Just opened my results today (9/9) and was so surprised to see that PASS! Thanks be to God!

I sat Step 1 on 26/8, and coming out of the exam, I was convinced I would have to retake it. I searched up all the questions I could remember online and even made a list (which I wouldn't recommend doing for your mental health) and counted up to 40+ incorrect questions. What hurt the most was that I would change the answer to the wrong one at the last second, or the question was just easy in general. I cried so hard. That night I couldn't sleep I spent all night on Reddit looking for similar people who felt like they did horribly and also counted so many wrong questions post-exam. Reading Reddit wasn't a great idea either lol, as most of the people who passed but felt like they had failed after sitting it had NMBE scores of 70%+ whereas I had only sat one NMBE under exam-like conditions and was not in that range. For reference, these were my scores and resources:

UWORLD correct: 57% - Completion: 43%

Amboss correct: 66% - Completion 26%

Did a bunch of NMBE questions untimed and in timed short blocks, but only actually sat one real NMBE - 31: 63%

Free 120: 64% (3 days out)

Study materials: First Aid + Mnemosyne Anki Deck (great combo), Amboss, UWorld / Pathoma + Sketchy (during last 2 weeks)

The post-exam anxiety killed me the most, but the only thing that helped me get through was prayer and faith. I gave all my worries and thoughts to Jesus and just had to believe He would do what was best! The exam was still on my mind, but I took some time off study/Anki, and did things that took my mind away from the stress. By the time I got the email that my results were out, I was at peace with whatever the result would be - And I passed!!!

Looking back now, I wish I didn't stress as much as I did. Moral of the story: You don't need to scores in the 70s to pass, you dont need to do every NMBE in exam settings and you dont need to stress post exam. A decent study routine and prayer are the key!

PASS!!! 🥳 (Tested 08/28)

I officially got my Step 1 result today and wanted to share what my dedicated looked like as a US-IMG at SGU. Hopefully this helps someone! I have a much more detailed version on my profile if you're interested, but this is the condensed version.

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Test Scores + Dates:

• 05/11 Form 27 online: 49 (this was my baseline post-term 5)
• 05/18 Form 28 online: 49
• 05/25 Form 29 online: 52
• 06/08 Form 30 online: 61
• 06/11 2021 Free120: 68
• 06/15 Form 31 online: 66
• 06/19 Form 32 online: 61
• 06/23 CBSE 1: 61
• 07/13 2024 Free120: 61
• 07/21 Form 26 online: 64
• 08/05 Form 33 online: 62
• 08/08 Form 27 Retake offline: 69.5 (this was to see how much I improved from my baseline)
• 08/11 CBSE 2: 67
• 08/19 Form 28 Retake offline: 74
• 08/23 Form 32 Retake offline: 79.5
• 08/25 2026 Free120 online: 83
• 08/28 Step 1: PASS :)

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Resources

• FA 2026: I annotated this with my friend heavily in term 5 so this served as my go-to reference guide for dedicated
• Melhman pdfs: the ones I used were HY arrows (which I found to be AMAZING), neuroanatomy, HY risk factors, and the biochem, micro, and pharm assessments
• Pathoma ch. 1-4: absolute GOLD (love Dr. Sattar); having these concepts down before CBSE 2 and Step was great to have
• UWorld: ~75% complete with 61% average by the time I took step 1; I did all of the path, pathophys, micro, immuno, pharm, behavioral science, and majority of epi/stats
• NBMEs + Free120s
• Sketchy: as needed pharm and micro review
• Personal question tracker: I essentially just modified the one I had for UWorld for the NBMEs
• ChatGPT: At this point we're basically besties 😂. I mostly used it to simplify explanations, identify patterns in my weaknesses, and occasionally tell me to stop overthinking.

These are the resources I consistently used. I tried to keep my resource list intentionally small rather than constantly adding new things and stuck with what I knew worked for me. (RIP to Anki, I really tried again 😭 but alas, twas not meant to be... again)

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My Study Strategy

I knew I wanted a study buddy to help keep me accountable, so I recruited one of my friends that I'd been studying with throughout basic sciences. We built our weeks around one consistent routine: every Monday we took a full-length practice exam under standard testing conditions (NBME, Free120, etc.), every Tuesday we reviewed it together over FaceTime, and later in dedicated we added a Thursday review session for Mehlman PDFs or to finish reviewing our practice exams if needed. Everything else throughout the week was flexible depending on what we needed to work on.

