The United States Medical Licensing Examination ® (USMLE®) consists of a three-step examination required to gain medical license in the United States. The USMLE assesses a medical student’s and physician’s ability to apply fundamental and clinical knowledge, concepts, and principles, and ability to demonstrate basic clinical skills, that are vital to health and disease and that constitute the foundation of safe and effective patient care.
TBI offers the following USMLE Test Prep courses:
USMLE Step 1 focuses on concepts of basic medical sciences and principles of disease development, manifestations, underlying medical conditions or causes and complications related to the condition. It also requires candidates to understand the details of pharmacotherapy.
Step 1 is a one-day rigorous test with approximately 280 MCQs. There are altogether 7 blocks with maximum of 40 questions each. Each block should be solved in a limited time of 60 min. The total duration of the test is 8 hours.
The exam mainly constitutes of the following areas:
The TBI USMLE Step 1 Prep Course Chicago consists of:
USMLE Step 2 CK focuses on knowledge, skills, and gaining a broader understanding of clinical sciences. It gives proper emphasis to preventive medicine and communication skills. It assesses the medical student’s/physician’s ability to manage clinical cases in various healthcare setting under supervision.
Step 2 CK is a one-day examination with approximately 318 MCQs. There are altogether 8 blocks with a maximum of 40 question each. Each block should be solved in a limited time of 60 min. The total duration of the test is 9 hours.
The exam mainly consists of the following areas:
The TBI Step 2 CK course consists of:
USMLE Step 2 CS focuses on communication skills, bedside manners, and writing medical records in additional to knowledge, skills, and broader understanding of clinical sciences. It gives proper emphasis to preventive medicine and counselling. It assesses the medical student’s/physician’s ability to manage clinical cases in various healthcare settings under supervision.
Step 2 CS uses standardized patients (SP) for the testing purposes. There is a total of 12 clinical scenarios with each interaction with SP limited time of 15 min followed by 10 min for writing patient notes. In the given time medical student or the physician should gather patient information, perform physical examinations, and do appropriate counseling.
The TBI Step 2 CS course consists of:
Step 3 is the final test in the sequence of USMLE. This test is to assess a candidate’s ability to function independently in various clinical settings and scenarios. The exam is divided over a period of two days.
Day 1 – Foundations of Independent Practice: It is a 7-hours exam with 6 blocks. There are altogether 233 MCQs, thus each block has a maximum of 40 question. It has only MCQs and some of the newer formats based on scientific abstracts and pharmaceutical advertisements. The areas covered are application of foundational science, understanding biostatistics and epidemiology. Other areas that are tested include medical literature interpretation, health maintenance, medical ethics, preventive medicine. This test also involves content that requires a candidate to be proficient in the knowledge of patient history and physical examination, diagnosis and the use of different diagnostic techniques.
Day 2 – Advanced Clinical Medicine: This test is a 9-hour exam with 180 MCQs followed by 13 CCS problems. The 180 MCQs are divided into 6 blocks with 30 MCQs in each block. The CCS problems assess the physician’s ability to evaluate history and physical exam information, order diagnostic tests, select initial therapies, and manage the patient. This day involves multiple choice questions and computer-based case simulations.