Questions/passage didn't match!!

[wisguy]

Hey, did anyone else have problems with the verbal test today? Without being specific and violating the aamc's terms, here is the problem: I had a science passage about a the motility/physiology of one type animal and the questions were about the mating rituals/population genetics of a completely different type of animal. Did anyone else experience this??? Any clue about how the aamc will handle it?

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[ToGodALLGlory]

I just sent a written complaint yesterday and they responded by asking for my phone number (already gave it to them verbally on Saturday), so they at least make you think they are going to have someone personally call. I think their callousness is disheartening. Anyone with FAP is going to get their money back, have to wait to file taxes (or at least get W2s), apply for FAP, hopefully get it, and then finally get reregistered for a new MCAT--likely right as their local April-June dates have closed. This sucks. I had hoped they would let us retake outright instead of refund/redo the whole process.

Well whatever happens, I will just grin and bear it because some silly nonsense like this isn't going to hinder me. In fact, I'll just call it MCAT-emergency preparedness training, a free service of AAMC. In fact, I love the MCAT. Let's take it again! Whose with me?!

 

[Nonnahs]

Well whatever happens, I will just grin and bear it because some silly nonsense like this isn't going to hinder me. In fact, I'll just call it MCAT-emergency preparedness training, a free service of AAMC. In fact, I love the MCAT. Let's take it again! Whose with me?!

I'm with you! Wheeeee! I love the MCAT!

I love that you said this, so long as it wasn't angry sarcasm. My friend and I, while studying, remained positive by coming up with positive statements and saying how much we loved the MCAT. Ain't it grand? We get to relearn all we may have forgotten from previous coursework. We get to show what we know, read interesting articles, truly feel like what we are doing is important. Heck... any exam you take that requires finger-print entry must be pretty special.

 

[mshheaddoc]

If you are a member of AMSA, Jay Bhatt is looking for people to contact him if you've had this issue ... Its nice to have a lobbying group to help at times as well. So please contact him via email [email protected]

 

[collinscs]

if i called on saturday and gave them my name and number, should i email as well? i don't know how formal to get

 

[FlStudent]

I called on Saturday. I called back on Monday, they had no record of my call on Saturday. It was pretty crazy on Saturday, and I had an attendent that wasn't all there.

I also emailed on Monday, just to check all my bases. It takes 2 minutes and they give you a generic response. And at least then you have some form of physical evidence of an interaction.

 

[mridang]

I just read the MCAT Essential manual on the AAMC site that we all agreed to in taking the test. Below is the section regarding testing errors. Doesn't sound like there is any chance that we are going to be able to just re-take one section. However, there is considerable ambiguity in the wording "AAMC will correct the error, if possible" and that is the angle I intend on fighting.

Be sure to officially file your complaint NOW.
You must e-mail or postmark regular mail no later than five (5) days following your exam date to: MCAT Operations Manager Attention: MCAT Rescoring Service Association of American Medical Colleges 2450 N Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037-1127 Email: [email protected]


Remedies for Errors AAMC and the MCAT Program Office take great care to ensure that exam registrations are properly processed, and that exams are properly prepared, handled, and scored. In the unlikely event that a mistake occurs in registration processing, or preparing, handling, processing or scoring an exam, or in reporting scores, AAMC will correct the error, if possible, or permit the affected examinee(s) either to retest at no additional fee or to receive a refund of his or her examination fee.

! These remedies are the exclusive remedies available to examinees for errors in preparing, handling or processing registrations; in processing exams and exam answers; or in determining or reporting scores.

If AAMC offers a retest and an examinee selects that option, the examinee must re-take the entire exam in order to produce a valid score.

Thanks a lot.

I just emailed them from two different addresses and also mailed a hard copy to the address you provided.

I had already called on Saturday after they wasted 45 minutes of my time during the exam. They have already promised a refund, however, I wanted to make sure they have an official record of my complaint (not just a call!)

 

[caliboy007]

Found this article via Google news:
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=197001914

Here is the most important quote, obviously not what many people want to hear:

"Students who believe the glitch affected their overall performance will be allowed to void the test results before grades are handed out. Normally, students can void the scores on their way out of testing centers. In this case, the AAMC is sending out letters to all students who received flawed tests and allowing them time to respond with a request to void the score."

 

[docolive]

Found this article via Google news:
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=197001914

Here is the most important quote, obviously not what many people want to hear:

"Students who believe the glitch affected their overall performance will be allowed to void the test results before grades are handed out. Normally, students can void the scores on their way out of testing centers. In this case, the AAMC is sending out letters to all students who received flawed tests and allowing them time to respond with a request to void the score."

