September 2015 MCAT Thread

[DAF16]

Registration for the September MCAT opens up soon, so I thought I would make the thread.
Who else will be taking the test in September?

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[torontopharm]

I hate reading period at this point. News? no. Magazines? no. Game stuff? no. I just want to sleep.

Why couldn't the MCAT be in the form of clinical vignettes like they have it for Step 1 That looks like a much more fun format.

 

[El-Rami]

Death in family - not my dad - am flying "home" on Tue night after class, funeral on Weds, burial on Th in a different location, flying back on Th night, driving on Fr to MCAT site, sitting for MCAT and then voiding the exam. It will be my practice test.

I will then withdraw from this cycle , take the test in January, have everything ready to go June 1, and apply. At the age of 51.

Good luck to everyone taking it for real on the 11th, 12th, and 23rd. Go nail this thing!!!

Sorry for your loss. Wish you the best of luck next year.

@howlcat People mean know the pKa values for each group. For example, here are some pKa values:

-NH3+ (alpha amino of a single AA): ~9.5
-NH3+ (N-terminus): ~8
-SH: ~8.5
-Arg R group: 12.5
-Tyr R group: 10.5
-Lys R group: 10.5

Of course EXACT values differ, but these are close enough approximations to answer titration curve questions/total charge questions at X pH where pKa values aren't necessarily given.

@orgogogo There is a lot of physiology in the Bio QPacks.

 

[MrRed]

For those who have done the qpacks, how much physiology is in the bio ones?

Not that much, from what I remember, but please make sure you devote at least some time to physiology. The q-packs go over some general physiology, but I would honestly recommend skimming through old anatomy powerpoints/chapters you may have.

 

[orgogogo]

Not that much, from what I remember, but please make sure you devote at least some time to physiology. The q-packs go over some general physiology, but I would honestly recommend skimming through old anatomy powerpoints/chapters you may have.

Thanks for the advice. I've already studied all of the physiology content, it's just that I'm very confidant on all of the bio stuff and still feel a little shakier on the physiology stuff, so I wasn't sure whether or not to prioritize the bio qpacks. So if there is not too much physiology in the qpacks then I probably will just focus on doing some physiology content review first and then do the bio qpacks later...

 

[MrRed]

Thanks for the advice. I've already studied all of the physiology content, it's just that I'm very confidant on all of the bio stuff and still feel a little shakier on the physiology stuff, so I wasn't sure whether or not to prioritize the bio qpacks. So if there is not too much physiology in the qpacks then I probably will just focus on doing some physiology content review first and then do the bio qpacks later...

Ya the physiology on the Q-packs that is there is pretty easy, actually most of the questions from those packs felt too easy (imo). Granted, they are from the AAMC and are good for reviewing basics; and you can probably finish them relatively quickly if you're good at bio (I did them in like 2 hours each).

 

[El-Rami]

Not that much, from what I remember, but please make sure you devote at least some time to physiology. The q-packs go over some general physiology, but I would honestly recommend skimming through old anatomy powerpoints/chapters you may have.

Honestly it should suffice to just hone your physiology recall skills through practice passages (QPack, TPR, Kaplan) and make sure you have things like sympathetic vs parasympathetic down. People get confused over the latter because sympathetic causes vasoconstriction while vasodilation is parasympathetic. People get confused that vasoconstriction helps you run from a bear (after all, decreased blood volume means less O2 delivery, right?) but you need to remember sympathetic innervation shunts blood away from nonessential organs for fight or flight responses (i.e., vasoconstriction of arteries supplying the GI organs and increased blood volume to effectors such as skeletal muscle). Also I believe that it can cause vasodilation in the arteries of the central nervous system. Increased Cardiac Output, Increased Heart Rate, yada yada yada.

Your class AP notes will be overkill, in my opinion. Just do practice passages in physio if you're weak in a certain system, and review your study books for the relevant topic for questions you miss. I don't think the MCAT will overcomplicate things as long as you understand the basics pretty well.

