Diary: ExamKracker MCAT studying begins... Who is with me? Version 6 for May

[christian15213]

Hey everyone!!!

Just wanted to invite anyone who owns the examkrackers examination books version 6 and is starting to study for the mcats this upcomming April / May. I can only afford to take this test one time because the application and entire process begins for me this summer.

I have started first with the Biology section and have a couple comments and things about the book that I like so far and some complaints so far. I have only done lecture one.

As well, I have audio osmosis and one of the things I really like is that is follows the book quite nicely. Please respond asap and we can work on things and go through things together.

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[nataly1313]

Anyone have any suggestions on improving the verbal score? I have the 101 verbal book and on the first test I got a 7 and on the second I got an 8. It seems that some passages I will do great on but on others I will miss the majority of the questions.

 

[youngnflyy]

My long awaited EK books have arrived. Time to get to work I suppose!

 

[suckermc]

Anyone have any suggestions on improving the verbal score? I have the 101 verbal book and on the first test I got a 7 and on the second I got an 8. It seems that some passages I will do great on but on others I will miss the majority of the questions.

im retaking so take my advice with a grain of salt. but here it is:

find a strategy and use it. maybe ek doesnt make sense to you; maybe tpr is better; start using one and see if it helps.

spend more time doing verbal. (i.e more practice. )

look at the kind of things you are doing wrong and try to notice a pattern. do you get the same things wrong.

how was yr timming? are you rushed? are you doing all the passages in order? do you skip around? etc.


if you have a tip for bio by all means..

 

[nataly1313]

im retaking so take my advice with a grain of salt. but here it is:

find a strategy and use it. maybe ek doesnt make sense to you; maybe tpr is better; start using one and see if it helps.

spend more time doing verbal. (i.e more practice. )

look at the kind of things you are doing wrong and try to notice a pattern. do you get the same things wrong.

how was yr timming? are you rushed? are you doing all the passages in order? do you skip around? etc.


if you have a tip for bio by all means..

Thanks for your help. Actually my timing is great. I have been finishing with two minutes to spare each time. I am also retaking so I need all the help I can get since I am really pushing hard this time around. I am doing all the passages in order as stated by EK. I previously had used Kaplan and they state to skip the hard passages which I do find to be distracting when trying to read for the main idea. Anyways as for bio I am going do the EK strategy in terms of reading it once, read it again while taking notes, then listen to audio osmosis. I think the trick to bio is just being able to understand all of the concepts and whatever I have trouble on I am going to go back through when I review. Thanks again for your help and good luck studying.

 

[christian15213]

Thanks for your help. Actually my timing is great. I have been finishing with two minutes to spare each time. I am also retaking so I need all the help I can get since I am really pushing hard this time around. I am doing all the passages in order as stated by EK. I previously had used Kaplan and they state to skip the hard passages which I do find to be distracting when trying to read for the main idea. Anyways as for bio I am going do the EK strategy in terms of reading it once, read it again while taking notes, then listen to audio osmosis. I think the trick to bio is just being able to understand all of the concepts and whatever I have trouble on I am going to go back through when I review. Thanks again for your help and good luck studying.

yes, I am going to emplore this exact strategy for chapter six... I did think that audio osmosis for chapter 5 was rather lacking especially for the big concept of negative feedback they were making.

My timing i will try to adhere to it more no matter what for this exam...

 

[christian15213]

Oh one quick thing...

There doesn't seem to be a lot of errat for this book am I correct? All the books have like one or two errors... himmmm I wonder if Illl get a higher score for exam lecture 1... cause that had an error on it for by... question 22 correct... supposed to be C...

 

[freelove]

Okay, I'm kinda late to the thread, but I haven't been as dedicated as I should have been and now I'm about to step my game up.

Let's see. I've done Physics Lecture 1, Bio Lectures 1 and 2, and Verbal Lecture 1. Physics 1: 10, Bio 1: 9, Bio 2: 10, and Verbal 1: 9. I'm having trouble getting to the Chemistry and Organic books though, I absolutely hate Chemistry (but Biochem is kinda fun.)

I love EK though, probably because I started out with Kaplan stuff, and the EK stuff flows better with me. I really feel like I'm getting the material, but I do have a good foundation in the sciences from my major. Kaplan is like over kill, but EK is just enough.

