The Official April 11, 2014 MCAT Thread

[txlonghorn2314]

This happens to fall on my birthday...don't know if that's a good thing or bad. Starting sn2d's 3 month program on Monday! I'm scared.

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[Love_Cats_without_the_M]

Surprised you recommend doing Section/Topicals way at the end. I agree with everything you said except for that part. I think the section tests are really important (especially verbal) because they help you get your timing down and help you focus on a specific section. Topicals are great while you practice specific material because it introduces you to the various applications of the material. Section/Topicals also condition your expectations for hard material (not to mention that kick in the ass when you get 60% and then decide to study an extra hour or two). So I agree with that order, but I would definitely make time for sections between FL unless your using other timed material to improve in between.

Yea, I actually have been doing the section/topical tests throughout when I don't feel like taking a whole MCAT CBT.

2 more hard weeks of studying for anyone taking it 5/11, now is the time to push hard so we never have to take this exam again!!

First thing I want to do after my exam is buy Tiger's baseball tickets, can't wait to decompress!

Good luck everyone, lets do this!

 

[mspeedwagon]

Anyone seeing really erratic scores on Kaplan tests? Seems like my score is a random number between 20 and 29. I'm hoping to seeing more consistent scores on the higher end when I switch over to the AAMCs. Definitely pushing hard now. Good luck everyone! We've got this !

 

[t5Nitro]

Anyone seeing really erratic scores on Kaplan tests? Seems like my score is a random number between 20 and 29. I'm hoping to seeing more consistent scores on the higher end when I switch over to the AAMCs. Definitely pushing hard now. Good luck everyone! We've got this !

Kaplan FL 3 seemed to be a bit harder than the other ones (I haven't taken many of them, but I've heard the later ones are just ridiculous, though). I've read a few of the comments that people are concerned with finishing AAMC sections early. Despite this idea, the trend over many generations of MCAT administrations shows that your AAMC practice average tends to predict, with decent precision, your actual score. Use Kaplan as additional learning material, learn from the errors, and go off of your AAMC FL sores for a better prediction.

 

[Love_Cats_without_the_M]

Anyone seeing really erratic scores on Kaplan tests? Seems like my score is a random number between 20 and 29. I'm hoping to seeing more consistent scores on the higher end when I switch over to the AAMCs. Definitely pushing hard now. Good luck everyone! We've got this !

I have been scoring pretty well in my Kaplan FL scores (32-38 range), If you have not taken any AAMC exams I would suggest taking 2-3 of them and if you are scoring sub 30, I would either take and void my exam (unless the exam went your way and asked questions on topics you are strong with) or push your test day back. You may need some more time with content review, and it would be a waste of AAMC exams if you are not scoring at least a 28 on them.

The AAMC exams are easier, but they predict with AMAZING accuracy what you will get on the actual test, that's why I suggest not doing them all if you are not scoring in the 28+ range and work on more content/outside resources practice.

I made the mistake of taking them all, so I have no idea where I will score come test day (If i retake the tests they will be very inflated), I am confident I will score 30+, just not sure where in the 30's I will be.

Bottom line: if you take 3 AAMC exams and are scoring sub 28 consistently, then push your test day back, do more outside AAMC practice and take the remaining AAMC exams when you are more confident.

Kaplan FL 3 seemed to be a bit harder than the other ones (I haven't taken many of them, but I've heard the later ones are just ridiculous, though). I've read a few of the comments that people are concerned with finishing AAMC sections early. Despite this idea, the trend over many generations of MCAT administrations shows that your AAMC practice average tends to predict, with decent precision, your actual score. Use Kaplan as additional learning material, learn from the errors, and go off of your AAMC FL sores for a better prediction.

I agree with you, but for individuals who have taken the AAMC exams before and are retaking them, they WILL put you in a false sense of security regardless of you telling yourself you don't remember the exams or that you didn't review them.

 

[t5Nitro]

Bottom line: if you take 3 AAMC exams and are scoring sub 28 consistently, then push your test day back, do more outside AAMC practice and take the remaining AAMC exams when you are more confident.



