OnlyHighYield NBME Stats

What the Step 2 NBMEs actually test

Every question on NBME forms 9 to 16 and 34 Clinical Mastery Series (CMS) shelf forms, tagged by question type, specialty and topic, then counted. 64 pages of numbers, no question stems.

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Cover of the report What the Step 2 NBMEs actually test, showing 1,600 NBME questions, 1,694 CMS questions, 21 specialties and 10 question types.

A few things the numbers show

38%of NBME questions ask for the next step or the next test, not the diagnosis
2%ask about mechanism. Step 1 style deep dives rarely pay off here
2 to 19ethics questions on NBME 9 versus NBME 16
0 vs 24patient safety questions on forms 9 to 11 versus forms 12 to 16
23%of questions just ask for the diagnosis
12%of NBME questions come with an image

What's inside

  1. Question types

    How often the NBME asks for the diagnosis, the next step, the next test, pharmacology, screening, ethics and more, overall and by specialty.

  2. Specialty weights and form-by-form trends

    Which specialties carry the most questions, and how NBME 9 through 16 changed over time.

  3. Images

    Which questions show an image, what kind, and how many you can answer without it.

  4. Recurring themes and deep dives

    The topics that come back form after form, plus close looks at biostatistics, ethics and patient safety, screening and prevention, and pharmacology.

  5. CMS shelf forms

    The same breakdowns for 34 Clinical Mastery Series forms.

  6. One section per specialty

    Every topic label tested in each specialty, with counts, so you can see what to prioritise.

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