Do you think that your 30-minute class exam scores will improve over time, or will it just stay the same since we're going over new information in every lecture?

I mean, it's not like we can really practice and tweak stuff cuz its new stufdd every week right? Can you really expect to improve over time, or should you just wait till you start taking practice full-lengths to try and gauge progress?

 

[dr.kicia]

Okay, I'm kinda late to the thread, but I haven't been as dedicated as I should have been and now I'm about to step my game up.

Let's see. I've done Physics Lecture 1, Bio Lectures 1 and 2, and Verbal Lecture 1. Physics 1: 10, Bio 1: 9, Bio 2: 10, and Verbal 1: 9. I'm having trouble getting to the Chemistry and Organic books though, I absolutely hate Chemistry (but Biochem is kinda fun.)

I love EK though, probably because I started out with Kaplan stuff, and the EK stuff flows better with me. I really feel like I'm getting the material, but I do have a good foundation in the sciences from my major. Kaplan is like over kill, but EK is just enough.

Do you think that your 30-minute class exam scores will improve over time, or will it just stay the same since we're going over new information in every lecture?

I mean, it's not like we can really practice and tweak stuff cuz its new stufdd every week right? Can you really expect to improve over time, or should you just wait till you start taking practice full-lengths to try and gauge progress?

if you do your thing and then review (like EK recomends) your answers to the 30-min exams then you may expect improving over time ven though you will be working on completley new material each lecture. Reviewing your answers (wether you got the question right or wrong) gets you into the MCAT thinking mode and after a while you will figure out what they really want. It's like figuring out your professors expectations and test format after few first exams.
And ofcourse verbal is probobly the one that will greatly improve over time with good practice.


P.S to everybody here
Its official...i have just registered for the MCAT. MAY 31st at noon
Now i am wating for my EK package (it will be fun, especially that i went over some books before)

 

[WestTexasRambler]

Yeah, EK is good stuff.

 

[cabrillo]

Hell yeah!!!! I got an 11 on EK's ch8 30 min test. Finally broke more than 9 on a test and I got more than 10 on a 30 min test!!!! there is light at the end of the tunnel. More about it on my blog tonight.

 

[freelove]

I love EK though

I may have to take that back. The OChem lecture 1 is confusing me. Some of their explanations sound like gibberish to me, as compared to what I learned in OChem lecture last year. Like, I understand resonace, but they way that they expalin it is just weird, and nothing like what I learned in class. I know that I have a good handle on most of this stuff, cuz I'm in Biochem now and we use OChem concepts all the time.

Anybody else feel this way, or is it just me?

 

[FLMD2B]

I hate proteins

 

[dr.kicia]

I may have to take that back. The OChem lecture 1 is confusing me. Some of their explanations sound like gibberish to me, as compared to what I learned in OChem lecture last year. Like, I understand resonace, but they way that they expalin it is just weird, and nothing like what I learned in class. I know that I have a good handle on most of this stuff, cuz I'm in Biochem now and we use OChem concepts all the time.

Anybody else feel this way, or is it just me?

i remeber i had no clue what they were talking about and felt like they jump into some more advance stuf before one can be able to dig into the memory of the concept.
WHat i find helpfull is "organic chemistry as a second language" (can get it on amazon). Awsome book for reviewing basic concepts for orgo1 and 2.
EK 1001 for orgo is also good. If you did well in your orgo classes i think that these books should be ok.
EK orgois not a bad book...it's just that it requires you to already know stuff and doesn't really help relearning concepts if you are kinda dusty with the material.

 

[phospho]

So stressed…I finished EK bio, and now I’m starting on it again. I feel like I haven’t retained as much as I was hoping I would. I also feel so stressed. You have questions asking for the little minute details about something particular, but then you have other questions emphasizing the “big picture”… it’s a dam emotional rollercoaster…

 

[cabrillo]

So stressed…I finished EK bio, and now I’m starting on it again. I feel like I haven’t retained as much as I was hoping I would. I also feel so stressed. You have questions asking for the little minute details about something particular, but then you have other questions emphasizing the “big picture”… it’s a dam emotional rollercoaster…

I feel you but you will be surprised how much sometimes we can remember after doing all of those problems and tests. I am in the last chapter of EK bio and I will be coming back to bio gradually by reviewing my notes and taking topicals and other test available trough kaplan, TPR and AAMC. have you done the other sections of the test? sometimes is good just to move on since it seems impossible to know or feel 100% good about this test anyway. Good luck.

