scoring in the teens after three months of studying

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KeepingitMoving

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Greetings to all,
I need sound advice on this serious matter. I have taken the mcat three times. First time in 2009, scored a 14(5PS, 8VR, 1BS). That was before taking genetics, physics II, organic and biochem. Second time in 2010 scored a 20(6PS, 6VR, 8BS). Third time in 2012, voided it. I am registered for the jan 25th, 2014 exam. I have been studying 6-10hrs a day for the past three months using examcrackers and kaplan Qbank. I have gone though literally thousands of practice questions. I took all available aamc practice tests back in 2010 and never scored above 18. I have taken kaplan test 6,7,8 and scored 14, 17, 16 respectively. My goal is to score at least a 27 on the real thing. with only a month left before the exam, how possible it is tomake a 10 point improvement? I am leaning more toward postponing at this point. However, given that I have yet to score above a 20, what difference will two more months make. Maybe I'm just not cut out for this

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You have "gone through literally thousands of practice questions", but have you gone over literally thousands of questions? There is a big difference. Reading text and doing questions only goes so far. Without analyzing each question for how to do it better next time, taking into account expanding your information base, employing better strategies, and avoiding careless mistakes, you will stagnate. Your score will improve when you become better at test taking. A great sports analogy is free-throw shooting. Repetition can get you to a certain point, but without fixing the things you're doing wrong mechanically, improvement is not going to happen. It's not only true with physical tasks, but mental ones as well. You need to find a better way to answer questions, and that only comes from a thorough analysis of the mistakes you are making.
 
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Greetings to all,
I need sound advice on this serious matter. I have taken the mcat three times. First time in 2009, scored a 14(5PS, 8VR, 1BS). That was before taking genetics, physics II, organic and biochem. Second time in 2010 scored a 20(6PS, 6VR, 8BS). Third time in 2012, voided it. I am registered for the jan 25th, 2014 exam. I have been studying 6-10hrs a day for the past three months using examcrackers and kaplan Qbank. I have gone though literally thousands of practice questions. I took all available aamc practice tests back in 2010 and never scored above 18. I have taken kaplan test 6,7,8 and scored 14, 17, 16 respectively. My goal is to score at least a 27 on the real thing. with only a month left before the exam, how possible it is tomake a 10 point improvement? I am leaning more toward postponing at this point. However, given that I have yet to score above a 20, what difference will two more months make. Maybe I'm just not cut out for this
Honestly, I feel the material you're using is the reason why your scores are what they are. Usually scores below 24-26 thresh hold would indicate some serious lack of content knowledge. EK is very bare bone and doesn't do the best job at explaining the material well enough to someone who has been away from it for so long. Most non-trads like myself have opted using TPRH or TBR, both have resulted in extremely successful results. I think TPRH is very simplistic in it's approach so you may feel the need to explore additional sources to help clarify certain topics. For me personally, I used coursesaver (Chad's videos) in addition to TPRH. This helped me to solidify my understanding of the material when I took it the first time. I also had TBR available, but opted not to use it because I felt that while it did a fantastic job of explaining the material, in some areas it was a little too detailed and so I disregarded it. In hindsight though, I wish I had stuck with TBR because most of my improvements were in large part due to the tips and tricks that they provide in their book. However, this is in regards to content.

A lot of people spend too much time on content and tell themselves over and over again that mastery of content will allow them to breeze through practice passages and get the score they want. This is SO wrong for so many reasons, and this is the mistake I learned when I tested the first time. I felt I had total mastery of nearly all areas (albeit Organic) and I felt completely prepared based on what I knew. But I just didn't put in the hours in practice like I should have and so ultimately, this cost me big on the real deal. Practice forces you to think and to test what you know (or think you know). More importantly, it prepares you for the critical thinking component of this test -- after all that's what this test is. On the real deal, I stupidly missed easy points for stupid little mathematical errors (not converting to the right units) and other silly things that could have easily been points added to my score had I simply practiced more. I had a passage on the real deal (won't say which) that was a near replica of a TBR Physics passage I had seen and I cannot tell you how much I regretted skipping over that material.