I agree with you, but for individuals who have taken the AAMC exams before and are retaking them, they WILL put you in a false sense of security regardless of you telling yourself you don't remember the exams or that you didn't review them.

This is good advice. I too have taken all of the AAMCs before, and so I partially agree with what you're saying. Recently, I have taken 3 kaplan FLs and 2 AAMC FLs as practice. My Kaplan FLs have a larger score range (similar to yours with the 6 point gap). My 2 AAMCs have been within 1 point (Kaplan average right around the AAMC average). Where I see the AAMC exams serving us confidence is if you are truly answering the questions because you fully understand the material presented to you and not because you remember #4 is A. In other words, if you are able to logically think through the question and derive the correct answer, then I think the tests are valid. On the other hand, that is why additional resources are useful; they test the same topics but provide new questions. In the end, I think that they can be useful if you let them be.

 

[Love_Cats_without_the_M]

This is good advice. I too have taken all of the AAMCs before, and so I partially agree with what you're saying. Recently, I have taken 3 kaplan FLs and 2 AAMC FLs as practice. My Kaplan FLs have a larger score range (similar to yours with the 6 point gap). My 2 AAMCs have been within 1 point (Kaplan average right around the AAMC average). Where I see the AAMC exams serving us confidence is if you are truly answering the questions because you fully understand the material presented to you and not because you remember #4 is A. In other words, if you are able to logically think through the question and derive the correct answer, then I think the tests are valid.

I also agree that you have to fully understand the material presented to answer the questions and not rely on remembering an answer choice, here's where I feel retaking them is detrimental.

If you retake them, you may understand the material and how to get at the right answer but you are doing it more efficiently, answering the questions faster since you have already seen them before, this will result in you having ~15-20 minutes left over to work on any problem's that are giving you difficulty, which will more than likely not be the case on the actual MCAT.

I just think if you give me an Exam I take it once and then without even looking at my results, I retake it again. I will score higher on my retake because I will answer the questions that didn't give me difficulty quickly giving me more time to work on the ones I didn't understand.

 

[t5Nitro]

I also agree that you have to fully understand the material presented to answer the questions and not rely on remembering an answer choice, here's where I feel retaking them is detrimental.

If you retake them, you may understand the material and how to get at the right answer but you are doing it more efficiently, answering the questions faster since you have already seen them before, this will result in you having ~15-20 minutes left over to work on any problem's that are giving you difficulty, which will more than likely not be the case on the actual MCAT.

I just think if you give me an Exam I take it once and then without even looking at my results, I retake it again. I will score higher on my retake because I will answer the questions that didn't give me difficulty quickly giving me more time to work on the ones I didn't understand.

That is a very good point, and I guess that is where the use of other material is most beneficial. You will see the same topics tested over and over again but in different context. The more exposure you receive the better, in my opinion. Chances are you will run into a situation that tests on a concept that you have seen presented in multiple ways. I took the AAMC self assessments (something I had not done in the past). If any of you are looking for additional AAMC material and have used the exams, then I would strongly recommend buying these. Either way, I wouldn't not do the AAMCs again, especially 9 through 11.

 

[mspeedwagon]

Thank you for your advice. I'll shift to the AAMCs soon and use my first two or three to gauge whether I should push through and get my MCAT scored or void on the day of. Too bad it'll count toward my three chances, but c'est la vie.

Do you have any advice on which 2 or 3 AAMCs to use as a gauge?

I'm really hoping to get into one of the SUNYs, Touro, NYIT or something that'll keep me in the NY area so a score around 28-31 would be ideal.

Coming back to it all after graduating nearly a decade ago has been a bit of a challenge (to say the least).

I have been scoring pretty well in my Kaplan FL scores (32-38 range), If you have not taken any AAMC exams I would suggest taking 2-3 of them and if you are scoring sub 30, I would either take and void my exam (unless the exam went your way and asked questions on topics you are strong with) or push your test day back. You may need some more time with content review, and it would be a waste of AAMC exams if you are not scoring at least a 28 on them.