 

[phospho]

I feel you but you will be surprised how much sometimes we can remember after doing all of those problems and tests. I am in the last chapter of EK bio and I will be coming back to bio gradually by reviewing my notes and taking topicals and other test available trough kaplan, TPR and AAMC. have you done the other sections of the test? sometimes is good just to move on since it seems impossible to know or feel 100% good about this test anyway. Good luck.

hey, thanks... you know, I did notice that I have been recalling random stuff, etc... it's pretty cool... I think you're right though, it's not like a normal test where you can feel 100% certain about it. I have not started on other sections of the test yet. I was hoping I'd be done with the bio book again by the end of the month so I can start gen chem. I still have till May or June, so I should be fine (I hope!)... Are you going to be reviewing bio periodically as you're working in the other sections? How are you planning on coming back to the bio material and remembering the little things when you get far ahead in the other sections?

 

[cabrillo]

hey, thanks... you know, I did notice that I have been recalling random stuff, etc... it's pretty cool... I think you're right though, it's not like a normal test where you can feel 100% certain about it. I have not started on other sections of the test yet. I was hoping I'd be done with the bio book again by the end of the month so I can start gen chem. I still have till May or June, so I should be fine (I hope!)... Are you going to be reviewing bio periodically as you're working in the other sections? How are you planning on coming back to the bio material and remembering the little things when you get far ahead in the other sections?

I am going to start doing Kaplan test on the different sections at least once per week. I have topicals and other bio stuff to keep me busy so in a way I will be reviewing bio using my own notes and more tests from different sources without going through the EK book or 1001 book. My notes are pretty good so i dont have to read the book anymore. I havent found a way to post my notes in my blog but I am trying so if anybody can tell me how I will. I will finish the last bio section tonight; it seems easy.

 

[phospho]

I am going to start doing Kaplan test on the different sections at least once per week. I have topicals and other bio stuff to keep me busy so in a way I will be reviewing bio using my own notes and more tests from different sources without going through the EK book or 1001 book. My notes are pretty good so i dont have to read the book anymore. I havent found a way to post my notes in my blog but I am trying so if anybody can tell me how I will. I will finish the last bio section tonight; it seems easy.

yeah, the last section is nice and short...what is the link for your blog? and gosh, I hope you're able to put the notes on there...I would love to take a look...

 

[cabrillo]

yeah, the last section is nice and short...what is the link for your blog? and gosh, I hope you're able to put the notes on there...I would love to take a look...

here...http://cabrillo1.blogspot.com/

 

[phospho]

here...http://cabrillo1.blogspot.com/

awesome, thank you...

 

[Phoenix.]

Well, I finally made myself take a diagnostic (3R). I've been too terrified of getting a 4 on the PS section to take it (physics is a ridiculous weak point, as are any calculation problems). It wasn't nearly as bad as I'd feared:

26: 7 PS, 11 VR, 8 BS.

I figured I'd get between a 9-11 on the VR since that's what I've generally been getting with EK VR materials from the start. Looks like EK was a good predictor so far. Then again, I've heard that 3R is supposedly one of the easier ones.

For BS, I thought I'd get around an 8-10, and I got on the lower side. I was a little surprised just because as I was taking the test I thought I was doing much better than I actually was. I'll have to go back over and see if I made silly mistakes.

For PS I really thought I'd get a 4. Funny thing is, when I started it, I wasn't sure how many questions there were for the test (i.e., if it was shortened or not), and I was SO NERVOUS just taking this first practice test, that when it said "1 hr 40 min, Question 1-6 of 216" I FREAKED for the first 35 questions and RACED through them, thinking that there was no way I would EVER EVER EVER be able to get fast enough to finish 216 questions in under 2 hours. I was despairing that I should just kiss my dreams of med school goodbye. Talk about not thinking clearly! Around question 35 I hit the "review questions" button to see if I'd skipped any and saw that there were only 77 PS questions. You can't imagine my sigh of relief. I was ridiculously happy after that. Why they have to put 216 at the top next to your time for a particular section is beyond me, but it really gave me a scare. Not that anyone else is idiot enough to do that, but thought I'd share.