 

[drbeat14]

@jimmypod it sounds like @Vihsaudas was talking about the different between laminar and turbulent flow.

 

[PagingOrtho]

Currently on break during a TPR FL...and uh......are TPR FL's supposed to be harder than EK FL's??

Got owned by both the P/C and CARS sections

 

[Gibbward]

@Ad2b Sorry for your loss. It's been a rough couple of weeks for you. Your decision to delay your application is very understandable. You've been a tough trooper and we all salute you in this thread!

And with regards to your test, you never know! You might go into the test, know absolutely every single question thrown at you, and decide to not void at the end of it!

 

[Ad2b]

Thanks, Gibb (and everyone). I am approaching it as if it is the real thing and going to do my best. There was more to this decision than just the death, and near death of my dad. The last two weeks have been beyond brutal; stuff I can't post about (and no, I don't have anything to do with the missing cobra, although, that WOULD be enough to keep me in my house and terrorized .... seriously, who keeps those things as PETS!??!??? )

Ya'll go and knock this thing out!! I am here to encourage and support and cheer you on! Maybe now I'll have time to get the video done for biochem and post that up on YT.

 

[Ad2b]

@PagingOrtho - what got you in CARS? What got you in P/C?

 

[EverStriving]

Do you guys know what terms like: "-/-, +/-, bp, start sites" mean? I've especially been seeing -/- and +/- and +/+ a lot and do not understand what they mean. Thanks in advance!

+/+: Homozygous normal (two functioning copies of the gene)
+/-: Heterozygous normal/knockout (one functioning copy, one copy knocked out)
-/-: Homozygous knockout (no functioning copies of the gene)

Generally these are used to signify genotypes of animals that have been modified for experimental reasons. E.g. if one wanted to figure out the role of gene A, you could create a homozygous knockout mouse (A -/-) and see what detriment that mouse suffered. + and - do NOT mean dominant and recessive.

bp: Base pairs, used to annotate relative and absolute locations of genes, gene promoters, SNPs, mutations, etc.
start site: The location in the gene where transcription begins (codon 'AUG', for methionine)

 

[drbeat14]

Thanks, Gibb (and everyone). I am approaching it as if it is the real thing and going to do my best. There was more to this decision than just the death, and near death of my dad. The last two weeks have been beyond brutal; stuff I can't post about (and no, I don't have anything to do with the missing cobra, although, that WOULD be enough to keep me in my house and terrorized .... seriously, who keeps those things as PETS!??!??? )

Ya'll go and knock this thing out!! I am here to encourage and support and cheer you on! Maybe now I'll have time to get the video done for biochem and post that up on YT.

I'm sorry sorry for your loss. I will continue to keep you in my thoughts and am so glad we have been able to have you around here.

 

[drbeat14]

Does anyone know what "MCAT paper" looks like... The scratch paper. Is it A4 size? Blank? Lines? Etc?

 

[Ad2b]

@drbeat14 - it will be standard 8 x 11.5 (and thanks!)

And it was confirmed that it does not get picked up during breaks so if you scribble AA, formulas or something that won't get taken away.

 

[RaspberrySlushy]

Just finished Bio 1 QPack - 94%. Def learned a lot going through it including from ones I was unsure on or got right for wrong reasons. Seemed much easier than OG or AAMC FL though.

 

[drbeat14]

@drbeat14 - it will be standard 8 x 11.5 (and thanks!)

And it was confirmed that it does not get picked up during breaks so if you scribble AA, formulas or something that won't get taken away.

@Ad2b
Oh cool thank you for letting me know! That's exactly what I was wondering, is do I need to write really tiny so I don't have to trade out pages, lol.

By the way, it seems that it was only when I lived in Florida that such things as escaped wildlife (which is an oxymoron of itself) occurred, along with gator tours and such.

