09/13/08 MCAT Club

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haha, yea i almost missed the rest of that table too, and i thought verbal was pretty hard...the passages on PS and BS were ok

man, though the test center i was at was bad...the doorman was an ass to me before and after the test, so hopefully i dont have to retake the test
 
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js1227 said:
haha, yea i almost missed the rest of that table too, and i thought verbal was pretty hard...the passages on PS and BS were ok

man, though the test center i was at was bad...the doorman was an ass to me before and after the test, so hopefully i dont have to retake the test
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The doorman? Did you take the test in Manhattan?
 
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During the BS section my screen froze😱 I freaked out haha, I was thinking I would have to retake the section, or the whole test, or my MCAT score would be screwed altogether. Luckily, I had only 5 minutes left and I was just checking answers, but they were able to restart the test at the same point it left off at, and all my answers were saved. But that definitely freaked me out a little bit.

Also, in the morning, my ride to the exam arrived 20 minutes late! But we still got there early, but that got my blood pressure going up a little haha.
 
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so on average, what is the consensus on this exam?

i personally felt like it was difficult, but since everyone finds it not so bad, does this mean a bad curve?
 
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I though the PS was way too easy. The BS was a little harder than normal, it had really long question stems, resembled VR too much, studying was a complete waste of time for this section. The VR was the most brutal one I have ever seen. I did all the AAMCs and no VR compared to this one. The main problem was passage length and question stem length were much longer than aamc 3-10. If i have to redo, it'll be because of VR!
 
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I found the PS to be tricky. Different than the AAMCs in its feel. Not sure if I can put my finger on it yet. This is the one I'm probably most worried about (especially since its usually my better section).

Verbal I found to be pretty reasonable. Similar to AAMC9 and 10 I think. We'll see.

BS wasn't too bad. Really heavy on molecular genetics and biology. That wasn't a bad thing for me though. We spent a significant amount of time discussing GFP and luciferase in my molecular bio class, so I was glad to see those passages. There were a couple of WTH questions though...(the circadian rhythm discrete?).

Holler1, don't worry. Remember, the folks that post on SDN are a self-selected group and tend to be above average. Let's just see how things fall. I hear that others performance on the test that day has very little impact overall.
 
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I sat for yesterdays exam. Bio which is usually my strongest section, gave me a good beating.

PS- Equivalent or easier than AAMC.

VR- Equivalent/somewhat harder than AAMC.

BS- Definitely harder than AAMC and TPR. The 2nd Ochem passage I couldn't interpret, some of the middle bio passages were twice as long as my practice tests. And in reality a lot of this crap you didn't have to have knowledge base for, it was a matter of strictly shifting through the passage in a mad dash, trying to connect a sentence in paragraph one with another sentence in paragraph 4 to obtain the answer.

In a side note- the way this test is set up is friggin ridiculous. The main thing I feel like I'm being tested on is not scientific knowledge or critical thinking, but how fast I can take a test. Which in my opinion is totally ****in irrelevant to becoming an excellent doc. Anyways cheers to this ridiculous process we're all currently a part of.
 
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This was my first time, here's my take on it:

PS: There were a lot of relatively easy questions, but just as many tricky questions. I felt really uneasy coming out of this section, and some of the discrete questions, like the one on the running child/frequency, were confusing, but I'm sure some people liked this section.

VR: Ridiculous. I thought the passages were so unbelievably long, and the question stems took me so long to read. The answer choices were obviously all so similar, but I felt this was definitely worse than the AAMC and harder/trickier than EK 101 (which surprised me as I thought those were supposed to be the hardest ones).

WS: I made up so much BS, I blanked and couldn't think of just one example so I could very well end up with a J-N on this section even though english is my first language.

BS: I felt much better about the passages because I think a good amount of information was given, and there were only a few little things you had to have memorized. I honestly thought the discretes were much more difficult, I definitely guessed on a few here.

Overall, I thought the test was definitely more difficult than any AAMC test I took, and am thus worried. I honestly feel like my score could be anywhere in a 10 pt. range, with the low end in the 20s. Ugh. Definitely retaking sometime in April, but not looking forward to having to study during the school year. Good luck to everyone who took it...
 