Anyway, I know PS is my weakness. Other than EK physics chpt 1 I haven't done any EK physics (and haven't had Phys II yet in school), and I think I just did the first four chapters of EK Chem, but without taking the tests or doing problems. For Bio, I've gone through the EK bio book once pretty quickly and taken most of the tests. For VR, I've done the EK book and one of the 101 passages.

By the way, I took one of the EK mini-mcats last week and got a 21: 7 7 7, so I don't know about their reliability. Given that the mini-mcat is just based on an hour total (20 min per section), I don't think it's a very good predictor (i.e., it didn't even have any chem or orgo on it).

Ok, enough babble. Back to studying, but feeling a little better with a 26. Granted, I'm not sure I'll EVER be able to do any PS problems that involve calculations, but I guess stranger things have happened.

Luck to everyone, and really, if you're like me and too scared to take a diagnostic, stop putting it off - bite the bullet and see where you stand. Might help motivate for that April deadline....

 

[phospho]

Well, I finally made myself take a diagnostic (3R). I've been too terrified of getting a 4 on the PS section to take it (physics is a ridiculous weak point, as are any calculation problems). It wasn't nearly as bad as I'd feared:

26: 7 PS, 11 VR, 8 BS.

I figured I'd get between a 9-11 on the VR since that's what I've generally been getting with EK VR materials from the start. Looks like EK was a good predictor so far. Then again, I've heard that 3R is supposedly one of the easier ones.

For BS, I thought I'd get around an 8-10, and I got on the lower side. I was a little surprised just because as I was taking the test I thought I was doing much better than I actually was. I'll have to go back over and see if I made silly mistakes.

For PS I really thought I'd get a 4. Funny thing is, when I started it, I wasn't sure how many questions there were for the test (i.e., if it was shortened or not), and I was SO NERVOUS just taking this first practice test, that when it said "1 hr 40 min, Question 1-6 of 216" I FREAKED for the first 35 questions and RACED through them, thinking that there was no way I would EVER EVER EVER be able to get fast enough to finish 216 questions in under 2 hours. I was despairing that I should just kiss my dreams of med school goodbye. Talk about not thinking clearly! Around question 35 I hit the "review questions" button to see if I'd skipped any and saw that there were only 77 PS questions. You can't imagine my sigh of relief. I was ridiculously happy after that. Why they have to put 216 at the top next to your time for a particular section is beyond me, but it really gave me a scare. Not that anyone else is idiot enough to do that, but thought I'd share.

Anyway, I know PS is my weakness. Other than EK physics chpt 1 I haven't done any EK physics (and haven't had Phys II yet in school), and I think I just did the first four chapters of EK Chem, but without taking the tests or doing problems. For Bio, I've gone through the EK bio book once pretty quickly and taken most of the tests. For VR, I've done the EK book and one of the 101 passages.

By the way, I took one of the EK mini-mcats last week and got a 21: 7 7 7, so I don't know about their reliability. Given that the mini-mcat is just based on an hour total (20 min per section), I don't think it's a very good predictor (i.e., it didn't even have any chem or orgo on it).

Ok, enough babble. Back to studying, but feeling a little better with a 26. Granted, I'm not sure I'll EVER be able to do any PS problems that involve calculations, but I guess stranger things have happened.

Luck to everyone, and really, if you're like me and too scared to take a diagnostic, stop putting it off - bite the bullet and see where you stand. Might help motivate for that April deadline....

dude, you just motivated me...

 

[theunremarkable]

The EK mini mcats are very hard and the scores for most people will be on the low side. I wouldn't get discouraged. I am only using them for practice material.

Cabrillo, I am also planing on using the Kaplan material to supplement but I am worried that I'm going to do worse on these problems because I've only been using EK. How are your scores on the section tests and discretes? I am not even bothering with the topicals until the very end because I heard they were just too hard.

 

[cabrillo]

The EK mini mcats are very hard and the scores for most people will be on the low side. I wouldn't get discouraged. I am only using them for practice material.

Cabrillo, I am also planing on using the Kaplan material to supplement but I am worried that I'm going to do worse on these problems because I've only been using EK. How are your scores on the section tests and discretes? I am not even bothering with the topicals until the very end because I heard they were just too hard.

