Waste to Retake AAMC Exams?

[ymartino]

Is it a waste to retake previous AAMC exams? I took AAMC #7 and scored a demoralizing 23. I know I must review my mistakes, but would it be a waste to retake the exact same exam in say 2-3 weeks? I don't want to simply memorize the correct answer and get an inflated score, but I also don't want to repeat my mistakes. What's your opinion?

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[justadream]

Take it if you want to see if you really understood whether you now understand the concepts in the passages but don't put any faith into your score (even if you got 144/144 = 45, that means absolutely nothing).

 

[Aerus]

No, it's a waste. Instead, do intense post-phrasing and go over in depth all the questions you missed, why you missed them, then do practice problems and passages related to the topics that you missed. There's better things to use your time with that retaking questions and passages that you've already seen.

 

[ymartino]

No, it's a waste. Instead, do intense post-phrasing and go over in depth all the questions you missed, why you missed them, then do practice problems and passages related to the topics that you missed. There's better things to use your time with that retaking questions and passages that you've already seen.

Alright, thanks for your input. Also, when getting a question wrong, what do you recommend is the best way to ensure you understand it? I so often times read the question and think "Oh, it was a silly misunderstanding" or "I just phrased in wrong in my head", when I may actually not understand it at all. Or worse, I will review it, tell myself I will never make the mistake again only to make the mistake again another several times.

Also, do you review multiple times your wrong Q's and A's? I write all my wrong answers in a notebook and their explanations, but after looking at it that particular day, I never really review it again.