Doctors going thru the USMLE Process?

[sctdixon 6]

Hi,

Any other doctors on this forum that is immigrating to the US and going throught the USMLE process?

My soon to be wife is a physician in Peru and currently studying for her Step 1 of the USMLE. We are getting married next month and filing her I-130 in January all while the poor woman is studying so hard. Wish us luck or if you have any experiences to share, we'd like to hear them.

[drewmd 0]

Hi, Im also a doctor from the Philippines, did she filed her USMLE apllication already? GOod luck to her and best wishes to both of you!

Edited November 15, 2011 by drewmd

[faithinGod 8]

Hi,

Any other doctors on this forum that is immigrating to the US and going throught the USMLE process?

My soon to be wife is a physician in Peru and currently studying for her Step 1 of the USMLE. We are getting married next month and filing her I-130 in January all while the poor woman is studying so hard. Wish us luck or if you have any experiences to share, we'd like to hear them.

Hi, I am also studying for USMLE and there are at least 2 more foreign doctors here on VJ currently preparing for it. If your wife wants to talk and share experience ( i know it helps a lot , the exams are beyond stressful lol) send me a message.

Andreea

[faithinGod 8]

Hi, Im also a doctor from the Philippines, did she filed her USMLE apllication already? GOod luck to her and best wishes to both of you!

i`m so glad to find more people going trough this, i`m currently preparing for step 1, i didn`t register for the exam yet, how about you?

[sctdixon 6]

Good to see other doctors on this board. I have been amazed at the complexity of the USMLE application and testing process for foreigners going through the ECFMG. It's almost as bad as the immigration process. Haha

Here is where she is at:

She has has received her USMLE ID # and applied for her Step 1 Examination. Her 3 month "window" starts in February. In the mean time, we have been getting all her degrees (4 of them) and transcripts together as well as everything translated. This proved interesting as she has been out of medical school for a few years. Also getting her medical university to get her Form 186 submitted has been more than anticipated but this week it should be mailed out. Next week we are mailing Forms 187, 344 & 345 so they will have all of her documents.

We have signed her up for the Kaplan USMLE Step 1 Preperation Course (expensive!) and Q-Bank which is proving to be worth every penny. Is anybody else using or has used this study course?

[drewmd 0]

Not yet too, I have friends who have passed all the step4 and doing their residency already. I was advise to have my status adjusted first and of course do a lot of studies, try to get the highest possible score for step 1 to get a good hospital match. What reviewers are you using? My friends said Kaplan is the best, and of course text books.

[faithinGod 8]

I didn`t sign up yet because i wanted to take more time for step 1 to study. The process is indeed difficult, more difficult than immigration in my oppinion lol.

I am using Kaplan books and First Aid. I`m not using the live classes (the expensive ones ) because from what i heared they don`t do more than the Kaplan videos and the books have all the info. There are many books out there that proved to be good but i decided to go with Kaplan and First Aid.Later i`ll do the different online tests to evaluate myself lol.

Good luck to us and hope to keep in touch.

[sctdixon 6]

She is doing the Online Kaplan Step 1 Prep Course. She finds the online lectures very beneficial along with the books. Get this,Kaplan made a mistake and sent us two sets of books. We are going to sell them to try and recover some of the money it costs.

[faithinGod 8]

She is doing the Online Kaplan Step 1 Prep Course. She finds the online lectures very beneficial along with the books. Get this,Kaplan made a mistake and sent us two sets of books. We are going to sell them to try and recover some of the money it costs.

Oh no, i can`t believe they did that! I got them on Amamzon, new, printed in US, they were way cheaper than getting them directly from Kaplan. I`m sure you will be able to sell them soon, try Amamzon or ebay ,there are a lot of people lookin for them hehe:)

[sctdixon 6]

Oh no, i can`t believe they did that! I got them on Amamzon, new, printed in US, they were way cheaper than getting them directly from Kaplan. I`m sure you will be able to sell them soon, try Amamzon or ebay ,there are a lot of people lookin for them hehe:)

Yes, I've seen them on Ebay that sell for $600+ for the 2011 version like ours. Jackpot!!!!