I havent used them yet since I am barely finishing bio right now. I will start using them this coming week and I would say that there might be a little deviation from EK but it shouldnt be that much. The way that I am going to review is using my notes and watching mcatprep videos and visual aid videos and then just review if there are any information that EK didnt cover the Kaplan did by seeing my mistakes and reviewing "their" explanations on the answers. I hope that this will suffice to keep the info fresh and current in my head.

 

[cabrillo]

Luck to everyone, and really, if you're like me and too scared to take a diagnostic, stop putting it off - bite the bullet and see where you stand. Might help motivate for that April deadline....

great post!!!! I havent taken a diagnostic test yet for that same reason and the fact that I havent taken those classes in so many years that I feel is useless to take a test that I am practically guessing, especially in physics and chem. But to get a score that you got under the conditions you took it is really motivating and rewarding. Good luck.

 

[Phoenix.]

Cabrillo: You might think about at least taking one section of 3R (it lets you do that) if you've reviewed one section, even briefly, so far. Even if you have a lot of work to do, if you've covered the material once it will at least show you your real problem areas. For instance, it doesn't just break down your score by sections, but it gives you a detailed analysis by breaking down the BS and PS sections by physics/chem and orgo/bio, and within those sections it shows you how many you got right in each topic. For instance, it pointed out that I have a definite weakness in microbiology (0/3 right), and for chemistry I got 2/6 right for solutions. It shows you how many and the percentage right by TOPIC. (Of course, I saw that I scored MUCH better in the material that I've reviewed recently in the first four chapters of the EK chem book than in the rest of the chem material I haven't reviewed yet). It also shows you your percentage right for each when you guess. It can really tell you a lot. For instance, I found that my only VR weakness in 3R was pretty much ONE humanities passage in which I got almost every question wrong (all the other passages I got 90-100% right on)! Guess I just can't read philosophy material. Also, even if you haven't finished any science review yet, maybe just take the VR section first. Then you'll be more familiar with the format/buttons. For instance, I really wish I'd taken advantage of the button that lets you just review questions (during the test) that you didn't answer. If I'd pressed that, I would have seen that I somehow skipped one question in Bio (which I had no idea I'd skipped!). I don't intend to make that mistake again!

Finally, it gives you an idea of how you're doing on timing. I finished each section with 25 minutes to spare (clearly for the PS section it was because I RACED through it, not because I can actually do PS well or fast), so it definitely will make me a little more relaxed (and not go too quickly and miss things) as I continue practicing. And there's no question that the more of these you take, the less nervous you'll be when you take the real thing!

Now, if only I can force myself to really do 2 hours of MCAT review a day. Other than taking the practice test, this week has been a complete wash!

 

[RESP4NOW]

Anyone else find the EK Gen Chem Chapter 3 30 min exam difficult? I though I understood the material well, until I took the exam and scored horrible. The questions seemed like they didn't relate to the info in the chapter. Am I the only one?

 

[DrGoofy]

resp4now - I agree yo. I just took the gen chem lecture 3 exam myself and scored a 6 haha. it's very difficult, especially that crap about the heat engine. blah

 

[phospho]

okay, this is driving me nuts. I am missing almost every single question asking for the structure of a protein. When you get an independent question like which of the following is unique to oxytocin, how do you know if it's primary, secondary, etc...? is there a little trick you guys are using to find them out? Yes, I know primary is the very basic structure...secondary is alpha or beta, tertiary is folding, and quaternary is putting two chains together. Am I missing anything?

Thanks in advance

 

[Anastasis]

okay, this is driving me nuts. I am missing almost every single question asking for the structure of a protein. When you get an independent question like which of the following is unique to oxytocin, how do you know if it's primary, secondary, etc...? is there a little trick you guys are using to find them out? Yes, I know primary is the very basic structure...secondary is alpha or beta, tertiary is folding, and quaternary is putting two chains together. Am I missing anything?

Thanks in advance

In theory it should be all of the above... all levels of organization would be unique to each protein... or am I misunderstanding the question?