Oh dear. That's rough. I truly feel for those of you who had this problem on Saturday. I hope everything works out in your favor.

 

[Funky]

this is straight from the pre med advisors from the aamc


MCAT ERROR

On Saturday, January 27, a test-publishing error in the Verbal Reasoning section of the MCAT resulted in some examinees seeing a passage that did not relate to the five questions that followed. We have just completed our analyses and have confirmed that we will be able to provide valid scores to these examinees, based on the other items in the test. If the student believes that his or her performance was substantially disrupted, we will offer the opportunity to void the test and obtain a full refund. Approximately four percent of the affected examinees voided their tests at the test center. We will also allow any of these examinees to reverse that decision, based on this new information. We will not count the voided tests for this group against the yearly maximum attempts (currently set at three).
We will begin communicating this policy decision to the affected examinees tomorrow, Tuesday, January 30.

We have not yet determined how the error happened, but are investigating. We learned of the error when it surfaced on Saturday morning. Prometric quickly, through its instant network, informed test center supervisors of the problem so that they could counsel students to continue through the test. We also took the opportunity to recheck Monday's forms, none of which had the problem.

Test publishing errors have occurred before, although infrequently, and are not specific to computer delivery. The computer delivery, in this case, was helpful in identifying and communicating about the problem, and on getting the data to seek a quick resolution. We had our call center open on Saturday and were able to talk to many of the examinees directly. Most of them were concerned mainly that we knew of the problem and that we were not going to count those questions toward their score. We committed to those who called that we would have a resolution by this Friday, but, again, we will communicate that resolution beginning tomorrow

 

[caliboy007]

Still doesn't truly answer the question whether we can void AFTER seeing the scores. I am assuming not based upon the article I posted earlier. I am glad that they are telling the media before us, such crap.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

Still doesn't truly answer the question whether we can void AFTER seeing the scores. I am assuming not based upon the article I posted earlier. I am glad that they are telling the media before us, such crap.

doesn't sound like it. hopefully most people totally ignored that passage and spent all their time on the parts that counted. but that totally sucks, really psyches you out.

 

[GT2]

Would be great if we could see our score, but most likely not.

 

[TX_NFS]

Would be great if we could see our score, but most likely not.

Here's my vote of little hope for that as well.


Another quote from the Information Week article I found of interest:

"Computerization allowed all scores from the Saturday test to be tallied by 5 a.m. Monday, Jones said."

... So technically, we could already see our numerical score at least. Please, AAMC?

 

[bob123456]

All test centers within 100 miles of me are full for April so a retake is going to be problematic. This is just great. I tried to get ahead and take the MCAT early and it appears that it actually has caused me far more problems than just signing up to take the standard April test.

 

[FlStudent]

Great, if I knew we could ignore those questions, I would have had 60 minutes to answer 35 questions, and not have suffered an aneurysm. And I won't be graded differently, that's comforting.

I might have to stop checking these threads, they make me more and more upset! And with 27 days until scores come out, that is a lot of negativity brewing....I can't change anything now, so I guess I need to get used to being resigned to my fate....

You have finally broken me down, AAMC!

From Info Week Article:
"Prometric then contacted the AAMC, which in turn initiated e-mail contact that quickly reached all 341 testing sites, where students learned they could ignore the questions about warblers and passages about robotic fish. Some students may have tried to complete that portion before notice reached their testing sites, but they will not be graded differently, Jones said."

 

[GT2]

BS.I didn't receive jack from the proctors and took all my break and none said crap to me about that.

 

[wisguy]

BS.I didn't receive jack from the proctors and took all my break and none said crap to me about that.

Then you are in the same boat as everyone who took it early. If the supervisors did forewarn students it is a huge advantage because they wouldn't have even read the passage or looked at the questions. I spent at least 12-15 min in all on that passage and I'd be angry if other people had the whole time to answer questions for only 6 passages. I took it at GMT +1 and was probably one of the first ones to experience the problem, so my proctor had no idea what to do about it.

 

[collinscs]

From InfoWeek Article:
"Some 787 students of about 2,500 taking the Medical College Admission Test on Saturday in Washington, D.C., received questions that had nothing to do with the passages they read, says Robert F. Jones, AAMC's senior VP of medical school services and studies. Though it was the first time the test was fully computerized, it appears that the error occurred during the review process, Jones says."

the above part isn't true - this happened nationwide. not just in DC. if the article could have one inconsistency it could have more. we can't give up hope that we'd be allowed to void our scores AFTER seeing them yet. especially when no one's heard from AAMC...

no one's heard, right??

also - i was always under the impression that you're only allowed to take the MCAT 3 times. ever. i keep seeing everywhere quoted on this thread that it's 3x/year...??

