SDN, I need help. I'm not improving...

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I took the MCAT last July, scoring 8,6,8. The exam was notably difficult.

I recently took a TPR course and so far I've done 10 FL's. However, my scores are not improving. I'm still hovering around 9-10 on my BS, Verbal 6-9, and PS 7-10. The sad part about PS is that I was never able to finish them on time, always having the last one or two passages left.

After each test, I would do a heavy post game analysis for about two days. I would redo the q's I got wrong and rewrite them on a different sheet of paper so I can refer back to them later on.

I personally think that I know the content and concepts pretty well... but I just can't seem to improve. My goal is around 35. Any input is appreciated.

I'm in the same boat as you, I took the july exam and BOMBED it. Took an EK class and have been studying on/off since October.

I struggled with PS and used Chad's videos (for chem, py and orgo) and now I feel real comfortable with chem and physics. I thought I understood things when I really didn't--maybe that's your problem? I'm taking an FL tomorrow so I guess we'll see where I really stand.

Good luck!

Originally Posted by Ultimeaciax

I took the MCAT last July, scoring 8,6,8. The exam was notably difficult.

I recently took a TPR course and so far I've done 10 FL's. However, my scores are not improving. I'm still hovering around 9-10 on my BS, Verbal 6-9, and PS 7-10. The sad part about PS is that I was never able to finish them on time, always having the last one or two passages left.

After each test, I would do a heavy post game analysis for about two days. I would redo the q's I got wrong and rewrite them on a different sheet of paper so I can refer back to them later on.

I personally think that I know the content and concepts pretty well... but I just can't seem to improve. My goal is around 35. Any input is appreciated.

What college prerequisite courses have you taken? How do you study for content outside of the TPR classes? Usually scores under 9-10 are due to lack of content knowledge.

If you are having trouble finishing the PS section, make sure you know the equations you need back and forth and look for shortcuts. A bunch of the questions can be solved by eliminating wrong answers. If you are having to write out all of your calculations, it's a really hard section to finish in time. Good luck!

Originally Posted by BKN89

What college prerequisite courses have you taken? How do you study for content outside of the TPR classes? Usually scores under 9-10 are due to lack of content knowledge.

I already graduated 2 years ago. I studied on my own for my first MCAT with EK. Now, I'm using TPR material. Maybe I should need more content review, but I'm afraid of losing valuable time doing something unnecessary as I already know the stuff well (I think). And as many people say, MCAT does not necessarily test what you know, but how to apply what you know in a weird scenario quickly and efficiently. I'm just unsure at this moment what else I can do to get better. Maybe doing practice after practice exam is not sufficient enough.

I recommend you follow Sn2ed's schedule as you already have the EK materials. TPR will be a great addition, as will TBR. You need to keep working hard and identify your weaknesses - is it applying concepts and thinking critically? Foundational knowledge? All of it? Have you already taken all FL's by AAMC?

You said you practice a lot. Practice is one part. Reviewing is the other. You need to find the concepts and questions that you get wrong, and review them long enough until you know you will never get a similar question about this topic wrong.

Retaking pre-reqs that I didn't get an A in really helped me. Also TBR is wonderful.

Originally Posted by valkener

I recommend you follow Sn2ed's schedule as you already have the EK materials. TPR will be a great addition, as will TBR. You need to keep working hard and identify your weaknesses - is it applying concepts and thinking critically? Foundational knowledge? All of it? Have you already taken all FL's by AAMC?

You said you practice a lot. Practice is one part. Reviewing is the other. You need to find the concepts and questions that you get wrong, and review them long enough until you know you will never get a similar question about this topic wrong.

I want to do this but the only thing is I'm taking it on April 28th; I'm also using TPR...my practice tests have been 21, 25, 27. Verbal is constant at 7. **** man.

Originally Posted by pfaction

I want to do this but the only thing is I'm taking it on April 28th; I'm also using TPR...my practice tests have been 21, 25, 27. Verbal is constant at 7. **** man.

I think you might want to consider postponing. The 21-27 probably means that you have some pretty big holes in content understanding.

Originally Posted by Ultimeaciax

I already graduated 2 years ago. I studied on my own for my first MCAT with EK. Now, I'm using TPR material. Maybe I should need more content review, but I'm afraid of losing valuable time doing something unnecessary as I already know the stuff well (I think). And as many people say, MCAT does not necessarily test what you know, but how to apply what you know in a weird scenario quickly and efficiently. I'm just unsure at this moment what else I can do to get better. Maybe doing practice after practice exam is not sufficient enough.

Hm, well it's up to you to assess how much content you've got down and whether or not you need to postpone for content review. However, it tends to be the case that with most people scoring in the mid 20s have trouble with content. I would postpone if I were you, you do not want to take risks during a retake. You want to nail it. If your scores are still in the 20s, you need to postpone unless you are aiming for DO schools, in which case you can still be competitive with a score in the high 20s.

Your verbal score is notably low however, and not being a good critical reader will drag your other scores down to some extent. Are you having trouble understanding the passages? What type of mistakes are you making in PS, VR, and BS? Specifically, are you finding that your VR scores are so low due to lack of understanding passages? Timing? What is it?

Originally Posted by BKN89

Hm, well it's up to you to assess how much content you've got down and whether or not you need to postpone for content review. However, it tends to be the case that with most people scoring in the mid 20s have trouble with content. I would postpone if I were you, you do not want to take risks during a retake. You want to nail it. If your scores are still in the 20s, you need to postpone unless you are aiming for DO schools, in which case you can still be competitive with a score in the high 20s.