 

[cabrillo]

Cabrillo: You might think about at least taking one section of 3R (it lets you do that) if you've reviewed one section, even briefly, so far. Even if you have a lot of work to do, if you've covered the material once it will at least show you your real problem areas. For instance, it doesn't just break down your score by sections, but it gives you a detailed analysis by breaking down the BS and PS sections by physics/chem and orgo/bio, and within those sections it shows you how many you got right in each topic. For instance, it pointed out that I have a definite weakness in microbiology (0/3 right), and for chemistry I got 2/6 right for solutions. It shows you how many and the percentage right by TOPIC. (Of course, I saw that I scored MUCH better in the material that I've reviewed recently in the first four chapters of the EK chem book than in the rest of the chem material I haven't reviewed yet). It also shows you your percentage right for each when you guess. It can really tell you a lot. For instance, I found that my only VR weakness in 3R was pretty much ONE humanities passage in which I got almost every question wrong (all the other passages I got 90-100% right on)! Guess I just can't read philosophy material. Also, even if you haven't finished any science review yet, maybe just take the VR section first. Then you'll be more familiar with the format/buttons. For instance, I really wish I'd taken advantage of the button that lets you just review questions (during the test) that you didn't answer. If I'd pressed that, I would have seen that I somehow skipped one question in Bio (which I had no idea I'd skipped!). I don't intend to make that mistake again!

Finally, it gives you an idea of how you're doing on timing. I finished each section with 25 minutes to spare (clearly for the PS section it was because I RACED through it, not because I can actually do PS well or fast), so it definitely will make me a little more relaxed (and not go too quickly and miss things) as I continue practicing. And there's no question that the more of these you take, the less nervous you'll be when you take the real thing!

Now, if only I can force myself to really do 2 hours of MCAT review a day. Other than taking the practice test, this week has been a complete wash!

thanks for the info; it makes good sense now. I will take the bio and verbal part to see how i am doing

 

[cabrillo]

okay, this is driving me nuts. I am missing almost every single question asking for the structure of a protein. When you get an independent question like which of the following is unique to oxytocin, how do you know if it's primary, secondary, etc...? is there a little trick you guys are using to find them out? Yes, I know primary is the very basic structure...secondary is alpha or beta, tertiary is folding, and quaternary is putting two chains together. Am I missing anything?

Thanks in advance

I think that is pretty much what you need to know and the location of the disulfide bond which where sometimes get tricky. Other than that, it should be straight forward

 

[phospho]

In theory it should be all of the above... all levels of organization would be unique to each protein... or am I misunderstanding the question?

no, I misunderstood the question I guess... it was asking for the factor that was responsible for making oxytocin unique... the answer was "primary structure"... ovbiously because of the unique amino acid sequence exhibited in primary structure of proteins... thanks though

 

[bhb]

Hey,
Are the examkracker books updated for the new format? 6th edition is from 2005 after all, back when there was still the pencil/paper MCAT

 

[phospho]

Hey,
Are the examkracker books updated for the new format? 6th edition is from 2005 after all, back when there was still the pencil/paper MCAT

no, they aren't... however, you either know your stuff or you don't...i'm pretty sure the two extra pages explaining the CBT aren't really worth it...

just a thought...

best of luck

 

[freelove]

okay, this is driving me nuts. I am missing almost every single question asking for the structure of a protein. When you get an independent question like which of the following is unique to oxytocin, how do you know if it's primary, secondary, etc...? is there a little trick you guys are using to find them out? Yes, I know primary is the very basic structure...secondary is alpha or beta, tertiary is folding, and quaternary is putting two chains together. Am I missing anything?

Thanks in advance

In response to your specific question, I think that the primary structure would be the most unique because that is the linear arrangement of the amino acids. I think that proteins are almost like DNA (except DNA deals with nucleotides) where their primary structure is unique. Cuz think about it... many proteins share secondary structure (alpha helices, beta sheets, etc.) and even tertiary and quarternary structure, but the primary structure is unique to that particular protein.

Does that make sense to you?

 

[FLMD2B]

In response to your specific question, I think that the primary structure would be the most unique because that is the linear arrangement of the amino acids. I think that proteins are almost like DNA (except DNA deals with nucleotides) where their primary structure is unique. Cuz think about it... many proteins share secondary structure (alpha helices, beta sheets, etc.) and even tertiary and quarternary structure, but the primary structure is unique to that particular protein.

Does that make sense to you?

Makes sense to me! I took today off instead of tomorrow, so tomorrow will be my 1001 series day.

 

[The Surgeon]

Has anyone found the organic lecture 1 30min EK test difficult? I know the material cold, but seemed to get disoriented with the questions??? Just wondering if its me or is anyone else haveing trouble??? Any input would be great....

Thanks in advance...

 

[christian15213]

Hey everyone...

