AAMC and unfair mcat exam scores

[premedkid1994]

I made this point on a thread. And I want to discuss it. Many did 7-12 points worse than their scored fl, and a lot others didn't report their score due to embarrassment.

AAMC preaches standardized testing.
"Standardized testing"
--> its not standardized testing when 95% of the people who were scoring 510+ on scored fl were getting >510s on the real exam not too long ago. Now they can't even get above a 505. That's not standardized testing.
If you're a top testing company and you're going to change the test to make it even harder, at least give out another scored fl so we can predict our performance.

Another point that I want to make and this is the key point:
"It doesn't matter what month you take the exam. The mcat is scaled, not curved"
I hope everyone is realizing what AAMC has probably been hiding all along.
Maybe the mcat isn't scaled, but curved...
more people taking it during the later months--> more study time --> higher scores --> horrible curve.
I've been on here and reddit and many people did A LOT worse on their exam for the scores that were released today.
I am positive this mcat is not scaled. That is why AAMC takes one whole month to release the score.
The DAT is a scaled test, yet you get your scores right after...

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Major]

Hmm. I thought it was scaled in such a manner that since everyone is taking a "different" exam that it took the AAMC about 30 days to adjust for that difference. Some people getting an easier exam and others getting a more difficult and such...

Who knows what really goes behind the doors at the AAMC

 

[premedkid1994]

Hmm. I thought it was scaled in such a manner that since everyone is taking a "different" exam that it took the AAMC about 30 days to adjust for that difference. Some people getting an easier exam and others getting a more difficult and such...

Who knows what really goes behind the doors at the AAMC

there's a trend that I've been following.
Every month scores that were being reported have dropped from May to today + the # of scores reported have dropped on both reddit and here. You can look back at the score reports on here too and look at how many people were scoring higher than their scored fls.

Especially going back to the beginning of the year.
This test is definitely not scaled imo

 

[Leumas8]

I've seen this too. How can this be though? I thought every exam had a scaled normal distribution? Really makes me nervous for my August 25th test.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile app

 

[Hospitalized]

There's about 20 tests administered every year. Per AAMC about 60,000 people took the test in 2015. That's around 3,000 people per test. On SDN and reddit combined we see MAYBE 100, maximum 200 scores of each test day. I simply do not think there's enough data to make any conclusions about what's going on.

The most accurate thing to say right now is there is not enough representative practice material out there. QPacks, SB, and 2 practice exams is not enough for an exam like this. Test prep companies are doing an awful job of replicating the exam. Educational background is probably playing more into scores than ever before.

 

[DrHart]

there's a trend that I've been following.
Every month scores that were being reported have dropped from May to today + the # of scores reported have dropped on both reddit and here. You can look back at the score reports on here too and look at how many people were scoring higher than their scored fls.

Especially going back to the beginning of the year.
This test is definitely not scaled imo

Assuming the test is standarized so that no matter what month/date you take it your score would be the same - how do you think the population of students compare between those who take it in April/May and those who take it in August/September?

My guess is that most kids who are getting ready to apply in June take the exam in April/May. This means they have likely finished all the prereq classes (assuming that they take them in the classic order of Gen Chem/Bio Freshman yr, O chem Sophopmore, Physics/Biochem Junior).
What do you think the population looks like in August/September? If they are rising Juniors they crunched all the prereqs into two years, I would assume they didn't complete much upper level course work. Sure, they might have been able to spend a whole summer studying, but the retention of two years of crunched prereqs would be less. The other people who take the August/September dates would be non-trad students or Seniors taking a gap year, both of which I would think are relatively small compared to the April/May population.

I don't think more kids take it in the later months, in fact, I think the opposite is true. I don't think the curve is much different, I think that the majority of people taking the exam in the later months are not as prepared and do worse when the results are standardized. Also, don't read too much into what you see on this site. Anecdotal evidence from SDN isn't that reliable.