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Personally thought this was the easiest MCAT(if there is such a thing) I took so far out of the 14 practice exams and the real thing on 8/5. I breezed through it and found most of the answers directly in the passages (more than usual). Felt like I probably got in the high 30s. Also, I would agree that this exam probably will carry a relatively weak curve.
 
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Turkelton said:
I sat for yesterdays exam. Bio which is usually my strongest section, gave me a good beating.

PS- Equivalent or easier than AAMC.

VR- Equivalent/somewhat harder than AAMC.

BS- Definitely harder than AAMC and TPR. The 2nd Ochem passage I couldn't interpret, some of the middle bio passages were twice as long as my practice tests. And in reality a lot of this crap you didn't have to have knowledge base for, it was a matter of strictly shifting through the passage in a mad dash, trying to connect a sentence in paragraph one with another sentence in paragraph 4 to obtain the answer.

In a side note- the way this test is set up is friggin ridiculous. The main thing I feel like I'm being tested on is not scientific knowledge or critical thinking, but how fast I can take a test. Which in my opinion is totally ****in irrelevant to becoming an excellent doc. Anyways cheers to this ridiculous process we're all currently a part of.
Click to expand...

I agree 100% and also found this whole exam to be mostly a matter of quickly reading the passages then applying what you comprehended. Though in being able to completely comprehend the passages quickly you also gotta have a good scientific base.
 
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Further Comments on 9/13 test.

PS: It is true there were a lot of relatively easy questions as well as many tricky ones. Those tricky ones would probable differentiate test takers. On the level of difficulty, it is on par with AAMCs.

VB: It is not easy, long passages, looks similar with AAMCs, it is up to the air to each individuals.

W: Many think it is normal, i agree, and comfortable with the prompt.

BS: Bio/Org distribution is normal at 75/25%. But in the Bio part, there have been definitely some shifts from 50/50 to 80/20% for Mol-Bio-Genetics/Physiology distribution since this summer. This test has even less physiology, 10% or less I think, it is a surprise to me. Even more, passages look more conceptual based. This would benefit someone with good undergraduate study of Bio/Genetics with a strong science backgroud. Physiology would benefit to thoese with longer preparation, good memorization, personal experiences/exposure in the medical industry. If this shift continues, then it is worth for future test takers to pay notice. If treats BS as a science test, I would think this change is proper. In term of difficulty, I would say it is probably the same with AAMCs.

Curve: I notice many post test comments from 9/12 board are similar with ours in term of test style/format/content. Since 9/13 is a relative small pool, shall we be curved togather with 9/12 test takers? I know MCAT curve is always a mystery, someone can explain?
 
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WW2010 said:
Curve: I notice many post test comments from 9/12 board are similar with ours in term of test style/format/content. Since 9/13 is a relative small pool, shall we be curved togather with 9/12 test takers? I know MCAT curve is always a mystery, someone can explain?
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It's my understanding that the curve is decided ahead of time. Here's the link to the curve discussion:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=505032
 
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There's a better curve discussion thread somewhere where myself and Berkreview teach both talked about it. I can't find it right now, but if someone does please send me the link!

In the thread that is posted here, there is one thing I said wrong. The curve is not completely set before you sit down. It's built on a constantly expanding data pool: So the data from the examinees of 2007 and some years prior who also took your MCAT series will be used with the data from your test date in the current year to generate a new curve. So most of your curve is set before you sit down for you exam, but the current year's examinees do have some effect on the curve.
 
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Vihsadas said:
There's a better curve discussion thread somewhere where myself and Berkreview teach both talked about it. I can't find it right now, but if someone does please send me the link!

In the thread that is posted here, there is one thing I said wrong. The curve is not completely set before you sit down. It's built on a constantly expanding data pool: So the data from the examinees of 2007 and some years prior who also took your MCAT series will be used with the data from your test date in the current year to generate a new curve. So most of your curve is set before you sit down for you exam, but the current year's examinees do have some effect on the curve.
Click to expand...

Do you mean this link? http://forums.studentdoctor.net/archive/index.php/t-438828.html
 
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PS: were very passage based and I missed some ridiculousy easy things like those 2 blocks or that God damn voltage passage.

