8 Students engaged in self-directed learning to diagnose their learning needs, formulate goals, identify resources, implement learning strategies, and evaluate outcomes. The humanist framework of self-directed learning theory guided this research. This study aimed to describe what approaches and resources medical students utilized when preparing for the Step 2 CK exam and investigate the relationship(s) between various resources and strategies on Step 2 CK performance.

While prior research has examined the utility of various academic indicators to predict student performance on the USMLE exams, 6, 7 no significant scholarly effort has been conducted to investigate students’ Step 2 CK study approaches. Thus, additional Step 2 CK preparation may be necessary. 3 – 5 Moreover, because of the changes planned for scoring Step 1, students may not have learned and implemented effective exam preparation strategies previously. 1, 2 With the 2020 announcement that score reporting for Step 1 will move to pass/fail, students will likely experience increased pressure to achieve a competitive score on their Step 2 CK exam. Over time, the pressure on students to perform optimally on this exam has increased due to the importance of exam scores in the residency selection processes.

Academic advisors counsel medical students on study approaches and resources that promote student success on the United States Medical Licensing Examinations (USMLE) Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK) exam.

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