Official August 2, 2014 MCAT Thread

[Paul Darlington]

I know, I know it is too early but is anyone else taking it on this date?

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[thattyguy]

Scores up! Got what I expected in VR and PS, worse than I thought in BS :/

 

[TheAnonymous]

Please use the following to help everyone out:

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average:
Post-test expected score:
Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS):

Good luck

 

[thattyguy]

Scores up! Got what I expected in VR and PS, worse than I thought in BS :/

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average: 35
Post-test expected score: 33
Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS): 11/10/11

 

[The quiet one.]

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average: 32
Post-test expected score: 27-35
Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS): 9/10/10 Total: 29

Don't know how to feel about this... i got a 11/6/11 for a total of a 28 on my first take.

GPA is in the 3.6-3.7 range.

 

[Thermophilus]

Lower than any single Fl. Mixed bag really.
FL AAMC Average: 34 -> 11/11/12; (PS/VR/BS)
AAMC FL’s taken: 3,4,5,6,8,9,10,11 all under timed conditions with 10m breaks.
Post-test expected score: 31 (10/10/11)
Actual Score: 11/10/09; (PS/VR/BS)

 

[ConfusedChemist]

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average: 32
Post-test expected score: <30
Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS) (12/10/10) :32
I'm so happy I am done with the MCAT forever!!! It's not the best score in the world, but it will allow me to apply to all the schools I want to so I'm happy!

 

[ConfusedChemist]

Lower than any single Fl. Mixed bag really.
FL AAMC Average: 34 -> 11/11/12; (PS/VR/BS)
AAMC FL’s taken: 3,4,5,6,8,9,10,11 all under timed conditions with 10m breaks.
Post-test expected score: 31 (10/10/11)
Actual Score: 11/10/09; (PS/VR/BS)

bio was lower than average for me too, but I felt pretty bad about it after the test so I'm not too surprised

 

[Louisianadoc]

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average: 30
Post-test expected score: <30
Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS) (10/8/10) :28

meh

 

[jmpatt29]

8-2-14
AAMC avg-30
post test prediction: 27-29
Actual- 32 (PS/V/BS) (11,9,12)


Honestly I left the test center and cried because I thought I bombed it. 32 was the highest score I ever received on a full length test. I hope you all had a similar experience! I am stoked and ready to apply in June!!

 

[pchitsaz]

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average: 33
Post-test expected score: 30
Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS) (10/8/10) :29

4 points below my average. Pretty upset. IDK what to do. My GPA is ~3.9 and my ECs are good. The average to my state school is 28-29.

 

[HinduHammer]

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average: 30.75

FL Scores:
PS VR BS Total
Kaplan FL 1 8 12 11 31
FL 7 9 11 8 28
FL 10 9 12 93 0
FL 2 11 11 11 33
FL 3 11 11 830
Averages9.611.49.430.4
AAMC 5 9 10 9 28
AAMC 4 10 11 10 31
AAMC 7 10 10 12 32
AAMC 3 11 11 9 31
AAMC 8 9 12 11 32
AAMC 9 12 11 11 34
AAMC 10* 9 10 10 29
AAMC 11* 10 10 9 29
Averages 10 10.625 10.125 30.75
*Can't remember exact sub-score breakdown

Post-test expected score: 29-36, best guess was a 32

Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS) 34 (12/11/11)

Comments: More relieved than anything. I did about 3+ points higher than my AAMC average, so I really cannot complain at all. I am very, very happy to be done with this test and not ever have to re-take or look at another MCAT question. This is surprisingly the exact breakdown I had for AAMC 9. On Test Day, I was cautiously optimistic that I had done well. I actually thought I'd gotten like a 36 in the back of my mind, but I didn't want to let myself think that and be disappointed, so I forced myself to look to a 32 as a great score.

Thus, I am very content with my 34. Given my abysmal cGPA of 2.77 and sGPA of 2.87 including a 4.0 post-back, I needed a really high MCAT score. Though a 34 isn't really high, I think it is high enough that schools will see that I am capable of handling medical school coursework. I really just want to go to MU (state school) or Oakland U (family there) or U of A (born there, house there). Since these school are mid tier, I just hope I have a fighting chance... Now I'm rambling..

Just very content with this score, great balance, exact breakdown of my AAMC 9.

I will write in the 30+ thread soon enough but here are my tips and takeaways:
- Get earplugs!!! Music distracts your brain even if you think it helps like classical, absolute quiet is best for conceptual MCAT stuff
- Make flashcards -- flashcards saved my @ss in BS, I had to teach myself like all biology basically, it also helped me for PS since I could derive all the physics units and equations from the stuff I remembered from flash cards
- Take tons of practice tests, and GO OVER THEM, go over them. This is obviously probably the most important. Practice, practice, practice.
- The last 10 days, I did about 8+ hours per day and that is what carried me over the edge.
- Pick a good test date lol. Apparently AAMC has a pattern of when the hard and easy tests are. I got lucky with an "easy" test date I guess...
- Get good sleep the entire week before the test. The night before my test I slept terribly because I was so nervous, but thankfully the good sleep I'd gotten the 3-4 days before the test helped me keep sharp
- Meditate/pray/yoga -- whatever you can do to relax. I was not nearly as nervous during the test As I thought I'd be. In fact I was less nervous than even some of the later practice tests.

Good luck everyone and congrats to everyone who did as well as they wanted. Remember, if you want this bad enough you will become a physician, a bad MCAT score or a 2.8 GPA be damned!

