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#1 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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We all have to take this exam, and lets be honest, it sucks. It's a roadblock and it's annoying. But we HAVE to do it, so we might as well enjoy it. At the same time, I think having a 'support group' would be helpful. So why not post about MCAT trials/tribulations here? Did you have an awesome study session? Grasp concept that you were having trouble with? Beast that practice test? If so, post! Did you have a crappy study session? Are you failing miserably at figuring out something seemingly simple? Just get frustrated at that practice exam you just took? If so, post! MCAT-oholics unite! |
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#2 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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I'll start:
I thought I knew gen chem, having done well in undergrad, but going through some of the conceptual questions in EK I'm beginning to realize how little of the theory I actually know. Gonna re-read some of that stuff on my lunch break today! |
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#3 |
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Banned
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My liver hurts from drinking too much Coffee. Anyways, today I focused on E&M. I thought I knew it well, but after practicing I realized how confusing the topic really is. I did all Princeton Review problems & EK problems. Even though I got most answers correctly, I still feel like I don't have a strong grasp on the topic.
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#4 |
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Transform and Transcend
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I like this idea.
Did 7 passages each from TBR bio yesterday for chapters 5 and 6. I am finally getting 90%+ right in bio. Thank you TPRH biology! You saved me!
__________________
"The modern alchemist is not concerned with turning lead into gold; instead, he is more concerned with turning words into action." #MedSchoolAppHell |
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#5 | |
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Banned
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By the way, I took your advice for the those videos you suggested. I used it for E&M and he helped me understand a few things a little better. His videos are just super long though lolol ... TBR Bio is the only book I don't have out of the whole set. I really wanted it for practice passages. I think I'm gonna stick to using EK Bio 1001 and TPRH passages though. Not sure how much that'll help me. And yeah, TPRH is a life saver!
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#6 | |
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Transform and Transcend
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#7 | |
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Banned
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BTW, i'm curious ...how much practice (in terms of passages/problems) do you fit in 1 day or week.
Last edited by ilovemcat; 02-18-2011 at 08:14 AM. |
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#8 | |
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Transform and Transcend
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#9 | |
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Banned
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You're basically doing 2x what I'm doing now, and that takes me a lot of time. It took me 2 weeks to finish EK 1001 Physics even though I put in about 6 hours/day. I really need to pick up the pace. How much time do you put into studying everyday? |
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#10 | |
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Transform and Transcend
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#11 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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I'm currently listening to the decemberists. The new album is awesome.
Anyway, did chapter 2 of EK physics today. Goal is to do 2 other chapters with the accompanying EK passages tomorrow and on sunday. So that's 4 chapters over the weekend. I get a day off monday (finally), so I'll take a practice exam then. I've been scoring consistent 10s for the passages that I've been doing. I can bump that up to a 12 with more focused reading/working, i.e. not getting wrong what I understand so I'm going to take them when I'm rested and on top of stuff. Getting ready to kill it this weekend. On the dubstep note, this is a youtube playlist I have going with dubstep. It gets me through study sessions in flying form. http://www.youtube.com/view_play_lis...309AB508F4D6AD Thanks for the rusko, dig it. |
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#12 | |
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Senior Member
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). However, it's highly variable and when I get a streak of 8s, it gets a little discouraging despite trying to maintain a "mistakes = opportunity to learn" attitude. I've been studying ~50h/week for the past 45 days (4 days off), and feeling a bit edgy. Waking up, going into lab, and studying all day is no problem. However, Waking up, going into lab, studying all day, and getting 8s on TBR passages is very discouraging. I actually had to go to a common area today, to study next to other students. I felt better by the end of the day, but today was not very productive. I can definitely relate with you guys about the, "thought I knew Science until MCAT" feeling. I was getting 100% in every single class for the past year, so adjusting to the MCAT score is different, to say the least. However, I'm struggling just like all of you! Great thread! EDIT: I'm going to say just one more thing. I walked around campus today feeling like my dreams are falling apart, that the MCAT is too much to handle, that it's all over. However, I'm certain that everybody (even the ones that did well) felt this to some degree. In a way, this is a good thing because it separates the people willing to put in the effort, and those who change majors. I'm envisioning myself a year from now saying, "USMLE!!! The MCAT was easy!" Last edited by enTropeeeeeeeee; 02-18-2011 at 11:15 PM. |
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#13 | |
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Senior Member
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Last edited by enTropeeeeeeeee; 02-18-2011 at 11:12 PM. |
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#14 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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What a day.
