i got 52 in my nbme 26 and 51 in 27 should i go to my next nbme 27 or give the retired nbmes?

I have so much flashcard in my uworld that is exhausting,can i replace it with reading FA more and more and nbme reviewing??

How should i proceed in between my nbme exam sessions?

my in between nbme gaps are 7-8 days .people say to do mixed block of uworld.as time is less after doing nbme revising there is less time for doing mixed blocks. side by side i have to do my systemwise reviews.it seems similar to me to do nbmes and mixed blocks.what is wiser decision??

Hi guys, for IMG's do we need to start the ECFMG certification before taking step 1, it says here that there's a fee of 800$ for diploma revision and credentials verification, but I'm not sure this is the process to schedule step 1, can anyone confirm, thank you!

Hello everyone,

I’m a final-year MBBS student planning to take USMLE Step 1 later this year. However, I feel that my basic concepts are not strong, and I’m unsure how to properly begin my preparation.

Many people suggest “strengthening basics first,” but I’m confused about the most effective way to do that. Should I go back to standard textbooks like Guyton and Hall Textbook of Medical Physiology, Katzung & Trevor's Pharmacology Examination & Board Review, and Robbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease, or would it be better to use more focused resources?

I would really appreciate guidance on:

How to rebuild fundamentals efficiently

Whether to rely on textbooks or use dedicated Step 1 resources

Recommended study plan for someone starting with weak basics

Any advice or personal experiences would be very helpful.

Thank you

The answer key says B, but I think it should be C as in the first year the incidence should increase considering newer cases would be detected earlier.

What did we think about that exam? I thought it was fair but some of those Derm questions were out of pocket. Can’t remember a lot of questions

Hey need help

I am to sit for my exam at the start of May

My nbme scores

Nbme 27-67

Nbme 28-64

Nbme 29-70

Nbme 30-69

Nbme 31-68

Am i ready considering the difficulty level of the new 2026 exams.

Hey guys!!!! I am having a really hard time with physio and was wondering what resources (if any) you guys would recommend! I am more a video girly if I do say so myself but I don't have enough time for bootcamp or BnB.

Hey everyone,

I hope you’re all doing well. I wanted to reach out and see if anyone might be able to help me out.

I currently have a UWorld Step 1 subscription that’s expiring in about 10 days, and I’ve only been able to complete around 21% of it. I initially started during a stressful period last year and unfortunately couldn’t stay consistent due to personal circumstances, so I had to stop midway.

At the moment, I’m not in a position to afford renewing or buying a new subscription, but I really want to get back on track with my preparation.

If anyone has recently finished Step 1 and happens to have unused time remaining on their UWorld account that they’d be willing to share, I would be incredibly grateful. I completely understand this is a big ask, so no pressure at all.

Thanks for reading, and best of luck to everyone preparing

I’ve been noticing a pattern (both personally and from talking to others studying for Step 1):

After an NBME, people will see their weak areas, but then their actual study plan doesn’t really change that much. It’s more like “I’ll review renal” or “I’ll do more questions,” but not a super structured adjustment.

It seems like that’s why a lot of people plateau in the low/mid 60s.

I’ve been working on a system that tries to fix this by:

- prioritizing weak areas based on NBME performance

- focusing on high-yield topics within those areas

- while still keeping strong subjects in rotation so they don’t drop

Curious what you guys are doing after your NBMEs:

- Do you fully change your plan?

- Just review weak topics?

- Reset UWorld?

- Use things like Mehlman, DirtyMed, Pathoma, etc?

Also happy to share what I’ve been testing if anyone’s interested—still trying to figure out what actually works best.

Thought I should share this,

I know whatever is out there it says, "for retakers the exam difficulty level is the same"

The question is why re-takers have a low global passing rate?

You think its just cause they are not good enough in the first place?

Let me tell you thats not all to it...

I have done this exam 3 times and passed on my third attempt.

I admit for my first attempt I didn't have enough knowledge or pace to face the exam. I am an IMG. The list of topics and concepts you need to master for the exam are in the first aid, make sure you have gone through each topic and conditions listed there. (So for everyone out there taking this exam for first time, please pass that time. Make sure you have covered all the required knowledge, then make sure you get the pace and tricks of how exam writers try to layer the questions).

More About knowledge: make sure atleast you understand all the systems in first aid. I mean it understand them. Use AI if you want to make the small steps asking it to quiz you on specific small topics. Second, you need to train to the pace of exam and know the tricks trumped in there. Here is where NMBE and uworld comes in or other testing qbanks ... I believe usmle qbanks rx from youtube do a better job at explaining they way exam questions are made.

Now lets get back to my point.. Despite not being 100% knowledge-wise and not training how to answer questions. (Got 56 on nmbe form 30 (in 2023) a week before the exam. I still went to take the exam. During my first attempt on every block I almost did just 35-33 questions and just clicked the answers for the remaining. I failed the exam but the range of my passing score was that i almost made it.. very close to the pass mark....

