In medical education, shelf exams evaluate students' knowledge and clinical reasoning during core clinical clerkships. Administered by medical schools, often written by the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME), these...
Featured Blogs
The Future of AI in Medical Education Imagine practicing...
Having scored above the 90th percentile on Step 2, students...
Resources
Step 2 CK is an entirely different examination compared to Step 1. While Step 1 is now pass/fail, Step 2 CK is scored, making time management even more critical for...
With Step 1 transitioning to a pass/fail format, the importance of the Step 2 CK exam in medical school has become even more pronounced. It now stands as the primary...
Clinical rotations are a very important part of your medical school experience; the hands-on learning that you are exposed to is pivotal to creating a well-rounded approach to your clinical...
Latest Blogs
Effective communication is one of the most essential skills in medicine, but it’s not just about what you say - it’s also about how well you listen. After all, we...
Residency is a stage of medical training that, in the US, is completed after medical school. As post-graduate medical education, residency training ranges in length depending on what field you...
As Step 2 season comes around, many students already know that practice exams are key to success on test day. After hours and hours and never ending days of practice...
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.
8 Steps for Mastering ‘Most Likely Diagnosis’ Questions on the USMLE The United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) is filled with clinical vignette-style questions designed to assess your ability to apply medical knowledge in real-world scenarios. One of the most common question types you’ll encounter is the "Most Likely...
Is it worth it to get UWorld’s most basic 30 day subscription? While we certainly don’t advise waiting until a month before your test date to start going through UWorld, it is actually possible to get through one full pass in only 30 days.
USMLE STEP 2CK
As Step 2 season comes around, many students already know that practice exams are key to success on test day. After hours and hours and never ending days of practice questions and videos and anki, the NBME and UWorld practice exams are your chance to prove that the work you...
For medical students preparing for Step 2 CK, choosing the right study resources is crucial. AMBOSS has gained popularity as a powerful question bank (QBank) and medical knowledge resource, but many students wonder: Is AMBOSS worth it for Step 2 CK? How many Step 2 CK questions does AMBOSS have?...
Step 2 CK is an entirely different examination compared to Step 1. While Step 1 is now pass/fail, Step 2 CK is scored, making time management even more critical for those aiming for competitive specialties as this score is extremely important in selecting who are the top residency candidates. One...
COMLEX LEVEL 1
When starting your medical school application, you will find that there are multiple paths you can choose, namely, MD vs DO. Should you apply to an Allopathic or an Osteopathic medical school? What’s the difference between them, and which path is right for you?
This is a common question that my osteopathic medical students ask me. The answer is not so straightforward because they are different exams. As a DO student, an important decision that you have to make is whether or not you should take the USMLE exams in addition to the required...
Historically, DO students were recommended to take both the COMLEX and USMLE Step exams (specifically Step 1 and Step 2 CK) in order to be competitive for residency applications. However, now that both COMLEX Level 1 and Step 1 have become pass/fail, DO students wonder if they should still take...
RESIDENCY ADVISING
Residency is a stage of medical training that, in the US, is completed after medical school. As post-graduate medical education, residency training ranges in length depending on what field you are training for. Additionally within each field, there are opportunities to specialize even further through an added few years of...
This blog was originally published in July 2023, and updated on July 9th, 2025 by Dr. Dylan Eiger. Two years ago, Elite Medical Prep hosted a residency roundtable event for the 2023 match cycle. We are now thrilled to share that all the sessions have been meticulously recorded, allowing...
The day you have been waiting for has finally arrived! You have spent years training to become a doctor. And in just a few days or weeks, you will learn on Match Day where you will spend the next few years of your life as a practicing physician in residency....
RESOURCE REVIEWS
As you prepare for the high-stakes USMLE Step 2 exam, practice exams are a crucial tool to gauge your progress and identify areas for improvement. While many students rely on NBME and UWorld self-assessments, the AMBOSS Step 2 CK self-assessment offers another valuable tool for gauging readiness and reviewing key...
If you are about to start your dedicated study period for the USMLE Step 2CK, you may be asking yourself, “what are the best study books I should use to prepare for this test?” Well, look no further! Here at EMP, we provide a comprehensive review of the best study books for Step 2CK!
This blog was originally posted on January 17, 2023, and updated in December 2024. Growing up, my studying always seemed to follow a natural sequence: learn new content, review that content, and then quiz yourself on that content with practice questions. The idea of beginning with the end, i.e.,...
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.