Plan was to go to the gym in the morning and hit the books after an early lunch. Well, went to the gym on the air force base with a buddy who works there. His car broke down after our workout, so I got home at 4. Plan is to hit the books at 6. Might switch up some events for tomorrow so I can still get done what I wanted to. Kicker was walking around in shorts and a hoody for 3 hours in 30 degree weather. Sorry body. |
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#15 | |
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Senior Member
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#16 | |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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Agenda for tomorrow is to wake up and read a few chapters. Go to a play with a friend (take a break) then take notes and do questions for the chapters. Psyched. Practice test on monday. Woot! |
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#17 | |
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Banned
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#18 | ||
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Transform and Transcend
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GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! |
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#19 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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Taking a practice exam shortly.
Frustrated because I thought I could order the TBR exams online, but not only can you not do that, there's also a 45 day limit on the exams. Why they feel that's justified, I don't know. AAMC gives a year, which is more than reasonable. Atleast six months should be given. /venting... |
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#20 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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BOO YA!
Got a 29. 3 point gain from 3 weeks ago. 10 BS VR, 9 PS. I'm about 25-30% done with the EK books that I'm reviewing from. |
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#21 |
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Senior Member
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Awesome news! I'm happy to say that I got over my personal slump and making great progress. I'm doing BR Bio passages and getting 10-11s consistently. And this is suppose to be my weak area!!
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#22 |
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3K Member
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Hey guys
Thought i'd contribute! My exam is on May 21 ![]() soooo, I have the TPRH materials, kaplan materials, and EK materials. I just started on the TPRH verbal, and don't know how to compare. How do you guys think the questions and passages compare? I've done 4 passages, and miss about 1 or 2. I started reading TPRH physics, so far so good I need to start on the verbal workbook. I'll keep you all updated ![]() on a sadder note, pchem exam tomorrow EDIT: Totally jinxed myself. I did a passage, and got all 6 questions wrong--combination of not reading carefully, picking the wrong answer out of two choices, or just not finding a BETTER answer choice. This was the epitome of everything what not to do -_- meh, maybe my brain is tired from verbal. Hoping for tomorrow to be a better verbal day :/ Last edited by berriesandcream; 02-21-2011 at 06:22 PM. |
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#23 | |
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Transform and Transcend
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#24 | |
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3K Member
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#25 | |
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Transform and Transcend
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www.wikipremed.com Go to any section on the syllabus and the videos there are what we are talking about. They can be boring sometimes, but are very good for helping synthesize topics, in my opinion. They might not have Biology videos, by the way. I haven't looked into it. |
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#26 | |
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3K Member
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So, i assume you attend UCI? nice to meet a fellow California applicant.
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#27 | |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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Glad to see everyone figuring out what they need to do.
Don't let the small stuff get to you. Making mistakes now is awesome, as it tells you what you need to do better at it. In my opinion, make more now so you can remedy and make less come test day. I have a feeling you'll all agree. Quote:
I think I'm going to have to raise my target score up. I'm taking the may 21st exam, and I have a long way to go. I'm buying the TBR practice exams when I get the chance to mail in the form. I still haven't started studying orgo and I'm weak in a lot of physics and gen chem areas since I need to drill down and/or start studying them. Plan is to 'finish' studying everything by early april then go through and hit the weak parts harder while reviewing some of the other stuff. The next two weeks are going to be rough with a bunch of travel, but I'm taking my books with me and planning to atleast read a bunch of the stuff. I need to figure out how to start getting my verbal score to inch upwards as well. I'm going to read the EK guide for that before the next exam. |
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#28 | |
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Senior Member
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#29 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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Slept in today so I'll do a few hours of work tonight instead.
