Anyone feel like they guessed a lot? Especially on bio?

[dbouz]

Hey guys,

So I just took the MCAT this past Saturday and it did not go as smoothly as my practice exams went. I generally finished on time or early on all my practice tests (AAMC and TBR) and usually scored anywhere from 30-34, with 32 being my average. However, on the real exam I felt like I was guessing a lot on the bio section. I felt that it was more like a verbal section than the bio we saw in the AAMC's and I was a little taken back. I also ran out of time in the physical sciences section and had to rush through the last passage.

Is this is normal feeling that people have after their MCAT? I definitely don't feel like I scored how I was scoring on my practice test... I mean how could I if I didn't even finish on time?

I have a pretty solid grasp of the material I guess I just had a nervous episode on the exam. Should I just start studying again before I forget the material?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks to all that reply and good luck in your future endeavors!!!

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[necro1187]

I'm in the same boat. 30-35 on AAMCs....32 average. Felt the entire BS section was a bunch of guessing...minus the orgo parts. Not what I was expecting!

 

[dbouz]

I'm in the same boat. 30-35 on AAMCs....32 average. Felt the entire BS section was a bunch of guessing...minus the orgo parts. Not what I was expecting!

Did you take the March 22 mcat?

 

[necro1187]

Yes....took the march 22nd test.

 

[dbouz]

Who knows maybe it will turn out ok. After all everyone seems to be a little down about the bio. Are you planning to study again?

 

[terra330]

Pretty much everyone, myself included, felt that bio section to be quite tough. Hopefully that means the curve is generous

 

[Saxappeal1]

LOL. yep. felt really confident on half of the passages, most discretes, then everything else took all of my brain power, and I'm STILL not sure :/

 

[brood910]

Yeah. I guessed a lot of questions + I know I got several easy questions wrong (I knew the answer afterwards. No idea why I picked the other choice..)...

I always got 11~13 on AAMC FLs but I think I will get only 10 at max.

 

[dbouz]

Are any of you guys planning to start studying again soon? Or have you already started? haha

 

[brood910]

Are any of you guys planning to start studying again soon? Or have you already started? haha

I am gonna take a break until nxt week. I think I deserve it.

 

[dbouz]

I am gonna take a break until nxt week. I think I deserve it.

Agreed. I think we all deserve some rest after that. I told myself I would start Sunday or Monday. Definitely don't want to forget anything

 

[salsasunrise123]

what was it about bio that was so difficult? Can you disclose what percent of the section were experimental passages? I do the worst on those in the TPRH workbook. Was bio more like AAMC official guide/SA or more like FLs? Some of the passages in the official guide are very verbal-esque, so I kinda get where you are coming from

 

[Tappinfool66]

Hey guys,

So I just took the MCAT this past Saturday and it did not go as smoothly as my practice exams went. I generally finished on time or early on all my practice tests (AAMC and TBR) and usually scored anywhere from 30-34, with 32 being my average. However, on the real exam I felt like I was guessing a lot on the bio section. I felt that it was more like a verbal section than the bio we saw in the AAMC's and I was a little taken back. I also ran out of time in the physical sciences section and had to rush through the last passage.

Is this is normal feeling that people have after their MCAT? I definitely don't feel like I scored how I was scoring on my practice test... I mean how could I if I didn't even finish on time?

I have a pretty solid grasp of the material I guess I just had a nervous episode on the exam. Should I just start studying again before I forget the material?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks to all that reply and good luck in your future endeavors!!!

I would try not to worry about it too much. I took the exam in January and felt the same way. The bio section (and both other sections for that matter) felt harder than most of the practice tests I'd done and I definitely felt like I was guessing a lot on bio but I still ended up with a score right around my average from my practice FLs.

 

[kk123]

So for those of you who just took the MCAT, what do you think would have helped for studying the biology section? I know you can't talk about specifics of the test, but what would have helped you do less guessing on BS section? Practicing more passages? Better content review? I'm wondering because BS is my weakest section.

 

[TheAnonymous]

So for those of you who just took the MCAT, what do you think would have helped for studying the biology section? I know you can't talk about specifics of the test, but what would have helped you do less guessing on BS section? Practicing more passages? Better content review? I'm wondering because BS is my weakest section.

Would like to know this too, thanks !

 

[dbouz]

I would try not to worry about it too much. I took the exam in January and felt the same way. The bio section (and both other sections for that matter) felt harder than most of the practice tests I'd done and I definitely felt like I was guessing a lot on bio but I still ended up with a score right around my average from my practice FLs.

Thanks for the advice. Your probably right. I'm hoping for the best

 

[dbouz]

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[forfun135]

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[txlonghorn2314]

So for those of you who just took the MCAT, what do you think would have helped for studying the biology section? I know you can't talk about specifics of the test, but what would have helped you do less guessing on BS section? Practicing more passages? Better content review? I'm wondering because BS is my weakest section.

Can someone be so kind as to answering this

 

[Czarcasm]

I would like to know too. But, I only have 3 weeks. I am so nervous now.

This is why I generally avoid SDN these days. I feel like there's too many neurotic pre-meds here. Too much anxiety going on during an already stressful period. Don't get me wrong, there's a ton of helpful info to be gleaned from this site, but at the end of the day, too much of it will do more harm than good. You want to approach your test feeling confident in your ability to succeed -- and unfortunately, the stories here can distract you.

 

[HappyFeet14]

Can someone be so kind as to answering this

I took the March 22 exam and my AAMC average was 31+. It is not the reassuring answer you all want to hear, but the best prep for Bio is just to do general content review and then do as many passages as you can until you are sick of them. The amount of material they can test on is so vast that doing just content review will have diminishing returns. Passages are the only way to get used to thinking critically in terms of the content and applying those skills to answering complex questions. Regardless of how much you prepare, there will be things on your exam that are spun in a way you have never seen before, as well as topics that are out of left field and have no real relevance to anything (discrete questions). Do not let this scare you or catch you off guard. It is best to just expect it and roll with the punches.

 

[inasensegone]

This is why I generally avoid SDN these days. I feel like there's too many neurotic pre-meds here. Too much anxiety going on during an already stressful period. Don't get me wrong, there's a ton of helpful info to be gleaned from this site, but at the end of the day, too much of it will do more harm than good. You want to approach your test feeling confident in your ability to succeed -- and unfortunately, the stories here can distract you.

Hit the nail on the head. Damn Czarcasm... I wish more people on here would understand this. Thank you for posting this. I hope your studies are going well.