what's the deal with usmle?

[Starhivest]

I know that Canadian grads need to write USMLE after their second year in order to match into US residency. Are there other purposes to spending a whole summer studying for this exam? Say that I finish residency in Canada and years later I want to practice in the states; do I need to have written USMLE for that?

 

Thanks!

[rmorelan]

I know that Canadian grads need to write USMLE after their second year in order to match into US residency. Are there other purposes to spending a whole summer studying for this exam? Say that I finish residency in Canada and years later I want to practice in the states; do I need to have written USMLE for that?

 

Thanks!

 

The other big reason is to do it so you can complete a fellowship in the US. Actually that is probably the main reason people do the USMLE. It is rather hard to find the time to do it in residency and post preclerkship it also doesn't fit well.

[future_doc]

I think it depends upon the State, unsure. But on a K.I.S.S. basis, Keep It Simple Stupid, I would be inclined to write it.

[rmorelan]

I think it depends upon the State, unsure. But on a K.I.S.S. basis, Keep It Simple Stupid, I would be inclined to write it.

 

Only counter I will point out is you lose a summer which makes you less competitive for something canada - now you are up against people potentially with 12 more weeks of clinical electives under their belts (and associated letters of reference) along with a huge leg up in that area for clerkship/electives.

[future_doc]

Your commment is a fair one. Each of us needs to weigh the the pros and cons, and then make our own individual decision based upon our priorities.

[thebouque]

If you think there's a possibility that you'll have an academic career, take the USMLEs.

[leviathan]

For step 1:

If you just need a passing score you will need 0 time at all to study assuming you were half awake during your classes/small group/pbl. Yes there is some really basic science stuff on the Step 1 but it's very sparse and if you knew none of it you would still get a decent score as long as you paid attention and worked hard in your first 2 years of med school. Most of it is clinically based and the emphasis is on knowledge of pharmacology, pathology, and physiology (the 3 Ps). If you want 260+ then that is different and you will have to know your anatomy, embryo, microbiology, biochemistry , genetics etc.

 

If you do want a 260+ you still really shouldn't need to study all summer. Just get the Kaplan review videos and skip all the obvious stuff and watch the other videos at 1.5-2x speed while taking notes on the more hard science topics like genetics and molecular bio. Do the USMLEWorld question bank as well and you should be done and ready within a few weeks and get a high score.

 

For step 2:

Most med schools in Canada have the NBME board exams. Read a board prep book for each NBME subject during clerkship and aim to score high on that exam. If you do well on each NBME exam then you are on the right track to killing step 2 which is really just a composite exam of the above. Also keep your stats + EBM knowledge up to date as there is usually 1 journal article in each of the 8 blocks that you have to read and analyze with several MCQs. Step 2 is all clinical questions with common question e.g. what is the most likely diagnosis, what is the next best test, what is the most accurate test, what is the best treatment, or what is the next best step (treatment vs diagnostic test etc). Do USMLEworld as well and you should be good.

[Lactic Folly]

You don't need a whole summer; we had a comprehensive examination at the end of 2nd year, and as I recall spent 6 more weeks studying full-time for Step 1 after that.

Step 2 overlaps with MCCQE Part I, so writing after 4th year is a good time.

[leviathan]

Would you write Step 2 after 3rd or 4th year of medical school?

After 3rd year is fine as long as you've finished your im,obgyn,surg,peds,psych.

[Lactic Folly]

Agree, but usually people do not have much (if any) of a break in between 3rd and 4th, and will be busy with CaRMS to boot.