[sctdixon 6]

Yes, I've seen them on Ebay that sell for $600+ for the 2011 version like ours. Jackpot!!!!

Update......

Sold the books on Ebay last month when we were back in the US for $650!!!!!!

[lierre 224]

I hope this thread receives more posts. Newer ones?

Any other foreign medical graduate trying to be licensed in the US through the MLE?

I am about to start my review for Step 1... as soon after our wedding happens

[Dr. A ♥ O 203]

Hey just seeing this thread. I tried to send you a PM but I can't send another one for an hour because I already sent two to other members/Doctors going through the USMLE process.

My Husband is going through the USMLE process and passed Step 2 CS on the first try recently. It took him 5 weeks to prepare for it and he passed with high performance. My SIL took a month to study for that step and also passed with high performance. So I think that Step is the easiest but it also the most expensive and would still take some preparation, at least a month to six weeks everyday. My dh will take Step 1 by September 30th so it could be sooner than that if he feels ready. That has taken the most time preparing but it's worth it to get a high score. So hang in there because the studying never seems to end. It's the first in a series of Steps to get to a medical residency step and even then the studying and training doesn't stop.

Edited July 9, 2012 by Dr. A ♥ O

[Louza 10]

Hello I am a foreign doctor as well. Before even meeting my husband I had applied for the Part 1 MRCOG which is a UK membership exam because at the time I thought I was going to continue specializing in the United Kingdom - life is funny. I had passed the exam but unfortunately it isn't going to benefit me at all in America. I have most of the Step 1 material but to be honest I haven't started studying for it because my mind is preoccupied with why USCIS hasn't looked at my I-130 application in 6 months. I received my USMLE ID# though which is a start but I want to sit for the exam next year when God willing I am settled with my husband so I haven't applied yet because I can only change the 3 month window once.

It's nice to see that there are other doctors applying for the USMLE's here, good luck to you all

Edited July 10, 2012 by Louza

[Dr. A ♥ O 203]

Hello I am a foreign doctor as well. Before even meeting my husband I had applied for the Part 1 MRCOG which is a UK membership exam because at the time I thought I was going to continue specializing in the United Kingdom - life is funny. I had passed the exam but unfortunately it isn't going to benefit me at all in America. I have most of the Step 1 material but to be honest I haven't started studying for it because my mind is preoccupied with why USCIS hasn't looked at my I-130 application in 6 months. I received my USMLE ID# though which is a start but I want to sit for the exam next year when God willing I am settled with my husband so I haven't applied yet because I can only change the 3 month window once.

It's nice to see that there are other doctors applying for the USMLE's here, good luck to you all

Hi! I saw you are going through Egypt. I'm not sure what has USCIS backed up but I know when your petition gets to the Embassy level it may get backed up with everything that has been going on with the revolution. That has delayed things several times so possibly it has delayed applications for Egypt all the way down the line. Ours took 6 months as well to get the NOA1 but at the time they were increasing the fees for the filing process so there was a rush for everyone to apply before the deadline. We didn't know about this and got caught up in the delays.

My dh is also a medical graduate from Egypt. He also studied for the UK exams before ever meeting me. Life is funny. I saw you have a USMLE ID # but did you register with the ECFMG? It doesn't cost anything and it's needed to get the ECFMG certification before applying for the ERAS. Hopefully while you're waiting on your visa application you can focus on Step 1 and Step 2 CK and take those in Egypt before your arrival in the States. I know they are avaliable in Egypt to take and only Step 2 CS is in the States, though I've read they're considering expanding to offer that Step in Dubai. I tried for many years to get my husband to study and take the Steps before his arrival but he got caught up in mandatory military service and it delayed many things including our visa. Once you arrive here you might find it difficult to focus on your exams with the home sickness, and wondering about the political situation back in Egypt, and the adjustment to the United States. We went through about 2 years of adjustment with bumps in the road and I think he's finally come out of his culture shock. He said he didn't think he'd have it before coming here because he felt adapted to Western society already due to some exposure to it, but afterwards when he was here he exhibited all the symptoms and it lasted a long time. So I really encourage you to focus on the exams while in your home country where things are still so familiar and fresh.

I wish you the best and I hope you stay in touch.