6 of the most popular video sources for the USMLE and how they compare

If you’ve opened this article, you’re most likely either some med student preparing for the USMLE or considering it in the future. Or maybe you’re just curious. At any rate, you’re interested in the most popular resources used all over the world to prepare for their exam and whether they’re actually worth their salt. To answer that question, I’ve combed the internet for reviews, asked people around me, and of course relied on my own experience using these resources at one time or the other throughout my basic sciences, to bring you my take on this topic.

Boards and beyond

Created by a cardiologist, Dr. Jason Ryan, Boards and Beyond is a video subscription service that has more than 400 high-quality videos through which it provides a comprehensive review of almost every topic (cardiology, pulmonology, biostatistics, etc.) and corresponding full range subtopics in First Aid for the USMLE. The videos are short and range from 10-20 minutes in most cases.

THE GOOD: BnB is certainly an extremely popular resource by all standards. Countless students worldwide have given their testimonials about how BnB allowed them to score great on their Step 1. Plus many have given special praise for their Cardiology module videos which are packed with extra useful clinical information from Dr. Jason Ryan’s own experience as a cardiologist. First Aid gives their service an overall grade of “A”. That’s supposed to be good, I’m guessing.

THE NOT SO GOOD: The price tag, while it might be affordable for US standards, is still out of reach for most Pakistanis at $90/month or even at $400/24 months(the cheapest offer overall. However, I’m sure the Paki inside you can figure out a way around that.

Hint: torrents

CONCLUSION: Excellent for a first pass of the material and to form the backbone of your theoretical knowledge. It’s a gold standard combined resource for high-yield topics on the USMLE. However, some students feel it doesn’t go deep enough and doesn’t explain some concepts as well as some other resources mentioned here.

Dr. Najeeb

Second on the list is a fan favorite and a man who needs no introduction, especially to med students in Pakistan. His hand-drawn whiteboard lectures combined with his characteristic charisma on-screen make him a well-recognized figure even outside of medicine.

THE GOOD: Many will claim that he made it possible for them to survive med school and understand and appreciate anything about the basic sciences. Dr. Najeeb’s videos are beautiful if you’re all about understanding the deeper concepts about how literally anything in medicine works. Plus his vast library of 800+ videos means you’re hardly ever without a video to explain anything. Also, it’s extremely cheap when he has a discount so purchasing it is actually an option for this one.

THE NOT SO GOOD: it’s not as directly related to the USMLE as most other resources you’ll likely come across. A lot of people have said that while detailed, his videos won’t always exactly teach what you need to know for the USMLE, and hence you might end up focusing on low yield stuff and not enough on the points that actually matter.

CONCLUSION: First Aid gives this resource a “B+” grade for USMLE preparation. I think that pretty much sums it up. Maybe you should only use it to clarify some really important concepts that aren’t explained sufficiently in other resources? If you’re only in your first couple of years though, you definitely should try to use it as much as possible. It’s worth it!

Kaplan

The third option here is an old and popular service, well known to students around the world. Kaplan provides material for all kinds of entry tests ranging from the SAT to the USMLE and is quite comprehensive. Their service includes videos, books based on the videos, and very useful question banks.

THE GOOD: When used in conjunction with the book, I think that few would disagree Kaplan is a very good resource for building up your basic concepts on high yield topics in almost all subjects. I have personally used it many times throughout basic sciences and found it very useful as it explains topics concisely but at the same time with a lot of clinical relevance and emphasis on the interrelation between different subjects which makes studying very interesting.

THE NOT SO GOOD: Their prices are really quite ridiculous: starting from $2000/4 months should be out of reach for most US students and out of question for most Pakistanis unless you’d like to pay almost more than you currently pay for your own private med school. Also, some students have said it also contains a lot of irrelevant and slightly low-yield information which you don’t need if you’re studying in your dedicated prep time. It's also generally true that they haven't updated their curriculum and teaching style for a long time now so it might be a bit outdated.

CONCLUSION: If money is not a problem, you want a more structured approach to preparing for the Step and you have a bit of time on your hands maybe this would work for you. Make notes alongside the books and if you can use the Question banks to supplement your learning, you should be good.

