3: When Should I Start Studying for USMLE Step 1 and COMLEX?

Check out our 25% Black Friday Sale now through 12/1/2025 at https://medicalschoolhq.net including our 1-on-1 advising and MCAT Winter Immersive Course! Session 03 Board Rounds is back with BoardVitals and Dr. Andrea Paul to discuss when you should start preparing for the USMLE Step 1 and COMLEX Level 1 exams. This week, we're going to dive into when you should start preparing for these exams. The Step 1/Level 1 are going to be one of the most important pieces in your residency journey. And so we need to make sure you're preparing as best as possible and when you start doing that. [02:11] When to Start Thinking About Preparing for the Boards Sit down and start with setting a goal. Which specialty are you planning to apply to or would you like to be able to apply to? What's the minimum score would you feel is acceptable or competitive for those areas. Then look at your schedule to see what time you're available or what time do you want to dedicate for studying. And sticking to that is really important. Be present and work harder on those hours. Always have some flex days, especially towards the end. [04:49] Setting Dedicated Time You need to schedule dedicated time during all those classes. So if you're doing biochemistry, you need to carve out an hour on few days a week where you're going to do biochemistry related questions on your USMLE prep materials. This way, you're able to connect them earlier. To help you score higher, start preparing early. Know what scores you need and test yourself to see if you're getting towards that. "If you start making those connections early... it all helps you down the road." [08:30] What Resources to Use and Average Study Time Andrea thinks that paper textbooks are not always the most user-friendly. The great thing about online resources is that you can take them anywhere. You also get to customize what you're learning. Most students study for Step 1 during their preclinical curriculum, during the first year of medical school. And then the intensity increases during that dedicated time. Most of them would average 11 hours of studying per day for 35 days, usually covering 4000 practice sessions during that amount of study time. "Most students now are averaging about 11 hours of studying per day for Step 1 and that's for about 35 days. That's an incredible number of hours to study." Moreover, their data says that the number of days people study didn't correlate with their scores. Right around the midpoint was when the scores were highest. But students think more and more is better. So this is something to keep in mind. Also, their strongest correlation with high scores is the number of practice questions they took and their grades in school. Ultimately, Andrea says it's all about a combination of someone's work ethic and being a good test-taker that leads to a good score. [14:42] Simulating the Test Environment and Eliminating Distractions When you're interrupted with a text message or when you're on your phone, it takes about 15-20 minutes to get back into the flow of where you were before that interruption. if you add those three into an hour, well, it's not a very effective hour, isn't it? It is therefore important to simulate the test environment. When you're in a question bank and doing questions, you're not going to have the phone or someone knocking on the door, or any distractions. That being said, you want to make the most of your study time. Put that phone somewhere else or turn it off. And simulate that same environment as much as you can. Even when you need to utilize your resource online, don't have other things or windows open. Keep a spreadsheet maybe open and just minimized so you could take notes. Avoid breaking up the actual studying with looking up some side...

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