VR: First passage took me about 12 mins and just screwed up. Very long though. Much longer than what I've seen.

BS: Once again very very passage based. The ochem question was wierd and very time consuming attemting to scroll. It was like the first time a gave a practice test and only needed info from the Passages. I might as well have just practiced by doing passages only.
 
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I too, finished ahead of time for this mcat and found it pretty straight forward. From what i heard about the difficulty and curve, I fear that the curve would force me to take this exam again.
 
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OMG, I can't believe how freaked out I am to get my scores! I think I'm more nervous for that than I was to actually write the darn thing.:scared:
 
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Mcan said:
Does anyone know how the real mcat is compared to kaplan and examkrackers practices? Especially for the verbal section. THX!!
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In my opinion, EK sciences were way harder than real thing, but then, again, EK states that they ask harder questions to prepare ppl for the real thing. As for Kaplan, I thought their Bio and Phys were also harder than the real thing, but their verbal was comparable to the exam.

Btw, does anyone know if they release the CBT scores slightly earlier than it is stated on the website. I remember that for my first exam, I was able to get the scores a 3 days earlier than they stated it would be posted.
 
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yeah, i'm getting nervous already. for some reason, i'm also starting to worry that I may have voided my test accidentally???:scared:
 
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We are the last ones to receive those magic scores this year, a little nervous now...., Hope we could have some nice curves for the year end... Good luck every one!!!

Prediction:

PS - 13-14
VR - 11-12
BS - 12-13

I am just praying ==> 38+..... and I will apply MSTP 2010.
 
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i am quivering with anticipation. while i thought i did well, i know the curve, and my overestimation will surely disappoint me come the day the scores are released.
 
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i definetly thought the sept 13 test was much harder than the july 18 test...


and in general i thought the biological sciences was much harder than aamc. im so scared, mostly as the general consensus is that the curve is going to be tough considering others found it easy...


...should i loose hope right now?
...i know the answer is no...
...but i really can't help it
 
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holler01 said:
i definetly thought the sept 13 test was much harder than the july 18 test...


and in general i thought the biological sciences was much harder than aamc. im so scared, mostly as the general consensus is that the curve is going to be tough considering others found it easy...


...should i loose hope right now?
...i know the answer is no...
...but i really can't help it
Click to expand...

Holler, the student doctor forum consists mainly of high achievers. Those who do well, or thought they did well, will certainly be the ones who posted in the forum. For every person who said they did well, there would be twenty or more who thought they did poorly and did not. So if a small group within the forum said they did well, and the test was easy, i would look at it with a great deal of skepticism. The perception of most people - to put mildly- is skewed. Lets' wait and see. best of luck!
 
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Waiting for MCAt result is killin me, I hope I get 0,0,0 K , it is far better than my last MCAt 32P , at least I can tell myself that i am stupid and I live my life, I accpted in dentistry last year with only study for DAT for 3 days , got 90% in DAT , but this MCAT seems impossible, I just need a 9 in my verbal, PLZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ GOD give me:scared: a 9, last MCAT 12/12/8P, I dunno waht should I do if I get a 8 or less in verbal, I dont have any other tests , 🙁 going to a party tomarrow night I feel so bi-polar right now😀a little bit crazyyyyyyyyyyyy:laugh:
 
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goat1360 said:
Waiting for MCAt result is killin me, I hope I get 0,0,0 K , it is far better than my last MCAt 32P , at least I can tell myself that i am stupid and I live my life, I accpted in dentistry last year with only study for DAT for 3 days , got 90% in DAT , but this MCAT seems impossible, I just need a 9 in my verbal, PLZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ GOD give me:scared: a 9, last MCAT 12/12/8P, I dunno waht should I do if I get a 8 or less in verbal, I dont have any other tests , 🙁 going to a party tomarrow night I feel so bi-polar right now😀a little bit crazyyyyyyyyyyyy:laugh:
Click to expand...

Don't worry. You'll get at LEAST a 1,1,1,K :laugh:

J/K. You'll be fine!!!
 
