Reddit Step 1 How Often to Review Sketchy Videos

Hi all,

I accept been a loyal reddit user for many years merely never really contributed annihilation. r/medicalschool and r/step1 take helped me through many of the difficult times I encountered throughout med school. Now, as graduation is approaching, I want to give back to this customs. Hopefully, this mail might help someone as they approach the Pace 1 report procedure.

*Hard data toward the bottom of this mail service*

Background (my approach to the first 2 years):

My school takes Step 1 subsequently M2 yr. Our grade average is in the mid-230's. Throughout our curriculum, my scores were anywhere from average to around 1 standard departure higher up the hateful.
I approached the first ii years more often than not past watching lectures from domicile at i.5x to 2x speed and taking notes on the slides in Evernote. I would and then review everything at a quicker pace over the weekend and move on with my life.
Full disclosure - I'm not a big flashcard guy. I fabricated a few decks hither and there for lists of facts, but I never really jived with merely hammering out recall in a vacuum.
I did all the Pathoma content synchronously with our internal curriculum. I watched the videos and made some annotations in the booklet. By the cease of M1 year, I was getting through Commencement Aid equally well for each block of content. Nothing hardcore, just just trying to supplement my knowledge and become exposure to more facts and a different style of explaining the same topic.
*This one was huge for me* A few months before starting dedicated studying, I began to transition the leadership of the clubs I was leading and wrap up a enquiry project I was working on. The goal was to not accept any other shenanigans get in the way of focusing the way I knew I needed to. Would highly recommend this.

Planning (and information drove for you guys):

I had talked to many upperclassmen and read in this community near some common pitfalls. Other than non taking it seriously enough from the start (if y'all're reading this, I don't recollect you're in that category), two of the large ones were 1) declining to brand a skillful plan and ii) making a study plan that was too rigid. I wanted to try to become ahead of those things.
I institute and used a gratis online project direction software called Asana. This was HUGE. Information technology allowed me to add together my study resources (FA, Pathoma, Sketchy, etc.) as "projects" and and so schedule time to practice each of them over a period of time. I used the free version. This helped me address the above two pitfalls. I could exist very organized, but if something took longer or shorter than expected, I could easily click and drag the "project" and stay on runway for completion. Look into it. Seriously.
*This part is unnecessary* I also integrated Harvest time tracker with Asana. This allowed me to runway exactly how much fourth dimension I was spending with each resources. The output from this tracking is part of the information below. I was very strict with my tracking. If I answered a text, peed, got a potable of water, etc. I would stop the tracker. This kept me honest with myself and exactly how much work I was doing. I had also always planned to brand this mail and now it's actually happening!

Resources (and how I used them):

UWORLD
- The holy grail. A gift from the heavens. This is the gold ticket right here, people. This is honestly your main resource and information technology should have around v-6h every morning to become through two blocks.
- Most chiefly, I need to get this out of the fashion: Y'all SHOULD ONLY BE DOING RANDOM UWORLD BLOCKS Considering Pace 1 IS RANDOM. Reluctance to accept this reality volition upshot in an bogus confidence and inflation in your exercise scores. Sure, you're good at cardiology after studying information technology all morn and then doing a block of merely cardiology today. But how much practise you really know when the review is less fresh in your heed?
- The beginning thing I did nearly every solar day was two blocks of UWORLD, random, and timed (and non on tutor manner). Practice how you play. This will take you exactly 1h per block. Reviewing takes even longer than that if yous're actually reading through the content. This resources is incredible. Don't allow a single line of text get past you without trying to soak up the noesis within.
- After you lot go through every question twice, beginning doing blocks of missed questions. I originally ready out to too do my flagged questions, but realized that I would be relative likely to make the same lucky guess I made the starting time fourth dimension, so I aborted this plan.
First Assist
- You hate it or you honey it, but you gotta grind it out. There are many pearls in these pages and y'all never know what will evidence up on exam day.
- Give information technology ii passes. Pass one take lots. of. skilful. notes. in the margins. Endeavor to add together anything yous've seen from UWORLD to the relevant sections, too, but don't let this slow you down too much. Pass two go a little faster but spend time on your weaker areas. At that signal, yous'll know where yous're weak.
- FA pharm section is useless to me. Instead, I did the corresponding Sketchy Pharm sections.
Sketchy Pharm
- Buy the notebook. Sometimes there's a waitlist. Get on it.
- After every section of FA, exercise the corresponding sketchy videos. Accept tons of good notes in the notebook. This is time consuming, but worth it. Pharm is a you-know-it-or-you lot-don't kind of thing. Take the time to know it.
- THAT PDF WITH NOTES ALREADY Fabricated DOES NOT Supersede THIS Report TACTIC. At that place's something most writing your own notes that solidifies your noesis, particularly when your spatial memory is activated.
- If you take proficient notes, you lot will never need to lookout the videos once more. A 20min video becomes a 2min review.
Sketchy Micro
- Similar to above, buy the notebook and take notes when you're reviewing micro.
- I pretty much didn't utilise the FA micro department, because this was superior.
Pathoma
- This besides deserves two good passes through. The get-go time, I went through and took notes. The 2d time, I only used the notes that I had previously fabricated without the videos
- I also did another laissez passer, which was 3x speed of videos only. This is not necessary. I basically drank a pot of coffee and glued myself to my reckoner for a day. This choice was mostly fueled by anxiety leading up to test day.

Getting started

Earlier you brand any sort of study plan, accept your first CBSSA ("NBME" as they're often chosen). Take this first ane seriously, just don't pre-study for information technology. Yous demand a practiced baseline assessment of what you do and don't know.
Once you have your results, make a targeted study plan. Focus first on your weaknesses with one caveat (side by side bullet).
Start with Psychiatry! So many people start with Biochem and it'south a bear. Information technology's difficult and not that loftier yield honestly. Psychiatry is an easy win. Know the basic DSM criteria and Blast instant actress few points every UWORLD block. After that, experience complimentary to do biochem.
Use the CBSSA percentile confined and Asana to assistance you lot develop your weakness-targeted written report schedule on a daily/weekly footing. And then information technology'due south off to the races!

An average day

Ever do UWORLD first. And like I mentioned before, information technology should exist timed, random, test mode from twenty-four hour period 1. Your mind is the freshest and this is the almost important resources. Give it everything you lot've got. Also, never delay the review of a UWORLD block. You volition not spend the fourth dimension you should be spending on it.
Turn your telephone off. Get off social media. Y'all only become one shot at this.

wake up, work out, eat solid breakfast

0730 - 0830 UWORLD block ane

0830 - 1000 review block i

intermission, snack

1015 - 1115 UWORLD block 2

1115 - 1245 review block 2

lunch, sentry mindless Youtube

1315 - 1615 First Aid or Pathoma

intermission

1630 - 1830 Sketchy Pharm

make, consume dinner, call mom, walk your dog

2030 - Reasonable bedtime

My data (your mileage may vary)