Your verbal score is notably low however, and not being a good critical reader will drag your other scores down to some extent. Are you having trouble understanding the passages? What type of mistakes are you making in PS, VR, and BS? Specifically, are you finding that your VR scores are so low due to lack of understanding passages? Timing? What is it?

I only have one shot at taking this. I'm doing really really bad in VR because yeah, at times I dont understand the content and the questions are...hard? Idk how else to say it. I'm working on my content - doubling up efforts and doing a lot of passages and stuff. I'm still getting a LOT wrong....April 28th is fast coming and I have to start taking my AAMC's in two weeks, working SO hard right now to get myself there.

Originally Posted by valkener

I recommend you follow Sn2ed's schedule as you already have the EK materials. TPR will be a great addition, as will TBR. You need to keep working hard and identify your weaknesses - is it applying concepts and thinking critically? Foundational knowledge? All of it? Have you already taken all FL's by AAMC?

You said you practice a lot. Practice is one part. Reviewing is the other. You need to find the concepts and questions that you get wrong, and review them long enough until you know you will never get a similar question about this topic wrong.

I did almost all the AAMC's on my first run, which was last year. I don't think I remember anything from them. I retook AAMC 4 & 5 recently and scored 27 & 29, respectively. All my other TPR FL's are a little lower due to lower Verbal score (their passages are harder to comprehend).

So, I just finished post-test analysis for TPR4 FL. Before looking at the answers and explanations, I went back and redo the test and found out that most of the q's I got wrong were due to carelessness, miscalculation...and more importantly, I applied concepts (that I already knew pretty well) incorrectly due to weird passages and under time pressure in the PS section. I retook the test untimed so I got majority of the q's that I got wrong, right the 2nd round. What should I do to minimize this mistake?

Originally Posted by Ultimeaciax

I did almost all the AAMC's on my first run, which was last year. I don't think I remember anything from them. I retook AAMC 4 & 5 recently and scored 27 & 29, respectively. All my other TPR FL's are a little lower due to lower Verbal score (their passages are harder to comprehend).

So, I just finished post-test analysis for TPR4 FL. Before looking at the answers and explanations, I went back and redo the test and found out that most of the q's I got wrong were due to carelessness, miscalculation...and more importantly, I applied concepts (that I already knew pretty well) incorrectly due to weird passages and under time pressure in the PS section. I retook the test untimed so I got majority of the q's that I got wrong, right the 2nd round. What should I do to minimize this mistake?

How did you take it untimed, also, how did you even understand some of the passages? The "brothers" passage on tightropes made 0 sense to me, the wind sailing I didn't get the majority of, and that 1st passage with electron orbitals was a complete mystery to me. What?!

Originally Posted by YouNeverKnow22

I struggled with PS and used Chad's videos (for chem, py and orgo) and now I feel real comfortable with chem and physics.

Good luck!

Where and what are Chad's videos???
I need all the help I can get with PS

Originally Posted by pfaction

How did you take it untimed, also, how did you even understand some of the passages? The "brothers" passage on tightropes made 0 sense to me, the wind sailing I didn't get the majority of, and that 1st passage with electron orbitals was a complete mystery to me. What?!

When you take the test, lower left hand side, there's an option to click untime or something like that.. it's right next to the countdown timer..very subtle, but just click it.

I had a little trouble with the passages you mention as well. The orbital passage was really basic for chemistry and of course there's no where in our review books that go over it. But, the passage pretty much explain to you what it is. Try to read slowly, understand and utilize the passage to answer the questions, especially for a dense passage like that.

For the brothers passage, I think I got two wrongs. It was hard to synthesize and apply what you know for that passage. However, when answering each question I tried to link it to a particular learned subject. For example, q28 asks about the time it takes for the young brother to swing on the trapeze and meet his older brother in the middle...I suddenly just thought back about mechanics and projectile, which should not dependent on mass...so i picked C. Though, going back and review it, the question was about simple pendulum. Maybe I was lucky, but you should def try to link the question to a tested subject. I just need to get better and faster at it, so I don't make stupid mistakes.

Good luck with your studying.

Originally Posted by Ultimeaciax

When you take the test, lower left hand side, there's an option to click untime or something like that.. it's right next to the countdown timer..very subtle, but just click it.

I had a little trouble with the passages you mention as well. The orbital passage was really basic for chemistry and of course there's no where in our review books that go over it. But, the passage pretty much explain to you what it is. Try to read slowly, understand and utilize the passage to answer the questions, especially for a dense passage like that.

For the brothers passage, I think I got two wrongs. It was hard to synthesize and apply what you know for that passage. However, when answering each question I tried to link it to a particular learned subject. For example, q28 asks about the time it takes for the young brother to swing on the trapeze and meet his older brother in the middle...I suddenly just thought back about mechanics and projectile, which should not dependent on mass...so i picked C. Though, going back and review it, the question was about simple pendulum. Maybe I was lucky, but you should def try to link the question to a tested subject. I just need to get better and faster at it, so I don't make stupid mistakes.

Good luck with your studying.

I distinctly remember all 3 of those passages on that FL. THey are definitely the hardest. Suprisingly, I did well on the brothers passage and the boat with wind passage, but poorly on the orbital passage. The brothers passage is confusing if you read it super fast. I just remember stopping, taking a deep breath, and looking at the figure/tightrope and thinking about some of the pertinent equations. I think I got all but 1-2 wrong on the two passages. However, on the orbital passage I rushed and didn't really take my time and I remember bombing that passage. Moral of the story, especially on the real deal, take your time and take a deep breathe. Think about what you highlighted and calm down and that will hopefully help you think more logically and more clearly which will help you with the answer AND help you avoid careless mistakes. Goodluck