 

[GT2]

From InfoWeek Article:

the above part isn't true - this happened nationwide. not just in DC. if the article could have one inconsistency it could have more. we can't give up hope that we'd be allowed to void our scores AFTER seeing them yet. especially when no one's heard from AAMC...

no one's heard, right??

You will be able to void. However it is most likely you won't be able to see your score before you void it or keep it.

you are permitted to take the MCAT 3X per year. Take it for as long as you live if you want.



wisguy-yes it's unfair. and it sucks that all the april are full. They need to accommodate the January test takers for April.

 

[caliboy007]

You will be able to void. However it is most likely you won't be able to see your score before you void it or keep it.

you are permitted to take the MCAT 3X per year. Take it for as long as you live if you want.



wisguy-yes it's unfair. and it sucks that all the april are full. They need to accommodate the January test takers for April.

I think the article was just a misquote... I had heard it was 787 out of 2500 nationwide. In any case, has ANYONE received a call from AAMC yet? It disgusts me that I am finding out what AAMC is doing about the problem through a newspaper article than from someone on the phone or an email.

 

[GT2]

I think the article was just a misquote... I had heard it was 787 out of 2500 nationwide. In any case, has ANYONE received a call from AAMC yet? It disgusts me that I am finding out what AAMC is doing about the problem through a newspaper article than from someone on the phone or an email.

[FONT=PrimaSans BT,Verdana,sans-serif]Dear Applicant,

Thank you for contacting AMCAS.

WE are aware that some examinees received a set of questions that did not relate to a passage in the Verbal Reasoning section of the MCAT. These questions will not be included in the final MCAT score; however the MCAT program is still gathering information to determine the options we will present to examinees who received these questions. We will provide the affected examinees a letter in the mail to this effect on or around Friday.


If you have any questions or if we can be of additional assistance, please contact us at [email protected] or (202) 828-0600.

AMCAS Association of American Medical Colleges

Section for Medical School Application Services

2450 N St., NW

Washington, DC 20037

U.S.A.

General Inquiries: (202) 828-0600

Fax: (202) 828-1120

www.aamc.org/AMCAS
.

 

[CSUPremed]

Hi guys. Yeah, I had the same verbal reasoning problem. I spent 7 minutes on the passage and questions, and then didn't have enough time to finish the last passage (I skimmed through it and tried to answer the questions as best as I could), and then didn't have enough time to go back and look at my marked questions. Then the rest of my test was tainted due to the fact that I was already all psyched out. The verbal section has always been (for me) the easiest section, and to have it be my worse one, is absolutely tragic.

In a perfect world, we would be able to look at our scores that we got and say whether we wanted to void them or not. But here and now, I think that if they allow us to just retake the exam (which would suck believe me), it would be the best they could do.

Look at it this way, would you rather have to retake the whole exam, but have a good score on your application, or would you rather be stuck with your old exam score than may or may not be application-worthy material.

I am so glad that this thread started! I was so upset about my version on Saturday! Let's keep it up! I can't wait until Friday!

 

[mridang]

They responded to my email inquiry:

Thank You for contacting the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) program.

The resolution has been made regarding the verbal reasoning portion of the MCAT
Exam on Saturday January 27th. Affected examinees will be receiving a letter in
the mail to this effect on or around Friday.

If you have already voided your exam, you can choose to unvoid the exam and
receive a score or stay voided.

If you voided this will not count against you for the 3 times you are able to
take the test for this year.


Please let us know if you need any additional assistance.

 

[mridang]

I had sent two emails, from different addresses. The first response is posted above.

Here's what they said on the second one:

Hello,



Thank You for contacting the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) program.

A resolution has been made regarding the verbal reasoning portion of the MCAT Exam on Saturday January 27th. Affected examinees will be receiving a letter in the mail to this effect on or around Friday.

You can decide to keep your scores, obviously excluding the questions that had to do with the wrong passage, or you can choose to void their scores when receiving the letter and receive a full refund. You can then reschedule for a future date.

The June dates will open on February 14th, the test scores will be in before the AMCAS application goes out to the medical schools if you are worried about not finding a place/date that suits you. You have to find a seat yourself.

If you have already voided your exam because of this you can choose to un void the exam and receive a score or stay voided.

If you voided this will not count against you for the 3 times they are able to take the test for this year.

You can not see the score and then void.





Please let us know if you need any additional assistance.

