Renal/Respiratory Exams Finished

I had a big testing week this past week -- respiratory pathophysiology and renal pathophysiology are now finished. I did exceedingly well on the respiratory exam and better than average on the renal test, so all's well that ends well.

Next up are endocrinology, gastrointestinal pathophysiology, and reproductive pathophysiology. The Independent Study Program at Ohio State allows for multiple tests to be taken on one exam day, and finishing all three within a relatively small amount of time is imperitive is you want to stay on schedule. I almost always take all the exams for a given block on the same day; spreading the material out over two days is more of a hassle than it's worth.

The most frightening part of second year is the ever-looming presence of the USMLE Step 1 Exam. This beast of a test is an eight-hour examination of all the knowledge a medical student accumulates over the entirety of the first two years -- everything from biochemistry and anatomy to pathophysiology and pharmacology. Finishing all the school requirements before late spring is essential if enough study time is to be had for the Step 1 test.