The blog was originally published in March 2024, and updated in July 2025 by Dr. Bijoya Basu Big Take Away For Step 2: The best predictor of your Step 2...
Featured Blogs
In medical education, shelf exams evaluate students' knowledge and clinical...
The Future of AI in Medical Education Imagine practicing...
Having scored above the 90th percentile on Step 2, students...
Resources
One of the hardest decisions that all medical students face involves picking the resources to help them succeed on their board exams. To provide you the best and most accurate advice, we have our tutors personally utilize the services we review. In this blog post, we will share our impressions of TrueLearn’s SmartBanks for COMLEX Level 1 and COMLEX Level 2 CE.
This blog was originally published on March 21, 2023, and was updated in September 2025 with new information. There are innumerable resources available for Step 1 preparation. No one study...
Move over UWorld! There’s a new qbank in town! Is there a new contender for the qbank throne? Here’s our honest reviewal of the TrueLearn question bank and how it stacks up next to UWorld.
Latest Blogs
Are you a D.O. student who is preparing for the COMLEX Level 1 or Level 2-CE exams and is curious about the scoring system and score percentiles? Perhaps you have...
One of the hardest decisions that all medical students face involves picking the resources to help them succeed on their board exams. To provide you the best and most accurate advice, we have our tutors personally utilize the services we review. In this blog post, we will share our impressions of TrueLearn’s SmartBanks for COMLEX Level 1 and COMLEX Level 2 CE.
The U.S. residency application landscape has shifted dramatically since USMLE Step 1 became pass/fail. For today’s applicants, the Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK) exam is often the only numerical score...
USMLE STEP 1
How to calculate your USMLE Step 1 or USMLE Step 2CK score percentile is a common question many medical students ask. Here are the 2020 USMLE Step 1 and Step 2CK percentile charts to see how you compare to other students.
Almost all students preparing for the USMLE Step 1 or Step 2 will take at least one (hopefully more!) practice test leading up to test day. While various practice tests are available to assess your performance, many students will turn directly to the NBME practice tests to estimate their chances...
This blog was originally published on March 21, 2023, and was updated in September 2025 with new information. There are innumerable resources available for Step 1 preparation. No one study approach will work for everyone or guarantee success. Whatever plan or resources you decide to use, everyone will need to...
USMLE STEP 2CK
The U.S. residency application landscape has shifted dramatically since USMLE Step 1 became pass/fail. For today’s applicants, the Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK) exam is often the only numerical score available to program directors when comparing candidates. This change has made Step 2 CK more influential than ever before. ...
The Step 2 CK exam score is one of the top factors residency programs use when selecting candidates to interview. Most students in the United States take the USMLE Step 2 CK after their third-year clinical rotations—typically between May and July—to align with residency application timelines. This schedule ensures you...
The blog was originally published in March 2024, and updated in July 2025 by Dr. Bijoya Basu Big Take Away For Step 2: The best predictor of your Step 2 Success is not a single practice exam or resource, but it’s a combination of consistent performance and dedication throughout medical...
COMLEX LEVEL 1
Are you a D.O. student who is preparing for the COMLEX Level 1 or Level 2-CE exams and is curious about the scoring system and score percentiles? Perhaps you have already taken these exams and are curious about what your 3-digit score means for you. In this blog post, we...
One of the hardest decisions that all medical students face involves picking the resources to help them succeed on their board exams. To provide you the best and most accurate advice, we have our tutors personally utilize the services we review. In this blog post, we will share our impressions of TrueLearn’s SmartBanks for COMLEX Level 1 and COMLEX Level 2 CE.
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Preparing for COMLEX Level 1 is a unique kind of marathon - equal parts knowledge, endurance, strategy, and mindset. When it comes to COMLEX Level 1 preparation, as you gear up for what might feel like the most important test of your life (so far!), it’s completely normal to ride...
RESIDENCY ADVISING
The Step 2 CK exam score is one of the top factors residency programs use when selecting candidates to interview. Most students in the United States take the USMLE Step 2 CK after their third-year clinical rotations—typically between May and July—to align with residency application timelines. This schedule ensures you...
With the change of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1 transitioning to an entirely pass-fail examination, more emphasis has been placed on the USMLE Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (Step 2 CK) score in the residency selection process. [blurred_unlock] KeyPoint Details Importance Step 2 CK is one of the most important...
Congratulations! You did it! You took USMLE Step 1, the test you spent months studying for, and now you’re anxiously awaiting that email notification telling you that your Step 1 score is available. So now what?
RESOURCE REVIEWS
One of the hardest decisions that all medical students face involves picking the resources to help them succeed on their board exams. To provide you the best and most accurate advice, we have our tutors personally utilize the services we review. In this blog post, we will share our impressions of TrueLearn’s SmartBanks for COMLEX Level 1 and COMLEX Level 2 CE.
This blog was originally published on March 21, 2023, and was updated in September 2025 with new information. There are innumerable resources available for Step 1 preparation. No one study approach will work for everyone or guarantee success. Whatever plan or resources you decide to use, everyone will need to...
Move over UWorld! There’s a new qbank in town! Is there a new contender for the qbank throne? Here’s our honest reviewal of the TrueLearn question bank and how it stacks up next to UWorld.
HOW TO
UWorld flashcards have several unique features that make them particularly well suited to USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 prep. The flashcard feature utilizes spaced repetition systems and is completely integrated with the UWorld question bank which makes creating flashcards very simple. Here’s our guide to creating UWorld cards!
The ABIM tests your knowledge on common and rare diagnoses expected from a board-certified internist according to American Board of Internal Medicine standards. To set yourself up for success, it is important to start early and practice often.
Having scored in the 270-280 range on Step 1, Step 2 CK, and Step 3 of the USMLE, I am often asked by students questions like “What’s your secret?”, “How can I plan my study schedule to…
ABIM
The ABIM tests your knowledge on common and rare diagnoses expected from a board-certified internist according to American Board of Internal Medicine standards. To set yourself up for success, it is important to start early and practice often.
Each year, as thousands of physicians begin studying for the internal medicine boards, an age-old question comes up: Which question bank (Qbank) should they choose? Today we are going to be reviewing the UWorld ABIM question bank to evaluate its quality as a study resource.
The ABIM tests your knowledge on common and rare diagnoses expected from a board-certified internist according to American Board of Internal Medicine standards. To set yourself up for success, it is important to start early and practice often.