I wonder what's with all the grammatical mistakes! They have probably been hurrying through this.
I know some of you wanted to see the scores first then void. I guess that's not going to happen.

 

[collinscs]

ehhhh... i don't know how i feel about it... are they taking into account how it affected the bio sections? and the rest of the vr sections??


what are you all planning on doing now?

 

[FlStudent]

If you choose to re-take the exam, won't you be a little more high strung throughout the exam since you know what huge mistakes can occur? More anxious/panicky? Maybe you second-guess yourself a little more than usual? Might be tough to get a good mindset.

my idea was to just score 1-30, and void the incorrect passage and the last passsage, since many had almost no time for this. But looks like they will just get rid of the incorrect passage. They don't really care if it is fair or unfair, that is not their main concern.

As long as a smooth bell curve comes out, with very few scoring high and low, and most scoring in the middle range, they are happy, in my opinion. I bet they already looked at the sum readout and made the decision based on that.
So whatever, b/c out of the 787, the same % of us will get a score of 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10, etc. Chance/luck will play a bigger role than normal in the specific score YOU get, as an individual. Never mind if the right individuals get the top/middle scores, as long as it is the same percent distribution and the curve looks right.

Whatever, I am resigned to my fate!

 

[collinscs]

ahh i'm so confused!

i JUST called the MCAT offices and the lady insisted that a decision has not been made about the robotuna d-r-a-m-a.

why wouldn't they just tell us on phone if they are via email?

 

[whibbitts]

Whatever, I am resigned to my fate![/quote]

I have written local papers and fairness in testing organizations etc. These groups can put a lot of pressure on instituitions like AAMC to assure that a fair resolution is made. Don't be resigned to fate, be resigned to control fate, namely yours.

Unlike some folks on this thread I don't believe that AAMC is God or beyond the laws that dictate fair market practices. They offer a product, we bought it, it broke and when it did it caused undue stress . They are accountable. The only way they can hand down a (potentially) unfair decision and get away with it is if we all collectively cower and resign ourselves to their fate and possibily the lower end of the bell curve.

 

[collinscs]

oh aamc...

JUST received this.

Dear Madame;


A resolution has been made regarding the verbal reasoning portion of the MCAT Exam on Saturday January 27th. Affected examinees will be receiving a letter of explanation in the mail, to this effect within the next 3-5 business days.


Please let us know if you need any additional assistance.

The MCAT Care Team

Association of American Medical Colleges Section for Applicant Assessment Services 2450 N St., NW Washington, DC 20037 U.S.A.
Test Administration: 319-337-1357
Policy & Research 202-828-0690

 

[bob123456]

Hey guys,
I found the director of the MCAT's address and wrote her:

Hello Dr. Julian,

I'm writing to you about the MCAT glitch last Saturday. Unfortunately, I
was one of the testers that ended up with the erroneous passage
questions. I have seen the statement posted by AAMC in regard to the
situation and I still feel that more can be done to remedy the
situation.

I understand that you all think it is possible to accurately gauge
performance in the verbal reasoning section based on other passages.
However, I think that this method may render innaccurate results. I,
like many others, spent much time fretting over the passage in question
and after talking to the proctors, got back to work with only 3 minutes
left to complete the last passage, which was the hardest in the whole
section I believe. If any extrapolation method is being used to get
verbal scores I believe this should be taken into account.

The last passage should be thrown out just as the one in question. Most
people did not get to finish the verbal reasoning section or had very
limited time since it was impossible to stop the clock. In the future I
think an emergency stop clock feature should be added for situations
like this.

Even worse, I read that other test centers were warned, with students
being told to skip the passage, giving them approximately 8 extra
minutes. It is unbelievable that you are scoring their exams the same
way as ours. If I had 8 extra minutes in the verbal section I could
score a 15.

Possible remedies:

A makeup test day in the near future would be very appropriate, because
it is impossible to retain all of this information AND the test centers
are already full for April 80 miles in every direction around me. I
studied the last 4 months for the MCAT and put my life and schoolwork on
hold. I had planned on being done with this test as of last weekend. I
have no car and I will be in Costa Rica this summer doing volunteer
work, so the earliest time I could retake the test is in September. I
know that you guys are very able to offer a makeup date in the coming
weeks with the new computerization.

Students should be allowed to see ONLY their verbal score right now(I
know you already have them, I read an article saying they were available
before 5 am on Monday morning) and then be allowed to decide whether to
void their test. I realize this doesn't stand in line with the policy of
"once you see your score it's there forever", but I feel like this would
allow people to make the choice that's best for them. After all, this is
the AAMC's fault, not ours. You guys took something from us and now you
should give something back to make things right. If a student is
satisfied with the score and your extrapolation method proves accurate
they can decide to get their full test score. If the student is not
happy they can void the test and get a refund. It's a very simple and
implementable solution.

