What Is the USMLE® Step 2?

USMLE® Step 2 is the second part of the multi-stage United States Medical Licensure Examination that is required for physicians in the United States. This test is most commonly taken by students in their fourth year of medical school. It is an essential part of the thorough testing of a doctor’s overall ability to care for patients.

For those who want to take the USMLE® Step 2, some prerequisites may apply. There are also fees for taking the test. More information can be found at test sites administering this computer based test.

The nine-hour duration of the USMLE® Step 2 has a schedule broken into one-hour sessions with some breaks. The test covers a great deal of the various knowledge and skills that doctors will need in the field interacting with patients. This test covers both technical or clinical knowledge, as well as other skills related to a doctor’s “bedside manner”, or more generally, the ability to effectively communicate with patients about a wide range of health issues.

Detailed descriptions of the USMLE® Step 2 - divide the content of the test into several main categories, where the majority of content comes in the form of multiple choice questions, with some other question types also applying. At its broadest definition, the test has two different parts: clinical knowledge, and clinical skills. These two parts are very distinctive in the sense that one is directed toward knowledge often learned by rote, where the second portion, the clinical skills, focuses much more on communication and reasoning.

In the category of clinical knowledge (CK) the USMLE® Step 2 also includes several different types of questions. Some relate to normal conditions, where the emphasis tends to be on wellness. Another category focuses on disease or abnormal conditions.

In addition to normal conditions and disease related questions, the USMLE® Step 2 CK section also has other questions related to interpretation and making decisions. These include diagnosing patients and applying known principles to actual care conditions. These also measure the actual clinical knowledge that the doctor will use in the field.

The CS portion of the USMLE® Step 2 exam is focused on how the doctor will deliver patient care using his or her clinical knowledge. USMLE® Step 2 CS modules will focus on issues like how to express health information to patients. Details of this part of the test might target how to speak to patients without using a lot of medical jargon, or how to maintain a good atmosphere for patient care.