Being home is weird weird weird. |
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#30 |
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Junior Member
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I was answering questions about enzyme kinetics. In my dream. I don't even know why I was dreaming about that, I studied the cardiovascular system yesterday.
Today is gen chem day. No fun. |
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#31 | |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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Quote:
Also, I think i had an mcat dream a week ago. DO. NOT. LIKE. |
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#32 |
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Senior Member
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#33 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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On my way back home from trip 1 of 2. I managed to take notes on 1 chapter of bio and read 1 chapter of physics.
I'm on a bus heading back to beantown now anddddd my lights don't work, so there goes studying more. I do have internet, so I'm making the most of this and reviewing my mistakes on AAMC 3. Not a terrible way to pass the time. I'll pay penance by either reading or taking notes when I get home, but I might just cave and play video games and relax so I can recharge for tomorrow. Planning to get a bunch of work done. Psyched! Yo I don't know about you guys, but this thread has really helped me out. I feel like I have to get stuff done so I can post about it! Nice to see you all getting it together and keeping each other motivated as well! |
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#34 |
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Transform and Transcend
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I hate stoichiometry SOOO much. I would rather spoon with a chainsaw than end up with a stoichiometry problem on the real mcat.
Btw, I agree. This thread was a solid idea. |
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#35 | |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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I can do that stuff in my sleep after all these years of chem! |
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#36 |
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Senior Member
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#37 | |
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Transform and Transcend
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TBR is my issue with stoich. I was like "wassup easy point!", then I did TBR. Granted if I let the time go for an extra 2 minutes, it's all good. Too bad I CAN'T let it go for an extra two minutes. I'm glad you can do the MCAT stoichiometry though. We all have our strengths and weaknesses. |
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#38 | |
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Senior Member
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#39 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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Maybe it's a good thing that I didn't get anything from BR then
![]() ----- NON MCAT RELATED I just had dinner with some of the physicians I aspire to one day be. Neuro ID guys, some collaborators of ours that work in South Africa doing clinical trials and running some of the most incredible HIV/TB clinics, Pediatric HIV specialists, etc. Eye on the prize yet again. The 'sacrifice' of the next few months seems like a joke compared to what I can do if the MCAT gods accept my offerings... |
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#40 | |
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Senior Member
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#41 | |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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Quote:
Goats are delicious! ------------ Side note: DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT look through threads or stats on the MD apps website. I just did and got really stressed out and annoyed. Ugh! Last edited by ridethecliche; 02-28-2011 at 10:50 AM. |
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#42 | |
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3K Member
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#43 | |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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Quote:
The next semester (first semester jr year), I took too many classes because I was hard headed and felt like I had to prove something. I ended up doing pretty well during the semester, but fell apart during finals for a variety of reasons including a breakup the night before, but mostly not factoring in time required to heal and make follow up appointments/surgeries 200 miles away from school. Ended up in the mid 3.5's as a double major, so not terrible all said and done. Anyway, those are my 'excuses'. To be honest, I don't have a 'dream' school. I really wanted to go to uchicago for undergrad but got deferred, waitlisted, and rejected, so it'd be nice if I get in for med school, but I'm not holding my breath. Fact of the matter is, all the continental MD schools are good, so wherever you go, you'll be fine if you do well. Like undergrad. The DO schools are good too, from what I've read here, but I'm not planning on applying to any this cycle. In any event, what this all means for us (and others) is that we have to beast the MCAT. This 'brotherhood' of twitterdom is there to help us get there. Go team! |
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#44 | |
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Transform and Transcend
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#45 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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#46 |
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Senior Member
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Just to update this thread. Today is one of those good days...I seem to be having more as my MCAT studying progresses.