Though I have to say that other than the idiot cobra guy, some of it is unavoidable - as you know! We once found a snake curled up in the cable wires behind the television. It had to have been there for hours since we had the porch open only much earlier. Our cat alerted us by attempting to "play with it" and the snake was relocated via a long stick to the rightful outdoors. What got us was not that he had got in, or even how smart he was to curl up and sleep near the cables, but the fact that we didn't notice it all day...wonder what else came and went during those years!

 

[Ad2b]

My strategy for the paper is to write the pathways out immediately; and then anything that I am wishy on ... whatever that feels like on Fri. Since I have a plane flight on Tu and Th, it gives me time to plan out what I think I'll need. Maybe even do a dry run on the plane?!

@ FL - - this is a weird state. The most horrific crimes I've heard happened here (17 year old daughter and her bf drugged her mother, then injected her with bleach, then followed that up with LSD and then hacked her up; tossed her into garbage bags and tossed her over a bridge) ... then there's the Casey Anthony, and the idiot Zimmerman and ... the backyard breeders (100+ great danes recently rescued), the people who simply "don't care" and the ones who think it's "cool" to have a "pet" water moccasin or cobra... we had a girl in physics this summer who told me that her dad had all sorts of venomous snakes at home; and that she'd been handling them since she was little. She was, ahem, "off" She said that the snakes were all de-fanged (nice, even if one is terrified of snakes like me, that sounds really awful for the animal) ... then there's the dude next to the horse rescue I volunteer at... he has a zebra, two camels, and some other assorted animals that are considered "non native to US" ... and he's licensed and clueless (zebras are not horses, they don't do the same things and have different requirements; much like chimps and humans are similar but different)....

Edited part: with all the rain we've had, our backyard is a swamp/pond now. saw a snake swimming through it last week when I flipped on the lights turned the lights off, waited 5 mins to let the dogs out. Told son. Next day in school, son tells me a skin was in the yard by the AC unit. Asked him what it looked like "gray, dark spots" ... went to go see it and take picture for identification with FWC. It was gone.

anyway, yes, write small maybe do a dry run on Fri?

 

[dahmsom]

so my exam is on september 23rd..
I was wondering if i should buy EK or Next step full length.. im limited on money
options? and opinions..?

 

[drbeat14]

To follow up on Bernoulli's and when it does or does not apply to CV system, if you just google laminar blood flow (smooth, straight flow, that may have some variation in velocity along the vessel, but is general consisent) vs turbulent blood flown (as occurs in some larger vessels, and during stenosis and other abnormalities, where blood is bouncing around in the vessel) several comparisons and videos are available, and it looks like Khan has a video on the Reynolds # -the specific point when the flow becomes turbulent. It looked to me like the Reynold's # was similar to the triple point ONLY in that it is a specific cut-off value, and also it is based on the fluids viscosity and nature of the vessel, though I had some trouble with that kind of absolute in physiology, and I think that is part of what @Vahsara was saying.

I found it helpful to compare CO (Cardiac Output) and CI (Cardiac Index) to Bernoulli. CO=HRxSV, but CI is also considering weight and an estimated surface area of the patient : CI (Cardiac Index)=HRxSVI.

I believe the post by @Vahsara that @jimmypod also referenced the capillaries only allowing single file RBC's, i.e. the width of the vessels are the same size as the width of 1 RBC, which seems the velocity would have to slow down, and I think it is worth it to take a look at that, because at that point I found that the S.A. of the vessels can be approximated by just the length of the vessels, and therefore y can be entered directly into Bernoulli's equation, whereas it had to be derived from V/A before, which may be helpful if one has to do the sort of guestimate math that is used on the MCAT, and also is used in things like the CO, where SV maybe estimated if the provider had not yet had a chance to index it or throw in further parameters.

Of course, there is also the consideration that the capillaries can be thought of as "one giant system" connecting from the left ventricle, and that it is a circular system. Unlike flushing the toilet, where fluid may go through a series of larger or smaller parts, the fluid does not return (thank goodness!). So in the CV, a somewhat constant volume is having to be maintained such that it is, at least, a bit easier to see Bernoulli as an energy conservation equation, and how disruptions from it in turbulent flow, would cause a loss of energy.

