My Step 2CS was on the first day of this month in Los Angeles. I had to fly to Los Angeles one night before and stayed very close to the center at Hacienda. There is a free shuttle service of the hotel that operates from Los Angeles international airport every 20 minutes or so. It is a three star hotel and priced to a student's pocket. Actually there are special rates for students at 83bucks a night. The good thing about the hotel is that it is just walking distance from the center and thus one does not need to worry about transport on the exam day. I took a short walk o the center too.
In the center, which is located on the 13th floor of the building there were 24 candidates in total who were taking the exam with me in the morning shift. I had 12 patients to see and then examine all of this leading to a 10 minute session of recording in writing all your findings. If you so desire you can type the same. I found writing easier and thus stuck to that.
There was a good mix of patients presented to us. But there was little time to do thorough exam on each. The stress of the exam is such that one ends to forget a few things in each encounter.
Similarly in my case i made a few blunders here and there but all in all it went well. Now i have to wait till december to see if USMLE agrees with me on the fact that i performed well enough to pass the test. Since my experience with the previous two tests has not been great i will keep my fngers crossed. May Allah help us all. Amen!
There were many IMGs taking the exam with me. This is in contrast to the experience of other people who have taken the exam before me. Usually LA is one of those centers which are preferred by US graduates in winter times. Afterall everyone enjoys warm winter suns of LA.
There were many Indian doctors who had come to take the exam. Similarly there was a french doctor and a doctor from Phillipines. There were a few Chinese and Korean doctors as well.
I met a Pakistani doctor at the test center. HE is a graduate of Sindh Medical College and is currently living and working in the US. He hopes to find a residency this year. After the exam we had our lunch and talked about the prospects of matching. Had some candid talk.
My return flight was in the evening and when we landed at San Jose cold, windy and wet weather welcomed us.
In the center, which is located on the 13th floor of the building there were 24 candidates in total who were taking the exam with me in the morning shift. I had 12 patients to see and then examine all of this leading to a 10 minute session of recording in writing all your findings. If you so desire you can type the same. I found writing easier and thus stuck to that.
There was a good mix of patients presented to us. But there was little time to do thorough exam on each. The stress of the exam is such that one ends to forget a few things in each encounter.
Similarly in my case i made a few blunders here and there but all in all it went well. Now i have to wait till december to see if USMLE agrees with me on the fact that i performed well enough to pass the test. Since my experience with the previous two tests has not been great i will keep my fngers crossed. May Allah help us all. Amen!
There were many IMGs taking the exam with me. This is in contrast to the experience of other people who have taken the exam before me. Usually LA is one of those centers which are preferred by US graduates in winter times. Afterall everyone enjoys warm winter suns of LA.
There were many Indian doctors who had come to take the exam. Similarly there was a french doctor and a doctor from Phillipines. There were a few Chinese and Korean doctors as well.
I met a Pakistani doctor at the test center. HE is a graduate of Sindh Medical College and is currently living and working in the US. He hopes to find a residency this year. After the exam we had our lunch and talked about the prospects of matching. Had some candid talk.
My return flight was in the evening and when we landed at San Jose cold, windy and wet weather welcomed us.
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