Torrent Usmle Step 1 Kaplan Videos
Gretchen Vansise
In the video above, John from the Test Prep Insight team walks you through the major pros and cons of the Kaplan USMLE prep course. For more detail, be sure to continue reading our full written review below so you can finally decide whether Kaplan is the right choice to help you prepare for the USMLE.
This package includes access to video lessons, Qbank practice questions, answer explanations, print and e-books, and full-length simulated exams. The number of practice questions and lecture hours generally vary with each step of the exam, but all of these features are included within each package to one extent or another.
After taking the Kaplan USMLE Step 1 prep course, I would use two main words to describe it: comprehensive and guided. It is clear from the moment you log in to your Kaplan account that you will not need to hunt for work to do or wonder what to study next.
Kaplan offers one of the most tried and tested USMLE prep curriculums in the space, and all of your work is set out right in front of you, to be tackled step-by-step. The study plan they provide is clear as day, and walks you through everything you need to study in the right order.
The course starts with a quick series of intro videos and a diagnostic exam. The videos basically just welcome you to the course, explain how whichever step of the USMLE you are on works, gives a few test strategies, and so on. Fairly basic and straightforward stuff.
Once you wrap up your warmup exercise, you dive right into a series of video lessons and quizzes. The video lessons each cover even more narrow subject matter, and generally range in length from just a few minutes to upwards of an hour.
The videos almost exclusively take the form of a PowerPoint video. Meaning your lecturer gives their lesson verbally over a series of slides onscreen. As they speak, slides roll across the screen and they occasionally make notes in red or blue ink directly on the slides.
Rarely, some of the videos will cut to an instructor on camera, but these are far and few between. Much more often, these videos just feature the relevant slides onscreen and your instructor lectures right over them.
After your video lesson (or sometimes series of videos) on a given subtopic, you are given a quiz. These quizzes are usually just 5 to 10 questions in length and test what you just learned. The question style is very similar to the warmup questions, and do not replicate exam-like questions.
As such, they go quickly because they are simpler. You then review your answers, learn from the explanations, and move onto the next subject. And that is generally how the study plan goes, topic by topic.
Beyond the instructional lesson work, Kaplan also gives you access to a number of exam-like practice questions through their Qbank. To be specific, for Step 1 you get 3,300 questions, for Step 2 you get 2,900, and for Step 3 you get around 900.
This is a LOT of practice work for each respective step. Looking at Step 1 alone, this puts Kaplan right up there with SmashUSMLE and BoardVitals for the most practice work in the USMLE prep industry.
Their question explanations thoroughly cover the underlying issue, a little content review, and an analysis of each answer choice. These text explanations actually contrast with the warmup and quiz question explanations. Those explanations are very thin, while I found the practice questions in the Qbank to have much better explanations.
All in all, I was a huge fan of the Kaplan curriculum, and found the coursework to be incredibly effective. The study plan is well-designed, comprehensively covering every topic on the exam.
I do have a bone to pick with the quality of the on demand video lessons, and thought the warmup and quiz question explanations were a little thin, but I otherwise was very impressed with the Kaplan course.
Class sessions are held nearly daily, and they are jam packed with content. Over the course of a couple hundred hours of class time (I took the Step 1 course), a team of instructors will rotate in and out. It seems like Kaplan generally tries to find subject matter experts to teach to each given topic of the exam.
However, the rest of the instructors (i.e. the vast majority) were incredible. They were all obvious masters of their subjects and great communicators to boot. USMLE material can be dry, and these instructors managed to make it about as enjoyable as it could be.
The second highlight of the Kaplan course, at least for me, is the set of prep books you get when you sign up. Step 1 students get a 7-volume set, Step 2 students get a 5-volume set, and Step 3 students get a 2-volume set.
These books are detailed, well-written and chock full of graphics, tables and images. To start, I love the style and organization of these books. They are written in a to-the-point, outline style format. They are concise, fact-driven and easily understandable.