 

[RaspberrySlushy]

@dahmsom - I'm taking the test same day as you and found myself debating the exact same thing. I went with EK because it seems such a clear consensus here from ppl who took the exam this year that those were the most representative from a prep company. More $ but if it's better, might be worth it!

Also love your 1989 pic!

 

[dahmsom]

@dahmsom - I'm taking the test same day as you and found myself debating the exact same thing. I went with EK because it seems such a clear consensus here from ppl who took the exam this year that those were the most representative from a prep company. More $ but if it's better, might be worth it!

Also love your 1989 pic!

taylor swift is my study music. LOL

 

[Aretehopeful]

Did anyone try the CARS qpack's? I did the first one and got absolutely destroyed... feeling pretty demoralized right now

 

[PagingOrtho]

@PagingOrtho - what got you in CARS? What got you in P/C?

The passages seemed a lot lengthier in both P/C and CARS; I didn't have enough time to finish. I'm normally okay with P/C, always having time left at the end, but not so much with this TPR FL. Hope the real deal is more similar to EK FL's.

 

[FutureD.O]

Just took my final kaplan fl (#5)..I thought I COMPLETELY bombed it. Fl #5 was ironically my highest kaplan score..haha. I think a good rule of thumb for kaplan full-lengths would be (for me at least) the worse the feeling you have about performing poorly, the higher your score will be!

I am so sick of taking kaplan full lengths and am glad this is almost over.

If anyone is curious.. Kaplan fl scores diagnostic-fl5 with AAMC fl last, respectively: 491-492-496-494-500-503 AAMC:507ish (a week ago)
Realistically aiming for above a 503 to be competitive for my top schools. Even with my improvement I can't help but feel very skeptic. I am praying to God all this hard work pays off in a week!

 

[Pediateix]

for kaplan test 1, the c/p section
can someonee explain passage 10- the physics questions 57, 58, and 59(faster method)

 

[FutureD.O]

Did anyone try the CARS qpack's? I did the first one and got absolutely destroyed... feeling pretty demoralized right now

Where did you get destroyed? Did you overall scores/percentages improve with the passages in the second half of the qpack? The first half of the qpack 1 was difficult..

 

[drbeat14]

My strategy for the paper is to write the pathways out immediately; and then anything that I am wishy on ... whatever that feels like on Fri. Since I have a plane flight on Tu and Th, it gives me time to plan out what I think I'll need. Maybe even do a dry run on the plane?!

@ FL - - this is a weird state. The most horrific crimes I've heard happened here (17 year old daughter and her bf drugged her mother, then injected her with bleach, then followed that up with LSD and then hacked her up; tossed her into garbage bags and tossed her over a bridge) ... then there's the Casey Anthony, and the idiot Zimmerman and ... the backyard breeders (100+ great danes recently rescued), the people who simply "don't care" and the ones who think it's "cool" to have a "pet" water moccasin or cobra... we had a girl in physics this summer who told me that her dad had all sorts of venomous snakes at home; and that she'd been handling them since she was little. She was, ahem, "off" She said that the snakes were all de-fanged (nice, even if one is terrified of snakes like me, that sounds really awful for the animal) ... then there's the dude next to the horse rescue I volunteer at... he has a zebra, two camels, and some other assorted animals that are considered "non native to US" ... and he's licensed and clueless (zebras are not horses, they don't do the same things and have different requirements; much like chimps and humans are similar but different)....

Edited part: with all the rain we've had, our backyard is a swamp/pond now. saw a snake swimming through it last week when I flipped on the lights turned the lights off, waited 5 mins to let the dogs out. Told son. Next day in school, son tells me a skin was in the yard by the AC unit. Asked him what it looked like "gray, dark spots" ... went to go see it and take picture for identification with FWC. It was gone.

anyway, yes, write small maybe do a dry run on Fri?