Verbal: I feel as if I'm understanding the fundamental technique to answer these questions correctly. Interestingly, these techniques have been stated over and over again on SDN. The difference now is that...it clicks. Sciences: Starting the MCAT process, I felt that my Bio exposure, or lack of (non-science major) hindered me. However, after pushing through Bio, I feel pretty strong in it. This is not to say that I don't have weaknesses, I am definitely still lacking in certain areas. I just wanted to tell all of you that are struggling right along with me that it gets better. Back to studying! GL! |
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#47 |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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So verbal has been a funny thing for me.
I've taken 2 AAMC's so far and it was the same score on both of them, at 10. A 10 isn't bad by any stretch of the imagination but I'd love to see it go up a point or two in practice so I can be sure that it will be atleast a 10 on test day. I didn't really feel like studying today, but decided to do some EK verbal exams. I did the first two in their verbal reasoning book. The first one, I got a 7. Wtf? The second one, I got an 11. Okay... I'm guessing that a 'warm up' helps in verbal. In any event, I guess that the 101 verbal passages book is going to really come in handy. I just got it in the mail today! Going to do a little bit from it every week. Ugh, a 7? Basically, I got the entire first passage (on philosophy) completely wrong. And I've read a bunch of philosophy when I was in school. I guess I'll chalk it to the fact that this was the first passage of the lot. Atleast I had a solid day in the gym! On that note, it's really helpful to have something where you can see progress, i.e. workouts in the gym for me, to keep things in perspective when studying might not go your way. GL all! |
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#48 | |
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Senior Member
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#49 | |
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2K Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Beantown.
Posts: 2,294
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My head really hurts.
Between last night and tonight I did: 4x30 min EK verbal exams 1x60 min EK verbal exam (EK1 from 101). Scores were all over the chart. I got a 7,8, 9, and 11. Both my AAMC's were 10. I'm pretty confused on how I should approach this. I'm going to reread the EK verbal book as the strategy had been helping me. I really wish EK101 was on the computer. I honestly think I read and test better on a computer screen. I'm much more efficient at scanning info and making quick decisions. I went 3 mins over the time limit on the 60 min test and I always had 4 mins left on the AAMC exams. Oy... Quote:
If I didn't train 3-4 days a week, I would be going bat****... |
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#50 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 270
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New member here. I figured this would be the most pertinent thread to post in and it will probably be the only thread I post in. Taking the MCAT on 5/22.
As of right now I'm working 20hrs/week, soon to be working 25 hrs/week and I'm volunteering 4hrs/week (more or less, really varies) as a court advocate. I don't know why I just typed that but anyway...I'll post my progress on here as a kind of group effort and in a way to display my progress (or lack thereof) to this tiny premed world. The way I'm reviewing is basically to do a chapter a day. By each chapter, I mean the following: EK Review Materials EK 1001 problems (every 3rd Problem) TPR Online Materials All Assigned TPR Science Workbook HMW TPRH Book Chapter PHYSICS: 3/1ish EK Lecture 1: 23/24 96% EK 1001: 45/56 80% TPR Science Workbook HMW: 60/62 97% Excluded Passage [will do all Mechanics together] ONLINE: Discrete 86% Passages 86, 100 EK 30 Min Exam: 13 3/2 Today I got through Class 2 of Princeton Review Physics/EK Lecture 2 Force EK Lecture 2: 21/24 87.5% EK 1001: 43/52 82% TPR Science Workbook HMW: 49/51 96% Excluded Passage [will do all Mechanics together] ONLINE: Discrete 86% Passages 71 [I swear there is an error on their key], F that EK 30 Min Exam: 12 (19/23) Last edited by ModusProbandi; 03-03-2011 at 09:46 PM. |
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BTW, i'm curious ...how much practice (in terms of passages/problems) do you fit in 1 day or week.
You're basically doing 2x what I'm doing now, and that takes me a lot of time. It took me 2 weeks to finish EK 1001 Physics even though I put in about 6 hours/day. I really need to pick up the pace.
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