I realize that I will probably receive the standard "Sorry about your
luck but that is life" response. However, I urge you as director of the
MCAT to be responsible for the anguish inflicted upon us. You may not
realize it, but these are people's lives that your mistake has affected.
I hope that you will consider these suggestions in fixing the situation.

Here's what I got in RESPONSE, as predicted:

Dr. Julian forwarded your email to me. We truly regret the error in the
test. Unfortunately, we cannot reveal the score before you make a
determination on whether to void your exam. Normally, you would not
have another opportunity to void, but if after thinking about it
further, if you decide to void, you will have another chance. If you
choose to void, we will refund your full exam fee. However, this refund
may take several weeks to process, therefore, if you intend to retest,
you should not wait to reschedule your exam since the sites are filling
quickly. We are sending you a letter explaining your options. You
should receive it in a few days. Please accept our sincerest apologies.

Cordially yours,

Michelle Sparacino

 

[collinscs]

this is really frustrating. the least they could tell us is if they'd take the situation into account when scoring our writing and BS sections... and if they're voiding out more than 5 questions... and who we're being curved against.

if they're only voiding out 5 questions and then they're done with it - that's ridiculous.

 

[ToGodALLGlory]

My favorite part is how they make it sound like they are actually doing you a favor by giving you "another chance" to void. Oh, I'm so grateful you callous.......

Sorry to hear some people can't retake until September--thanks to AAMC you'll be "late" next cycle....hey AAMC, keep that in mind as you are dolling out your gracious favors!

Funny how it will take weeks to process the refunds but I know my money was taken out of my account for the test the next day. Too bad some people have FAP and can't immediately sign up for a new test date.....thanks again for your generous offer of a refund, and thanks for wasting months of my life, my money and time. Oh, and thank you for minimizing it in the media so that when I write all of the schools that are waiting for my January MCAT scores and explain that I had to void them, they will think I am making much ado over something that was really only involving 5 questions!!! I (and probably 700 or so others) didn't realize the problem only affected 5 questions--we thought it affected our performance on the rest of verbal, writing, and Bio.!!! Silly us. Most of us are so anal about it we know the amount of time in seconds that we have per question.....we stop and take 5 seconds to clear our heads before reading the next verbal section (and then worry if we are wasting 5 precious seconds of the MCAT)....we practice and practice to eliminate any little problem we might have so that we have the best chance possible to get the best score we can achieve...but hey, no big deal right? It's just our lives. We can just void and retake....problem solved, crisis averted.

I'm getting more ticked as I read this bogus propaganda in the media. This entire process of applying to medical school costs thousands of dollars....no wonder poor people are statistically less-likely to become physicians!!!! AAMC is trying to make it look like they are accommodating us when the fact of the matter is they are quickly covering their bottoms.

I'm still not done with the MCAT. I will take it again. Yes, they will get my money again...I will expend more time and energy because of their many, many errors (let's not forget how many people were given the wrong testing time to begin with---anyone remember that?!), and in the end, I will persevere...but at what extra cost to my family....to my life for goodness sake! This is utter BS, but I am going to keep my head up and I hope you guys will, too.

 

[dr.kicia]

Hey guys...
You all need to take a deep breath and chill out. Go to the gym and punch some bags if you have to.
Dwelling on the AAMC screw up is not going to do anything good for you; It won't change your score nor it will turn back the time.
I know it is stressful but bragging about will not change anything. Obviously AAMC knows about the problem and they will fix it one way or another.

If you decided to void your score then you have nothing to worry about. Register for the next available test date and have 4-5 more months for reviewing stuff. If you didn't void then you have nothing to worry about anyways. the scores will be curved so everyone who got that crazy pasage will be threated fairly.

I know that passage could have been something that through your timing off but then hey, you are going to be a doctor, there will be situations that you will not be able to controll, there will be mistakes of other ppl that you will have to corect fast before someone looses their life.
I don't think that this one passage that will not be even graded is going to have a tremendous impact on your score. This was only one section of exam anyways. You would be probobly equally upset have you gotten some wierd hard passage (with q that match LOL).
SO stop worrying, chill out and be happy you have only 20 something more days till you know your score.
to all.

