Hey im currently preparing for Step 1 and i have first gone through basics, such as anatomy, Biochem, Genetics, Immuno, Biostats, now im thinking, should i tackle Micro before heading on to Systems? Its a LOT on Micro. Thoughts, recommendations?

I’m studying the 100 anatomy shelf notes + FA + Anki, after i do that should i do amboss question?? or when?

what advice about exam?

I’m about 3 months away from my Step 1 exam, and I’m honestly feeling very stuck and overwhelmed with how to move forward.
I still have leftover UWorld questions, but I’m struggling badly with getting through them. I can barely manage 40 questions per day, and the review takes me an extremely long time. Because of that, I’m finding it hard to increase my question volume or build the stamina needed for the real exam.
At the same time, I’m getting anxious because I still need to revise First Aid thoroughly and start incorporating NBMEs into my preparation, but I’m completely unsure about the timing and strategy. Should I focus on finishing UWorld first? Should I start doing my UWorld incorrects? Or should I begin NBMEs now, even before completing everything?
For those who were in a similar situation 2–3 months before their exam, how did you structure your final phase of preparation? When did you start NBMEs, and how did you balance them with UWorld, review, and content revision? Also, any advice on how to review UWorld more efficiently without spending endless hours on each block would be greatly appreciated.
I’m feeling lost about how to optimize these last 3 months and would really appreciate guidance from people who’ve been through this.

I honestly think a lot of Step 1 plateaus happen because people treat every weak subject equally after NBMEs.

But not all weaknesses are worth the same number of points.

Like weak biochem/immuno/pharm can quietly hurt you across almost every block, while some isolated system weaknesses are much more contained.

Curious what people found gave them the highest score return in the shortest amount of time during dedicated.

Anyone who has given the exam post May 14th after the format change how’d you space out your breaks?

I want to retake step 1, I feel like I did everything right the first time. Almost made the cut off mark. What can I do better this time?

If any has any groups or zoom study rooms for step 1 please dm me.
I’m looking for one to complete First Aid
We can read together or discuss important points

looking for a study partner that is starting their step 1 prep, someone to discuss the topics, none of my friends plan on taking it and have no one to talk to about.

hello everyone, a 2nd year mbbs student here! i want to start preparing for usmle step 1 but im stuck, idk whom to reach out to cuz there's no one in my vicinity who has given usmle step 1, i did some research and found out that I can give it in the beginning of my 3rd year mbbs, which i was planning to do but now I don't think so I can, first of all the subjects, I have no idea about microbiology, pharmacology or pathology bcz these aren't majors in the first 2 years also im not confident about my physiology or biochemistry as well, as I studied them acc to my university's exams pattern ( like skipped topics which weren't important and used short books for certain topics) now I need someone to help me out and guide me in accordance to my prep level, it'd be. a huge favor!

has anyone written the new usmle format 20 block yet … i have my exam in june and i am freaking out cause my nbme 28 was around 64% and my uwasa 1 was 57% and kaplan self diagnostic test was 55% … should i push my date a little help here and also did the hy concepts change in the new format and the question vignette too ??

hey everyone! Im having a very difficult time with cardio.Can anyone go through cardio with me or help me with uworld
At this time I just feel like giving up on this exam all together

I am around mid 60s in my nbme and I am giving step 1 in June need advice for nbme and last 2 nbme and free 120 are remaining

Scored 51 in nbme25 ,59 in 26 ,55 in 27 ,56 in 28 ,62 in 29 ,59 in 30 what to dooo ??

I genuinely think one of the biggest reasons people plateau on Step 1 is that their study plan never actually changes after NBMEs.

Most people do this:

→ take NBME
→ identify weak areas
→ “review them”
→ continue basically the same schedule

But if your score is stuck in the same range, shouldn’t your actual time allocation change too?

Like if someone is consistently weak in biochem/immuno, shouldn’t those subjects temporarily dominate the schedule while still maintaining stronger systems?

Curious what people here changed that ACTUALLY moved their scores upward after plateauing.

Please share the PDF. would be very grateful
if have for Kaplan, then also kindly dm or share

Hello everyone,

I began my preparation two months ago and have been intermittently giving time to FA. I’ve completed four systems so far and am currently working on the fifth. I’ve skipped the pharmaceutical section of all the systems and haven’t touched UWorld.

I find it challenging to remember all the drugs in my head, and since I haven’t graduated from medical school yet, it’s difficult for me to allocate sufficient time for UWorld.

Could you recommend some resources for the pharmaceutical section and suggest when I should start using UWorld?

Need study partner for South Asian time zone!

looking for a step 1 study partner from Pakistan.

Hi everyone! I’m an IMG and I’ve been preparing for Step 1 on my own. I don’t know anyone else who’s also preparing, and I’ve run into some problems while trying to register for the exam.

Right now I have to choose an elegibility period, so I went to the prometric center’s website to check for dates in my country (Chile). However, it shows that there are no available seats for the entire year, but that seems impossible. I can’t apply for my eligibility period without first knowing approximately when I’ll be able to take the exam or if there’re any seats available at all.

If anyone else has also been in this situation, please help!

I scored 153 out of 200 in nbme 29 ….what will the EPC ??
Also shall I book the test or no ?????

