• Chi Zhang, Abby Rauchwarger, Cynthia Toth, and Mark O'Connell.
• Department of Medical Education, University of Miami School of Medicine, Florida 33101, USA. czhang@med.miami.edu
• Adv Health Sci Educ Theory Pract. 2004 Jan 1; 9 (4): 291-7.

ObjectivesMany medical students take commercial preparation courses to prepare for the USMLE Step 1. This investigation examined the relationships among Step 1 performance, preparation method, and academic achievement in medical school.MethodA survey was conducted on 148 junior students at a medical school in July 2000 regarding their preparation methods for Step 1. Additional data was collected on student Step 1 scores, attendance record on preparation courses, and course grades in medical school.ResultsOne hundred students (68%) responded to the survey including 32 preparation course participants. Course participants had significantly lower Step 1 scores and second-year GPAs than those of the non-participants (p < 0.05). However, the effect of preparation method was not significant by using ANCOVA when the second-year GPA was used as a covariate (p = 0.71).ConclusionPerformance on Step 1 is related to academic performance in medical school and not the type of preparation methods.

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