 

[spart39]

The crux of the problem is that the curve isn't going to be fair. It would be great if they could just take out those questions and have everything turn out alright. But the AAMC has already made it known the students in later time zones who informed of the problem beforehand. They have also made it clear that those students in the earlier time zones who did not recieve warning would be curved just the same. It seems likely then that the average VR score on the west coast will be higher than the average score on the east coast.

Such is life

 

[dr.kicia]

The crux of the problem is that the curve isn't going to be fair. It would be great if they could just take out those questions and have everything turn out alright. But the AAMC has already made it known the students in later time zones who informed of the problem beforehand. They have also made it clear that those students in the earlier time zones who did not recieve warning would be curved just the same. It seems likely then that the average VR score on the west coast will be higher than the average score on the east coast.

Such is life

Well knowing that the passage is screwed up would make no difference in shooting which answears are correct or not. Same thing. The only other thing i may think of is that you have waisted some time on the passage where you could have just mark whatever answear.But then it doesn't take 30 minutes to figure out that the questions don't match. So i don't think that the grading will be unfair or whatever.
You will all see in couple of weeks that you are fine.
PPl always get terrified after the MCAT...it's the stress. Read the threads from last year you will see how ppl talk about certain things being unfair or whatnot. The truth is, if you are a doctor material you will know how to work under stress, you will know how to work when ppl distract you and you will know how to still do well. Because this is going to be the thing u will do every day for the next 40 years. Lets take an ER doc, who tries to safe a guy who just fell down the escalator while a woman in pain next door screems and while there is about 20 ppl comming in and out and saying this or that....now i don't think that this ER doc could just let the patient die and explain himself that he couldn't concentrate or that the woman in pain next door distracted him....
You have to stay focused and multi task like crazy...that is what docs do...especially surgeons( and that seems like the mostly desired profession by pre-meds).
That is just life...unfortunate but true.

I wish you all best of luck and i hope everyone will be very happy in march

 

[spart39]

All of what you are saying is true, and I hope that I was cool-headed enough to finish the other sections strongly, but maybe I was ambiguous in my previous post. The people in later time zones were able to use all the time they would have regularly spent on that one passage on the rest of the section. For a carefully timed test like the MCAT an extra 8 or so minutes is a huge advantage. Yes the passage mixup and the related stress surely were detrimental to those people who weren't notified. But even more of a problem is going to be the skewing of the curve on account of the later time zones knowing about the problem.

 

[RNtoMD2011]

After reading this thread I am soooooooo glad I took the last paper MCAT. A prof. of mine told me that everytime they change the format of the MCAT they have sooooooo many problems. My Aug score was not stellar but I got in! I feel for you all who are going through this now, b/c I never wanted to retake that darn test.

 

[whibbitts]

Well knowing that the passage is screwed up would make no difference in shooting which answears are correct or not. Same thing. The only other thing i may think of is that you have waisted some time on the passage where you could have just mark whatever answear.But then it doesn't take 30 minutes to figure out that the questions don't match. So i don't think that the grading will be unfair or whatever.
You will all see in couple of weeks that you are fine.
PPl always get terrified after the MCAT...it's the stress. Read the threads from last year you will see how ppl talk about certain things being unfair or whatnot. The truth is, if you are a doctor material you will know how to work under stress, you will know how to work when ppl distract you and you will know how to still do well. Because this is going to be the thing u will do every day for the next 40 years. Lets take an ER doc, who tries to safe a guy who just fell down the escalator while a woman in pain next door screems and while there is about 20 ppl comming in and out and saying this or that....now i don't think that this ER doc could just let the patient die and explain himself that he couldn't concentrate or that the woman in pain next door distracted him....
You have to stay focused and multi task like crazy...that is what docs do...especially surgeons( and that seems like the mostly desired profession by pre-meds).
That is just life...unfortunate but true.

I wish you all best of luck and i hope everyone will be very happy in march

.Who are you? The fairy godmother, or more like mother's little helper pushing the Horacio Alger myth. It’s obvious from your post that you truly don't understand the nuances of the problem. It’s not about handling stress and becoming a movie star doctor it's about equity and fairness in testing, stop digressing. All we are saying that it is not fair to curve those of us that wasted a lot of precious time, some even going to ask the proctor if there was an (unthinkable) error with the MCAT passed down form the AAMC Gods, with those that were warned ahead of time. It affected more than just the faulty passage when some of us re-entered the testing room from the lobby to find our time almost gone on a very time sensitive exam. Your Pollyannaish attitude is insulting to those of us that spent three months of our lives in social deprivation chambers only to be left at a major disadvantage on arguably the most important test of our lives.

If in the future if I have patients that I think have been treated unfairly by the medical system I will fight for them as well, where as you'll probably be working with the insurance adjusters, smiling and telling them all to buck up and be happy that at least they got some sort of treatment, even if they are dying from it. .