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goat1360 said:
Waiting for MCAt result is killin me, I hope I get 0,0,0 K , it is far better than my last MCAt 32P , at least I can tell myself that i am stupid and I live my life, I accpted in dentistry last year with only study for DAT for 3 days , got 90% in DAT , but this MCAT seems impossible, I just need a 9 in my verbal, PLZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ GOD give me:scared: a 9, last MCAT 12/12/8P, I dunno waht should I do if I get a 8 or less in verbal, I dont have any other tests , 🙁 going to a party tomarrow night I feel so bi-polar right now😀a little bit crazyyyyyyyyyyyy:laugh:
Click to expand...


Yeh, I feel like you too, esp after going through app process twice now. I know I messed up on the MCAT the first time, but I still scored decent enough where everyone said it was okay to apply. However, I didnt get in and figured I would retake it since I had realistic chance of improvement. Good luck with it.
 
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Hey Batman1983, I saw ur MD applicant profile, u wrote u are persian, lol Me too, I live in Canada, we dont have alot of persian doctors here😳 good to see another persian want to be Doc, good luckkkk:luck::hardy:
 
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don't you worry my friend... sooner or later it works out one way or the other! Easy said than done - but I am living it! I thought I would not be able to do anything else but med school. Point is - keep your dream alive, if its meant to be, it will... however, in the mean time work on plan B - took me years to learn this!

Good luck to everyone here... I have my fingers crossed not only for I, but for everyone here and everywhere!


holler01 said:
i definetly thought the sept 13 test was much harder than the july 18 test...


and in general i thought the biological sciences was much harder than aamc. im so scared, mostly as the general consensus is that the curve is going to be tough considering others found it easy...


...should i loose hope right now?
...i know the answer is no...
...but i really can't help it
Click to expand...
 
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goat1360 said:
Hey Batman1983, I saw ur MD applicant profile, u wrote u are persian, lol Me too, I live in Canada, we dont have alot of persian doctors here😳 good to see another persian want to be Doc, good luckkkk:luck::hardy:
Click to expand...

Thanks and good luck with your apps as well. Maybe I should move to Canada, cuz there are way too many in the states. Plus, Canada kicks ass. I work for a canadian company, and have been to Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, and Niagara, which was totally different than what I was expecting 🙂. They are pretty cool cities.
 
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hammer2hammer said:
don't you worry my friend... sooner or later it works out one way or the other! Easy said than done - but I am living it! I thought I would not be able to do anything else but med school. Point is - keep your dream alive, if its meant to be, it will... however, in the mean time work on plan B - took me years to learn this!

Good luck to everyone here... I have my fingers crossed not only for I, but for everyone here and everywhere!
Click to expand...

I took it on the July 10th and then on the sept. 13th. I felt that PS was real easy on the sept 13th but both VR and BS kicked my butt. Much harder than the July 10th!:meanie:
 
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10/13 is Columbus Holiday, We might get scores on Tuesday or Wednsday, On the otherside Sept 12/13 are dates with the fewest test takers in the year so AAMC can finish grading writing earlier and we might get scores a day earlier..?
 
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I'm hella nervous right now. :scared:

Has anyone else not submitted there amcas?

I know it's late but i wanted to see my scores before submitting so I don't waste time and money on schools I might not have I shot at. I felt really good about this one though so we'll see (hoping to get 35+ after getting a 27).

Good Luck to everyone. 😉
 
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Good luck all!

And aaron, I submitted my amcas last friday... so yeah, there are still some of us diving across the finish line last-minute 😛
 
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Hey,

I though the PS was pretty easy and I got through it pretty quickly.

For the verbal, I finished all the passages, but I had no time to check anything over.

For the BS, i though it was OK. There was a lot of O. Chem on it (my weak point), so I am a little worried about that.

Overall, I think I did OK on it.

Do you guys think there will be a harsh curve?

and

What is the average delay in MCAT scores? like, I know that scores are released on Oct 14, but how many days may I have to wait to get my scores?

Thanks
 
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hey all. i'm waiting to see my scores from 9/13 too... they're not up as of 10 seconds ago 😛. please post here if you've gotten your scores so i can hurry my butt up and check again.

good luck everyone!
 
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