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Hi guys!
Ive been reading this forum for a while now and when it comes to materials being used i see that most people use kaplan notes and goljan for path supplementing it with some qbanks. Have any1 tried using multiple publishers? I've bought some books based on fa reviews and amazon customer's rating:
Anatomy - Road Map
Embryology - HY
Neuroanatomy - HY
Histology - BRS
Physiology - BRS
Biochemistry - Lippincott's
Pharmacology - Katzung's Review
Pathology - Goljan
Behavioral Science - BRS
Microbiology - Microbiology Made Ridiculosly Simple
Immuology - HY
First Aid 2012
UWorld
Probably a couple NBMEs
Kaplan Vids
Im an 4th year med student (studying in Poland, where med is 6 years). Im going to take a year out to have that 12 months for usmle prep. Im rather below the average when it comes to grades, and my aim is 240+ and that's why i want to have that much time for prep.
What do You think guys about 1yr preparation time with those books?
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a lot of these resources are excellent - the idea is to master one. but your plan looks solid. good luck! mleresidencytips (on google) tools for getting a residency.
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all u need is lots of qs. some ppl get 99 and high scores with only uw and else, dats too much waste of time to spend on all these. now they take fresh grads, not a 99er who spent yrs studyin crap! anyone cud get there with that. gl
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Szymen,
Since it is hard for programs in the US to standardize grades from medical school across the globe, I don't believe your current grades in medical school will play a huge role in your application. Most importantly, even if you have below average grades at medical school, you have a big advantage compared to most IMGs: time for planning.
If you have the ability to take some time off medical school to study, you will probably get even a bigger edge if you are able to obtain some clinical experience in the US instead of just studying for the test (you don't need a whole year for that anyway). A lot of IMGs out there have scores in the 240's so this by itself doesn't provide you a huge advantage. Most of medical schools here in the US can take foreign medical students for elective rotations, which are hands-on and are an incredible source for letters of recommendation. It is almost impossible to obtain this kind of experience after you graduate, so the fact you are still a medical student is very helpful. Maybe your medical school (or some faculty there) have some sort of relationship with one of the medical schools here and can facilitate this. Otherwise start looking at websites.
Now, it used to be easier to get some of this electives, but now a fair amount of medical schools charge a fee for these. However, I believe some of these are still free or reasonably priced. Consider it an investment in your future. When I was a medical student I used my vacation time on the last 3 years of medical school to come and do these medical rotations. I was seen and evaluated as an american medical student since my responsibilities were the same, and my letters of recommendation reflected that. The last thing you want is graduate and then struggle to find some kind of observership in a private, non-academic setting, which unfortunately cannot provide the same quality of letters of recommendation. I truly believe this is what made my application different and what allowed me to obtain a fair amount of interviews and eventually match at my first choice.
In short, it is good you are thinking ahead of time. Now use this time to plan your strategy to get a complete, well rounded, application. Do not focus only on getting excellent scores as this is just one dimension of your application.
Good luck.
Gl with your residencies and matches guys!