Lecturio

Next up is a (relatively) new kid on the block. Lecturio offers much of the same as Kaplan but with a lot more thrown in with its spaced repetition quizzes, its unique book matcher function (which allows you to take a picture of any medical book in the app and Lecturio will find a relevant lecture from their resources for you automatically for you to understand that topic. Pretty cool, eh?) among other stuff.

THE GOOD: Like a few other services on this list, Lecturio also designs custom schedules for students purchasing their premium subscriptions. In particular, they have two programs that caught my attention; a 99-day program and a 40 day one based on your current preparation. Also, compared to Kaplan, and actually most other US-based resources, Lecturio actually seems amazingly affordable starting at a minimum price of $6.99/month (if you buy their 2-year subscription for about $168). Unfortunately, though, this was at the time of writing when they had a great sale going on. Even without it though, a yearly subscription would cost you only about $120.

THE NOT SO GOOD: Being the new player on the market has its disadvantages though. You’re less well-known and people don’t trust you for serious stuff at the start. The same applies to Lecturio. The reviews by people have also been mixed with some people saying it’s not as good for the USMLE as compared to sources like First Aid/Pathoma etc.

CONCLUSION: Maybe not quite on the level of the most popular and well-known resources but it’s still quite legit according to most users with lecturers from Harvard, Johns Hopkins, and the like. If you’re not exactly in the USMLE prep phase yet and want a solid, thorough one-stop alternative for your med school woes without the extravagant cost of Kaplan and other services, I’d personally vote for this one!

OSMOSIS

Fun colorful illustrations demonstrating complex medical topics in short 10 minute videos? Osmosis is probably the source that most med students would associate with that style of learning.

THE GOOD: Surprisingly information-heavy in such a short chunk of time, Osmosis videos always do pack a punch which has been the reason they’re always popular among med students eternally crunched for time. Their paid subscription, however, offers even more: high yield notes, case questions, spaced repetition flashcards, and even a customized study schedule are just the start!

THE NOT SO GOOD: Money again is a factor if you actually want to purchase it the halal way. At $378 for the year, it’s quite the dent in an already not-so-filled purse. Otherwise, you can probably get the videos from free somewhere but you won’t get all the other awesome benefits like a customized study schedule, etc.

CONCLUSION: Maybe go for a trial and see if it works for you? They do have a lot of sales where everything is half off so wait for that if you truly want to buy it. Most online reviews agree they’re definitely enough to ace Step 1 if you combine the videos with the traditional books like First Aid etc.

SKETCHY

Sketchy is a slightly unique source in this list in that it primarily relies on the memorization technique of making memory palaces. Each video addresses a specific topic by illustrating and narrating a scenario and associating various concepts and facts with objects in the scenario.

THE GOOD: Sketchy videos are amazing for memorizing information, especially in the two subjects that it specializes in: Microbiology and Pharmacology. Both are some of the most rote memorization-dense subjects in the medical world and using Sketchy can be a lifesaver in terms of long-term retention.

THE NOT SO GOOD: sketchy isn’t really known for much beyond those 2 subjects so you can’t really use it for everything. Also, the Pharmacology videos, at least to me, looked way too detailed to be so useful in memorization directly.

CONCLUSION: Sketchy videos are gold standard for Microbiology and most students will definitely recommend them. Try out the Pharmacology too, since it’s still pretty famous.

PATHOMA

The holy grail of all things Pathology, Dr. Hussain Sattar’s beautifully succinct book, and accompanying videos have been accepted worldwide as the best resource for Pathology out there.

THE GOOD: the videos are short but explain every high yield point you could need for the Step comprehensively. Dr. Sattar reads out the book line by line explaining each word, making sure you know everything you need to ace the exam.

THE NOT SO GOOD: There’s only a Pathoma for Pathology. Only if we had one exactly like it for every other subject!

CONCLUSION: First Aid gives Pathoma a grade of “A+”. Go figure.

So that's a roundup of the most popular and important video-based resources used for the USMLE Step 1. Hopefully, it was reasonably comprehensive and a helpful intro to the ever-growing world of online education for the USMLE. Good luck!