The AAMC exams are easier, but they predict with AMAZING accuracy what you will get on the actual test, that's why I suggest not doing them all if you are not scoring in the 28+ range and work on more content/outside resources practice.

I made the mistake of taking them all, so I have no idea where I will score come test day (If i retake the tests they will be very inflated), I am confident I will score 30+, just not sure where in the 30's I will be.

Bottom line: if you take 3 AAMC exams and are scoring sub 28 consistently, then push your test day back, do more outside AAMC practice and take the remaining AAMC exams when you are more confident.



I agree with you, but for individuals who have taken the AAMC exams before and are retaking them, they WILL put you in a false sense of security regardless of you telling yourself you don't remember the exams or that you didn't review them.

 

[Love_Cats_without_the_M]

Thank you for your advice. I'll shift to the AAMCs soon and use my first two or three to gauge whether I should push through and get my MCAT scored or void on the day of. Too bad it'll count toward my three chances, but c'est la vie.

Do you have any advice on which 2 or 3 AAMCs to use as a gauge?

I'm really hoping to get into one of the SUNYs, Touro, NYIT or something that'll keep me in the NY area so a score around 28-31 would be ideal.

Coming back to it all after graduating nearly a decade ago has been a bit of a challenge (to say the least).

I would just personally go in order for the AAMC exams, the last 3 are the closest to the real MCAT, but as far as scores go they are generally right on what you will receive for the actual test.

My experience: I took all the AAMC exams and scored a 28 on them all with this breakdown,
11 BS, 6 VR, 11 PS

When I went to take my exam on July 26th 2013, hoping for a favorable VR section, I completely freaked out because the exam was super hard (for the PS I think I left 4 blank and and to hurry through 6 of the questions), The verbal I guessed on a whole passage, and by the time the BS science section came I just wanted the exam to end (BS was the easiest section for me). After scoring the exam I was sure that my score would be in the low 20's, but it came back exactly how my AAMC exams were scoring, so they are really great indicators of how you will do on the actual exam.

That's amazing that you want to come back to medicine after almost 10 years, keep up the good work my friend, you will get into a school, just make sure that you take and score the exam when you are ready!

 

[chemhead123]

I'd take a look at Nova's Physics book. Its pretty cheap, and I've found it really useful to really drill down into some of the more difficult topics for me.

 

[Bbqchickenman]

I would just personally go in order for the AAMC exams, the last 3 are the closest to the real MCAT, but as far as scores go they are generally right on what you will receive for the actual test.

My experience: I took all the AAMC exams and scored a 28 on them all with this breakdown,
11 BS, 6 VR, 11 PS

When I went to take my exam on July 26th 2013, hoping for a favorable VR section, I completely freaked out because the exam was super hard (for the PS I think I left 4 blank and and to hurry through 6 of the questions), The verbal I guessed on a whole passage, and by the time the BS science section came I just wanted the exam to end (BS was the easiest section for me). After scoring the exam I was sure that my score would be in the low 20's, but it came back exactly how my AAMC exams were scoring, so they are really great indicators of how you will do on the actual exam.

That's amazing that you want to come back to medicine after almost 10 years, keep up the good work my friend, you will get into a school, just make sure that you take and score the exam when you are ready!

When you say the PS was really hard can you describe in a little more detail?

Here's why I ask... I am going over that Kaplan FL I was complaining about and I am SO mad at myself every question. I KNOW how to do the question once I understand WTH they are asking me. AAMC I am doing ok, but the freaking Kaplan PS I can't make out what exactly they are testing me on. Was the real test PS similar to Kaplan with complex passages and obscure ways of asking simple questions?

 

[jcb123]

When you say the PS was really hard can you describe in a little more detail?

Here's why I ask... I am going over that Kaplan FL I was complaining about and I am SO mad at myself every question. I KNOW how to do the question once I understand WTH they are asking me. AAMC I am doing ok, but the freaking Kaplan PS I can't make out what exactly they are testing me on. Was the real test PS similar to Kaplan with complex passages and obscure ways of asking simple questions?

that's exactly why I ditched Kaplan practice tests. I also disagreed with their wording and answers.