Yeah, I think you're right. I've been meaning to do a "dry run" but was a little sick the last few days and had not got a chance to yet. I think that is a good idea. Working on my "MCAT pre-write" at the moment about what to jot down, but I do need to just sit down and make sure it can be plopped on paper easily.

Yeah there is some creepy stuff down there! The scariest part is the legal system-or lack thereof! Poor Florida, I loved many things about you, but the crime rate and creepiness was not one!

Do you remember Hurricane Season 2004! That was crazy!!! I remember finding fish in the lawn!

 

[El-Rami]

Did anyone try the CARS qpack's? I did the first one and got absolutely destroyed... feeling pretty demoralized right now

I got absolutely owned on the first half of the first one, and I scored >90% on the AAMC FL on CARS.

 

[drbeat14]

Did anyone try the CARS qpack's? I did the first one and got absolutely destroyed... feeling pretty demoralized right now

Yeah I haven't heard anyone say they loved the CARS qpacks, seems like everyone had some trouble with them.

 

[Aretehopeful]

Where did you get destroyed? Did you overall scores/percentages improve with the passages in the second half of the qpack? The first half of the qpack 1 was difficult..

I did the first four passages and just felt sunk, it took all of my energy to finish those four. I'm going to try the second half tomorrow. I guess I shouldn't have attempted a qpack when I was already exhausted.

 

[Aretehopeful]

Additionally, does anyone know if the q-packs are representative of the real thing? (minus the CARS qpack >.>)

I've been scoring very well on them but I'm afraid that the real thing will be much more difficult..

 

[drbeat14]

This seems fun:
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/health/healthcon.html#c1

 

[drbeat14]

Does anyone have that amino acid page that @Ad2b posted? I can't find it in the past pages.

 

[FutureD.O]

I did the first four passages and just felt sunk, it took all of my energy to finish those four. I'm going to try the second half tomorrow. I guess I shouldn't have attempted a qpack when I was already exhausted.

Don't worry, the question pack gets much easier. I got destroyed the on those too and ended with a 70%, not great but that's with me doing exceptionally well on the majority of the second half passages!

 

[Ad2b]

Does anyone have that amino acid page that @Ad2b posted? I can't find it in the past pages.

Histidine is fixed

 

[Ad2b]

When you look at the drawing, ask yourself these questions:

What changed?
Where?
Why?
Does that make it polar or non-polar or phobic? For instance, what happens if I change a phenyalanine to a tyrosine?
Look at tryptophan v. phenylalanine - what changed?

If you know aspartic acid, how do you know asparagine as well? same with glutamine and glutamic acid?
What's so special about methionine? Are U Going

From the syllabus of the best biochem prof ever:

 

[deleted673832]

Testing on 23rd! Took my third TPR FL yesterday and scored 502 . Discouraged by this petty score raise (went up only by 2 points). Taking the 3rd FL this Monday, do you guys have any advice for the Practice Tests? I have covered almost all of the material and I always proceed with the "Why I Missed It Sheet" after every FL. I really want to score somewhere around 508+, is there still hope? Also, CARS on TPR is killing me, why is it so damn hard...

Good luck to everyone else! You've got this.

EDIT: Also, does anyone know if there is difference between the MCAT Course Tests and MCAT Complete Tests on TPR?

 

[Ad2b]

@drbeat14 - have only lived here for 3 years; CO is looking nice

@PagingOrtho - do you know what kinds of CARS problems you ran into? strengthen/weaken? inference?

 

[Dolly96]

Just took my final kaplan fl (#5)..I thought I COMPLETELY bombed it. Fl #5 was ironically my highest kaplan score..haha. I think a good rule of thumb for kaplan full-lengths would be (for me at least) the worse the feeling you have about performing poorly, the higher your score will be!

I am so sick of taking kaplan full lengths and am glad this is almost over.

If anyone is curious.. Kaplan fl scores diagnostic-fl5 with AAMC fl last, respectively: 491-492-496-494-500-503 AAMC:507ish (a week ago)
Realistically aiming for above a 503 to be competitive for my top schools. Even with my improvement I can't help but feel very skeptic. I am praying to God all this hard work pays off in a week!

