I'm a plastic surgery resident finishing up my last year and starting to think seriously about the ASPS board certification process. My program director said most people spend 10-12 weeks studying but I've seen posts suggesting 16+ weeks if you're also working full shifts. I'm currently averaging about 60 hours a week clinically so fitting in dedicated study time is rough.
Right now I'm going through the Aesthetic Surgery Education and Research Foundation materials and the ASPS recommended reading list. I'm hitting about 2-3 hours a day on weekdays and 4-5 on weekends, but I feel like I'm barely scratching the surface of the written portion. Does anyone have a sense of how much weight the oral component carries relative to the written?
My mock exam scores are sitting around 71-73% and I know passing typically requires 75%. The gap feels manageable but I'm not sure if I'm plateauing. I've been doing about 40-50 practice questions a day from the question bank and reviewing all the explanations even for ones I get right.
For those who've passed - was the actual exam harder than the practice materials? Any topics that showed up more than you expected?
The real exam felt about the same difficulty as the harder practice sets, maybe slightly more nuanced on the clinical vignettes. 71-73% in practice usually translates to 74-76% on the real thing in my experience, so you're right on the edge.
Finishing the written at 72-73% in practice means you're close but not there yet. I'd bump up to 60-70 questions a day and focus on wound healing, tissue expansion, and implant-related content. Those came up constantly in my exam year.
Don't overlook the ethics and professionalism section - I think I underestimated it and it cost me a few points. Maybe 8-10% of the written when I sat three years ago.
Your study timeline sounds reasonable. At 2-3 hours a day you should hit enough volume by week 10-11 to feel solid.
I passed the written on my second attempt - scored 77% after failing at 73% the first time. The difference was drilling the reconstructive flap questions and craniofacial content, which I'd underweighted the first time around. Give yourself at least 14 weeks if you're working heavy call.
The oral boards are a different beast entirely. Practice case presentations out loud, not just read through them.