Want To Avoid Step 1 Failure?
Sidestep These 3 Common Mistakes ⬇️

This isn’t a comprehensive list of potential mistakes, but based on our experience, these mistakes can have the most dramatic impact on your progress if you fix them immediately.

MISTAKE #1 – NOT FOCUSING ENOUGH ON WEAKNESSES:

Medical students fall into the common trap of wanting to keep moving forward – no matter what!

This is a great mindset… Keep plowing forward!

However… If you don’t stop to address your weaknesses as they come up, you’ll likely find that as you improve one area, you get weaker in another.

Taking some extra time to improve a weakness as it comes up will help you save tons of time in the future.

MISTAKE #2 – USING TOO MANY RESOURCES:

It’s tempting to use every resource you see…

Every new shiny object that pops up could be ‘the one’ that makes your life a lot easier.

It won’t… Most popular resources on the market will help you get the job done.

The best way to think about resources is like this: Foundational resources + supplemental resources for weaknesses.

Foundational resources: 2 Qbanks, First Aid, and assessment exams…
Supplemental resources: Something to help you improve a weakness

Keeping things simple is going to help you maintain better focus and avoid excessive stress throughout your USMLE exam preparation.

MISTAKE #3 – NOT SETTING A TEST DATE (DEADLINE):

Many students, especially IMG & FMGs, tend to study without a scheduled exam date.

Whether you feel as though you’ll be ready in 3 months, 6 months, or 9 months… Set a date.

When you’ve got a date, you can build your plan to meet your goals & deadlines… When you don’t, you can’t.

It’s ok if you have to push your exam date back in the future, but it’s important that you’ve got a concrete timeline within which you’re working.

Keep these 3 huge mistakes in mind as you dive into your USMLE exam preparation so you don’t fall victim and end up costing yourself more time and money in the long run.

If you enjoyed this post, be sure to download our free Medical Student Survival Guide at https://usmle.io

See you next time 👋