USMLE STEP 1 schedule

1st Week: 
BIOCHEMISTRY 
June 8-13 

Monday Chat: 
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 
Nucleic Acid Structure and Organization 
DNA Replication and Repair; Transcription and RNA Processing 

Tuesday Chat: 
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY (cont) 
The genetic Code, Mutations, and Translation 
Genetic regulation; Recombinant DNA; Genetic testing 

Wednesday Chat: 
MEDICAL GENETICS 
Single-Gene Disorders 
Population genetics 
Cytogenetics 
Gene Mapping and Cloning 
Genetics of Common Diseases 
Genetic Diagnosis and Gene Therapy 

Thursday Chat: 
METABOLISM 
Hormones 
Vitamins 
Overview of Energy Metabolism 
Glycolysis and Pyruvate Dehydrogenase 
Citric Acid Cycle and Oxydative Phosphorylation 
Glycogen, Gluconeogenesis and the Hexose Monophosphate Shunt 



Friday Chat: 
METABOLISM 
Lipid synthesis and storage 
Lipid mobilization and catabolism 
Amino Acids, proteins, and Enzymes 
Amino Acid Metabolism 
Purine and Pyrimidine Metabolism 




2nd Week: 
ANATOMY 

June 15-20 

Monday Chat: 
EMBRYOLOGY: 
Gonad Development; Week 1; Week 2; Weeks 3–8, Embryonic period 

Tuesday Chat: 
HISTOLOGY AND CYTOLOGY 
Cell components 
Nervous Tissue; Muscle tissue 
Lymphoid Organs; Integument 
Respiratory System; Gastrointestinal System 
Renal/Urinary System; Male/Reproductive System 
Female/Reproductive System 

Wednesday Chat: 
GROSS ANATOMY AND ORGANOGENESIS 
Back and nervous System 
Thorax; Abdomen, Pelvis and perineum 
Upper Limb; Lower Limb; Head and Neck 

Thursday Chat: 
NEUROSCIENCE: 
Peripheral Nervous System 
Central Nervous System 
The Ventricular System 
The Spinal Cord 
The Brain Stem 
The Cerebellum 
Visual Pathways 
Diencephalon 
Basal Ganglia 
Cerebral Cortex 
The Limbic System 



Friday Chat: 
(Begin Physiology because short week for Thanksgiving) 
GENERAL TOPICS 
Membrane Transport 
Body Compartments 

EXCITABLE TISSUE 
Ionic Equilibrium and Resting Membrane Potential 
The Neuron Action potential 
Synaptic Transmission 



3rd Week: 
PHYSIOLOGY (cont) 
June 22-27 

Monday Chat: 
PERIPHERAL CIRCULATION 
General Aspects of the Cardiovascular System 
Regulation of Blood flow 

SKELETAL MUSCLE 
Excitation-Contraction Coupling 
Skeletal Muscle Mechanics 

CARDIAC MUSCLE 
Electrical activity of the heart 
Heart muscle mechanics 

Tuesday Chat: 
RESPIRATION 
Lung Mechanics 
Alveolar-Blood Gas Exchange 
Transport of O2 and CO2 and the regulation of respiration 
Four causes of Hypoxemia 

RENAL PHYSIOLOGY 
Renal processes 
Clearance 
Regional transport 

ACID BASE DISTURBANCE 

Wednesday Chat: 
ENDOCRINOLOGY 
Mechanisms of Hormone action 
The Hypothalamic anterior Pituitary system 
Adrenal hormones 
ADH and regulation of Osmolarity and ECF 
The Endocrine pancreas 
Growth Hormone 
Adrenal Medulla 
Hormonal Control of Calcium and Phosphate 
Thyroid Hormones 
Male reproductive system 
Female reproductive system 

GASTROINTESTINAL PHYSIOLOGY 


Thursday Chat: 
Off for Thanksgiving 



Friday Chat: 
Off for Thanksgiving, or review of Physio 





4th Week: 
BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE 
June 29-July 4 

Monday Chat: 
Epidemiology,Statistics 
Social Life in the US 
Substance Abuse 

Tuesday Chat: 
Human Sexuality 
Learning and Behavior Modification 
Defense mechanisms 


Wednesday Chat: 
Psychologic health and Testing 
Child Development 
Sleep and sleep disorders 

Thursday Chat: 
Organic Disorders 
Psychopharmacology 
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV (DSM IV) 



