u/Reasonable_Review_55

I got a 72 on my first attempt (December 2025). It was my fault though. I procrastinated and took the exam when I was not prepared. I kept postponing the exam because there were a lot of things happening in my life, and then finally gave the exam when I couldn't postpone anymore. I must have realistically only studied for 3 weeks or less at that time. I only finished the Booster notes, and those were the old notes, not the updated 2025/2026 ones, and I got a 72.

This time though, even though I was working 8 to 4, the failure from last time was fresh and I was scared. This time I might have studied for around 4 weeks, but they were productive weeks, not just memorizing notes. I went about it systematically. I did the subjects that were the most vast first: Pathology, Anatomy, and Pharmacology. BTW, I did pretty well in Pharmac on my first attempt too. When they showed the subject breakdown, my Pharmac score was way above average.

Also, I only used Booster, and I graduated from dental school 3 years ago, so I don't actually remember much from dental school either. So yes, Booster is enough.

So, like I said, go about it systematically. Choose the subjects you think are the most difficult and do them first. Well, it worked for me. It doesn't necessarily mean it'll work for everyone. But when I was preparing, I would come here regularly for advice and always get scared hearing people say they had been studying for months and that they used both Bootcamp and Booster. So I just want to provide some relief so people like me don't get demotivated.

Of course, if you can afford it and have the time, then use both resources. But if you don't have the time or money, then my advice is for you.

Just do the Booster notes (the new ones), then do the Anki decks. I don't think I saw anything directly from the Anki decks on the actual exam, but you never know. Since you're only using one resource, you might as well make the most of it. Then do the questions for that subject and move on to the next one.

Finish all 16 subjects like this, then do the mock test. I gave the mock test 1 day before the exam. Not recommended, but my procrastination skills never fail. I can only finish things under pressure.

Anyways, I keep going on a tangent.

So yeah: notes → Anki decks → question bank → mock test → all the case-based questions.

I did Sections 4, 5, and 6, along with all the case-based questions, one day before Day 2. Again, not recommended.

I had 3 Very High and 3 High chances of passing on the Booster mock exams. And I had met 5 out of the 7 subject targets in Booster. In Patient Management, I had 74% instead of the 75% target, and in Oral Diagnosis, I had 74% instead of the 76% target.

On exam day, everything I did was the opposite of what people suggested. I reviewed the Oral Path cheat sheets before going to sleep. The cheat sheet in Booster is basically the Anki deck content, so if you've done the Anki decks, the cheat sheets are easy to go through. I reviewed those because there were so many facts to remember, went to sleep at 1 a.m., and then gave the exam. I was very tired the entire day and hungry too, but I got through it.

For Day 2, I made sure I slept well. Since I had finished all the notes, Anki decks, and questions, I told myself there was nothing more I could do and I should just go give the exam.

I took the exam on 6/8 and 6/11. I only took those two exam days off from work. Between Day 1 and Day 2, I went to my 8-to-4 job.

Everything I did, nobody would recommend. But I still passed. I got my result yesterday.

Also, I didn't watch any of the Booster videos because that's just not how I study. I zone out in videos. I learn much better by reading, teaching myself, doing the Anki decks, and then reinforcing everything with questions. So if you're someone who also doesn't learn well from videos, don't feel like you're doing something wrong.

Edit: Looks like Booster updated their dashboard after my exam. When I logged back in with the last 2 days of my membership, it now shows different target scores than what I remember seeing before my exam. So if my screenshots don't exactly match what I wrote above, that's probably why. Also, the only reason it says I have 47 questions left is because Booster added new radiology questions after my exam. I actually completed 100% of the question bank that was available before my exam.

So don't worry if your journey doesn't look like everyone else's. Just go through everything in Booster, and I think you should be fine. And if possible, do the question bank twice.

Booster is great, and for me, Booster was enough.

Good luck to everyone taking the exam. I genuinely hope you all pass. 😊