So I went to buy the SAs this morning,,,, forgot that the site would be down. Oh well ill buy them tomorrow.

For people who have taken the self assesments, should I treat them like practice tests? Or is it okay to do them in chunks because they are pretty long?

Im not going to use notes or anything because I want them to be accurate assessments and help me find my knowledge gaps. How did you guys use them?

 

[t5Nitro]

that's exactly why I ditched Kaplan practice tests. I also disagreed with their wording and answers.

So I went to buy the SAs this morning,,,, forgot that the site would be down. Oh well ill buy them tomorrow.

For people who have taken the self assesments, should I treat them like practice tests? Or is it okay to do them in chunks because they are pretty long?

Im not going to use notes or anything because I want them to be accurate assessments and help me find my knowledge gaps. How did you guys use them?

I powered through them with the exception of verbal. You can treat it as 3 (approximately) full length VR sections. But, you won't be able to review them until you submit the test.

 

[Bbqchickenman]

I powered through them with the exception of verbal. You can treat it as 3 (approximately) full length VR sections. But, you won't be able to review them until you submit the test.

How many equivalent PS and BS FLs is it?

 

[t5Nitro]

How many equivalent PS and BS FLs is it?

213 combined physics and chemistry questions. 203 combined biology and organic chemistry questions. The organic chemistry test was short (around 80 questions).

 

[MonsterRehab]

AAMC FL 8 on Friday for me too! Good luck buddy!

I watched the Gold Standard videos at the very beginning of my prep. Sort of like a "warm-up". They do not nearly cover enough material, but Carlton from The Fresh Prince of Bel Air does a pretty good job of simplifying a few topics.

For me, the smartest thing I've done while prepping, has been to take efficient notes every day during content review. This usually made my content review days quite long. My notes themselves are not long, but they are simple ways to help remind me of stuff. This way I can cover all my notes in a relatively short time and keep content from slipping from memory. I also judiciously used several different colored pens and highlighters to coordinate certain topics or ideas within a subject. I found the colors to be a HUGE help in recall, because then it wasn't like trying to remember simple text, it was more like trying to remember a picture.

Yea I definitely agree about the videos being far from encompassing everything. That's interesting about the color coding. Definitely a visual learner here. Will keep that in mind for future reference. How did you do on test 8 btw? I got a 28 again. PS:10 VR:10 BS:8. Not the ratio I was expecting at all. I found the VR harder than previous. I went from flirting with a 12 to a 10. I focused more on bio these past few days and my physics went up. Go figure

 

[inasensegone]

Yea I definitely agree about the videos being far from encompassing everything. That's interesting about the color coding. Definitely a visual learner here. Will keep that in mind for future reference. How did you do on test 8 btw? I got a 28 again. PS:10 VR:10 BS:8. Not the ratio I was expecting at all. I found the VR harder than previous. I went from flirting with a 12 to a 10. I focused more on bio these past few days and my physics went up. Go figure

My composite score on AAMC 8 was the highest its been! I was pretty stoked about that... however I also felt like the verbal was pretty brutal (my verbal wasn't at its peak). That 2nd passage hit my confidence early on during that section and sort of set the stage for the rest of the verbal. It wasn't cool.

 

[Love_Cats_without_the_M]

When you say the PS was really hard can you describe in a little more detail?

Here's why I ask... I am going over that Kaplan FL I was complaining about and I am SO mad at myself every question. I KNOW how to do the question once I understand WTH they are asking me. AAMC I am doing ok, but the freaking Kaplan PS I can't make out what exactly they are testing me on. Was the real test PS similar to Kaplan with complex passages and obscure ways of asking simple questions?

It was just really overwhelming with all the passages being medium-hard in difficulty. I really felt like I got at least 14 wrong and still ended up scoring a 11, so its definitely made up for by the curve. 2 of the passages were verbal like and took me 6-7 minutes to figure out what they were trying to get across.