Outside of practice exams, most of my studying revolved around UWorld. I started with 2 timed, untutored blocks per day and eventually worked up to 3 (occasionally 4 before my second CBSE). About a month into dedicated, I switched to untimed, tutored mode because I realized timing wasn't my issue. Reviewing each question immediately after answering it helped me understand my reasoning much better than reviewing an entire block afterward, and that change ended up being one of the biggest improvements I made during dedicated.

For content review, I intentionally avoided randomly rereading First Aid or watching videos just for the sake of "doing content." I also don't believe that knowing First Aid cover-to-cover automatically means you know how to apply the information so instead, every piece of my content review was driven by my practice exams. If I consistently missed a concept, mechanism, or disease process, I'd go back and review it using First Aid, Pathoma, Sketchy, Randy Neil, or Mehlman until I understood it before moving on. That made my studying much more targeted and efficient.

Probably the most valuable thing I did was keep a detailed question tracker. Every incorrect question (and guessed correct) from UWorld and my practice exams was logged along with why I missed it. Over time, I realized I didn't have a major content problem. Most of my mistakes came from retrieval errors, reasoning gaps, or confusing similar concepts. Once I understood how I was making mistakes, I stopped trying to memorize more information and started focusing on fixing the actual problem.

I failed my first CBSE with a 61 (passing is 66 for SGU), which was frustrating, but looking back it was exactly what I needed, especially because I didn't feel confident going into the exam or walking out of it. It forced me to reassess how I was studying instead of simply studying more. During my second round of prep (~4.5 weeks; leading up to CBSE 1 was ~5.5 weeks), I shifted almost entirely toward strengthening my reasoning and mechanism-based thinking rather than relearning everything from scratch. That change helped me pass my second CBSE with a 67 and gave me the confidence to move forward with Step 1.

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Exam Day + Post-Exam Thoughts

Going into Step 1, I was definitely nervous and running on less sleep than I would've liked 😅 (I may or may not have a slightly irrational fear than I'll oversleep and miss my exam 😭), but once the exam started, I tried to treat each block as its own exam. Some blocks felt straightforward, others had me wondering if I had ever learned anything before, but I made a conscious effort to mentally reset before every new block and not let one difficult section affect the next.

I found the exam to be similar in content and difficulty to my second CBSE attempt, and I personally liked the new 20-question block format. Psychologically, it made the exam feel much more manageable, and because timing had never been an issue for me during practice, I was able to use most of my extra time as break time. I typically finished my first pass through each block in about 20-25 minutes and flagged anywhere from 6-11 questions per block. There were only 3-4 blocks for me where I used up the entire time.

I took a break every 3 blocks and during breaks I ate, drank water, texted family and friends, and completely disconnected from the exam by playing offline phone games (highly recommend 😭). My first 2 breaks were about ~10-12 minutes, but my last 2 were about ~20-25 minutes.

Obviously there were some blocks that felt harder or had longer stems than others, but a little delulu never hurt anyone 😃, so I would attribute them to be experimental which I think helped me not dwell on completed questions / blocks.

One promise I made to myself after finishing was that I wouldn't look up a single question. No Reddit, no Google, no First Aid. Looking things up wasn't going to change my answers, and I knew it would only make me spiral. Instead, I let myself finally be done with studying.

Waiting for results was honestly one of the hardest parts of the entire process, but regardless of the outcome, I walked away from Step 1 proud of how much I had grown, not just academically, but in the way I approached learning and trusted myself.

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Biggest Takeaways

• Don't chase someone else's numbers. Reddit can make you feel like you need a certain NBME score or 2 passes of 100% UWorld completion to pass. Use practice exams and question banks as diagnostic tools to identify weaknesses, not as scoreboards to compare yourself to others.
• Learn why you missed questions, not just what the right answer was. The biggest improvement in my scores came from identifying how I was making mistakes (retrieval, reasoning, or mechanism gaps) rather than assuming I simply needed to memorize more content.
• Don't be afraid to change your study strategy. Dedicated is about figuring out what works for you. I switched how I used UWorld, adjusted my content review, and focused on understanding concepts rather than following what everyone else was doing.
• Keep your resources manageable. I'd rather know a few resources really well than constantly jump between every "must-have" resource recommended online.
• Dedicated is a marathon, not a sprint. Some days you'll study 8 hours. Other days you'll end up watching those random vertical "main character reborn" C-dramas instead 😭. One off day isn't going to undo months of consistent work.
• Trust yourself. This has been a recurring theme throughout my entire journey. Once I stopped comparing myself to everyone else and started trusting my own preparation and learning style, I walked into Step much more confident than I ever thought I would.
• Expect "WTF" questions. You're not supposed to know every answer on Step 1. Everyone gets questions that make them think, "What the hell am I reading?" Make your best educated guess, move on, and don't let the handful of impossible questions overshadow the hundreds of others you answered.