I feel no one is paying attention to me on this thread... LOL, perhaps my threads are too long and people don't notice the questions I ask sometimes.

In anyevent, here is an update on where I am at.

I have read once through lecture 6 and it says that the information is pretty broad for the MCAT and just know the big idea blah blah. So, I will take notes on the whole lecture and see where it goes from there.

One thing I did that I like a lot is that I didn't immediatley look at my wrong answers from the previous chapters lecture... I held off a day or two whiile I was studying bio-chem for school and lecture 6 for EK... But in anyevent today I went back reread the passage and it just seemed like a light went off.

There seems so be a struggle with information one already knows and how much they should trust a passage to lead them down the right path of the answer. For example I could have really deduced the wrong answer right outta a few questions for the 30 minute lecture. While two choices really didn't make any sense the other choice (the one I picked) didn't really make any logical sense either. However, I picked it because it sounded like good sense and the other choice just required me to calm down and "think a little about what the passage was saying."

I then thought about it. If your answer is down to two choices and one of your answer comes from a specific subject from the passage you should really go to the passage and see what it is the passage is trying to convey to you. yes, it might be knowledge you know but really we can't remember everything and every detail about every little molecule. However, we should have enough of the concept down and perplexity of the material to sucessfully answer any question.

but I guess it is a litte wierd because I was caught thinking do I need the passage to answer this or should I just trust what I know and answer.

To me, I think I have found that you have to develop a happy medium with existing knowledge and passage information that will assist you in answering the question. For lecture six I will try to use this strategy.

I guess what I am saying is all in all trust the EK books and trust your instincts to a point... Listen to the passage and DEDUCE DEDUCE DEDUCE wrong answers.

Also, reading it more than once is so necessary. Watching a movie the other day proved this point to the fullest. I went to the movies with one person on one night and had to see the same movie again a week later with someone else. (heheheh talk about that one on a different thread if you know what I mean... lol) point is... you just SEE things you didn't see during the first viewing. things just jump out and pop out at you more. Sorry, but its gonna require more work.

 

[cabrillo]

Hey everyone...

I feel no one is paying attention to me on this thread... LOL, perhaps my threads are too long and people don't notice the questions I ask sometimes.

In anyevent, here is an update on where I am at.

I have read once through lecture 6 and it says that the information is pretty broad for the MCAT and just know the big idea blah blah. So, I will take notes on the whole lecture and see where it goes from there.

One thing I did that I like a lot is that I didn't immediatley look at my wrong answers from the previous chapters lecture... I held off a day or two whiile I was studying bio-chem for school and lecture 6 for EK... But in anyevent today I went back reread the passage and it just seemed like a light went off.

There seems so be a struggle with information one already knows and how much they should trust a passage to lead them down the right path of the answer. For example I could have really deduced the wrong answer right outta a few questions for the 30 minute lecture. While two choices really didn't make any sense the other choice (the one I picked) didn't really make any logical sense either. However, I picked it because it sounded like good sense and the other choice just required me to calm down and "think a little about what the passage was saying."

I then thought about it. If your answer is down to two choices and one of your answer comes from a specific subject from the passage you should really go to the passage and see what it is the passage is trying to convey to you. yes, it might be knowledge you know but really we can't remember everything and every detail about every little molecule. However, we should have enough of the concept down and perplexity of the material to sucessfully answer any question.

but I guess it is a litte wierd because I was caught thinking do I need the passage to answer this or should I just trust what I know and answer.

To me, I think I have found that you have to develop a happy medium with existing knowledge and passage information that will assist you in answering the question. For lecture six I will try to use this strategy.

I guess what I am saying is all in all trust the EK books and trust your instincts to a point... Listen to the passage and DEDUCE DEDUCE DEDUCE wrong answers.

Also, reading it more than once is so necessary. Watching a movie the other day proved this point to the fullest. I went to the movies with one person on one night and had to see the same movie again a week later with someone else. (heheheh talk about that one on a different thread if you know what I mean... lol) point is... you just SEE things you didn't see during the first viewing. things just jump out and pop out at you more. Sorry, but its gonna require more work.

your posts are really interesting man so you are not being ignored . be careful with that chapter and dont think that they will not ask questions that are not "high yield" on their 30 min test. It was my lowest score in bio; I hated it. Good luck.