I love textbooks that are neatly organized (it helps me learn and retain material), and these books are just that. There are no long, rambling sections or treatise-like passages. These books are just clean and neatly organized.
Also, visual learners will love the graphics that accompany these books. It seems like every other page has some sort of image, exhibit, table, or graphic. These illustrations really help to demonstrate key points and visual processes and organ systems.
If I did have one complaint though, it would be that every time you open a video lesson or quiz, it appears in a new browser tab. This really annoys me, as by the end of studying all day you have about a million tabs open. Small complaint I know, but worthy of note.
To bump up to 7 or 12 months of prep time will generally cost a couple hundred extra dollars per incremental increase. That said, I think 4 months will be enough time for most people to study for the USMLE, assuming you have the availability to dedicate some serious hours.
On the other side, the content access period for each Live Online course is generally tied to the length of your course. Your access to your materials will continue for a short period after the class sessions end, but will cut off rather quickly.
This Step 1 app gives students access to their Qbank, but not video lectures. That is a bit of a bummer, but I will note that the video lectures are mobile friendly, so you can stream live online classes or watch on demand videos from your phone all the same.
For students hunting down the best USMLE prep course for their needs, this may be a little disappointing, but not totally uncommon in the USMLE prep space. It would be nice to see Kaplan at least add a free course repeat guarantee though, especially given the high prices Kaplan students pay.
In terms of the study resources and tools, this course is highlighted by its live online classes and detailed, outline-style textbooks. To be honest, just about all of their study material is the best in the game. The practice questions are extremely exam-like and I liked the explanations that accompany those questions in the Qbank.
Aside from these minor issues though, I loved my experience prepping for the USMLE with Kaplan. Their USMLE course is rich with study materials and incredibly well-designed, which is why Kaplan ranks right near the top of our best USMLE prep courses list.
Question banks or qbanks can help you study for USMLE Steps 1 and 2 by providing you with sample questions that are similar to what you may find on the USMLE. You can use qbanks to review different topics and see how you understand various subjects. Two qbanks to explore are the Kaplan and AMBOSS banks. These are two banks that feature questions created by prior medical students who have passed the USMLE.
This Kaplan vs AMBOSS review shows many points to explore surrounding these two question banks. They are different in many ways, but they are also convenient for how they can help you learn more about the subject.
The AMBOSS medical learning platform is a system that helps medical students prepare for the USMLE. The qbank features more than 2,700 questions for the Step 1 exam and thousands of other questions for additional subjects.
AMBOSS has the more valuable series of videos, as AMBOSS partners with Osmosis, a group that produces medical learning videos, to help students understand more about how many concepts work. The thorough info in these videos will be helpful to your studies.
Kaplan also provides some interactive 3D models you can review after a question. These images will help you analyze different organs, body systems, and other factors, giving you a more visual approach to understanding your subject.
Kaplan has more than 3,000 questions in its bank. You can sort these questions by difficulty, helping you build confidence as you work through some of the simple concepts first before moving on to harder points.
But AMBOSS has a stronger bank, as AMBOSS has nearly 5,000 questions throughout its entire bank, with about 2,700 questions focusing on USMLE Step 1. You can use filters to focus on questions in specific subjects or disciplines that you want to study further. You can also highlight specific questions you want to focus on the most, allowing the platform to understand more about what you want to review.
AMBOSS also ranks its questions based on difficulty. There are five difficulty levels in this setup, and you can divide your questions between all of them to help you complete your exam and understand your subject matter.
The same is also true for AMBOSS. Many questions are complex, but you can learn how to manage them through this interface. The information Kaplan provides is easier to review, as Kaplan can help you review different question trees.
The AMBOSS platform also covers all the major topics, although it has content that goes well beyond Step 1. Students looking to complete the Step 1 exam might find it easier to focus on the Kaplan questions, although the AMBOSS platform can also work for all three parts.
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