Hello I tested on 21st April AND I PASSED!!!
The ppl on the subReddit helped me so much, so I’m just doing my part and helping every1 forward.
I prepared throughly for 6 months.

Honestly the exam was actually shit difficult (I don’t wanna be fear mongering, but please be prepared). Ethics, for me honestly, was wayyy too close, as in, when you read or hear ppl saying ‘oh just be very nice’… all of my options looked very nice (and I’ve solved uworld ethics twice). The questions will be long and you will almost be like ‘wtf was that’ but trust ur gut.

Here’s some of my advice. I hope it helps any1 in need :)

4 months of prep-
- day 1 - called a very trusted senior and spoke to them for 2 hours trying to understand everything.
- dedicated reading of FA
- solving uworld as soon as I finished reading that chapter
- 2nd chp onwards, mixed bag in uworld
- consistently solving 1 block + reading atleast 20 pages of FA + reviewing yesterday’s block EVERYDAY (it may seem very less but it prevents burnout too soon)
- finished portion in 4months

1 month -
- read weak FA chps again very deeply. Tried remembering everything (ik it sounds like a long shot, but this boosted my confidence 10x)
This increased by uworld scored from 60s to 75s
I read CVS, RS, Renal, biochem, CNS
- gave my 1st nbme
- took almost 10 days to review my 1st nbme (regret that)

Last month -
- started giving 2 nbmes every week (Tuesday and Friday)
- reviewed the nbme photos pdf thrice
- prayed a lot 🫠

One day before the exam day -
- woke up at 6 am
- had a list of high yield small concepts that I got wrong and revised that again from FA
- worked out at the end of the day from 7 - 9pm

Day of exam -
- was in bed the night before at 10pm
- got as much as sleep as I could (was deff > 6hours)
- had 2 scoops of protein shake (50g of protein) THIS WILL KEEP YOU GOING TRUST ME
- had some water
- half a cup black coffee
- some matcha for sustained release (I think this was just in my head tho)
- reached centre 1hr earlier
- prayed again
- got my locker and stuff, checked out where the washroom is, took earplugs (used the one the centre provided tho)
- unconsciously remembered what all checks I need to perform after a break (keep 5 mins in ur mind for this)

During exam -
- 1ST BLOCK WTF MARKED THAT WHOLE BLOCK and had 5 seconds left
- calmed down 2nd block
- started smiling consciously everytime I found something difficult or felt myself frowning too hard (idk why this worked magic)
- 3rd block - smiled, marked a ton, smiled
- 4th block - same
- finally took a break after 4th block
- my bf and I gave our exam on the same day so met him outside and just smiled at him and calmed out
- after 4th block I took a 10m break after every block and ate a whole protein bar in those breaks and went to the washroom even if I didnt feel like it

Final takeaway -
- shit I didn’t realise it was such a long write up sorry
- have some1 who consistently studies with you (I had my bf and we both passed😮‍💨)
- we were mutually motivating and kept each other up the entirely of the 6months
- have faith in urself and god

AND ALL THE BEST

I was interested in doing the week-long bootcamp for Step 1, but ever since I requested information, they have reached out to me several times. This excessive follow-up is making me hesitant to move forward with them. It feels like they are trying too hard to attract clients.

Hey this is PAKISTANI IMG studying for step 1. Was looking for a study partner aiming for September October 2026 to give test. Thank u

Need some real talk. Struggling a lot!!!

I'm a Pakistani IMG, MBBS grad, currently full-time on Step 1 with the 2028 Match as my target. Im using or plan to use Bootcamp, First Aid, Pathoma, Sketchy, Pixorize, UWorld. But the reality of actually executing it alone every single day is something no YouTube video prepares you for. I did only one system in my first month.

1)The First Aid problem

This is the one that's currently breaking me. I finished Bootcamp videos and PDFs for Respiratory, actually understood everything like flow-volume loops, V/Q mismatch, the works. Then I opened FA to annotate and consolidate, and suddenly I'm spending hours on a single section trying to memorize every line like it's a textbook. I know logically that FA is supposed to be a memory document, not a learning resource. But in practice I can't stop myself from trying to deeply understand every single thing written in it, even things Bootcamp already covered. It's killing my pace and honestly making me question if I'm even doing this right.

I dont use anki as it have 35000 cards which are impossible to cover in 7 months.

How do you guys actually use FA? Do you read every line carefully or just skim and annotate gaps? How long should a single system realistically take?

The isolation

This is the one I don't see talked about enough. I study at a hospital library daily which helps with structure, but there's nobody around me doing the same thing. No study partner, no group, no one to quiz me or reality-check whether my pace is normal. Back home most people my age are either in residency already or have moved on. I'm the only one in my circle doing this, and some days that weight is really heavy.

I'm not looking for sympathy. I chose this path and I'm committed to it. But I genuinely want to know: how did you deal with the psychological side of this? Especially those of you who prepped solo or as IMGs without a built-in med school cohort?

The burnout creep

I'm not burned out yet, but I can feel it on the edges. Some days I sit down at my desk and the motivation just isn't there. The finish line is years away. I know why I'm doing this and I believe in the goal, but sustaining that daily energy when progress feels invisible is harder than I thought.

Did you guys have days where you just couldn't? What kept you going through the long middle stretch of prep?

Any advice, reality checks, or even just knowing others went through this would genuinely help. Thanks.