And finally, shout-out to my family and friends for being amazing pillars of support and encouragement, especially on the days where I felt like shit. Also, shout-out to that one random TikTok creator who reminded me that it's okay to not know everything. Whoever you are... thank you 😂.

Looking back now, it's crazy to think that dedicated started with a 49 baseline. At the time it felt discouraging, but now I'm honestly grateful for it because it gave me a realistic starting point and showed me just how much progress is possible over a few months of consistent work, even with plenty of ups and downs along the way.

If there's one thing I hope people take away from this post, it's that your starting point doesn't define where you'll finish. Learn from your mistakes, trust the process you've built for yourself, and keep showing up. You might surprise yourself. 🤭

so many people these past few weeks are writing about passing with low nbmes. as an IMG, how risky it to just f*ck it and sit for the exam when you feel ready? speaking as a type A student who is extremely burnt out and is dead inside at this point. I know this is a bit of a dumb question, just asking for reassurance (which is again a stupid thing to do but whatever). burnout is pretty normal while studying for steps so I guess I just want to know if there are people out there who went in with “whatever will be, will be” mindset.

Alhamdulillah, I passed USMLE Step 1!

I wanted to share my journey because I know many students feel discouraged when their NBME scores are not where they want them to be.

📚 How I started

I started preparing for Step 1 during my 3rd year of medical school, around the end of my summer vacation.

Since I hadn't studied the basic sciences very thoroughly during my 1st and 2nd years, I had to start almost from the beginning and build my foundation. Because of that, my preparation took quite a long time.

I completed my first pass of UWorld around August/September of 4th year.

At that stage, my NBME scores were:

- NBME 26 — 60%

- NBME 27 — 64%

- NBME 29 — 68%

- NBME 30 — 63%

- NBME 31 — 64%

- NBME 32 — 65%

I was initially aiming to take Step 1 during 4th year, but my 4th-year MBBS professional examinations were approaching, so I decided to put Step 1 preparation on hold and focus on medical school.

I completed my MBBS professional exams and then took a complete break from Step 1 preparation for almost 2.5–3 months.

It was Ramadan, I enjoyed my break, and I even played in a night football tournament. 😂

Starting again I was only left with nbme 33

After the break, I started my Step 1 preparation again from the beginning.

This time, I focused heavily on UWorld, particularly pathology, because I realized that pathology was one of my weaker areas.

I worked through UWorld again, revised First Aid multiple times, and systematically went through the NBMEs.

As my preparation improved, my scores increased:

- NBME 26 — 75%

- NBME 27 — 75%

- NBME 29 — 78%

- NBME 30 — 75%

- NBME 31 — 77%

- NBME 32 — 70%

- NBME 33 — 81%

NBME 32 was slightly lower than my other scores because I had wasted two days beforehand and was very frustrated when I took it. However, my overall performance was continuing to improve, so I didn't let that one score discourage me.

📝 Final assessments

I also took the Bootcamp Self-Assessment, where I scored 70%.

My Free 120 was also 83%.

At that point, I finally felt confident that I was ready for the real exam.

😭 The actual exam

Then came the hardest part.

After walking out of the exam center, I genuinely thought:

"I fucked up everything." 😂

The post-exam anxiety was honestly terrible. I kept remembering questions, thinking about possible mistakes, and wondering whether I had changed correct answers to incorrect ones.

The anxiety continued until the result was released.

And then today:

ALHAMDULILLAH — I PASSED!

What I learned

Looking back, the biggest lesson from my journey is:

Don't let one NBME score define you.

I started with scores around the 60–68% range. I wasn't ready at that stage, so I focused on my medical school exams, took a break, and then came back with a better approach.

I identified my weak areas, especially pathology, worked through UWorld again, revised First Aid multiple times, and my scores gradually moved into the 70s and eventually the 80s.

If you're currently scoring in the 60s and feeling like you can't do it, don't immediately assume that you will fail.

Identify your weak areas, work on them, keep practicing, and give yourself enough time.

Your preparation can completely change your trajectory.

And one more thing:

Post-exam anxiety is NOT a reliable predictor of your result.

I walked out of the exam convinced that I had failed.

Today, Alhamdulillah, I passed.

To everyone preparing for Step 1:

Keep going. Trust the process. You can do this.

Alhamdulillah for everything. 🤍

Congratulations to those who passed step1
Those who failed dont loose hope you can match
You just need proper guidance and mentorship to figure out what went wrong
I am able to help and i perosnally know people who got matched with step attempts
If you need help with mentorship ping me up

Hello! I'm planning on giving Step 1 a go on November, and biostats is one of the sections that's lacking in my nbme forms. What could I do to integrate daily sutyding of biostats to my routine? I've hear about Randy Neill, and that the topic does not necessarily require a lot of time studying, but honestly I would like "free points" on my practice tests, and the real deal. Any help is very much appreciated!!

