The road to taking the Step 1 exam has been long. The Step 1 exam is the test that pushes students into different specialties for residency. Depending on the score that the student achieves, they can only go into certain specialties. Based on this information, it’s pretty easy to see why a medical student could get stressed out. It may also be my wife’s biggest challenge to this point in medical school. She takes the Step 1 exam tomorrow, October 8. She has worked so hard for this and I believe will do an amazing job.
She has been studying (this time) for a little over 3 weeks. The last time she attempted to take the exam before it was cancelled due to COVID-19, she studied for 12 weeks. That was a long duration of studying and being alone. This time, she is doing much better. It is a shorter study period but she has a lot of the knowledge from studying previously.
I don’t have a circumstance from my education that I can compare to the situation my wife is in with Step 1. I never had an exam where I needed to study for a month+ at 8-10 hours per day. It is a hard test, and the amount of time given to students shows the vast size and importance of this exam. It looks like it will be 280 questions, which seems pretty huge to me! Not only are there a lot of questions, it is a grueling exam that lasts 8 hours.
The studying that the students experience has to be challenging enough to prepare themselves for this exam. There are online study aids, books, and practice tests that help them prep. My wife has had access to all of these, and has had her nose in them now for 3 weeks. Personally, I don’t know if I could stay focused that long, which is why I think my wife is pretty amazing. She has been able to stick to studying and stay focused as she prepares for this exam.
When someone studies this much for an exam, it can be hard for them to do things like cook meals or clean the house. There just isn’t enough time in the day. So, I try to make meals and ensure she has drinks and snacks while I’m gone. I try to get fun things for her like juice, pudding, jello, and applesauce. It is kind of childish, but it makes a difference in her mental state consuming fun foods. After all, I view this stage of life as a team effort and the more that I help her the better she can do.
Encouraging Words
You are going to do great things. Relax, do your best, and conquer this exam. You have spent weeks preparing for this exam, so trust and be confident in yourself that you know what you are doing. This test was made to challenge you and you have trained to succeed. The greatest things in life challenge us to rise to the occasion, and you will be triumphant. You will pass this exam. You will become a doctor.
To All Medical Students
I applaud all medical students that make the venture to become doctors. It is a hard road, and there are major milestones that are a great challenge. If you are taking your Step 1 exam October 8, 2020 (or another date) good luck to you. This is a hard time in your academic career, but will be rewarding soon.
Thank you so much for understanding!