neurology, psychiatry, biostatistics)

33. Main resource for step 2
Tables cover most topics (master them)
Questions improve your “clinical sense” and focus on
most important topics
There’s a file that contains all tables categorized by
system
Good Uworld offline copy (Arranged by system)

34. Good quality questions
Divided into:
Medicine, pediatrics, gynecology, psychiatry, and
neurology
Written by people who write the exam
Do it after you are done with Uworld

35. UWSA 1 and UWSA 2 only
They are quite predictive
Keep them with 2-4 weeks before the exam
Practice timing (especially UWSA 2)
NBME 8 is not bad (If you have extra time and want to do
one more assessment)
NBME 6 is too easy
NBME 7 has many bad questions

36. VS step 1
Question are longer
Time is much tighter
Many unsure questions

38. Do it during your elective, don’t hesitate
Be well prepared!!
Do electives! US clinical experience is very important for
your match

40. Do it during or before your interviews
Material is very similar to step 2
You only need Uworld step 3
Score is not that important
Allows you to get H1 visa (If programs support it)

42. Dr. Mahmoud Majed Mansour