How to get honors and ace the Shelf exams

Now that I am done with third year, I feel like I can share some wisdom on what to do for each rotation. Coming back from a 4 year leave of absence, I was definitely at a disadvantage knowledge-wise but I managed to honor 4/7 clerkships, high pass 2/7, and sadly only pass surgery. That said, I don't regret any of the resources I used and think anyone can get honors with the right mindset and the right study material. I hope some of you find this useful.

General Advice

You always have to try your best in clinic. It sucks when people ignore you or doesn't like you but swallow your pride and try to please them. At most schools, evals from your residents/attendings make up a good portion of your clerkship grade so do not overlook the importance of showing up early, being prepared, and being eager to learn. That said, don't play "the game". Go home when they tell you to go home. Don't try to outshine everyone around you. Instead, spend your free time at work learning. As a med student, sometimes it is wise just not to get in the way of other people's work.

Pediatrics 

2    This will probably not apply to the majority of you guys because at our school, we don't take the NBME shelf for peds. Instead, we take the Clipp exam which is why I chose to do pediatrics early. It was the only rotation where I knew exactly what material would be tested. I did all the online cases about 2-3x plus all the UWorld questions.

Psych

1    Resources used:

a.     Psych for First Aid – finished reading the first week. This is the best resource. Went over topics throughout rotation. Probably read this 2-3x throughout. 

b.     UWorld questions – finished by week 3. High yield but shorter stems compared to the real thing. 

c.   Case Files for Pych - not necessary but I had extra time so I read it. I wish I had just reread Pych for First Aid

d.   Kaplan questions - I got the kaplan qbank to have some extra practice questions on hand for the year but didn't find it all that useful. 

e.   Emma's lectures from UTSW: http://som.uthscsa.edu/StudentAffairs/thirdyear.asp. This was gold. Pay close attention to the last section on genetic diseases. I was surprise when it showed up on my shelf but her entire video is high yield.

f.    NBME practice exams. These are always frustrating because you don't get the answers but if you can do it with a friend or find someone to compare, they are helpful for figuring out what the NBME thinks is important and what they like to trick you on

Surgery 

Resources used:

a.     UWorld Surgery – helpful but not sufficient

b.   Surgery - A case based clinical review (https://www.amazon.com/Surgery-Case-Based-Clinical-Review/dp/1493917250). This was the most helpful resource by far. Don't let the size intimate you. You can easily get through a chapter in 20 min and they distill every down to exactly what you need to know for the shelf. That said, I didn't do too well on this shelf but I think it was because I was SO nervous for some reason. Surgery really scared the crap out of me.

c.     NBME surgery exams – HIGH YIELD!

d.      Emma's lectures from UTSW: see above. Definitely a lot of overlap between her surgery and IM videos but since a lot of surgery is IM, this was still very useful

Medicine 

Resources used:

a.   All the UWorld questions. I know this is alot (like >1400) but I purposely put 4 weeks of easy electives before my medicine rotation so I could finish this and it was by far the best thing I did. I made flashcards of every concept I didn't know and carried it everywhere with me throughout the rotation. It worked wonders.

b.    Step Up to Medicine- A lot of people really like this book but I only used it as a supplement to UWorld. I never read it front to back and don't regret it.

c.   NBMEs and Emma's lecture from UTSW. See above

d.   IM essential questions. I don't know if your school has access but ACPonline has 500 IM questions and they were super helpful prior to the exam; especially for basic family med question that tend to show up on the exam

Neuro 

      Resources used:

a.     Case Files Neuro – Finished this in the first 3 weeks. I used this for my primary resource for studying. MODERATE YIELD.

b.     First Aid Step 1 – Neuro and Musculoskeletal sections. HIGH YIELD!

c.     First Aid Step 2 – Reviewed this the last 1-2 days before exam. HIGH YIELD!

d.     NBME x2 practice exams – HIGH YIELD.

e.     UWorld questions – Finished all. MODERATE YIELD

OB/GYN

1    Resources used:

a.     UWorld – HIGH YIELD.

b.     NBME exams – HIGH YIELD.

c.     Casefiles OB/GYN – HIGH YIELD

d.     UWise questions from ACOG– HIGH YIELD! Get a free student account and do all these questions!

Family Medicine

1    Resources used:

a.     AAFP Questions (1,226 questions): It takes awhile for finish this but it was literally all I did. I took notes on concepts I didn't know/remember and reviewed it the night before the test. 

b.     Pre-test: 500 questions: moderate yield but good if you have the time.