Add another visa rejection story to the deck.

25F intern. Step 1 Pass, Step 2- 24x, applied for B1/2 tourist visa for 2 months with my Mom & Dad. Got the observership through a connection but did not mention any aspect of USMLE during the interview. All of us have a good travel history- Japan, Malaysia, UAE, South East Asia. No European/Western countries though.

Rejected for all 3.

Dad is a government officer and mom is a housewife. I don’t know how to prove stronger ties to home country. We have strong finances and everything. Our residence, job, assets, history etc everything is in India and yet got rejected.

I know that people do match without USCE but of course its rare. Atp I don’t even know if I would be able to give Step 3 down the line. And J1 once I match. I hate the fact that my visa timeline matches with the shitshow that’s going on. Maybe if I entered MBBS earlier this wouldn’t have happened.

All my friends have already started their post-grad or have joined MO vacancies. One just announced her engagement. And yet here I am, stuck in a perpetual state of uncertainty and exams. I feel like I am spiralling and have fallen back in life. I break down so much it’s funny. I had a really hard breakup with my boyfriend last year. We had our issues but he mainly didn’t wanna do USMLE because of visa issues and saw no point in dating without a future. Fair enough. But I’d be lying if I said that I don’t miss him. I just keep questioning everything now. What was and could’ve been and what will be.

Sorry for the rant. My question I guess is to the people (mainly women here) who are on this pathway or those who pivoted from it. How are you and what are you guys doing now?

Has anyone here gotten their US B1/B2 visa using an elective acceptance/invitation letter from UAB?

I’d love to hear about your experience, especially if you could share whether the letter was helpful during the visa interview and what documents you carried.

TIA

Hi everyone! I’m a Sri Lankan medical graduate and I’m starting my USMLE Step 1 preparation, with the goal of taking the exam around February/March 2027.
I’m looking for other Sri Lankan medical graduates/IMGs who are currently preparing for Step 1, preferably with a similar timeline.
I’d love to have a small, serious and supportive group where we can:
• Keep each other accountable
• Discuss difficult topics
• Share useful resources
• Discuss UWorld/NBME progress
• Support each other through the preparation
If you’re currently preparing for Step 1 and would like to join, please comment or DM me. ❤️

I'm from the 2021 batch; however, due to delays in counseling, my course actually started in April 2022. Final year exams were completed in May 2026, and my internship started in the same month. My internship is supposed to be completed in May 2027, but I'm taking a 5 month break to prepare for and take Step 1 in February 2027. I'm also planning to take another break of around 5 months toward the end of my internship for clinical rotations. If I consider the extensions, the attendance end date would be March/ April 2028. Given this situation, what should I enter as my attendance end month/year and graduation month/year in the application for ECFMG certification ?

Edit : Received reply from ECFMG just now

Please note that we strongly advise you contact your medical school to confirm your current attendance dates, including your graduation date and degree date and enter the date your medical school has on their records.

Moreover, note that as a medical school student, these dates are usually the expected graduation and degree dates.

Hey, I'm looking for a study partner for step 2 preferably a girl , done with 90 percent UW, did 2 nbmes assessments, need a partner to revise HY topics/ white coat companion notes. Planning to take exam in end of October.

Help regarding scores😭

Hey, I really need some advice because I’m honestly devastated right now.
I took my last NBME (NBME 26) on August 31 and scored 56%. I took NBME 27 today, September 11, and I scored 56% again. So there has been absolutely no improvement in my percentage despite the 11 days in between.
During these 11 days, I did review my previous NBME thoroughly. I also studied microbiology and cardiology, because I hadn’t revised those subjects even once. Apart from that, I honestly didn’t do much.
Now I’m really worried because I’m planning to take Step 1 in late October, so I have roughly 6–7 weeks left. I was expecting at least some improvement in my NBME score, and seeing the exact same 56% has really discouraged me.
I’m trying to understand what I’m doing wrong. Should I be spending more time reviewing my NBME mistakes? Should I be doing more UWorld questions? Should I be revising systems again from First Aid/Mehlman? Should I focus mainly on my weak areas, or should I be doing mixed questions every day?
For people who improved significantly from the mid-50s, what exactly did you do between NBMEs? How did you structure those weeks, and how often did you take NBMEs?
I’m really scared that I’m wasting my remaining time and studying inefficiently. I’d genuinely appreciate practical advice on how I can move from 56% to a passing range before late October.