In your scenario, whether or not a 27 is attainable is questionable because it depends on what needs improvement: your lack of general content understanding (don't shoot for mastery), or your lack of practice. You should be able to find out your answer with practice if you're asking the right questions. Also, you should be able to boost your score, but it's also possible that having very poor understanding of certain topics is hurting you. I would recommend that you continue practicing, don't give up, and if you feel like you need some extra time then by all means, push your exam back. At the end of the day, know that you're truly capable of getting the score that you want. Don't ever doubt yourself like I see so many people do after discouraging results. You got this ;)
 
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thank you for the replies they were extremely encouraging and helpful. Since I wont be applying until June anyway, I've decided to reschedule for march/april and use the extra time to get my hands on some TBR material and also go "over" as many problems as I've gone through.
Thanks again and happy holidays!
 
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You are doing something very wrong if you aren't scoring above an 18 on the AAMCs. You aren't doing post-game analysis, point blank. If you say you are, you are doing it wrong. Obvious content gap and no attempt to reenforce knowledge. From 2009 to now, and you scores are still the same indicates something very big with not understanding content or not being able to answer a question correctly. I would actually postpone taking the test at any date and reevaluate what you want to actually do. How are your grades in school? Around 3.0? Then may be a problem with not understanding or retaining the material presented to you. If your GPA is around 3.7 or higher, then that is actually worse. That means that you aren't absorbing anything you are learning in your pre-req classes and you need to evaluate more on you test taking habits and you critical thinking skills which is easier said than done at this point.
 
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Greetings to all,
I need sound advice on this serious matter. I have taken the mcat three times. First time in 2009, scored a 14(5PS, 8VR, 1BS). That was before taking genetics, physics II, organic and biochem. Second time in 2010 scored a 20(6PS, 6VR, 8BS). Third time in 2012, voided it. I am registered for the jan 25th, 2014 exam. I have been studying 6-10hrs a day for the past three months using examcrackers and kaplan Qbank. I have gone though literally thousands of practice questions. I took all available aamc practice tests back in 2010 and never scored above 18. I have taken kaplan test 6,7,8 and scored 14, 17, 16 respectively. My goal is to score at least a 27 on the real thing. with only a month left before the exam, how possible it is tomake a 10 point improvement? I am leaning more toward postponing at this point. However, given that I have yet to score above a 20, what difference will two more months make. Maybe I'm just not cut out for this
Is English your first language? I tend to be sarcastic at times-but I'm dead serious.

Second-you scored a 1 in the bio/org section and your justification is that you had not taken gen/organic/biochem? All three courses would certainly help, but your general knowledge in bio1 and II should at least warrant a 6-7.

Two months will make no difference, as you have not progressed in your foundational knowledge. Further-your verbal crashed from 8 to 6. Verbal was my weakest section, however I realized this and worked on it daily (which increased my reading comprehension on other sections).

How do you feel about the passages? Do you get them...do you run out of time...do you map...do you skim...do you read novels or science articles in your spare time?

You have wasted your time and unfortunately drained your resources. I suggest Kaplan or some other pay-for service because you need structure. Don't give up, but also don't avoid reality...you need a game changer.
 
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Thank you for the replies. English is my first language and I do read novels during my spare time. My undergrad gpa in biology is 3.4 and my graduate(master's program) gpa is 3.8. I did my undergrad and graduate studies at a state college, tuition is extremely affordable to say the least. I have three years of research experience and recently started volunteering at a hospital. I was told by an admissions committee member that I have a good chance of getting into a US medical school if I can bring my score up to at least a 27. When I go over questions I write down each problem I got wrong, all of the answer choices and the explanation. It takes me about a hour to go over 6 problems so I haven't gone "over" nearly as many practice problems as I've gone "through". I did my content study by following the outline on the aamc website along with examcrackers I've also looked at videos on YouTube and all the videos on the wikipremed website. I only have trouble understanding the physics passages. I can't get a calculation problem right to save my life. I always know which equation to use but make mistakes further down. The organic questions make my head spin. I have noticed that it is also extremely difficult for me to concentrate while taking an exam. In fact, I can feel my brain shutting down on me and no longer computing after doing about 20 problems in each section.
 
