MCAT Verbal Reasoning Explanations Thread extras

To prepare for the writing sample, you probably want mostly examples. (As Q and Shrike point out, you don't have to be a fantastic writer but do have to follow the directions, and having a mental library of examples makes it easier to do that.) For that, just following the newspaper can be fine. You can also make examples up, of course, and history or any other area you're familiar with works just as well as (or better than) news.

Here's a partial list of periodicals I recommend reading for practice with the type of dense writing you'll find on the Verbal Reasoning section.
The Economist
The Atlantic
The New Yorker
Harper's

These will occasionally discuss controversial topics in world news, but they also talk about culture and non-controversial news topics. Getting used to following the arguments (as I discussed in a previous post) is actually more important for MCAT purposes than learning what the news stories of the day are.

That is why my list doesn't include Newsweek or Time. Those may make enjoyable reading, and allow you to keep up with the news, but they don't provide exceptionally good writing or arguments. They're written at below the high school reading level, and the depth and level of argument is not sophisticated either.

The questions for the WS always follow the same format:

{prompt: some sort of opinion statement}

Write a unified essay in which you perform the following tasks. Explain what you think the above statement means. Describe a specific situation in which {the opinion in the prompt would NOT hold true}. Discuss what you think determines whether/when {the prompt is true or not}.

So basically you have three tasks:

1. Explain the prompt.
2. Give a counterexample.
3. Determine when the prompt applies.

In addition to doing those three things, you want to create a unified essay, in which each task works together as a whole. This might mean using related examples, focusing on one particular aspect or criterion, and/or coming up with an overarching theme.

In general, doing the tasks in the order described is a good idea - you want to make it as easy as possible for the grader to score your essay. One paragraph per task is a general rule, but you can have additional paragraphs if you'd like. A good essay isn't necessarily long though, as long as it fulfills all the tasks!

Some comments on the individual tasks:

1. Explain the prompt: defining key words (e.g. what is "society"?) can be helpful here. An example is also useful.
2. Choose a counterexample that's neither trivial nor extreme - you want it to work with your eventual conclusion, so don't use something really contrived or something that's so strong it makes it seem like the prompt can never be true.
3. Resolving the contradiction can be the hardest part. One thing that can be helpful is to develop a list of standard criteria: health, safety, education, that sort of thing.

You don't have to write a definitive answer. Focusing on one aspect of a situation can be OK, as long as you complete all the tasks. Basically as long as you follow all the instructions and your writing is competent enough to be understood by the grader, you are almost guaranteed a 4 (which corresponds to approximately a P overall).

medanthgirl said:

What a great thread! Thanks for making this happen.
I will be taking my first MCAT in August, and I'm nervous about the essay - coming up with sources to use as examples or features in an arguement. I know some of the sources say good things to read are the NY times, Newsweek, the Economist. I've tried looking at these but I still don't think they give the greatest material, because I've heard we are also supposed to stay away from controversial topics, so many of the things in those periodicals seem very controversial (Terry Schaivo, Iraq, Michael Jackson, etc etc) and then a lot of it isn't even news!

any ideas or suggestions?

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Lorelei summed it up great.

My contribution will be on the nature of time management. From everything I've heard, the importance of the WS is much, much less significant than the importance of the numerically score sections to admissions committees. If you've got nothing but time, this information may not matter to you. Otherwise, I would recommend allotting most of your study time to Verbal, Bio, or Physical. I wrote an essay using very simple rules:

1. Fulfill the tasks assigned (three which Lorelei summed up).
2. Be neat and try not to misspell.
3. Be conservative with time. Conclusion will suck if you run out of time.

I used really trite, outdated, or vague examples (I didn't do any research, like a friend who prepared notecards on various sample examples). I'm not a fantastic writer as a zoo major who has been out of school and in the military for years. I still got a Q, which basically serves to assure schools I'm literate. They've got samples of my writing if they want more than that.

Good luck!

In my time on SDN, the two most commonly misspelled words seem to be:

Argument (not arguement)
and Definitely (not definately)

Usually the spell checkers get hassled for being pedantic, but on this thread it seems appropriate to point out spelling errors. You don't want to make these mistakes on the test.

Also, some people tend to become complacent and depend on MS Word to sort out their "to, two, and too" mix-ups and their "there, they're and their" mix ups. All of these are important things to keep an eye on (or "important things on which to keep an eye," if you want to get technical). Which brings me to the point that there are a lot (not alot) of instances wherein we generally end a sentence with a preposition (looking at, going to, etc.) If rephrasing the sentence in the above manner makes it sound clumsy (as in the above example) a good idea is to rephrase the matter entirely; e.g., "It is important to keep an eye on these" or "Beware of these common errors,' etc.

Another important point: sentence fragments. (did you catch that that last sentence is a sentence fragment? ) Make sure that every sentence has a verb, and preferably, a subject.

Several people have pointed out common spelling and grammar mistakes. It's always a good idea to try and correct these in your writing. However, it's important to know that the MCAT Writing Sample IS NOT a spelling or grammar test. Your score is based on how well you fulfill the three tasks and write a unified essay.

If your spelling or grammar is so poor that the grader has a difficult time following your essay or determining whether you did fulfill the tasks, you will lose points. But spelling "definitely" as "definately" should not lose you any points.

Of course, you want to make your essay as easy to follow as possible, and give the grader the general impression that you know what you're doing, and correct spelling and grammar will help with that, but I wouldn't waste time studying grammar when you could be studying, say, physics.

(As an example, I had a friend in college who suffered from a learning disability which caused him to be a terrible speller - it was so bad that the spellchecker in Word didn't help him because Word couldn't figure out what words he was trying to spell, so I always proofread his papers. He actually outscored me on the MCAT writing sample.)

I'm doing the EK 1001 Gen Chem questions, and have checked the EK website for typos on this, and haven't found any.

Number 51 on page 4 says:

Which of the following is ordered correctly in terms of atomic radius, from smallest to largest?

A. Al_3+, Al, S, S_2- (these numbers are supposed to be charges)
B. Al_3+, S, Al, S_2-
C. S, Al_3+, S_2-, Al
D. S, S_2-, Al_3+, Al

I picked A, but the back of the book says:

"B is correct. Positive ions are much smaller than their neutral counterparts; negative ions are much larger. Since the size of neutral atoms decreases as you move from left to right across the periodic table, neutral Al is bigger than neutral sulfur, and the correct answer is B."

I thought elements increased in size going left to right? Have I missed one of the most fundamental concepts in Chemistry?

The density of a 3.54 M solution of NH4Cl in water is 1.0512 g/mL. What is the molality of the solution? (The molar mass of NH4Cl is 53.45 g/mol.)

Just for that I think I should vote for you again!

if Q > Ksp, a ppt form..

but what about le chat's principle? wouldn't it make it not form?

so does it ppt, or does it not?

thanks!