That is exactly how I felt with kaplan fl 5 too and it was my best-- 500. Taking aamc fl on monday or tuesday. Hopefully I'll do as well as you did! Have you done the qpacks yet?

 

[drbeat14]

@drbeat14 - have only lived here for 3 years; CO is looking nice

@PagingOrtho - do you know what kinds of CARS problems you ran into? strengthen/weaken? inference?

Lol, CO is where I was born! Thank you for posting aa page! Hey and do you also have that aa link? With the switching aa around info?

 

[Ad2b]

What do you mean? at switching AA around?

 

[FutureD.O]

That is exactly how I felt with kaplan fl 5 too and it was my best-- 500. Taking aamc fl on monday or tuesday. Hopefully I'll do as well as you did! Have you done the qpacks yet?

I've finished qpack 1 for bio and and cars, and 3/4 the packs for physics and chemistry! They're helpful! I'm using them for practice (obviously) and refreshing/reviewing topics I don't do too hot in.

I've felt terrible after every Kaplan exam haha. But they have taught me to be comfortable with feeling like I didn't do well lol. Hopefully we all do well! Just keep working hard.

 

[jimmypod]

There's one week left and I'd really like some advice. How does one go about improving on the P/S section of the MCAT? I consistently score the worst on this section no matter which diagnostic/FL/Official test I take.

And would anyone mind teaching me how to convert my AAMC FL % to a projected MCAT Score?

Thank you!!

 

[TheAnonymous]

There's one week left and I'd really like some advice. How does one go about improving on the P/S section of the MCAT? I consistently score the worst on this section no matter which diagnostic/FL/Official test I take.

And would anyone mind teaching me how to convert my AAMC FL % to a projected MCAT Score?

Thank you!!

I think most people use this, though I think it's a bit inflated: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1Yd5-z8djMNL25k9w60X8yCFSlGY_M2Qynrjj_ph2l24/htmlview#
There is also an excel converter.

I don't mind doing it for you if you want to message me your %.

Regarding C/P, what is it that you are struggling with? Specific subjects? Passage comprehension?

 

[Aretehopeful]

Does anyone have a good source for learning diffraction and multi slit diffraction? Kaplan and khan didn't really cut it out for me..

 

[RaspberrySlushy]

Yeah the first CARS QPack is hard. I'm almost done with it, but ugh, the early passages were the worst and I just can't tell if I'm improving over time in CARS or not at all. Almost done w/Chem and about 3/4 through physics. Started Bio 2 and it's def harder than Bio 1.

 

[drbeat14]

@Ad2b I found it! The one with structural family info.

http://www.biology.arizona.edu/biochemistry/problem_sets/aa/aa.html

 

[El-Rami]

Just did OG. 75.8% Overall with the following in CP/CARS/BB/PS: 76.7%/76.7%/73.3%/76.7%. Do you guys think this is decent? I scored MUCH higher on CARS in the FL in May (94%), so I'm not sure what was going on in CARS.

 

[PagingOrtho]

Just took my final kaplan fl (#5)..I thought I COMPLETELY bombed it. Fl #5 was ironically my highest kaplan score..haha. I think a good rule of thumb for kaplan full-lengths would be (for me at least) the worse the feeling you have about performing poorly, the higher your score will be!

I am so sick of taking kaplan full lengths and am glad this is almost over.

If anyone is curious.. Kaplan fl scores diagnostic-fl5 with AAMC fl last, respectively: 491-492-496-494-500-503 AAMC:507ish (a week ago)
Realistically aiming for above a 503 to be competitive for my top schools. Even with my improvement I can't help but feel very skeptic. I am praying to God all this hard work pays off in a week!

The improving trend looks great! How did you convert your AAMC section percentages into the scale score?

I saw people here referencing their AAMC FL scores on the 472-528 scale a couple times. What's the method to convert?