PS: Surprisingly not that bad. That being said I had to rush and finish 2 passages in the last 10 minutes and as a result guessed on pretty much the entirety of one passage - which didn't even seem that hard. Prediction: 10-12. Best guess/low-ball prediction: 10
VR: About average for AAMC, first passage was the worst IMO. Should have saved it for last, had about 10 minutes for the last 2 passages, but was able to look at and give somewhat of an educated guess to every question. Prediction: 10-12. Best guess/low-ball: 10.
BS: Not terrible, except for that one passage from hell that seemed to make up for the easiness of the rest of it with all hell coming from it. Literally most of the test I was thinking "wow, this entire exam has been very manageable. I'll be on track to finish bio with 15 min left." Then that passage hit, I spent tons of time trying to map it out, and lost so much time. Ended up having to guess on 2-3 anyway. Last 10 minutes had to do 2 passages. This section really depends on good I guessed on several questions. Prediction: 9-13, Best guess/low-ball prediction: 10.

Overall impressions: Not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. Probably easier than AAMC 11, with BS being pretty comparable. I feel like the curve will be unforgiving. At least, I don't THINK I'll have to retake...unless I get less than a 31, I really doubt I'll retake. No time and not worth the stress.

Predicted Range: 29-36.

Best guess: 32 (I'll be happy with it). Now time to go spend money on tax-free weekend. Gonna buy me a a new apple laptop w00t w00t.

I am extremely nervous, but I know at this point it is completely out of my hands. I will just take the score and work with it for this app cycle, and sign up for the retake if absolutely necessary. I will retake under a 30.

~~~Final Prediction~~~
PS: 9-12 best guess: 11
VR: 8-12 best guess: 10
BS: 9-12 best guess: 11

Low Score: 29 somehow
Best Guess: ~32 (AAMC 10-11 were both 29 and AAMC 9 was a 34, but I felt that I performed well on the 8/2 test...however I like literally always feel that way too though!)
High end: 35

Unhappy and Retake: <30
Unhappy and No Retake: 30
Neutral/Unhappy: 31
Content: 32
Happy: 33+
Dream: 35+

 

[MolonLabe16]

Test Date: 08/02/14
FL AAMC avg: 33
Post-Test Expected: 31-36
PS: 12-13
VR: 8-10
BS: 11-13
Actual Score: 33 (12/10/11)

Happy with this score, not going to retake. Hit my average. Very shocked when I saw my verbal, never scored that high before! Little disappointed with the sciences, there must've been an insane curve because I didn't think they were too difficult...

 

[shoopshoop]

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average: 35
Post-test expected score: 31-32
Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS) (15/11/11) :37

always got 13-15 in verbal, so that's on the lower side, but never got a 15 in physical so it makes up for it! happy with my cumulative score, hopefully no one pays attention to subscores!

 

[BeLikeBueller]

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average: 32-ish?
Post-test expected score: didn't want to think about it
Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS) (12/11/11) :34

Some general thoughts on test-taking strategies.

1) Bring earplugs. I had a lot of distraction at my testing center due to other test takers as well as some commotion out in the parking lot (not once, but twice...)
2) Take multiple practice tests - I started studying a little late (like two weeks prior to test date) and was only able to take two or three. This helped me prepare for the style of the questions, and the results were also pretty on par with my performance
3) Actually take the practice tests as you would on the MCAT - i.e. don't use your notes, don't look something up - this gives you a false sense of security (oh, I knew that...). I will say that I did take each section one at a time (i.e. not the full MCAT experience), but I did them with the timer and I didn't use notes or other resources.
4) Do NOT read through passage questions and decide to come back to them later. There was a beast of a passage on the Bio section. After I read through it and looked at the questions, I realized I was going to need more time than I usually would to complete them. So, like I had always done in the past, I skipped the questions to come back to at the end. Unfortunately, I was left with 7-8 minutes at the end, 6 questions, and I had to RE-READ the passage, because I couldn't remember it from the first time. Needless to say, there was a lot of guessing going on at T minus 1 minute.

Thankfully, things worked out well for me, but those are just a few tips that I can think of if you're going to be taking the test soon.

I'm just soooo excited that I don't have to take it again!

Good luck and God bless!

 

[HinduHammer]

Test Date: 08/02/14
FL AAMC avg: 33
Post-Test Expected: 31-36
PS: 12-13
VR: 8-10
BS: 11-13
Real Score: 33 (12/10/11)

Happy with this score, not going to retake. Hit my average. Very shocked when I saw my verbal, never scored that high before! Little disappointed with the sciences, there must've been an insane curve because I didn't think they were too difficult...

Yes, the curve was must have been brutal. Grrr!

 

[hyperion01]

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average: 30
Post-test expected score: <30 D:
Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS) (12/09/12) :33

The VR score was around my VR average so I guess I saw that coming. I would've prefer VR score to be higher though :/

 

[yeyexiong]

how about the FL AAMC verbal vs the actual score?

 

[MCATUMOR]

Test Date: 08/02/2014
FL AAMC Average: 30
Post-test expected score: <30 D:
Actual Score: ( PS / V / BS) (12/09/12) :33

The VR score was around my VR average so I guess I saw that coming. I would've prefer VR score to be higher though :/

What were your average PS and BS scores ?

 

[ConfusedChemist]

how about the FL AAMC verbal vs the actual score?

exact same
but I thought it was so much lower after the exam