Ra..is good to have you back. -

[ArchivalUser]

student in miami

Tk for keeping us warning with those kind of people
You are the best
For those who doesnt know Ra, he got 97 on step 1 and 99 on step 2...and a really nice guy who help people whenever he can..
Good luck Ra!

[ArchivalUser]

ra

Nice to see you too student in miami we are in the same city and thanks for the nice words, just trying to keep the forum free of crappy posts and punks, best of luck, when are you taking the test?

[ArchivalUser]

TAC

Hey Ra! How is it going?

I was just reading your post about "keeping the forum free of crappy posts and punks" , and that reminded me of something....

Some time ago there was a brazilian guy called Rodrigo Prata posting sick posts in the usmle.net forum remember? At that time, I posted some question in the forum and you started to discourage ppl from replying because I was Rodrigo Prata bla bla bla.... Just because I am brazilian and our IP addresses start with 200 hehehe
I tried to defend myself but you seemed to be pretty much convinced I was Rodrigo Prata... I had to keep changing names when I posted messages until I came up with TAC and you never called me Rodrigo Prata anymore... ;o)

Just thought I would let u know about that..... And, hope now you see I am definitely NOT Rodrigo Prata! hehehe

Congrats with your scores and good luck with step 2 cs! Are u applying for the match 2005?

TAC

[ArchivalUser]

ra

Thanks TAC, maybe at that time your style of writting remembered me of that punk but now I know you are not, that dude was really insane and nuts.

Did you find my post in step 2 Forum? I mean you are the same TAC from usmle.net right? that forum has some prohibited words that deny the access to post.

[ArchivalUser]

TAC

Hey Ra!
I think what made you think that I was Rodrigo Prata was the fact that I mentioned I was brazilian in my post... And also, my IP address starts woth 200. But anyways, looks like he learned his lesson didnt he? :o)

Yes I am the same TAC from usmle.net :o) I think I did find your post... It was the one you posted right after you took the exam wasnt it? If so, I did find it, thanks.

Think you could help me out with my schedule and books? I have blueprints for surgery, psych, IM, peds and O/G. Also, I have access to the Kaplan books, but as they are too big I thought I wouldnt be able to read them all before the test, so what I did was take copies of the Neuro, Preventive medicine, Epidemio, Emergency medicine, derm, opth and radiology from Kaplan, since I dont have that in the Blueprints. I also took copies of the questions from Kaplan books.
As review books I have First Aid and Crush the Boards. For questions, I have the kaplan books' questions, Mock exam and NMS.

I arranged my schedule like this:

Week 1: surgery / w2: epidemio/preventive / w3: psych / W4: Ob-Gyn/ W5: Peds / W6: IM/ W7: IM/ W8: IM/ W9: Surgery+Epidemio / W10:ob-Gyn + Psch/ W11: Peds/ W12 to W15: Review.

So, now that you have been through it all, what do you think? Would you change anything in my books or schedule? Any tips about what to focus on?

I really apreciate your help Ra. Not only to me but to everyone in every forum hehehe. And good that you don't think I am rodrigo prata anymore.

Hopeu have a great weekend! :o)

TAC

[ArchivalUser]

ra

As you know TAC I mainly used kaplan notes and read 3 topics from CMDT which to tell you the truth didn't add that much, so kaplan is certainly enough. I Can't talk about blueprints books as I din't read them and I haven't either look at them in a store, kaplan was a big help in step 1 so I decided to trust on it for step 2 too. I know many people use those books (a friend of mine did) and have a positive experience with them. your schedule looks pretty good, don't forget to try CCSSA if you can and have the money, its the most similar simulated exam compared to the test, good luck TAC.

[ArchivalUser]

student in miami

Hi ra
Hey nice, you live in Miami too...
Ill take my exam the last week of July.
Im kind of nervous, but im trying my best.
Full time student, well sometimes I go to do observerships in order to get some LORs as you know.

So where are you working?
Best of luck in Match 2005.
Keep in touch and pls dont leave us alone here, we still need serious people here.

[ArchivalUser]

TAC

hey Ra! thanks for your prompt response!

The only reasons why I am not going for Kaplan for all subjects is because I HAVE to read things more then once if I wanna keep it in my mind. And I dont think I will have time to read those big kaplan books twice in that short amount of time.... (Keep in mind that I am a last year medical student and don't have many hours a day to study.... I study a lot on the weekends but during the week I can study 5 hours MAX if I am lucky to get home early...). That's why I thought I should stick to the blueprints, because they are smaller and I can read them twice I guess. As I am still in medschool most things are still fresh in my mind , and I consider my background good. I will know if this approach was adequate or not after I take the test LOL I hope I dont regret it!!! :o)

I will surely take CCSSA... I took the NBME tests for the step 1 and I think it was the single most helpful thing I did. Of course it is expensive (dollar is 3 to 1 to my money) but I think it is money well spent.

Do you recommend that I review any specific subjects from step 1 prior to taking step 2?

Again, thanks a lot for helping not only me, but so many people in all the forums out there! You surely deserve all the best! :o)

TAC

[ArchivalUser]

ra

I am working at Mercy Hospital student in miami, where are you going for observerships? jackson memorial or Mount Sinai?

I perfectly understand you TAC but believe me the 1st reading is the one that is maybe a little bit slower, the other ones are pretty fast but due to your limited time you are on the right track, there is no need to read step 1 material because it is still fresh in your mind (it was for me) but definitely it helps a lot, things such as pharm and neuroanatomy are very HY, you will do great, best of luck.

[ArchivalUser]

TAC

Ok Ra.... You know what, maybe I will copy the IM notes from kaplan as well, just so that my conscience (did I spell it right???) doesnt bother me too much. LOL If I have time to read them , great, if not, then I can just take a quick look.

I am reading kaplan's notes for surgery here. I think they are pretty good, they have some things blueprints doesnt (like big chapter for trauma, pre and post operative care, etc).

Thanks for the tips and enjoy the saturday! :o)

TAC