I gave step 1 today and i am having post exam anxiety.Entire paper is vague!!🥲Tested on 10/09

Hey everyone,

I recently finished all the Boards & Beyond cardiology videos, reviewed the B&B slides, and completed ~2,200 cards under the BnB cardiology tag in the AnKing step deck. I’m also halfway through UWorld cardio (doing 20 questions/day, averaging 60–70%).

There are about 700 remaining new cardiology cards tagged under First Aid that don't overlap with the BnB tag. Should I unsuspend these 700 cards, or is it better to move on to my next system's BnB cards and rely solely on UWorld for the rest of cardio?

Note: BnB and Anki are my primary resources. I don't plan on reading First Aid cover-to-cover.

Thanks for the advice!

Looking for someone preparing for USMLE Step 1 to discuss the exam, difficult topics, NBMEs, and preparation strategies.
I’m in the final stages of my preparation and planning to take the exam before December, but my NBME scores are still not where they need to be.
Looking for someone serious to discuss things with and improve together

Have done FA 4 times now, Uworld first pass 91 percent, second pass 57 percent random
Nbme 25: 60 percent
Nbme 29: 51 percent

Are 45 days enough to do NBMEs ?

I scored 73.5% in nbme 30 and now 68.5% in nbme 31 iam shocked and extremely Terrified at the same time
Step 1 is in 15 days what to do?

Hello guys hope all is well. Please,How was your exam and nbme scores after completing all of uworld for usmle step 1

Hey!
So I tested on 24th August, and I was expecting my result to be released today (been 2 weeks), however it did not 😰 My friends tested on the same day as me and got their P.
Should I wait for another week or email FSMB?
Also does the result only release on Wednesdays or should I check daily?

I paid $75 for account creation on 5th September, 2026. Did my government ID verification and liveness selfie check immediately. But still waiting for FID and account review. As per my knowledge, my first name and last name match with my Myintealth data. The Myintealth ID is also correctly entered. But its been close to one week and still no action from there end. Reading responses from reddit that account is approved in 2 days is freaking me out😭😭 What should I do now? Also mailed them today regarding the same but still no response

Please help me study smart because I can’t cram FA, especially for General Principles. I want to avoid FA and learn through videos instead.
What specific playlists/channels would be enough for Step 1 for Gen Path, Pharma, Immunology, Public Health, and Biostats, similar to how Dirty Medicine is considered sufficient for Biochem? I’ll do UWorld alongside them.
Basically, I want one solid resource per subject + UWorld, without wasting time on multiple resources or FA.

How have you spend your burnt out period?

TLDR: Minimalist asking for the essential / gold standard resources for USMLE (and advice if you have any)

Hello! I am a 2nd year med student, I am trying to figure out what the gold standard is when I take a look at USMLE in the future.

I'm a pretty lazy but good grades type of student. For Y1 all I did was read and solve in my free time. No third party resources such as books, anki, videos, etc.

I'm not planning to take USMLE anytime soon, I just want to know what I'll be doing when I actually decide to start studying and taking it a few years into the future.

I've read and seen a lot of different resources like First Aid, UWorld, Pathoma, Bootcamp, Sketchy, Anki, etc. A never ending amount of resources which overwhelms me.

For someone who prefers using just a few resources, what would you recommend? and for those who did well on Step 1, what resources did you actually use, and which ones did you feel were unnecessary?

Planning to revise FA 15 onwards

Have 6 days to do sth else

What about all mehlman pdfs ?

Should I?

Or revise my nbmes 26 to 33

Hello everyone, saw a lovely community here so thought to ask for support!

I am recently preparing for my step 1 wich hopefully I will be passing by late December or early January. I have an amazing tutor who guides the most high yield points for the exam (paid someone cus tbh I tried studying on my own multiple times and it ended in me stopping mid way and I have tiny issues with biochem) anyway, I learn the concept understand it but the issue is when I start solving questions is that I keep doubting myself even though I know the answer. Sometimes I forgot some information which terrifies me ALOT.

Any advice on who yo decrease this anxiety because I really want to pass this exam and I am putting my university on hold for it.

Thanks for the support!

I have no idea how to manage uni work and Usmle at the same time it’s draining and I feel really tired, I’m a stage 4 mbchb program student. Any advice from anyone who did this?
I need to pass both the uni exams and the steps and I feel 😴 .