***Warning: Posting Specifics of the Actual MCAT = Automatic One-week Ban***

[Vihsadas]

The staff at SDN understands that your MCAT experience will inevitably leave you uncertain about your performance, and, that the urge to discuss the specifics of your MCAT on SDN may become overwhelming. Unfortunately, SDN cannot allow this type of discussion. Therefore, the following rules apply:


1) Do not discuss the specifics of the MCAT exam. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Divulging one or more answer choices, parts of answer choices, or the answer itself
• Revealing the question stem itself or a part of the question stem
• Outlining part of the process required to solve a problem
• Soliciting specific information about a question
• Asking another user to Private Message (PM) you regarding a question/passage
  
• Highlighting the specifics of a passage, including information not directly related to a question.
• Posting entire questions
• Discussing any other information that would make it easier to answer an MCAT question.
• You may post only general information about the topics covered on the exam, "I had a passage about rickets", and your feelings, "I thought the rickets passage was very hard."

**If one of your posts is identified as revealing too much information, your account will be immediately post-held for seven days.

As a litmus test, ask yourself the following question before posting:

• “Will what I am about to post make it easier for another member to answer an MCAT question? Will it give them a specific idea about what to expect on an exam?"
  

If the answer is yes, or you are unsure, do not make the post. If you absolutely must, send a private message to a moderator and ask us if it’s okay.


2) Do not make posts that falsely claim that MCAT scores are available.

The stress of waiting for scores is intense enough where posting false “scores are up” posts serves only to increase the unneeded and unwelcome anxiety of your peers. These types of posts fall under "trolling and intending to inflame".

**Users caught posting false information will be post-held for seven days.


Please understand that these rules are here not only to maintain the testability of the MCAT exam and the integrity of the admissions process as a whole, but also to protect you. The AAMC actively searches SDN for people who disclose information from their MCAT exams. If you are caught doing so, the AAMC reserves the right to void your MCAT score and revoke your eligibility to write future MCAT exams--meaning that you will never be able to attend a US Medical School. Consequently, please realize that we maintain an extremely strict policy for the good of everyone. Thank you for your attention, and if you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact a moderator.

Good luck on test day,
- The MCAT Forum Moderators

[wolverinejeremy]

While SDN's proscription of the posting of MCAT questions may be a violation of its user agreement, it is not a legal requirement. The posting of questions clearly fits within the rubric of the Fair Use Doctrine (see 17 U.S.C. 107 and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_use), particularly in light of its educational and noncommercial nature.

When I sat for the patent bar exam, administered by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, students wrote down their answers and posted them online after the exam. That way, using the most common answer, we were able to determine each correct answer and our score immediately on exam day. It was a P/F exam, so it really helped to alleviate stress of waiting.

[Vihsadas]

Originally Posted by wolverinejeremy

While SDN's proscription of the posting of MCAT questions may be a violation of its user agreement, it is not a legal requirement. The posting of questions clearly fits within the rubric of the Fair Use Doctrine (see 17 U.S.C. 107 and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_use), particularly in light of its educational and noncommercial nature.

When I sat for the patent bar exam, administered by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, students wrote down their answers and posted them online after the exam. That way, using the most common answer, we were able to determine each correct answer and our score immediately on exam day. It was a P/F exam, so it really helped to alleviate stress of waiting.

I understand your concern, however, I point out that whether or not a specific course of action is legal does not have any bearing on whether it is ethical.
Legal issues aside, complying with the wishes of the AAMC in this instance is in the best interest of fairness to all MCAT examinees. Therefore, a strict policy is not only ethically justified, but also fundamentally important in my opinion. Because of how large SDN has become, it can have a tangible impact on the admissions process (ex. exchange of information between applicants on the qualities admissions committees might look for). There is a certain amount of responsibility in providing a resource like SDN to ensure that the integrity of the admissions process is not disrupted.

Because of the way that MCAT questions are generated, allowing test questions to be posted after the exam gives a clear and distinct advantage to future test takers. Hence, disclosures of exam material are toxic to the integrity of the MCAT, and therefore detrimental the admissions process as a whole. Legal issues aside, for that reason alone, it is my personal opinion that the policy we have developed is a beneficial policy.
Please note these are my opinions, and not SDN's.

[MCATRep]

It is a legal requirement to maintain the confidentiality of AAMC MCAT operational test items. AAMC protects the security of its items via a user agreement, please refer to the MCAT Essentials document for more information (http://aamc.org/students/mcat/mcatessentials.pdf). Breach of this agreement may result in legal action and/or refusal of service by AAMC (ex. bar writing future MCAT exams, denial of score).

[johncalvin]

NDA, people.

[jjesusfreak01]

Although I agree with the position of this forum in light of ethical issues and legal responsibilities to protect themselves from harm, the aamc has to know that some of these questions will get out now or in future years, and that the only way they can maintain a truly fair test is to refrain from re-using questions from tests within a year. Their current methodology gives an unfair benefit to those who would seek out this information from other sources.

Just my opinion.

[Vihsadas]

Originally Posted by jjesusfreak01

Although I agree with the position of this forum in light of ethical issues and legal responsibilities to protect themselves from harm, the aamc has to know that some of these questions will get out now or in future years, and that the only way they can maintain a truly fair test is to refrain from re-using questions from tests within a year. Their current methodology gives an unfair benefit to those who would seek out this information from other sources.

Just my opinion.

A very valid point, and one that I'm sure they have considered, but the big issue in not reusing questions, is that statistically you have a less meaningful pool of data points (each data point being a test taker). The reason that the AAMC can't use new questions each year is because it is unknown whether a certain new passage or set of discretes will produce a good bell curve. The AAMC tests new questions in each exam. These experimental questions are ungraded, and unscored, but if they yield good statistical properties can be used on future exams.