# USMLE help



## wajiha21 (Jul 24, 2012)

hi i am a 2nd year student and i am about to give my professional exams and i want to give USMLE in my 3rd year although our subjects do not get us covered with it all but i am willing to take up tuition for it and get this done and pass it .I know it is going to be hard but after graduation its still going to be hard and scary and i want to be done with step 1 . Many say after graduation is a wise decision to but then i believe we forget and have to revise the whole thing. Right now i am in the study zone and one can actually push themselves learn more as what i will lean will apply in my future years of MBBS
i need someone give me a wise decision about what to do ?how to preparation ? , What books to look up? and make me this timetable about the way i should study . really appreciate it


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## Rehan (Jan 26, 2006)

wajiha21 said:


> hi i am a 2nd year student and i am about to give my professional exams and i want to give USMLE in my 3rd year although our subjects do not get us covered with it all but i am willing to take up tuition for it and get this done and pass it .I know it is going to be hard but after graduation its still going to be hard and scary and i want to be done with step 1 . Many say after graduation is a wise decision to but then i believe we forget and have to revise the whole thing. Right now i am in the study zone and one can actually push themselves learn more as what i will lean will apply in my future years of MBBS
> i need someone give me a wise decision about what to do ?how to preparation ? , What books to look up? and make me this timetable about the way i should study . really appreciate it


You will not be able to sign up for the USMLE exams until your medical college sends paperwork to ECFMG confirming that you have completed all of the courses which are tested on the exam.

Because most medical colleges in Pakistan do not finish special pathology until the end of the fourth year, I would not recommend you attempt to take the exam until you have finished fourth year. You are definitely free to begin studying for it, but attempting to take it before you've thoroughly been taught the subject matter may not be in your best interests.


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## wajiha21 (Jul 24, 2012)

Rehan said:


> You will not be able to sign up for the USMLE exams until your medical college sends paperwork to ECFMG confirming that you have completed all of the courses which are tested on the exam.
> 
> Because most medical colleges do not finish special pathology until the end of the fourth year, I would not recommend you attempt to take the exam until you have finished fourth year. You are definitely free to begin studying for it, but attempting to take it before you've thoroughly been taught the subject matter may not be in your best interests.


then how come some students have attempted to give it in 3 rd year i also have read student quoting that fourth year becomes difficult and pressure is on a lot with wards and all then how can one actually take time out for that because as you may know in Pakistan their is no breaks in which you can give them . Then how does one ?


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## Waleed90 (Jan 15, 2011)

wajiha21 said:


> then how come some students have attempted to give it in 3 rd year i also have read student quoting that fourth year becomes difficult and pressure is on a lot with wards and all then how can one actually take time out for that because as you may know in Pakistan their is no breaks in which you can give them . Then how does one ?


Have you checked with your school and found out when you will have completed all of the required courses for the USMLE? It could be possible that the people you know who took it in the third year went to schools that completed the courses early. 



> You will not be able to sign up for the USMLE exams until your medical college sends paperwork to ECFMG confirming that you have completed all of the courses which are tested on the exam.
> 
> Because most medical colleges do not finish special pathology until the end of the fourth year, I would not recommend you attempt to take the exam until you have finished fourth year. You are definitely free to begin studying for it, but attempting to take it before you've thoroughly been taught the subject matter may not be in your best interests.


Thanks for that! I am also curious about when to take and start preparing for the USMLE. It seems from your post that the next best logical step for me is to find out all the courses that the ECFMG requires to be completed and then figure out when I will have completed those in my med school.


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## retroguy02 (Jan 28, 2010)

I really don't recommend that you give it in 3rd year. I'm not sure if medical colleges in Punjab finish their patho and pharma courses in 3rd year (here in Karachi they don't) but even if you're technically eligible, it's not recommended since normally 3rd year is the toughest, that's when you start your clinical rounds and what you learn clinically will be a lot more useful to you in the long-term (and later for the MLE's as well) instead of compromising it for the MLE's. So try holding out till 4th or 5th year, the workload isn't as much then.


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## amerhch (Jun 3, 2011)

All this conversation is very informative,thanks.will help me in future.


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## syntaX (Jun 16, 2010)

Is it only special patho that really is ''THE'' thing for USMLE? cus everyone keeps going on and ON about this special patho being a major chunk included in the USMLE. Here in pindi, in my colg we do special patho in 3rd year along with other 3 subjects ... sooooo ... would it be wise for me to give USMLE after 3rd year? .. im currently a 2nd year student - any help would be appreciated


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## syntaX (Jun 16, 2010)

Yess?....NO?.....maybe so?.... Anyone?? :?


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## MedGrunt (Feb 21, 2007)

syntaX said:


> Is it only special patho that really is ''THE'' thing for USMLE? cus everyone keeps going on and ON about this special patho being a major chunk included in the USMLE. Here in pindi, in my colg we do special patho in 3rd year along with other 3 subjects ... sooooo ... would it be wise for me to give USMLE after 3rd year? .. im currently a 2nd year student - any help would be appreciated


If you can find the time to study and prepare for USMLE during your fourth year then I would say you should definitely take the exam as soon as possible. Since most colleges in Pakistan still do special pathology in 4th year, most students don't find the time to properly study until after graduation since final year is full of clinical time and night calls. If you think you can find time to study in 4th year, you should definitely take it in 4th year.

You may want to buy the Pathoma series early on before you start pathology so that you can annotate it during your lectures. The book is considered very high yield for USMLE Step 1 Pathology.


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