THE CS EXAM CHANGES ARE HERE.
On November 19, 2020, the USMLE released some information abou the changes coming to the USMLE Step 2 CS exam in 2021. If you haven’t listed to the full podcast or you don’t have the time, this post will break it all down for you. You can also listen to the full Podcast episode by clicking HERE.
Breakdown of the USMLE Connection’s podcast regarding the USMLE Step 2 CS changes:
What’s being done with the insights that were collected from stakeholders:
- 2-pronged strategy targeting short and long term changes
- Short term effort: to get the CS exam back running ASAP
- Long-term effort: multi-year strategy to continue to improve the exam
- Immediate goal: Aim to retain the most valued aspects of the prior exam while addressing concerns, which include: reliable scoring, standardization across sites, skill sets being assessed & practice relevance, and smooth process (all of these elements will remain intact)
- Limited test sites (this will be fixed since the exam is virtual)
- Cost (it sounds like cost will be lowered; hopefully)
- Perceptions of the ‘artificial nature’ of the interaction and note (this typically comes down to the strength of the SP as an actor, but we’ll see what happens)
- Limited feedback provided should be addressed and fixed (fingers crossed that they’ll start providing a much more detailed assessment of the examinee performance so that if it isn’t satisfactory, a student can identify their weakness and fix it for the next attempt)
Short Term Relaunch Changes:
What’s not changing:
- Exam will continue to focus on US & IMG’s population (no surprise here)
- The exam will continue to assess specific sub-competencies such as physician tasks, patient care, and communication
What is changing:
- Remote/online delivery platform (this is the biggest and most likely only ‘major’ change, but should make everyone’s life easier)
- Examinees interacting with standardized patients over video (safer for both, eliminates travel needs and significantly lowers costs)
- Elimination of in-person contact is most important change *
- It sounds like they’ll get this ready for next year’s match students (its their goal)
About continued need for the exam (is it even needed)?
– There is broad agreement that this type of an assessment is relevant and important (ie. the CS will not be going away anytime soon)
WHY: There is an important need to identify whether a student can appropriately gather enough info, whether they can then communicate this info to patients or members of the team, and whether they can reason effectively so they can take the best steps.
What that means? There is strong agreement that an exam to identify whether a student can see a patient and make wise choices about their care, diagnosis, next steps in management, etc, is needed. The CS exam is not going anywhere, but they’re going to make it easier to take an hopefully much more affordable.
OUR FINAL THOUGHTS… The exam is changing in a big way (it’s going virtual), but it seems as though the major building blocks of the exam (ICE, CIS, & SEP) will likely remain in place. The cost is coming down (hopefully), and it’s going to be infinitely easier for you to take the exam. Overall, we believe that these changes are going to make things easier on you and your wallet. We’ll be back with more details once we know more in early 2021.
What do you think of these changes? Let us know in the comments below!