Design your ideal MCAT

[speranza]

So to relieve some stress and to procrastinate even more from going over my test answers, I thought August MCAT people could post their criteria for their ideal MCAT. Now, it has to be reasonable...no taking out the PS section or anything , just what would be the ideal test on Aug 20th that would make your day? What topics, concepts and format for each section would make you happy (and which would make you cringe)? I guess this could also give us an idea of what we should focus on these last weeks. I'll post mine in a bit.

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[PneoDr]

PS- No optics. I would LOVE to see a passage on an acid/base titration (I always smile when i see a titration graph).

VR - I consider the philosophy passages the hardest, so as few of these as possible.

BS - No questions about embryology or parts of the brain. Heavy genetics would be nice for this section.

 

[Mister Pie]

PS- E&M, fluid dynamics. NO sound, or bizarre mechanics questions. For chem: anything but weird solubility questions.

VR- Uh. "Modern" passages that are actually understandable. Barring that, I'd prefer topics that are as concrete rather than abstract.

WS- I have no idea. I'll be happy if I can come up with current event examples for whatever they ask.

BS- Nothing on IR specs (concept ok, numbers no), or NMR. No hardcore embryology. For the love of God... no fungus. Wouldn't mind some genetics.

 

[gotgame83]

PS-No electro crazy stuff

Verbal- No humanities

For all you genetics lovers, I hate each and everyone of you. Ok not really but I would like to have a BS section that had basic genetics and concepts nothing insane. I hope it would be heavy on phys with lots of bio passages and minimal organic

 

[speranza]

Here's mine:

PS - Exactly like AAMC 5R. Seriously, the less it is like Kaplan PS and the more like the earlier AAMC tests, the happier I'll be. This means no really complicated conceptual questions, no heavy calcs. Topics I don't want to see: kinematics, fluids dynamics, complicated mechanics. Chem: no acid/base, solubility.

Verbal - Straightforward! No art/economics/politics passages.

BS - Bio: no cellular respiration, microbio, complicated genetics. I DO want to see lots of stuff on organ systems. Organic: no extraction! Hate those questions. No obscure reaction mechanism questions.

 

[hlchess]

PS: Anything except optics and electrochemistry

VR: Concrete passages rather than abstract philosophical ones

BS: As much orgo as possible. I love orgo! Hopefully not too much physiology and embriology.

 

[ahhh123]

PS - LOTs of GEN CHEM!!! no velocity, distance, etc... ahh.. i don't understand why i can do magnetism but not the basics...
V - lots of natural science and NO humanities... heheh that would be awesome
BS - LOTS AND LOTS OF ORGO!! I LOVE ORGO

 

[Mister Pie]

I would cry if there was lots of orgo.

 

[jintonic5]

i don't believe it's possible to use the word "ideal" and "mcat" in the same sentence.

but if i had to say: no orgo, no electrochemistry, no acid/base crud.

 

[medstu2006]

No VR??

 

[CoffeeCat]

PS - Okay, since the OP said we couldn't remove the whole section, I'd vote just to remove physics...well, maybe we could leave the big five section in.

Verbal - straightforward questions. I don't care too much about the passage being wacky but it's the questions...they can be damn tricky.

BS - OChem's fine with me and also genetics, molecular bio techniques, immuno and micro. NO kidney or muscles.

 

[docmd2010]

ps: No optics/light, no waves garbage (harmonics and stuff), wouldn't mind nuclear phenomena, fluids, magnetism, kinematics, forces, work, etc.

vs: passages taht i can understand... plllllllllllllllllease no philosophy or abstract self, non self bs.


bs: minimal orgo, easy discretes, minimum embryo, lots of passages where you don't have to bring outside knowledge. i.e. hypothesis a, hypothesis b type passages and experimental passages. i usually do pretty decent on those.

 

[sweetstuff25]

No VR??

yes! yes! yes!

 

[sammyhagar19]

PS: Optics, Sound, complex circuits

VR: absrtact, philosophical passages preferably written in some archaic diction

BS: lots of embryology, difficult genetics crosses, and obscure lab techniques

oh and of course a writing prompt like "Necrophilia is a healthy, natural urge."

 

[happydays]

I'll take any MCAT...as long as I get all the answers ahead of time. (AABEDCACCDB and on)

 

[QofQuimica]

My top ten ways to improve the MCAT, in more or less order of increasing absurdity:

1. Type essays rather than write them. This is going to be a reality for the people taking the computer version.

2. Let people take the MCAT at their convenience, rather than two test dates per year. This is already done for the DAT and GRE and it's really great.

