“Personally, Med HELP was a life-changing experience. I can see how to pass the next exam, how to keep up with the work, how to reach my goals. Before attending the program, I was feeling quite depressed thinking about studying the same material, the same way, for a third time.” – Repeating MS-II
“I came to WV last fall, and the Medical HELP team helped me go from a 180 to a 210 on Step 2. I have never been afraid of hard work. You guys showed me how to work smarter. It worked.” – USMLE Step 2 student
“It was a great environment with abundant support. I would have been happy with a quarter of what I was given.” – Repeating MS-I
“The biggest obstacle for me to overcome was my lack of self-confidence. The Medical HELP Program showed me that I was able to learn the material by applying a few simple-once-mastered techniques, and this was a very large part in restoring my self-confidence.” – MS-III having problems with shelf exams
“I attended Med HELP the summer before starting medical school because I was worried about some attention issues and an overall lack of study skills. Now I am in my second year of med school and doing great.” – OMS-II reflecting on her experience with Medical HELP
“I was unable to pass the USMLE Step #1 exam on my first try, so I enrolled in the medical help program to learn new ways to both memorize and quickly recall material. When I took Step #1 for the second time the exam went much smoother, and the results were wonderful. Not only did I pass the exam, but my score improved by 44 points or two standard deviations. According to the book ‘First Aid For Step #1’ my improvement has a 0% chance of occurring. This success would not be possible without the amazing team at the Marshall Medical Help program. I promise that if you enroll in the program and then give a full effort to both learn the techniques, and then also take the time to implement those techniques afterward then you will find success.” – MD/PhD student who attended the program after failing the USMLE Step 1
“One of the things that the Marshall Medical HELP Program did for me that likely gets overlooked (since the study methods, time management techniques, and test-taking methods are so exciting) is that they helped make a logical argument to my medical school’s promotions committee that I should be given a chance to repeat my second year after failing out. The committee liked the idea that I had a plan in place—attending Med HELP (even though they were not familiar with the program)—that would help me change the way I function as a learner, as a student, and as a test-taker. Otherwise I would have just had to go back and work harder, which would have been impossible. Instead, I went back with an entirely redesigned approach to managing the volume required of me, and while it was still hard, it was now manageable. I passed the year, passed Step 1 on the first attempt, and am now doing great on rotations and passing my shelf exams.” – MS-IV reflecting on his Medical HELP experience
“Everything is great. I have about an 80 average overall after one year and did not fail a single test. My first 3 tests (which I failed the first time around) went up 30, 18, and 22 points.” – Repeating OMS-1
“Today, I aced my first exam of the year . . . not just an A but a 100%. I have been close a few times this year, but today finally nailed it.” – Repeating 1st year podiatry student
“The Med HELP program came right on time for me. I had just been diagnosed with ADHD and was stuck in my basic science years of med school, completely unorganized and unprepared for how to study effectively. I was good at putting in the time, effort and energy to try and get ahead, but was continuing to fail tests and felt more discouraged about my abilities as a student and future physician. The program helped me realize what I was doing wrong and gave me the tools to fix the problems. I would highly recommend this program. My test scores went up, sometimes dramatically so, but the thing that I appreciate most was getting confidence back in my own abilities. I am now in residency and enjoying my career.” – Attended Medical H.E.L.P. Program between MS-I and MS-II to address academic struggles
“Before Medical HELP, I was putting in as much time if not more time than my peers but I was not getting the results. That got me through first year but it all came crashing down in my second year. It turns out I was being really passive and inefficient, but I didn’t know any other way to do it. Med HELP taught me ways to be much, much more focused and how to get more done in less time.” – Repeating MS-II
“Great news. I passed!! Not only that, I passed with a decent score – 208! I walked out of the exam feeling confident I had passed but was expecting a score below the 200’s. I hadn’t ever scored above a 198 on any of the CBSSA exams. Thanks a million for all the help and insight. What I learned at Marshall will make my shelf exams and Steps 2 & 3 considerably more doable.” – Retaking USMLE Step 1 after the program
“I just got my passing score of 194, and I wanted you to be one of the first to know! I appreciate your taking the time to help me throughout this process. I couldn’t have done it without your help and continuous support and encouragement.” – Retaking USMLE Step 1 student
“Guess what? I passed!! I got a 443 coming from a 302 last time. Is a 141 point improvement from baseline statistically possible? I can’t believe it. I think I’m still in shock! I know how hard I will have to work to make it through each section and pass Level 2, but I also know a better way to study. Just wanted to let you guys know the outcome after so much stress and anxiety.” – Retaking the COMLEX Level 1
