<p>And driving the route the day before will let you know if there is any road construction / route detour that will add a lot of travel time.
D scheduled great vacations right after Step 1 and Step 2. After Step 3 she will go right back to the hospital…</p>
<p>I only remember what curm said. The rest is lost. D. had a plan and took longer than normal. I believe that she took 7.5 weeks. She said that it was important for her to have scheduled whole day breaks. On a normal study day, she studied for 14 hours. Her break on those “study” days was moving from the library to the Starbucks to study. She considered studying at Starbucks her break. She does not know any other way but working hard. She was happy with her results. Not everybody in her class were happy eith their results. As usual, I would suggest to develop your personal plan based on YOUR PERSONAL preferences and stick to it. D. usually uses others’ suggestions only after she adjust them to her needs. Keep in mind that everybody is very different. Some are fast readers, others are slower. The goal for a certain score is also different. Many other factors are different.<br>
But curm’s suggestion is great and applies to everybody.</p>
<p>I took mine last summer (almost exactly 3yrs after MCAT) and didn’t have any problem with noise. There were 2 other med students there, 1 taking step 1 and the other taking COMLEX. I had earplugs and added the headphones and it was no big deal.</p>
<p>If she gets distracted by other test takers, it may be possible to reassign computer stations so she should definitely check. And not to freak you out, but just to make you aware, a friend of mine’s prometric center lost power in a freak summer storm which meant she lost her test–they didn’t have a backup generator (can you believe that?). So, if the forecast looks a little shady, you might ask if there are generators!</p>
<p>^Kristin–eek!</p>
<p>so what happens if something terrible like that happens? can you take it the next day or do you have to wait and cry</p>
<p>One of D’s friends had a computer problem when taking Step 1. I don’t remember exactly what happened, but after a certain amount of time trying to correct it, he was sent home. He was going on vacation the next day, so he had to reschedule his test about three weeks out. It worked out well in the end - he was happy with his results and he ended up matching at his first choice. D finished Step 3 today - it takes two full days. Back to work tomorrow.</p>
<p>Congrats to your D. on finishing Step 3, hrh!<br>
it will never end…
I cannot imagine the devastation of not finishing exam before vacation. My D’s vacation would be ruined. But guys are different, they manage to stay cool, girls sometime have hard time doing that.</p>
<p>Well, I’m feeling more reassured that DD is doing everything she can to control what she can–good study plan, planning a practice test later this week that will include “practicing” her breaks/snacks/bathroom trips, has a test drive scheduled to the site. Now, I’m trying not to worry about the things she can’t control–power failures, noisy fellow students, family crises. It is probably a good thing that she is 1500 miles away so I can’t hover, but I wish I could cook dinner for her.</p>
<p>When is this test taken? Nephew is a second year med student and spoke about step 1 over the holiday. Said it was the key to getting the residency he wants. Believe he is going to take it this summer. Why do some take it in the winter and others in the summer?</p>
<p>Step 1 can be taken at any time. I do not think that one can apply to residency without the Step 1 score. But many apply without Step 2 score. In fact, my D. might be applying before she has her Step 2 score. She belives that some rotations are more important to have on her application than her Step 2 score, so she will focus on them.</p>
<p>STEP 1 is the first of 3 required USMLE licensing exams that medical students take. STEP 1 is taken at the end of the 2nd year of medical school. The varibility reflects the varying lengths of the second year of the program at different schools as well as different personal preferences w/r/t the timing. Students need to take STEP 1 before the beginning of the clinical portion of their training. (Not because there’s any requirement exactly–just because once they begin clinical training, students don’t have time to study for the exam which is long, exhaustingly thorough and academically demanding.)</p>
<p>A student’s score on STEP 1 (and for some residency programs/specialties STEP 2) has a major impact in his/her ability to match into certain specialties. Or to match at all.</p>
<p>My kid just got her Step2 CS score in so…another hurdle successfully jumped.</p>
<p>congratulations to Ms. Jabbar.</p>
<p>^Congrats, curm. to you and your D.
It was funny when H. yesterday just realized that they will apply to residency in less than a year. Expression on his face was priceless, it just hit him…I still remember like yesterday going thru troubles choosing the HS and clearly remember unloading her things on the lawn in front of the college dorm. Unbelievable!</p>
<p>My son was required to have taken Step 1 before he could start third year rotations. Although he had taken Step 2, he hadnt received Step 2 score when he applied to residencies. Although some residencies require a Step 2 score before offering an interview, I think most residencies will only require a Step 2 score for ranking purposes. S thought it was important to have completed acting/sub internship before he applied to residency. S took Step 3 last week and is awaiting score.</p>
<p>The need for a step 2 score in residency applications varies by specialty, all want the score to rank the applicant, some want it by the interview, but others won’t even invite the student for an interview until they have that Step 2 score.</p>
<p>Wowmom:
If you think it is long and exhausting to study for Step 1 with clinical rotations going on, wait until D gets to the two day Step 3. First of all, there is really no dedicated study time. You go to work, come home and on nights or weekends try to study. That assumes you’re on a normal day schedule and have evenings free or a day off during the weekend. It becomes harder to prep for Step 3 when you’re working nights from approx. 6PM to 6AM and have your circadian rhythm all messed up. In the two weeks prior to Step 3, S’s schedule included working days at a clinic (8:30AM -5PM) and the two weekends before he took Step 3, he worked at hospital on both Friday and Saturday nights from 6PM to 6AM. He then took test on the Monday/Tuesday after the weekend at the hospital. He feels confident he passed but the experience was quite stressful/exhausting.</p>
<p>I just reread my last post and realized that the best part of it was when I referenced that my S was actually working (as an MD). For all parents out there with a kid(s) in med school, be patient, your kids (and you) will survive the process intact and get to the same point more quickly than you realize.</p>
<p>Jugulator, I hope the old saying is true regarding Step preparations!</p>
<p>Step 1 two months
Step 2 two weeks
Step 3 #2 pencil</p>
<p>Somemom,</p>
<p>Overall I agree with this old saying, but it depends on a student’s situation. Certainly S prepped most for Step 1. His prep time for Step 2 was much less, but as his Step 1 was score was very high, he didn’t want his Step 2 score to look to PDs as if he was blowing off Step 2 because of his Step 1 score. S indicated that Step 3 was primarily Step 2CK again. (Step 3 does have a clinical section that S described as like playing a video game??) Considering his Step 1 and 2 scores, however, I suspect his pride wouldn’t allow him to just sharpen #2 pencils in prep for the test. I think he did the best he could with time he could make. He spent the least amount of prep time on Step 3. Although important to pass Step 3, generally speaking, getting a big number on Step 3 is certainly not as important as Step 1 (or even Step 2) as it seems that just passing Step 3 gets someone an unrestricted med license.</p>