3. Show you your scores first, and then you can decide whether you want to void them or report them to the schools.

4. Partial credit for answers that were on the right track. Let them check your work in the test booklet for every question you missed.

5. No physics or biology. I'd love to just have chemistry and nothing else on both science sections.

6. No passages. Discrete questions only for BS and PS.

7. Proctors should walk around the room and advise students that they may want to recheck certain questions that they've missed.

8. VR passages should be short plays that are acted out for the benefit of the entire testing room. They'll be just as hard to understand as the written passages, but at least they'll be entertaining.

9. Essay topics should be things that actually matter to adolescents. Like, how do you get a gorgeous person of your preferred sexual persuasion to notice you? Extra credit can be given to test-takers who succeed in seducing said gorgeous person during the test.

10. A person who misses every single question on the MCAT automatically shoots the moon and gets a perfect 45 score.

 

[Mister Pie]

I think a more accurate way to gauge "critical thinking" would be if instead of multiple choice, the answers were free response. Then they could REALLY see if you understood, of if you were just checking for answer choices or doing POE.

 

[speranza]

My top ten ways to improve the MCAT, in more or less order of increasing absurdity:

1. Type essays rather than write them. This is going to be a reality for the people taking the computer version.

2. Let people take the MCAT at their convenience, rather than two test dates per year. This is already done for the DAT and GRE and it's really great.

3. Show you your scores first, and then you can decide whether you want to void them or report them to the schools.

4. Partial credit for answers that were on the right track. Let them check your work in the test booklet for every question you missed.

5. No physics or biology. I'd love to just have chemistry and nothing else on both science sections.

6. No passages. Discrete questions only for BS and PS.

7. Proctors should walk around the room and advise students that they may want to recheck certain questions that they've missed.

8. VR passages should be short plays that are acted out for the benefit of the entire testing room. They'll be just as hard to understand as the written passages, but at least they'll be entertaining.

9. Essay topics should be things that actually matter to adolescents. Like, how do you get a gorgeous person of your preferred sexual persuasion to notice you? Extra credit can be given to test-takers who succeed in seducing said gorgeous person during the test.

10. A person who misses every single question on the MCAT automatically shoots the moon and gets a perfect 45 score.

I think the MCAT is more than ideal for you already if you made a 43! But I do like your suggestions, esp 2, 3, and 6.

 

[USArmyDoc]

Physical Science: 8 passages of gen chem and about 2-3 passages on physics.
Verbal: No philosophy passages
Biological Science: 8 passages of biology (no genetics!!!) with very little organic.


But we ALL KNOW that I will get the total opposite of what I want. The same goes for everyone else. That is just how life pans out, I guess.

 

[CoffeeCat]

10. A person who misses every single question on the MCAT automatically shoots the moon and gets a perfect 45 score.

 

[Hurricane95]

hmm I took april already, but if I had to retake, the ideal exam would have:
PS: mechanics, fluids, E/M....NO OPTICS....solubility and acid/base stuff is fine, but no weird thermo stuff (calor. experiments like the one on april!)

VR: all passages in english. please. and no philosophy passages...the "self not self" thing someone mentioned makes my head hurt, I remember it from a practice test somewhere, and I remember it being ugly. No confucius (AAMC 3R, i missed 9/10 of those Qs)

BS: Absolutely no embrylogy or reproduction, blastulas and fisculas and all that nonsense. Minimal spectroscopy.

 

[QofQuimica]

I think the MCAT is more than ideal for you already if you made a 43! But I do like your suggestions, esp 2, 3, and 6.

The real MCAT is not fun, and neither is studying for it. My ideal MCAT would be much more fun, don't you think?

 

[Topper Harley]

A Medical CAT that tests, well... medical topics: anatomy & phys, pathology, psych, dexterity skills.

Does this make sence to anyone, or am I taking crazy pills?

 

[stoleyerscrubz]

PS- no elecricity and magnetism. no thermo. no electrochem.
VR- no passages that ramble on with a ton of Chinese names with question stems referring to different names. no passages on topics I am very familiar with. I get cocky and tend to favor my outside knowledge.
BS-no embryology. lots of genetics would rock! I prefer carbonyl orgo over 1st semester orgo.


Guess I know what I have to study now.