Also, I don't map any of the passages out of fear of losing time, I just read them, try to answer the questions then go back to the passages when I feel the need to. I never run out of time in any of the sections, even when take the real thing I usually have 5-10minutes remaining. The last mcat I took in 2012 I had about 30minutes remaining in the PS and BS sections and 10 minutes remaining in the verbal. I thought that was definitely a bad sign so I voided it
 
30 minutes? And you are still getting in the teens? 10 minutes on verbal?? Are you just trolling the forums? I find it very hard to believe one with such consistent low scores (teens) has a ton of time left after each section that that leads me to believe the former or you are just bs'ing the questions that you don't know. Troll or not, I'll answer your question regardless.
I'm sorry but it looks like you are doing everything okay from a standpoint they way you are describing it. I can't see how you still fail to score above a 20 even by doing what you are doing. In all honesty, you need to know when to call it quits. You have a decent GPA and you did like 3 years of research which should have put you a bit over the edge for BS. The way you are describing how you tackle problems and how you lose concentration is a a really bad sign. Sometimes, you need to know when to call it off and reevaluate what you really want to do. It doesn't matter how passionate you are because in reality, these med schools partially view the MCAT with a correlation to Step 1 scores and if you aren't meeting what they see is fit, then they wouldn't take a risk with an applicant, no matter how badly they want to be a doctor.
 
Also, I don't map any of the passages out of fear of losing time, I just read them, try to answer the questions then go back to the passages when I feel the need to. I never run out of time in any of the sections, even when take the real thing I usually have 5-10minutes remaining. The last mcat I took in 2012 I had about 30minutes remaining in the PS and BS sections and 10 minutes remaining in the verbal. I thought that was definitely a bad sign so I voided it
I retook some aamcs to boost my confidence (I scored pretty much the same-go figure) but I still used the majority of my time. I flew through BIO/ORG mostly due to lack of math.

If you aren't hitting 25+ you either have serious gaps in your science foundations, or you have not figured out how to go from passage to question to answer. Again-I think Kaplan can help you because it helps you think more about the mcat rather than the knowledge. I am not a huge Kaplan supporter (I prefer tbr and mcat krackers) but in this situation, informational review isn't benefitting you the way that it should.

You seem intelligent-you seem to be serious about the time you put in-but something isn't jiving. Don't take this offensively, you just need to be aware something is off.
 
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No I'm not trolling, I'm actually being very serious. When I don't know the answer to a question I guess and move on. There were many questions I just didn't know how to answer, especially ones dealing with optics and organic chemistry. This exam has been extremely hard for me and I have put in so much time, money and energy into this exam, I'm at a point where I feel like giving up. I will go to medical school in the Caribbean if I have to
 
I knew that something was off the first time I took the exam and got a 14. I managed to pull my BS score up from a 1 to an 8. I took the GRE and did fairly well (149 quantitative 151 reading). Average but good enough to get into grad school, so I know I'm not completely incompetent when it comes to standardized testing...I just don't know what I'm doing wrong and I don't have any other means of finding out besides postings in the sdn forums and other internet sites. It's not easy exposing your weaknesses to hundreds if not thousands of complete strangers over the internet but that's how desperate I am right now. I'm trying to be as honest as I can be so that maybe people who have been in my shoes can help me figure this out.
 
so far the consensus is that I am lacking both knowledge in content and critical thinking. I have the option of either giving up on the mcat and applying to a Caribbean school or starting from scratch with content review using TBR this time along with Kaplan and examcrackers, and then spending most of my time practicing and analyzing questions.
Thank you so much for the replies,
they are extremely helpful
 
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so far the consensus is that I am lacking both knowledge in content and critical thinking. I have the option of either giving up on the mcat and applying to a Caribbean school or starting from scratch with content review using TBR this time along with Kaplan and examcrackers, and then spending most of my time practicing and analyzing questions.
Thank you so much for the replies,
they are extremely helpful
I feel your pain... Many on SDN might say the MCAT is an easy test since SDN attracts gunners, but that test is not as easy as many in here portray it. From being around SDN for 3+ years, I usually see most people who are unable to achieve a decent score struggle a great deal in VR. It appears that you are struggling in every subject. I think you need to start from scratch using TBR for the science sections. I think most people can achieve a 8+ in BS/PS if they use TBR. I am somewhat in the same boat with you. After 4 months preparation using TBR, I was abled to only score a 24 (9PS/6VR/9BS); needless to say I will retake next year (May or June). I kind of know where I went wrong. I did not do a good post game analysis. I did not analyze in depth the question I got wrong when I was doing practice problems and FLs. Also, I 'naturally' struggle with VR because I am ESL, but a 6 in VR is too low for someone who has been in the US for a long time. In summary, I think you should start from scratch using TBR for BS/PS and EK/TPR for VR, and give yourself at least 4-5 months to master the materials. It can be done IMO since your GPA indicates that you are a good student . To give you a perspective, I know someone who took that test 4 times and scored 20,22,24 and 29, and is med school now. He told me TBR was the game changer for him. Don't loose hope! GL.
 
