Worth it to do TBR Verbal Book??

ps I still have the EK 101 book so its not like I do not have any verbal material.

ThatDude said:

ps I still have the EK 101 book so its not like I do not have any verbal material.

Click to expand...

I started with the BR verbal but found it to be bad, very bad. EK seems to be a lot better. Stick with that.

what was so bad about them??

ThatDude said:

what was so bad about them??

Click to expand...

Questions are worded poorly, answer explanations are several paragraphs sometimes. Their verbal just doesn't seem to flow like EK's or TPR's.

If you have it, might as well use it. However, try to go through it first since it's not as good as TPRH or EK. So for 2 days use BR, then 1 day of EK, followed by 2 of BR, etc.

ThatDude said:

I have about 2.5 months left until the May 1 MCAT. I still have to go through the TBR Books for both chemistry sections and all of the EK 1001 books and I want to go through as many practice tests as humanly possible. I heard a couple people say that the TBR Verbal sucked so I wasn't sure whether or not to do it, and when I look at it, its a huge book and I feel like the oportunity cost of the time spent on doing that book is pretty high. Is it worth it to do this book or should I just do more practice tests (which also obviously will give me verbal practice).

Click to expand...

The TBR passages are dense, well thought out and challenging. The question stems, to me, were the problem. Some of the questions (and answer choices) are so lengthy that you forget what the question is asking. I mean, the questions have layers of information that is just not representative of the AAMCs in my view. However, this far out from the test I would still use a few of them. Just ditch them at least 1 month prior to gameday for both realism and confidence.

Oh, and don't even trip on finishing a 40 question segment in 60 minutes. It is just not feasible or helpful. I would suggest 3-5 passages max in one sitting for the TBR Book. If anything, that book is a stamina builder. If you can do a passage every 8.5-9.0 minutes you are good for the TBR book. You need to aim closer to 7.0.-7.5 for the AAMCs.

The TBR CBT verbal is more representative, but almost goes too far in the other direction. Many of the answers can be gleaned directly from the passage, unlike the more nuanced AAMCs and EK 101. Nevertheless, the scores I got on the TBR CBTs were an accurate predictor of my score on the real thing.

Any other thoughts?

bump.

if i've used all TPRH, EK, and AAMC would TBR be my next best bet? I also have all the Kaplan exams but haven't used them because I always hear bad things about their verbal.

i've already taken the MCAT but I need to retake because i got a 7 on verbal..I was averaging a 9 on the AAMC tests.

also, what do you guys think of this strategy....redoing all my old verbal but more so just for TIMING and not for scores. For instance, redoing passages and trying to complete them in 6 minutes (and if I don't, just move on). Just to nail down timing....

ilayawake said:

bump.

if i've used all TPRH, EK, and AAMC would TBR be my next best bet? I also have all the Kaplan exams but haven't used them because I always hear bad things about their verbal.

i've already taken the MCAT but I need to retake because i got a 7 on verbal..I was averaging a 9 on the AAMC tests.

also, what do you guys think of this strategy....redoing all my old verbal but more so just for TIMING and not for scores. For instance, redoing passages and trying to complete them in 6 minutes (and if I don't, just move on). Just to nail down timing....

Click to expand...

Well BR's the only thing you have left. Kaplan verbal is on par with BR's or possibly slightly better of late. However, since your Kaplan verbal is in its FLs, don't take them. Take the Kaplan FLs as FLs later on.

Redoing any passages for timing is pointless because you've seen them already and worked through them. You need to practice under realistic testing conditions. Everyone would do much better on the MCAT if they gave you the test beforehand to work through.

For a better, more thorough explanation:

Should I retake FL X?

I don't suggest it for a few reasons. First, your score will be inflated. This alone negates the predictive power of the test. If you don't need it to gauge where you are, fine, retake them. For instance, you could simply be going over the problems again to, as others have mentioned, understand the thinking behind it. However, if you are using it as a practice FL, don't.

One of the most important aspects of a FL is that it's material you've never seen before. It forces you to quickly analyze an unknown passage, tap into your knowledge, and answer questions you've never seen. If you knew exactly what was going to be on the test, it would take away from the somewhat frantic experience of getting that weird passage. It also makes you more relaxed overall because you know what's coming. Unfortunately, you will not have the luxury of either on the test. You will have to deal with weird passages. You will have to get out of your comfort zone of knowing what's ahead.

Then, you get into the timing issues which you MUST get down before the test. When you have prior knowledge of the material, you miss the chance at gaining more experience with the clock. Too many people underestimate the effect of the timer. Again, you have to get used to it and retaking problems won't help.

Think of the whole thing like sports practice. Sure, you go over some standard plays again and again to get a feel for them. However, to practice for a real game, you have a scrimmage match or an exhibition game. The other team doesn't tell you what plays they're going to run. If they did, it would eliminate the usefulness of the scrimmage or exhibition game.

SN2ed said:

Well BR's the only thing you have left. Kaplan verbal is on par with BR's or possibly slightly better of late. However, since your Kaplan verbal is in its FLs, don't take them. Take the Kaplan FLs as FLs later on.

Click to expand...

Is this referring to later Kaplan FLs (6-11) or their workbook practices (if they have one)?
Also, any thoughts on their verbal sectional tests? Are they worth doing, instead of BR? Or are the FL verbals the only solid practice materials they have?
Thanks.