Friday Chat: 
Ethical and legal Issues 
Physician-patient relationships 




5th Week: 
PATHOLOGY by Goljan 
July 6-11 

Monday Chat: 
1. Cell Injury 
2. Inflammation 

Tuesday Chat: 
3. Fluids/hemodynamics 
4. Neoplasia 


Wednesday Chat: 
5. RBC and WBC 
6. Lymphoproliferatives 

Thursday Chat: 
7. Coagulation 
8. Blood Bank 

Friday Chat: 
9. Cardiovascular 
10. Respiratory 




6th Week: 
PATHOLOGY by Goljan (cont)

July 13-18 

Monday Chat: 
11. Gastrointestinal 
12. Hepatobiliar / Pancreas 

Tuesday Chat: 
13. Renal/ Lower Urinary 
14. STD / Gynecology 


Wednesday Chat: 
15. Endocrine 
16. Musculoskeletal 

Thursday Chat: 
17. Skin 
18. CNS/Special senses 

Friday Chat: 
Overall Goljan review 




7th Week: 
IMMUNOLOGY 
July 20-25 

Monday Chat: 
INTRODUCTION 
Innate Immunity 
Acquired (Adaptative) Immunity 
Immunoglobulins and T-cell Receptors 
Immunoglobulins and T-cell Receptor (TCR) Genes 

Tuesday Chat: 
Antigens and Immunogens 
Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) 
The Lymphoid System 
The Immune Response 
T cell subsets and Interleukins 
Cell-mediated Immunity 
Complement 


Wednesday Chat: 
Failures of the Immune System: Hypersensitivity 
Failures of the Immune System: Immunodeficiency 
Failures of the Immune System: Autoimmunity 
Regulation and Tolerance 
Transplantation Immunology 
Immunology Laboratory Procedures 

Thursday Chat: 
Off 

Friday Chat: 
Off  




8th Week: 
MICROBIOLOGY 
July 27-August 1 

Monday Chat: 
General Microbiology 
Medically Important bacteria 

Tuesday Chat: 
Medically Important Fungi 
Medical Parasitology 


Wednesday Chat: 
Medically Important Viruses 

Thursday Chat: 
Microbial Genetics/Drug Resistance 
Clinical Infectious Disease 
Comparative Microbiology 
Flow Charts/Clue Sheets 



Friday Chat: 
Off 




9th Week: 
PHARMACOLOGY*** 
AUgust 3- 8 

Monday Chat: 
GENERAL PRINCIPLES**: 
Pharmacokinetics; 
Pharmacodynamics 
AUTONOMIC PHARMACOLOGY**: 
The Autonomic nervous System; 
Cholinergic Pharmacology; 
Adrenergic Neuroeffector Junctions; 
Autonomic Drugs: The Eye and Cardiovascular System; 
Autonomic Drug Summary 

Tuesday Chat: 
CARDIAC AND RENAL PHARMACOLOGY***: 
Fundamental Concepts; 
Antiarrythmics Drugs; 
Antihypertensive Drugs; 
Drugs for heart Failure; 
Antianginal Drugs; 
Diuretics; 
Antihyperlipidemics 

Wednesday Chat: 
- CNS PHARMACOLOGY*** 

Thursday Chat: 
- ANTIMICROBIAL AGENTS**: 
Antibacterial Agents; 
Antifungal Agents; 
Antiviral* Agents; 
Antiprotozoal Agents and the Antimicrobial Drug List 
- DRUGS FOR INFLAMMATORY AND RELATED DISORDERS 

Friday Chat: 
- DRUGS USED IN BLOOD AND ENDOCRINE DISORDERS: 
Blood Pharmacology; Endocrine Pharmacology 
- ANTICANCER DRUGS* 
- IMMUNOPHARMACOLOGY 
- TOXICOLOGY: Anticancer drugs; Immunopharmacology; Toxicology

___________________
once we have a destiny we have acquired the reason of life, but life can press us to keep ourselves away from it. a strange force comes to keep ourselves limited. It is determination which keeps limitations away and turn the table around. it is imagination which makes us infinite.

Reading strategies

Before beginning to read, think about the purpose for the reading.  Why has the teacher made this assignment?  What are you supposed to get out of it?  Jot down your thoughts.

Survey the reading.  Look at the title of the piece, the subheadings.  What is in dark print or stands out?  Are there illustrations or graphs?

Read the introduction and conclusion, then go back and read the whole assignment.  Or read the first line in every paragraph to get an idea of how the ideas progress, then go back and read from the beginning.