 

[Bbqchickenman]

It was just really overwhelming with all the passages being medium-hard in difficulty. I really felt like I got at least 14 wrong and still ended up scoring a 11, so its definitely made up for by the curve. 2 of the passages were verbal like and took me 6-7 minutes to figure out what they were trying to get across.

Wow that sounds significantly harder than the practice AAMCs....
You think the passages/questions were more complicated than Kaplan FL?

 

[jcb123]

AAMC 9 today.

something like 12 days left. We are so close guys. SO CLOSE!!!!

 

[MonsterRehab]

AAMC 9 today.

something like 12 days left. We are so close guys. SO CLOSE!!!!

I know, it's going to be strange to have free time again after the test. How close up to the test will you guys take the last FL practice? I was thinking of taking FL 11 3-4 days prior to keep me fluent.

 

[inasensegone]

I know, it's going to be strange to have free time again after the test. How close up to the test will you guys take the last FL practice? I was thinking of taking FL 11 3-4 days prior to keep me fluent.

I'm also taking FL 11 3-4 days prior to the test. I'll be taking FL 9 tomorrow. My countdown timer on my phone does indeed say 12 days left... so much time spent on preparation for such a short test! It's going to be nuts.

 

[ZymurgySurfer]

I know, it's going to be strange to have free time again after the test. How close up to the test will you guys take the last FL practice? I was thinking of taking FL 11 3-4 days prior to keep me fluent.

I'm planning on taking FL 11 this Friday, most things I've read suggest having the week prior to the test be fairly stress free. I will probably just look over some notes/flashcards/equations to keep things fresh. I can't imagine taking a FL 3 days before the test and not achieving the score you were hoping for can have a positive impact come test day.

 

[jcb123]

Just finished #9.

Im probably going to take my last FL (#11) on the Tuesday before the test

 

[inasensegone]

I'm planning on taking FL 11 this Friday, most things I've read suggest having the week prior to the test be fairly stress free. I will probably just look over some notes/flashcards/equations to keep things fresh. I can't imagine taking a FL 3 days before the test and not achieving the score you were hoping for can have a positive impact come test day.

Everyone is different. Personally I perform better under stress. Also, I think if you are already scoring in your target range then taking a FL 3 days before the test isn't going to somehow be detrimental to your confidence on test day even if it isn't your highest score. I know a lot of people advise to be stress free the day before the test, but I'll be damned if I'm not at least skimming all my notes one last time on the day before the test. To me at least, not brushing up on your material the day before the test would be like an athlete that doesn't at least warm up his muscles before a 100 meter sprint. Or like a boxer that isn't getting his heart pumped up before a match. It just doesn't make sense to me to go into lazy mode the day before the main event. To each their own though, I hope your method works very well for you

 

[ZymurgySurfer]

Everyone is different. Personally I perform better under stress. Also, I think if you are already scoring in your target range then taking a FL 3 days before the test isn't going to somehow be detrimental to your confidence on test day even if it isn't your highest score. I know a lot of people advise to be stress free the day before the test, but I'll be damned if I'm not at least skimming all my notes one last time on the day before the test. To me at least, not brushing up on your material the day before the test would be like an athlete that doesn't at least warm up his muscles before a 100 meter sprint. Or like a boxer that isn't getting his heart pumped up before a match. It just doesn't make sense to me to go into lazy mode the day before the main event. To each their own though, I hope your method works very well for you

The idea is that, at this point, you should be ready. Using your running analogy, if you plan on running a marathon on friday (because that's what this test is) you don't want to run 20+ miles in the days leading up to the race. Doing a few problems, reviewing notes, etc. is definitely advisable to keep yourself sharp, but the stress of doing a FL plus the mental metabolic activity that it should take could potentially jeopardize peak performance test day. The idea is to peak at 8am April 11th, not before and not after. To each his own of course, but sometimes forcing yourself to have enough confidence to relax is what performing your best can take, you'll be stressed enough the day of.