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so far the consensus is that I am lacking both knowledge in content and critical thinking. I have the option of either giving up on the mcat and applying to a Caribbean school or starting from scratch with content review using TBR this time along with Kaplan and examcrackers, and then spending most of my time practicing and analyzing questions.
Thank you so much for the replies,
they are extremely helpful
Lol-quite a lot. I think you need to pace yourself first-you need to be realistic and recognize that after a lot of time studying and exhausting your resources, you are starting exactly where most of us started with ZERO content review.

To say that you lack critical thinking skills is obviously not my or any other's intention-rather, do you understand how to use critical thinking skills for the exam. If you have reviewed fifty passages about the kidney, and 3000 questions, none of this will help you until you realize the mcat WILL present you with new information that you know very little or nothing about, and expect you to relate what you do know to fill in the gaps. Your extensive review of information means absolutely nothing unless you realize the reason for reviewing it. The mcat has a pattern of testing your ability to read the passage and answer the questions accordingly. If colors and numbers was a section on the mcat, you can learn all about roygbiv and be able to count one to a million, but if you get a passage on silver and another on numbers above a million-my guess is because you are not familiar with exactly what the passage is stating, you block it out and the questions/answers seem foreign and blurry. Moreover-you probably think to yourself...what the hell, I know everything that mcat krackers taught me about the rainbow, fat chance anyone knows what silver is. What an unfair passage, no way they would ask about that on the REAL mcat. But you don't even buy your own rhetoric, so you learn everything there is to know about silver...it's shiny, it's not included in the 12 pack crayons set but off brands such as roseart do include it...etc etc etc. You walk into the next practice exam, now there is a passage on fusia-and finally you cracked the code! Know everything about all colors-the thought is overwhelming, so instead I'll post my worries in SDN and someone will tell me how to do this.

So good and bad...nice and mean. You are f*+•ing up. Everyone has critical thinking skills-but you need to understand how to critically think on this specific exam. We can't show you how-but we can tell you to seek it out and start over. Kaplan can help you by teaching you how to look at the exam, and when you learn this you can utilize content review to lift your score. When you begin taking brand new passages, spending on average three to four minutes for the passage and really clicking with the questions, you are progressing. If you can't get there-your road will likely be blocked.
 
I just wanted to add an update to this old thread, nearly three years later. Shortly after starting this thread, I was so frustrated and discouraged about my low MCAT scores that I gave up on the exam. I spent the next few years working part-time and finishing up a masters degree. After I graduated, I decided to give the exam another shot. I just took the "new" mcat this past July and my score improved significantly!!!
For anyone who might be feeling discouraged and happens to read this thread, don't give up, where there is a will there is a way!!!
 
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I just wanted to add an update to this old thread, nearly three years later. Shortly after starting this thread, I was so frustrated and discouraged about my low MCAT scores that I gave up on the exam. I spent the next few years working part-time and finishing up a masters degree. After I graduated, I decided to give the exam another shot. I just took the "new" mcat this past July and my score improved significantly!!!
For anyone who might be feeling discouraged and happens to read this thread, don't give up, where there is a will there is a way!!!

Hey thats great news glad to hear it! If possible, could you please elaborate on what you did this time around to significantly improve your score? Also, would you mind sharing your improved score?

Much appreciated. Thank you for starting this thread as well as following up on it.
 
Greetings to all,
I need sound advice on this serious matter. I have taken the mcat three times. First time in 2009, scored a 14(5PS, 8VR, 1BS). That was before taking genetics, physics II, organic and biochem. Second time in 2010 scored a 20(6PS, 6VR, 8BS). Third time in 2012, voided it. I am registered for the jan 25th, 2014 exam. I have been studying 6-10hrs a day for the past three months using examcrackers and kaplan Qbank. I have gone though literally thousands of practice questions. I took all available aamc practice tests back in 2010 and never scored above 18. I have taken kaplan test 6,7,8 and scored 14, 17, 16 respectively. My goal is to score at least a 27 on the real thing. with only a month left before the exam, how possible it is tomake a 10 point improvement? I am leaning more toward postponing at this point. However, given that I have yet to score above a 20, what difference will two more months make. Maybe I'm just not cut out for this

I think you have your answer now, congrats!