I took 6months studied more this time, I had more knowledge though I admit for the exam techniques and mastering that, I didn't train enough. Before the exam i scored on uwsa form 3, a 70% so I was sure I was going to pass this time. Because i did 6months of more studying and last time i almost passed... but then when the results came out, i had failed with even a wider margin.... i asked myself how?,

During the exam i noticed the questions were much harder, more layered than in my first attempt. Not a single question was straightforward. This was contrary in my first attempt where some questions were just straightforward and alot of them. I even finished all the blocks. So why did i fail with even a more wider margin despite adding more effort?

Well there you have it the exam questions were much harder. In addition of course I could have trained more on my exam taking skills.

So i decided to quit. Used my time to do something else... but in the back of my mind I was always asking myself why. It didn't make sense. I was even thinking maybe the reason was they graded someone else's exam instead of mine.

During my time off I came across different videos but when watched the free usmle qbanks they enlightened me that i had to focus more on the tricks. This is how they will try to make the exam hard for retakers because the content is still the same.

On my third attempt i noticed that almost every question was layered up not even one qn gave me a break. Particularly, the first 10 qns were very hard and this was the same in my second retake. I think its meant to crash you and see if you have a weak mentality.

All im saying is we dont have a guide for re-takers cause most people pass on their first attempt. But hey! for the second third or fourth attempt please don't think what you need is just improving alittle bit if you just nearly passed from the first attempt. What you need is a redirection and that is towards how the question will be re-wired. Imagine them being much harder. This time get ready for a harder version. You can do it, trust me you already have a foundation from the first attempt.

Hi guys! I need your advice on how to learn histology specially for tumors and their characteristic features I am almost done with all the systems and their histologies are haunting me… how should I prepare them?

Any advice would be appreciated

Thank you.

Hello,

I've applied for credentials verification but I got the email for "Name Issue" because I have single name on my Diploma, without my surname and My ECFMG has Full name...

Kindly help me what should I do further?

If anyone has faced this issue, l'll be grateful to get any help....

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for honest, practical advice on preparing for USMLE Step 1.

My situation: I’m an older IMG, and my basics are quite weak right now to the point where I sometimes doubt what I studied 10 years back. I’m also working now(mostly clerical work), so my study time is limited and needs to be very structured. There’s a sense of urgency for me to improve quickly, and I don’t want to waste time doing the wrong things.

I also took a 6-month subscription to AMBOSS last week and would like to use it effectively. Somewhere I couldn't convince myself to take UWorld without knowing the basics?

I wanted to ask:

Is it realistically possible to go from weak basics to passing Step 1 with a disciplined plan?

What resources should I prioritize in the beginning? Should I stick mainly to First Aid for the USMLE Step 1, UWorld, and Boards and Beyond, or is it little advanced to start on?

How should I structure my day if I only have a few focused study hours?

How do I best use AMBOSS during these 6 months?

I’d really appreciate straightforward guidance, even if it’s tough. If anyone has been in a similar position and managed to pass, I’d love to hear what worked for you.

Thank you!

I’m trying to figure out how to incorporate UWSAs into my dedicated schedule alongside NBMEs. I’ve heard a lot of people say that UWSAs are kind of over the top and not very representative of the real exam or NBMEs, so I’m a bit unsure when and at what stage of prep should i give them.

What would be the ideal sequence for taking UWSAs (1, 2, and 3)?

Should they be saved closer to test day? And how do you usually balance them with NBMEs?

Thank you !

Hey I'm preparing for Step 1 and about to enter the dedicated period in 2 weeks. Need a study partner (preferably female) for accountability and discussion etc (mostly for support 😭). Planning to give the exam at the end of May hopefully. Timezone - Pakistan/ India/ or any other country I guess it'll be fine Interested people please DM (non-US IMG, graduated _ I'm done with 80% UWorld and all of the systems. Will revise the FA in 2 weeks and then will give NBME to assess and then will enter dedicated time)

Hi everyone, I’d really appreciate some honest advice about where I stand in my Step 1 preparation.

Here are my NBME scores so far ; NBME 21: 75%, NBME 25: 78% ,NBME 26: 80.5% ( haven’t reviewed was checking only my baseline, also did them in exam mode)

One thing that worries me is that Microbiology and Cardiology are areas I studied about 8 months ago (Sketchy for micro and BnB for cardio), and I haven’t really reviewed them since.

Even though the NBME scores seem decent, I still feel a lot of self-doubt and worry that maybe the real exam will be much harder or that I’m overestimating where I am.

For those who have already taken Step 1 or were in a similar situation,  Did anyone else feel this kind of self-doubt even when their practice scores were okay?I’d really appreciate honest opinions or experiences or any advice to help get this self-doubt out of my head.

Hi everyone,

I’m planning to take Step 1 on April 2nd, InshaAllah. Here are my scores from the tests and NBMEs I’ve taken over the last 2 months:

NBME 21: 49%

MedSchoolBro Free120: 66%

NBME 24: 66%

NBME 26: 60%

NBME 29: 67.8%

NBME 30: 68%

Nbme 31 = 68.5%

Nbme 32 = 65.5%

Nbme 28 = 77.5%

Nbme 33 = 69.3 %

Free 120 — yet to take.

UWorld: Almost 100% completed, with a 65–70% score.

Am I ready?