 

[ChemE64]

I'd just like to point out that not all West Coast test centers were notified of the error before hand. I took the test in California, and my test proctors did not know what to do. Several of us had to wait outside while they called Help Desk (which was obviously overwhelmed with calls). It also took them a while to figure things out before they stopped our test time clock. From what I understand, most testing centers who had been notified were told to tell their students to "do their best with the questions", not necessarily directly told to ignore them. We all had different experiences, all reacted differently, and were all screwed to differing degrees. The damage has been done, and it's irreversible. AAMC is going to give options that limits their liability, with no regard to how individual people are going to react to it.

The only thing I have even a glimmer of hope for, is that those with the faulty tests can see their scores early. If registration for the June test dates open on Feb 14, then at least let us see the score before then so we can decide if we want to re-register, and thus prevent us from getting screwed even further.

 

[ToGodALLGlory]

It has nothing to do with how stressed I would normally be waiting for my scores. When I prayed beforehand, I asked God to just let me give my best attempt....let my score be indicative of how I can perform on this test. I promised Him that if so, I would walk away feeling satisfied that I had done my best, whatever the score. I trusted AAMC to do their part--my task was to be as prepared as possible and give my best effort. Mine is a retake. I can't afford to wait and see what scores I get and retake if necessary. I want to see them first before I void or be immediately scheduled for a retake because their is a certain level of bureaucracy and timing involved with this cycle.

I already have a pretty good idea that it was not my personal best, despite giving my personal best. It had nothing to do with me, or what type of doctor I will become (can I handle stress, etc). Try taking your practice MCATs with your 2 and 3-year-old running around at your ankles and your Bear-fan husband shouting GO BEARS!---that's performance under distraction. Having taken the MCAT before, I can assure you these were not standardized conditions, nor indicative of anyone's best performance. Why would we need a curve otherwise? Now, the curved scores are going to be just that--scores that may be seen as "inflated" relative to standard conditions, and it's supposed to be a standardized test.

It was not just 5 questions on verbal as minimized in the media. It is not a wait and see situation, it is a be proactive so this doesn't mess up too much else situation because they don't care...because they WILL try to limit their liability (because they are responsible). Normally I don't complain....I would look to myself first and see what I can do to improve. There is no way I could have done anything more to improve this situation.

Normally I agree with most everything you say Dr. Kicia, and while you have a point, when they start giving the MCAT in a hallway with 20 people rushing by and patients screaming, and then say TGAG, tell me the specifics of this robotic fish I've created, then you can say the MCAT would be directly testing stress under pressure, an attribute I do agree a physician should have. Until then, the MCAT supposedly tests problem-solving ability in a controlled environment. Everyone gets the same environment so their scores can be compared, period.

 

[dr.kicia]

i see that this is not going into a right direction. I didn't mean to offend anyone. All I am trying to say is that you guys are overreacting. Yeah it really sucks that AAMC screwed up, but ppl always get very stressed after the MCAT. I remeber how eveyone here was freaking out in April last year.

While they didn't have a screwed up passage there was always something that ppl complained about. This test was never fair but it is the reality and you can't do anything about it. Unfortunatelly dwelling on this will not change your score or turn back the time. All you can do now is wait and see what happens. You had a choice to void your score...and yeah that would suck too but i am sure that AAMC will accomodate those students somehow.

And if you were ready for the MCAT in january you will be ready in april.
I feel sorry for all of you who had to go through this and i wish you the best of luck. I hope it will turn out all good for you all.

 

[collinscs]

i'm sorry, but there's no way you can compare the normal baseline stress experienced by every mcat taker to the stress felt by those who underwent this error. i can understand a bad mcat score and extra stress when it's due to me and my mistakes. but i did nothing. all i simply did was live and breath the mcat since september. i know stress due to my error - i've taken the mcat once and done badly. and it was my fault. but i didn't do badly this time. i made up for my first mistake. and yet i'm STILL punished and it's not my fault!

this isn't just a hard verbal passage that seems "unfair." this was an impossible passage. one that threw off timing and concentration.

i'm sorry, but until you've been in our shoes, you really can't say we're overreacting.

 

[Jen82mic83]

........

 

[Noeljan]

i see that this is not going into a right direction. I didn't mean to offend anyone. All I am trying to say is that you guys are overreacting. Yeah it really sucks that AAMC screwed up, but ppl always get very stressed after the MCAT. I remeber how eveyone here was freaking out in April last year.

