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PLAB 1 .... The Awakening

A very dear friend of mine once said, if anybody failed the PLAB 1 exam, while he has access to the 1700 questions source, he or she then should stop all further plans to go to the UK or anywhere else cause that just shows he doesn't have the IQ to do it. Now before you rush to judging me or my friend, that only means one thing, that the exam itself is copied and pasted from that source. EVEN the choices in the MCQ exam is copied and pasted. This isn't in any way or form attacking those who fail, we all have got our shares of failing and in stupid exams (i should or shouldn't, in this case, be the one to talk, LOL).

I started preparing for the PLAB exam about a month before the exam. It was a series of rash decisions, taking the IELTS and paying for PLAB1. On the other hand, what made me take such decisions easier, is that I have already passed MRCP1 and MRCP2 written, the year before, so I thought I would be able to hold my ground in the internal medicine part of the PLAB which comprise the majority of the exam, to be more precise, at least more than 60%.

Now for me personally I didn't use the 1700 or even know their importance except a week before my exam. Up till that time I made a subscription in passmedicine and was doing the PLAB 1 questions from there (they had nothing to do with the actual exam format regrettably, even though medical knowledge is the same but compared to 1700, which is the same, word for word like the actual exam, it is not that good). That same dear friend called me and was checking up on how I was doing in my preparation and when I told him I was only using the passmedicine, he got furious and he is the one who made me stop whatever I am doing and shift to the 1700.

Now by the time of my exam, I barely made it to 400 or maybe even haven't reached it, I don't remember. but I was shocked at how they came in the exam word for word, with even the same choices in the MCQ and in the same sequence. I get asked this question a lot and I even asked it myself, are they that stupid to put an exam so easy that everybody could pass???!! But then I came to the realization that maybe that's the information or the things that they want everybody to memorize and know by heart and that's why they keep repeating those questions. the other point is that the published pass rate for PLAB 1 is 69% which is almost the same as PLAB 2 so to them, statistically wise it is not that easy, it isn't a walk in the park for some candidates.

So to recap I started preparing 30 days before the exam, I finished about 40% of passmedicine questions bank, and I did about 300-400 questions from the 1700. This was all after Passing MRCP1 and MRCP2 written..... and I barely passed, LOL, I just got 5 or 6 marks above the pass mark so my advice is NEVER EVER underestimate any exam, even if you have the questions in your hand, it all comes down to the effort you put in. Again I am not that qualified to give any piece of advice and this is to tell you more what you shouldn't do, than what you should do, which is basically like my previous posts.

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