“My last rotation was OB/GYN. If you recall, I failed the mini-board last year, making less than the 10th percentile. I just received my scores and I made the 77th percentile. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate the HELP program. I am still using all of the reading techniques you all have taught me. The questions are so much easier to understand. IT REALLY WORKS!! And this is proof.” – Attended program after experiencing problems with shelf exams as an MS-III
“I just wanted to write and let you know that I got my Step 2 CK score back this week, and I passed! I got a 214, which means I didn’t just pass, I actually did it with a respectable margin! Thank you again for all of your help along this journey.” – USMLE Step 2 student
“I retook USMLE Step II CK and just got my scores back this morning. I passed with an increase in score of 32 points from the last time I took them.” – USMLE Step 2 student
“Well what a year it has been. Not going to lie, it was tough. However, thanks to you guys at Med HELP, I finished up with one A, 5 B’s, and one C this past year. This is a vast improvement over the 50-60% that I was I getting prior to the program. The one C was in neuroscience and it was a beast. Going off the numbers, around 25% of the class failed, I tried every trick in the book that you all showed me. So I’m not going to be a neurologist, guess there are worse things in life. Other than that, I have had multiple comments this year about how well I have improved over last year. Those thanks are mainly to you! Don’t think I would have made it this far without what you have taught me.” – Repeating OMS-I
“To be able to write this email after so much is, well, one of the best feelings of my life. I found out today that I passed Step 2 of my boards! I can now enter the match to start residency in July. I have worked so hard for this day to come, and it is finally here. I just wanted to share the great news.” – USMLE Step 2 student
“When I first thought about attending the Medical HELP Program, I was more than skeptical, but I was also desperate. I simply did not know how to study or take the test differently in order to demonstrate what I knew. Sometimes hard work just isn’t enough; one has to do it differently. The medical help program teaches how to do it differently. If I had the training they provide when I was an undergraduate or in med school, I would have had less struggles with learning and retaining and demonstrating what I know on standardized exams. I’m extremely happy that I decided to attend. I used these techniques to pass my boards and move on with my career.” – USMLE Step 2 student
“Greetings, my friends. I finally made it. I passed the USMLE Step III. The Med HELP system works. This really is ‘Change you can believe in.’ I’m fired up and ready to go. Let’s go conquer the world.” – Passed USMLE Step 3 after several failed attempts prior to Medical HELP
“Before I start, thank you again and again and again and again!! I’m off my cloud a bit but still cannot believe this is off my shoulders. You do not understand the relief (guess you do). All my career I have struggled with standardized exams, coming really close to passing but not close enough. What always happens is I study really hard for months and months and a few weeks before the exam seem to fall apart thinking. I struggled with it daily for I did not feel like I was doing enough. I set aside from 9pm -1am nightly, for I was done work at 6pm and the baby was in bed by 8pm, more time on the wkends, but seriously, not much more. I gave up the idea of redoing all the material 5 times as I had planned and stuck with just knowing the unsure items from each chapter. And by God the unsure stuff reappeared and I was able to recall the material on the boards and answer the question with confidence!!!!!!!!!!!!! I did not change answers and if I did not know the material I used your techniques of eliminating answers. I am truly, humbly thankful for your help.” – A doctor after retaking her specialty boards
“Thought I would pass along the news that I got my scores last Wednesday and I passed Step 1 228(95). I am quite certain that this would be a quite different experience had I not found my way to Marshall. At first glance of my score I was relieved to see “pass” and then I began to tell myself I should have done better than 228 and then I quickly remembered where I have come from in the past 2 years and really embraced my resilience and growth. I have struggled with standardized tests from the SAT to the MCAT and faced a lot of rejection solely as a result of those scores so it feels amazing to have a score that does not set me apart from the masses and give me something else that must be explained. I believe that I am truly evidence that the methods really work. Thank you for all of your help and support.” – Attended program after struggling as MS-I
“Hey everyone! I passed my Surgery mini-board! My final grade in the course is a 96%. An A!” – MS-III who attended program because he was failing his shelf exams
“I’m writing to update you on how I’m doing since Med Help, and you can definitely put me in the ‘success’ column. I started out the year with terrible test anxiety, but it’s pretty much completely dissipated with every success. I finished anatomy with a B (which probably could have been an A if I wasn’t still struggling with lab tests). Even though I did well on my first two tests in anatomy, I still wondered if it was a fluke; I was pretty much waiting for something bad to happen, which I’ll admit is a terrible attitude to have. However, my proudest moment by far was when I got an A on the head and neck exam! That was pretty much the tipping point, and I realized that I can get through med school, and that the school didn’t make a mistake letting me in. It was the smartest I had felt in a really long time, and I’ve been doing great ever since. I used to hate school, and now I don’t. I am really happy to be here!” – Repeating MS-I after returning to school