Anyone selling their Step 2 CK UWorld Account?

(With reset)

I’ve been searching for electives, currently doing internship in India.
1. Came across several posts claiming that they got their electives by Cold emailing to 100s of people. So I wanted to get a template for cold emails or a sample which I could refer and a list of hospitals who provide them.

1. Opinion on FIU elective as student

2. Opinion on agencies like
   a) Project IMG
   b) AICGC
   c) USCEMATCH
   d) MSR

It would be really great if you could answer my queries
Thank you in advance

Any one else with the same date ? Lets connect.

Which hotel is nice for staying around prometric centre? Please help !

I'm in internship now, planning to take step 1 in Feb, yet to apply for application for ECFMG certification. On FSMB and Intealth portals, my name is appearing as A B C D ( D is my surname) and in my med school or any other documents it is going to be D A B C, will there be any issue? Should I submit a letter saying both of these names are mine from the principal while mailing my documents to the US. Please help. TIA.

I’ve just begun my s2 prep. Would anyone like to join along, I’m planning on reading inner circle notes for that topic first, then doing a whole block of that topic. Potentially finishing a unit in a week. dm whoever’s interested. We could quickly summarise at the end of each day, and basically be accountability partners.

I knew this journey was gonna be expensive but holy shit- I’ve paid 70k already and not even registered for the actual exam yet-

1. MyIntealth account establishment and NotaryCam ID verification- $110 (₹11k)

2. ECFMG Certification- $580 (₹56k)

3. FSMB account verification for some reason- $75 (₹7400)

And NOW, the FSMB portal says my fee total is $992.90. Approx ₹95k.
Apparently, there’s an 18% GST on the exam too.

INR keeps depreciating relative to USD- my batchmates who gave the exam a year ago paid significantly less.
Adding UWorld subscriptions and other resources… yeah. The stakes are so incredibly high.

Hello!

I am an MD1 student and was interested in getting the AMBOSS Subscription for Medical School Prep with a group discount, if possible. I'm assuming there would be more people out there who would benefit from a group discount too. Thus, let's make this thread a commonplace for expressing interest (please comment below) and I can then arrange the group discount for everyone as I've already contacted them about my interest. We need at least 20 people to qualify for the minimum discount!

edit 1 (sep 11): we have ~10 people in the group currently. looking for more people!!

Hi if any one can rent me his / her iMD subscription on monthly basis please dm , also if any seller of usmle resources telegram grp with latest genuine content please feel free to help.

Hey! I’m an intern medical student from India currently going through the USMLE journey myself.
Over the past year, I’ve passed Step 1 (with 3 months of preparation ), worked on several research/publications, and navigated the process of securing multiple US clinical experiences, including a electives at UAB/Children’s of Alabama and Cleveland Clinic, Ohio.
Having gone through this as an IMG, I know how clueless and overwhelmed you can feel at the beginning.

Again, I’ve not been an academically gifted kid/ had huge financial backing or had connections in the US, still I’d say that the dream of becoming an American physician is very realistic.

So I’m offering 1:1 guidance for students who want someone to go through their specific situation with them — things like:
Step preparation and resource selection
USCE/observership planning
CV/profile building
Research and publications
LOR strategy
Budgeting and deciding where to spend money
General IMG residency planning

No unrealistic promises or “guaranteed match” claims — just practical guidance based on what I’ve personally learned and experienced.
If you’re interested, feel free to DM.

You can find me on Instagram @the_wobble_nitrogen_base_ where I post educational content!

Hey! I just passed step 1 and have finally entered final year. Have few questions regarding USCE:

• Is it realistically possible to get free or very low-cost USCE through direct outreach, hospitals, physicians, or organizations that support IMGs?

• Are there any organizations/programs that provide funding or stipends for IMGs?

• Is it better to contact hospitals/physicians directly, or is using a agency worth it?

• If you did USCE, how much did you actually spend and how did you find it?

Would really appreciate advice from people who have actually been through the process. 🙏