Scan the entire reading, then focus on the most interesting or relevant parts to read in detail.

Pay attention to when you can skim and when you need to understand every word.

Write as you read.  Take notes and talk back to the text.  Explicate (explain in detail) and mark up the pages.  Write down what interests or bores you.  Speculate about why.

If you get stuck in the reading, think and write about where you got stuck.  Contemplate why that particular place was difficult and how you might break through the block.

Record and explore your confusion.  Confusion is important because it's the first stage in understanding.

When the going gets difficult, and you don't understand the reading, slow down and reread  sections.

Break long assignments into segments.  Read 10 pages, then do something else.  Later, read the next 10 pages and so on.

Read prefaces and summaries to learn important details about the book.  Look at the table of contents for information about the structure and movement of ideas.  Use the index to look up specific names, places, ideas.

Translate difficult material into your own words.  Create an alternative text.

Answer the questions at the end of the chapter.

Answer these question in your own words: What's the author talking about?  What does the author want me to get out of this?

Read the entire piece, then write a one paragraph or one sentence summary.

Transcribe your notes in the book or handwritten notes into more formal notes on the computer.  Turn your first notes into a list of ideas or a short essay.

Review the ideas in the text after you finish reading.  Ask yourself questions to determine what you got out of the reading.

Mark up the text, bring it to class, and ask questions about what you don't understand.

Post an email to the class Mailing List and ask for responses from the teacher and fellow  students.

Consult another source.  What does another author have to say on the same topic?

Disagree with the author.  Become a devil's advocate.  Remember, you don't have to believe an idea to argue about it.

Think about the text in three ways. 

 1. Consider the text itself, the basic information right there on the page.  (This is the level of most high school readers and many college students.) 

 2.  Next think about what is between the lines, the conclusions and inferences the author means  you to draw from the text.  

3. Finally, go beyond thinking about the text.  What creative, new,  and different thoughts occur as you combine your knowledge and experiences with the ideas in the reading?

The PQRST Method of Studying

PREVIEW an assignment by scanning it.  Read the chapter outline at the beginning of the chapter.  Pay attention to the headings of the sections and subsections.  Read the summary.  The point is to get an idea of the main topics and sections of the chapter. 
(Numbers 2, 3, and 4 are done at the same time)

QUESTION yourself by making questions of the headings of each section and subsection.

As you READ the assignment, look for the answers to the questions you have made.

SELF-RECITATION requires that you try to remember the main points of each section and that you say them out loud (if possible) to yourself.

You TEST yourself after you have finished the entire chapter.  How many of the main ideas from the chapter can you remember?

Now you are really starting to store your studies into long-term memory!

2 supporting emails, one from my non muslim friend, and one from very good muslim friend!

Hello ,
When I went back to school, I gave myself tests. I read one book or chapter.
Close the book, then think about what I read, then test myself by asking
questions. Then double checking the answers I wrote. (writing helps me
remember; others learn and remember other ways). I also did the same for
topics not covered in the course, in case there were surprise questions.
After cramming each day, I'd declare a holiday and just relax or "play". Then
get good sleep and then continue the next day. So break it up into smaller
sections, to work on.

If you go blank on a question, theink about related topics/; (make notes0
might trigger correct answer. Don't stall too long.
Get the others done; then go back and write what's in your mind even if it's
not the exact answer they're looking for. You might get points for "going
beyond " what they've asked.
(won't work if the questions are True or False or circle the correct answer;
but might help on open-ended questions.

I think you have more knowledge than you realize. It will no doubt help you be
an excellent doctor and maybe even reading here will help you with the tests.
So stay positive; keep working at it. And the very last night, take a break,
have a relaxing meal, do something nice for yourself and have a restful sleep.

We're pulling for your success. You're more than you realize. Stay positive.
J

Assalam u alaikum, ----- behn,

Sorry I wasn't very helpful for you, maybe because I always think you are calling me for my benefit.
But I realize later that you need some comfort too.
You know that for every thing we do it becomes a good deed depending on our niyyah, and for best niyyah we need to do lots of duas with infinite hope.
Getting a medical degree looks like a very worldly thing, but if our goals are high, and our niyyah is to serve Islam through this, inshallah it would be a best means to get Jannah.
It's also good to establish economic situation, for a muslim family to benefit muslim umma.
Sooo be happy & study.

wassalam

study plan

One patho chapter daily, till Jan 4th.
First aid: one hr daily
Q bank: one hr
1 lec video
Goljan lecture daily