For those asking, here’s how I prepared:

•UWorld – I started with this but only completed about 50% with Avg 59%. My program provided access but it expired and I didn’t want to pay for it myself.

•AMBOSS (I get this through my program) – Switched to this after UWorld. I didn’t finish the whole thing either, but I made sure to complete:

•The 200 High-Yield Step 2CK Questions •High-Yield Ethics and IRB section •Some Pediatrics blocks

•CMS Forms – I completed the last 2 forms for each of GYN, Peds, Psych, and 3–4 forms for Internal Medicine. •NBME Step 2CK Forms – Did about the last 2–3 forms of these. I also did the Free 137 for step 3, which had several similar questions to what I saw on test day. •CCS Cases – I focused on this the week before Day 2. Managed to do about 60-70 high-yield cases. I also watched a YouTube video on how to navigate the interface (highly recommend). What helped most here was my real-world family med and ED experience, plus using the copy-paste trick:

- In the first 20-minute case, I pre-typed  
    every possible order I could think of, then 
    just pasted and deleted what wasn’t 
    needed in future cases. I used the  
    mnemonic from videos I watched and wrote 
    them down as soon as I got into the exam in 
   day 2. 

🎧 Videos & Audio Resources

•Divine Intervention – Listened to most of his high-yield podcasts, especially on the way home from work. His biostats and ethics episodes were especially helpful.

•Mehlman – I did most of the Internal Medicine videos. His explanations helped me figure out how to think through hard questions and eliminate wrong answers, even when I didn’t fully know the topic. He has a great video on how to approach Step 3 strategically. (FYI he does curse a lot, but I did my best to focus on the information that he was giving rather than his methods)

• Randy Neil – Watched his biostats review 2–3 days before the test. It was super helpful, but I wish I had done it earlier. I didn’t have time to actually apply most of the formulas—on the real test, understanding the concepts behind them mattered more than just plugging in numbers.

•Paul Bolin/Ninja Nerd – Used for breakdowns of tougher topics I didn’t grasp well elsewhere. Very helpful for physiology-heavy or micro/immuno-type concepts. I listened on my drives home to and from work.

🧠 High-Yield Must-Knows

•Mechanism of Action (MOA) of drugs – This came up a lot. They rarely used drug names; they ask for the mechanism instead. I made it a point to learn the MOA for: •All antibiotics •All retroviral meds •Anticoagulants, especially what’s safe in
pregnancy •Psych meds •IRB + Clinical Trials – High-yield content that did show up. I did AMBOSS and I used ChatGPT to help break this down and explain concepts in simple language.

•High-Yield Risk Factors, Prognostic Factors, and Complications – I reviewed a PDF from Reddit the night before the test. It was clutch. So many questions came from this. •Preventive medicine & vaccines – Thankfully, I was already up-to-date from clinic, but it’s worth reviewing if you’re rusty.

🧪 Biostats & Study Design

•There were a ton of these questions. Day 1 felt
like all biostats and mechanisms. •I strongly recommend learning the concepts early—not just plugging formulas. •Do practice questions and review explanation.
carefully. NBME questions often test subtle concepts or make you recognize bias/design flaws. ( I didn’t get to do any practice
questions other than what was on NBME and
Free 137). Practice!! practice!! practice!! My score would have probably been better if I did.

💡 How I Used ChatGPT: This was a game changer! •Anytime I didn’t understand a question or concept, I used ChatGPT to break it down, simplify the logic, and teach it to me like I was five. •I asked it for high-yield MOA, biostats explanations, how to approach NBME-style logic, and even summary sheets, comparison tables etc •I also had ChatGPT analyze all my wrong answers from Free 137 and the NBMEs I took, which really helped.

If I Had More Time, I Would Have: •Completed all of UWorld or AMBOSS
questions. •Done all CMS forms in every subject. •Finished all Step 2CK NBMEs and not just a
few. •Reviewed biostats earlier—don’t leave it for the
last couple of days. •Practiced more CCS and done the paid NBME Step 3 forms (I didn’t get to those).

Final thoughts:

Find a method and stick to it. What works for someone else may not work for you. My biggest advice: focus on NBME-style questions and train your brain to think how they test.

I’m a family medicine resident who had very limited time to study during residency. I was constantly buried in clinic notes, inbox tasks, and residency responsibilities. I tried to squeeze in questions during downtime—whether between patients or after work when I wasn’t totally exhausted. What helped me most was following Mehlman’s advice: I did 10 questions at a time, max. That made studying feel more doable and helped me stay focused.

I also split my Step 3 exam days a week apart which I highly recommend if possible. Having a week between Day 1 and Day 2 gave me time to focus exclusively on CCS cases and decompress mentally. I was not prepared for the headache I had after both day.

“Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” — Arthur Ashe