 

[christian15213]

your posts are really interesting man so you are not being ignored . be careful with that chapter and dont think that they will not ask questions that are not "high yield" on their 30 min test. It was my lowest score in bio; I hated it. Good luck.

high yeild? chapter 6 is the worst? lol, oh geez.... what is high yield without you helping me with any questions specifically. If you know what I mean?

 

[DrGoofy]

I find myself struggling with doing those 30 minute exams at the end of lectures 3 - 5 for gen chem. I thought I understood what the lecture was talking about.... until I got to the exam questions. Anyone know of anything that can help? Maybe I just don't know how to apply the knowledge or something? I scored a 12 on lecture 1 and 2, but i'm scoring 6's for lecture 3 - 5

 

[cabrillo]

high yeild? chapter 6 is the worst? lol, oh geez.... what is high yield without you helping me with any questions specifically. If you know what I mean?

funny guy probably if you would post an specific question with an a actual question mark at the end, we would bite. I did and I got a full of crap idiotic response. Good luck

 

[christian15213]

funny guy probably if you would post an specific question with an a actual question mark at the end, we would bite. I did and I got a full of crap idiotic response. Good luck

LOL, no I meant what you were talking about in the other thread. You said make sure you watch out for questions about high yield. I read the whole chapter and I don't know what high yield you are talking about means. I was wondering If I was missing something.

 

[cabrillo]

LOL, no I meant what you were talking about in the other thread. You said make sure you watch out for questions about high yield. I read the whole chapter and I don't know what high yield you are talking about means. I was wondering If I was missing something.

you are missing this " " which in my own foreign language means "the contrary". All that I was trying to say was that eventhough they tell you is not important, they will ask you about and in very detailed way in their 30 min test. Thats all folks

 

[christian15213]

you are missing this " " which in my own foreign language means "the contrary". All that I was trying to say was that eventhough they tell you is not important, they will ask you about and in very detailed way in their 30 min test. Thats all folks

Yes, in my country " " means add emphasis or bring attention to or "be a smart arse" <<< LOL

But yes about what you said they say is not important and then what they actually test you on. YES... it ticks me off too. not a huge problem but something they do never the less.

 

[nataly1313]

Is the verbal test 3 in 101 passages book just easy or am I actually getting better at answering the questions?

 

[dr.kicia]

hello all,
So finally i got my EK 6th ed and started studying right away.
Unfortunatelly i haven't had time to do a diagnostic yet but i hope to take it either tomorow(if i get through my orgo exam stuff for next week) or next weekend.
So....I am officially done with lecture 1 in bio book . I read everything just once highlighting important stuff, made myself a little notes on the margins of things i knew i would forget and then listend to the coresponding lecture on AO twice, while i was stuck in traffic on my way to school (I love it LOL).

So i have just finished the 30-minute exam (with 4 minutes left to review my answears which is a big shocker with a slow reader, non-native speaker like me ) and i got 10!!!!
I was so happy. If it will get better from here i will be very content.
I made some stupid mistakes too, that i could have avoided and on one of the questions i marked the right answear but then changed it into a wrong one
Anyways i will probobly try to do one lecture in each subject a week.
to everybody

 

[cabrillo]

hello all,
So finally i got my EK 6th ed and started studying right away.
Unfortunatelly i haven't had time to do a diagnostic yet but i hope to take it either tomorow(if i get through my orgo exam stuff for next week) or next weekend.
So....I am officially done with lecture 1 in bio book . I read everything just once highlighting important stuff, made myself a little notes on the margins of things i knew i would forget and then listend to the coresponding lecture on AO twice, while i was stuck in traffic on my way to school (I love it LOL).

So i have just finished the 30-minute exam (with 4 minutes left to review my answears which is a big shocker with a slow reader, non-native speaker like me ) and i got 10!!!!
I was so happy. If it will get better from here i will be very content.
I made some stupid mistakes too, that i could have avoided and on one of the questions i marked the right answear but then changed it into a wrong one:l
Anyways i will probobly try to do one lecture in each subject a week.
to everybody

way to start kicia glad you can join us in this thread. I will finish my last bio (Lecture 9) 30 min test tonight Good luck

 

[CarolinaGirl]

Is the verbal test 3 in 101 passages book just easy or am I actually getting better at answering the questions?

I felt the same way and my score was really good so I wonder about this too.