While they didn't have a screwed up passage there was always something that ppl complained about. This test was never fair but it is the reality and you can't do anything about it. Unfortunatelly dwelling on this will not change your score or turn back the time. All you can do now is wait and see what happens. You had a choice to void your score...and yeah that would suck too but i am sure that AAMC will accomodate those students somehow.

And if you were ready for the MCAT in january you will be ready in april.
I feel sorry for all of you who had to go through this and i wish you the best of luck. I hope it will turn out all good for you all.

No they are NOT overreacting. And yes there IS something they should do about it. Fight this ones guys/girls!! You should all have a say in the outcome.
This is totally unfair and why the heck should people have to have their plans messed up now. I cannot even believe they are suggesting (the aamc) for people to hurry and register so spots are not taken!!! Are you kidding me. The people who encountered this should be allowed to retake the verbal portion of the test asap.
good luck girls/guys. I am pulling for you. This should be on your terms not theirs!

 

[QofQuimica]

Guys and gals,

I've gotten some complaints about this thread. I know that those of you who got the screwed up passage are frustrated (understandably) and need to vent, but please don't take it out on one another. I don't want to have to close down this thread.

-Q

 

[lilmirsk1]

i see that this is not going into a right direction. I didn't mean to offend anyone. All I am trying to say is that you guys are overreacting. Yeah it really sucks that AAMC screwed up, but ppl always get very stressed after the MCAT. I remeber how eveyone here was freaking out in April last year.

While they didn't have a screwed up passage there was always something that ppl complained about. This test was never fair but it is the reality and you can't do anything about it. Unfortunatelly dwelling on this will not change your score or turn back the time. All you can do now is wait and see what happens. You had a choice to void your score...and yeah that would suck too but i am sure that AAMC will accomodate those students somehow.

And if you were ready for the MCAT in january you will be ready in april.
I feel sorry for all of you who had to go through this and i wish you the best of luck. I hope it will turn out all good for you all.

I called the AAMC yesterday and I am convinced I was talking to Dr. Kicia because they lacked any sort of frame of reference that is necessary in developing a resolution. They were so nice and accomodating that they said I could take the test in June. Wow, thanks so much. On another note, one musn't give flowery advice and act as an omnipotent observer if they are lacking the true experience of Saturday the 27th. It is a slap in the face to those affected. This thread should be for those affected and those who want to offer support; I don't need trite advice and life lessons from the enlightened one; we need firm answers to this conflict so we can move ahead in the medical process.

 

[MedStudentWanna]

There is no reason that they couldn't offer us a re-take of just the verbal reasoning section.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't that mean that the people who retake just the verbal section on some random day will be more likely to do better than the people who took all three sections in one day? Part of the scoring on the MCAT is based on the stress OF the MCAT. How is it fair to put people in a virtually stress-free (or much reduced) environment where they know the only thing they have to do that day is Verbal and compare it to people who had Physics, Chem, and Bio material floating through their head, not to mention test fatigue, etc. by the time they reached verbal.

 

[collinscs]

i apologize to any person i might have offended through my posts on the thread. but seriously - let's keep this as un-personal as we can. i realize i've responded to people in an accusatory way, but let's stop that so we can keep this thread open. it's more important that we mobilize ourselves and gain strength from each other (both in strength in SUPPORT and strength in numbers). so, in the words of old - if you don't have anything nice to say (or any support to show) please don't say anything at all.

 

[babycapybara]

It sounds like some people already received an email from the mcat peeps about this. I only received an automated response to my email. I just want to be sure they have me noted as one of the people who was affected. If I don't hear from them tomorrow, as promised, I'll be on the phone again.

Here's what I plan on doing: I want to see my scores, so I'll wait and then re-register (with my own money I guess) if they are really bad. I don't want to panic and cancel my scores just because I felt slightly rushed and frazzled during the last verbal passage. Hoping my score will be better than the worse case scenario that I am envisioning.

 

[dr.kicia]

I called the AAMC yesterday and I am convinced I was talking to Dr. Kicia because they lacked any sort of frame of reference that is necessary in developing a resolution. They were so nice and accomodating that they said I could take the test in June. Wow, thanks so much. On another note, one musn't give flowery advice and act as an omnipotent observer if they are lacking the true experience of Saturday the 27th. It is a slap in the face to those affected. This thread should be for those affected and those who want to offer support; I don't need trite advice and life lessons from the enlightened one; we need firm answers to this conflict so we can move ahead in the medical process.

next time try to use ur real screen name instead of opening a new account. It is violation of TOS and it's called trolling.
And you couldn't talk to me because i do not work for AAMC