 

[BlackbirdFly]

Need some input:

I'm signed up for April 11. I have taken all Kaplan exams, and AAMC 3-9. My scores range from 25-33, with no consistent increase. I have been slowly studying since November as I work full time and can't devote more than 2 hours per day to studying. I know this isn't ideal but its my only option. I really want to get a 30 and I know that I am capable of it, but my scores are just sort of all over the place. I don't really know what to do at this point. I am going to sit for the exam for sure, but I guess what I am asking is what you all are up to in this final stretch. Or what you would do in my situation. I guess I just need some encouragement!!

 

[Love_Cats_without_the_M]

Wow that sounds significantly harder than the practice AAMCs....
You think the passages/questions were more complicated than Kaplan FL?

I feel it was more complicated then some (not all of the Kaplan FL), but its all relative though, I have taken actual AAMC exams 2 times and the second time (July 26th) was WAY harder then the one I took May 30th of last year. My goal here is not to scare anyone, its more to show that even with a test that is super hard you will most likely score what you are scoring on your AAMC practice exams.

 

[Love_Cats_without_the_M]

Need some input:

I'm signed up for April 11. I have taken all Kaplan exams, and AAMC 3-9. My scores range from 25-33, with no consistent increase. I have been slowly studying since November as I work full time and can't devote more than 2 hours per day to studying. I know this isn't ideal but its my only option. I really want to get a 30 and I know that I am capable of it, but my scores are just sort of all over the place. I don't really know what to do at this point. I am going to sit for the exam for sure, but I guess what I am asking is what you all are up to in this final stretch. Or what you would do in my situation. I guess I just need some encouragement!!

What is your average on AAMC exams? if its sub 28 I would strongly recommend voiding and retaking when you are more prepared, unless of course the exam goes your way and you are confident enough in scoring it.

 

[jcb123]

Need some input:

I'm signed up for April 11. I have taken all Kaplan exams, and AAMC 3-9. My scores range from 25-33, with no consistent increase. I have been slowly studying since November as I work full time and can't devote more than 2 hours per day to studying. I know this isn't ideal but its my only option. I really want to get a 30 and I know that I am capable of it, but my scores are just sort of all over the place. I don't really know what to do at this point. I am going to sit for the exam for sure, but I guess what I am asking is what you all are up to in this final stretch. Or what you would do in my situation. I guess I just need some encouragement!!

If your scores vary a lot its probably because of your content knowledge. What I would do at this point is spend one hour looking at all the practice tests you have taken thus far. Analyze your weaknesses what kind of problem do you struggle on (content wise) and study ONLY what you don't know. (sounds obvious but sometimes isn't what ppl do, myself included) We have less than two weeks but by eliminating as many weaknesses as possible you could def see an improvement.

Use the AAMC outlines if you want to be able to check off what you know. Also don't go into major depth with these topics, just make sure you know the most important equations and relationships. This obvs will only be good for the science sections. As far as verbal I have no advice for you (I could use some myself)

That said, in September I was in the exact same boat as you (except my highest FL was only a 32) and I got a 30. SO ITS POSSIBLE! Don't give up!

 

[BlackbirdFly]

What is your average on AAMC exams? if its sub 28 I would strongly recommend voiding and retaking when you are more prepared, unless of course the exam goes your way and you are confident enough in scoring it.

average is like 27.5. I agree, voiding is a definite option. At least I will get a feel for the test taking environment. Also at this point I have taken so many FLs that I can generally tell if I blew it or not!

 

[BlackbirdFly]

If your scores vary a lot its probably because of your content knowledge. What I would do at this point is spend one hour looking at all the practice tests you have taken thus far. Analyze your weaknesses what kind of problem do you struggle on (content wise) and study ONLY what you don't know. (sounds obvious but sometimes isn't what ppl do, myself included) We have less than two weeks but by eliminating as many weaknesses as possible you could def see an improvement.

Use the AAMC outlines if you want to be able to check off what you know. Also don't go into major depth with these topics, just make sure you know the most important equations and relationships. This obvs will only be good for the science sections. As far as verbal I have no advice for you (I could use some myself)

That said, in September I was in the exact same boat as you (except my highest FL was only a 32) and I got a 30. SO ITS POSSIBLE! Don't give up!