What was your score? Did you find the new MCAT easier than the old one? To go from sub 20 scores to a score which, you seem to think will get you into medical school, is a HUGE improvement. I heard the new exam is easier, what's your impression?
 
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"lightly" studied for 3-4 months then seriously prepared for two months, took the exam July 9th, got a score of 500(53rd) percentile. My first score was a 14 on the "old" exam scale (7th) percentile. I credit the following things to this improvement:
1) Change of Mindset- Positive thinking
2) Repetition- Doing a set of practice questions on a daily basis. By the time you sit for the exam, there has to be something ingrained in you on a subconscious level that gives you a certain "hunch" about a question. You achieve this "hunch" by doing thousands of questions. The exact number of questions that gets you to this "hunch" depends on your individual skill sets and knowledge base. Some people get it at a thousand, some people get it at three thousand. I did about 8,000 questions in total in a span of three months. Again, there is no magic number.
3) Go Back to the Basics- High school chemistry, high school physics, high school biology, high school math
4) Reading Comprehension- Strengthen your reading comprehension skills by doing sets of practice passages religiously
5) Be willing to try something new- try a different approach at studying for the MCAT or any standardized test for that matter.
6) Find a good support system- Find people to study with who are just as serious about improving their scores. these people will provide you with more resources and strengthen you when you are weak. Find a mentor or "coach" if you can.
7) use AAMC material as a main point of reference- AAMC provides tools (outlines, khan academy, practice questions etc.) for you to prepare for the exam, use them.
8) Consistency-you have to stick to your study regimen, keep studying. If you find yourself off-schedule, make a new schedule then keep studying.
9) Self-Checking- You need to track your progress. I tracked my progress daily (#questions wrong, time taken etc) on an excel spreadsheet. Self-checking will show you trends. If you are trending upward then you 'll know that what you are doing is working.
10)Relevant coursework- Biochemistry and Physical Chemistry

My impression: the exam seemed fair

Many people "including myself" thought they knew the content well but really didn't. That is why it is important to go back to the basics if you are scoring well below the average percentile.
Some people do poorly on the MCAT, not because they didn't study HARD enough but because they didn't study WELL enough.

Disclaimer: This is how I believe I improved my score. I have no scientific data to back up what I've stated so take it with a grain of salt.
 
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Just another quick update on this old thread! I've been invited to complete secondary applications for three medical schools! still waiting to hear from more. One DO school has reached out to me as well.
Be encouraged!
 
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All the best! Stay hopeful and never give up!!! The top of the building is almost there buddy!! I always say this, only us premeds know the struggle of MCAT and getting to med school, even family wont get it sometimes
 
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Just another quick update!

Applied to 17 schools in total (16 US and 1 Caribbean)
Received secondary invites from 15/16 schools
Accepted to Caribbean school
Planning on applying to five DO schools (gotta come up with some more $$$)
No interview invites yet, hoping for at least a few!

I literally started from the bottom, if I can make it this far, you can too!
 
Just another quick update!

Applied to 17 schools in total (16 US and 1 Caribbean)
Received secondary invites from 15/16 schools
Accepted to Caribbean school
Planning on applying to five DO schools (gotta come up with some more $$$)
No interview invites yet, hoping for at least a few!

I literally started from the bottom, if I can make it this far, you can too!

Congrats on the improvement! I would strongly encourage you to NOT go to the carribean school. If you do an SDN search you will see why this is not a good option. Basically going to a carribean school does not give you favorable odds for getting into a residency program, and without that you can't practice medicine in the US!
 
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Such a great motivational story. Congratulations not only on your big score gains, but more so your positive perspective on changing your approach. You have shared so many pieces of insight here and I sincerely hope many people read this.

May the interviewers see the great character traits you have shown in this thread!
 
KeepingItMoving:

Congratulations on sticking with it. Let's hope that these interviews goes really well for you. Really happy for you. Best of luck.
 
This will probably be the last update I do on this thread....I've been accepted! :soexcited:I'll be starting medical school this fall. Thanks for everyone's kind words of encouragement!
 
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