 

[DrHart]

Also, when I took the test in April, seats were booked full 4 months ahead of time. There are currently open seats for the Sept. 10th exam. If the number of centers/seats is the same for each date, don't you think this would mean that fewer students take the test in the fall?

 

[premedkid1994]

Assuming the test is standarized so that no matter what month/date you take it your score would be the same - how do you think the population of students compare between those who take it in April/May and those who take it in August/September?

My guess is that most kids who are getting ready to apply in June take the exam in April/May. This means they have likely finished all the prereq classes (assuming that they take them in the classic order of Gen Chem/Bio Freshman yr, O chem Sophopmore, Physics/Biochem Junior).
What do you think the population looks like in August/September? If they are rising Juniors they crunched all the prereqs into two years, I would assume they didn't complete much upper level course work. Sure, they might have been able to spend a whole summer studying, but the retention of two years of crunched prereqs would be less. The other people who take the August/September dates would be non-trad students or Seniors taking a gap year, both of which I would think are relatively small compared to the April/May population.

I don't think more kids take it in the later months, in fact, I think the opposite is true. I don't think the curve is much different, I think that the majority of people taking the exam in the later months are not as prepared and do worse when the results are standardized. Also, don't read too much into what you see on this site. Anecdotal evidence from SDN isn't that reliable.

You are right, however you are missing the point.
If the test IS truly standardized, then that should hold true for every prep material AAMC has out.

For example, If two people got a 510 on AAMC scored fl, one in May, other one in Aug, wouldn't you expect their real exam scores to be similar?
Look back to the that date and look at how many people reported scoring A LOT higher than their scored exam, and how many reported scoring a lot lower than their scored exam.
Today, many people are scoring 5-10 points lower than their scored exam.

How can you explain that? It's impossible if the exam is scaled..

 

[DrHart]

You are right, however you are missing the point.
If the test IS truly standardized, then that should hold true for every prep material AAMC has out.

For example, If two people got a 510 on AAMC scored fl, one in May, other one in Aug, wouldn't you expect their real exam scores to be similar?
Look back to the that date and look at how many people reported scoring A LOT higher than their scored exam, and how many reported scoring a lot lower than their scored exam.
Today, many people are scoring 5-10 points lower than their scored exam.

How can you explain that? It's impossible if the exam is scaled..

From the thread about todays score release, I could only find a handful of people saying they did worse than their scored FL. You can say "many" people are scoring 5-10 points less but for all you know... "many" only includes a handful of people. You're trying to convince yourself that there is systemic issue based on a few posts online. No offense but I think its bogus. If you're disappointed in your score and are venting, I feel it. But I don't think you got some raw deal. There are so many other factors that could cause a person to score higher on their practice FL than the real thing (real test anxiety, for one).

 

[premedkid1994]

From the thread about todays score release, I could only find a handful of people saying they did worse than their scored FL. You can say "many" people are scoring 5-10 points less but for all you know... "many" only includes a handful of people. You're trying to convince yourself that there is systemic issue based on a few posts online. No offense but I think its bogus. If you're disappointed in your score and are venting, I feel it. But I don't think you got some raw deal. There are so many other factors that could cause a person to score higher on their practice FL than the real thing (real test anxiety, for one).

lol I haven't even taken the exam yet, no reason to vent. I am taking it next month.

I personally think its curved, not scaled but everybody has their own opinions. Fair enough.

 

[sjg1110]

Well the AAMC scored isn't updated on a test by test basis like the new one, and was likely formulated based off of old percentile rankings that do not necessarily apply to amount of questions right or wrong on every test. And second, you're completely leaving out the fact that on test day many people perform worse than expected due to nervousness and anxiety.

Personally, I scored a 512 on the scored and a 517 on my actual test only three weeks later. Take it for what you will, but the ability to keep composure during the most stressful test of pre-med undergraduate work is very significant. As already said, anecdotal evidence on these sites is literally irrelevant in trying to determine this.