THANK YOU this is great advice! I think my fear of this test is making me scatterbrained and I am having a really hard time focusing, I'm too busy trying to get everything done at once.

Edit: WOW I can't believe I haven't already done this, I just made a nice spreadsheet of the topics I missed most frequently. Apparently I have no idea what redox is.... good to know haha

 

[Bbqchickenman]

If your scores vary a lot its probably because of your content knowledge. What I would do at this point is spend one hour looking at all the practice tests you have taken thus far. Analyze your weaknesses what kind of problem do you struggle on (content wise) and study ONLY what you don't know. (sounds obvious but sometimes isn't what ppl do, myself included) We have less than two weeks but by eliminating as many weaknesses as possible you could def see an improvement.

Use the AAMC outlines if you want to be able to check off what you know. Also don't go into major depth with these topics, just make sure you know the most important equations and relationships. This obvs will only be good for the science sections. As far as verbal I have no advice for you (I could use some myself)

That said, in September I was in the exact same boat as you (except my highest FL was only a 32) and I got a 30. SO ITS POSSIBLE! Don't give up!

Thanks @Love_Cats_without_the_M that's good info. How about you @jcb123 , when you took it did you feel the real deal was similar in the approach to questions on the AAMC practice tests (qualitative questions/answers in physics and chem)? Or was it math and/or heavy on critical thinking to figure out what they want you to solve for?

 

[jcb123]

Thanks @Love_Cats_without_the_M that's good info. How about you @jcb123 , when you took it did you feel the real deal was similar in the approach to questions on the AAMC practice tests (qualitative questions/answers in physics and chem)? Or was it math and/or heavy on critical thinking to figure out what they want you to solve for?

Yes, I would say it is similar to AAMC practice tests. Honestly don't remember too many details about qualitative versus calculation question content of it.

I would agree with people that the real thing does feel harder than the AAMC FLs, BUT I don't think that necessarily means it actually IS harder. Meaning maybe its the pressure of taking the real exam makes it feel this way or even if it is harder I think the scale compensates for it. Its important to remember that they are not testing you on something you don't know/ haven't studied for. Its the same information presented in a different way.

As far as knowing what to solve for I don't remember that being an issue but that might be just me. In test situations I tend to either know it or I don't. That's most of the reason why I finish science sections with a good chunk of time left over.

 

[Love_Cats_without_the_M]

Has anyone done the kaplan q bank? I just tried it for PS and a lot of the questions had a verbal feel, they also had a lot of questions associated with each passage and for the most part were very difficult for me, anyone else have a similar experience?

 

[mspeedwagon]

Looks like I'm back in play. I learned that taking tests two or three days apart from each other is definitely not a non-trad friendly strategy (probably could have done it when I was in school, and will be ready to do it again in med school, but just getting my feet wet here). In retrospect, I should have taken one a weekend for a while. I'll burn through AAMC 11 and then save the others for a possible re-take.

@Love_Cats_without_the_M: I've done many q-bank questions for Biology and think they are of comparable level to the Kaplan Full Lengths. I'll be doing quite a few Physics + G-Chem in the next few days so I'll let you know (granted, I know you are aiming for a much higher score). Per my instructor, q-bank passage based questions tend to on the medium / harder end of the spectrum.

 

[jcb123]

Where's everyone at with their FLs and review?
I've got 2 more FLs coming up after I finish the SAs.
I want to raise my overall score by 4 more points on practice test. Then whatever happens on test day happens.

 

[Bbqchickenman]

Where's everyone at with their FLs and review?
I've got 2 more FLs coming up after I finish the SAs.
I want to raise my overall score by 4 more points on practice test. Then whatever happens on test day happens.

I am sitting here thinkin about how to tackle the SAs... its sooo long wth. And the worst part is there are no answers anywhere online where I can review as I go. It's like 15 hours of material...and then review. Worth it?

 

[d1vald]

What I did is submitted random answers for one test. And opened another one and used it as practice passages. Hope that makes sense lol

 

[ZymurgySurfer]

Where's everyone at with their FLs and review?
I've got 2 more FLs coming up after I finish the SAs.
I want to raise my overall score by 4 more points on practice test. Then whatever happens on test day happens.

I've got two FL's left as well, just finished up a Bio and an Orgo study guide to nail down the finer points. My scores on the AAMC FLs has been fairly consistent and in my target range, hoping to bring it up a bit on the next two just to buffer for any variability on exam day. Then its time to take a break and put all this bio & chem knowledge into brewing golden delicious beer.

 

[jcb123]

I am sitting here thinkin about how to tackle the SAs... its sooo long wth. And the worst part is there are no answers anywhere online where I can review as I go. It's like 15 hours of material...and then review. Worth it?

I'm just treating it as fresh material that I haven't seen before. I want to eliminate some content gaps and tell if my FL scores are inflated because I took them before.

Idk how worth it they are but I think a lot of ppl on here said they are good.

I've got two FL's left as well, just finished up a Bio and an Orgo study guide to nail down the finer points. My scores on the AAMC FLs has been fairly consistent and in my target range, hoping to bring it up a bit on the next two just to buffer for any variability on exam day. Then its time to take a break and put all this bio & chem knowledge into brewing golden delicious beer.

I like ur plan.

 

[Bbqchickenman]

What I did is submitted random answers for one test. And opened another one and used it as practice passages. Hope that makes sense lol

Interesting approach. Once you start a retake SA Can you then look at what you answered on previous retakes for that section? Cuz then at the end I could enter all my previous answers and still get their "analysis."

 

[jcb123]

Interesting approach. Once you start a retake SA Can you then look at what you answered on previous retakes for that section? Cuz then at the end I could enter all my previous answers and still get their "analysis."

I just bought the SAs it says u can only take it once but u can review as many times as u want

 

[amonty144]

If you have Kaplan you can retake as many times as you wish, if you don't have kaplan course access then I don't know how it works..have it heard that you can only take it once.

 

[inasensegone]

What I did is submitted random answers for one test. And opened another one and used it as practice passages. Hope that makes sense lol

OMG DON'T DO THIS ON THE SELF ASSESSMENTS FROM AAMC!!!!

You can only take the Self-Assessments from AAMC ONCE. Love_Cats already previously suggested doing the same thing, but I think they must both be using Kaplan because you CANNOT do the test twice from AAMC. Their instructions are pretty explicit about that.

Where's everyone at with their FLs and review?
I've got 2 more FLs coming up after I finish the SAs.
I want to raise my overall score by 4 more points on practice test. Then whatever happens on test day happens.

I've got 2 FLs left (10 & 11). So close!

I am sitting here thinkin about how to tackle the SAs... its sooo long wth. And the worst part is there are no answers anywhere online where I can review as I go. It's like 15 hours of material...and then review. Worth it?

I would honestly just do 1 a day. They really aren't that bad. Time yourself and keep the pressure on to get them done fast. I did this and my timing on the FL's has been excellent. Since I've started my practice, I've been timing every single problem with a stop watch and it really helped IMO.

 

[jcb123]

74% on physics SA. I feel like this probably would have gone better if I tried to simulate testing more instead of going on facebook between each passage.

 

[amonty144]

Anyone done TBR Full lengths? How did you like those?

 

[inasensegone]

74% on physics SA. me feel like this probably would have gone better if me treid to simulate testing more instead of going on facebook between each passage.

LOL... yeah probably not the best usage of the self assessment. We only have 10 days left. I wouldn't start dawdling now.

 

[Love_Cats_without_the_M]

Is it just me or has everyone's comments changed to a more "Pirate" like feel?

 

[Bbqchickenman]

74% on physics SA. me feel like this probably would have gone better if me treid to simulate testing more instead of going on facebook between each passage.

About to do 2/3 marathon of that physics SA now.gonna leave a few passages for a FL sim.