10 Days out...how am I looking?

[hanzz]

---

Members don't see this ad.

I'm done with Kaplan and so far I've done Kaplan FL 1 & 2, and AAMC 3.

FL 1: 29 (P11,V8,B10)
FL 2: 32 (P12,V11,B9)
AAMC 3: 29 (P10,V11,B8)

Is that slight drop in AAMC to be expected? I thought the questions were a lot easier than Kaplan's, but I guess either I've been depending too much on Kaplan's curve or I overthought the easy questions. Is it realistic for me to get up to the mid to upper 30s (35-36, that kind of range)? How were some of you guys's scores 10 days out in comparison to your final scores? I plan on doing a new practice test a day until test day. Should I focus more on the AAMC's?

Thank you!

(Oh, and my Kaplan diagnostic was a 24, so I'm glad I got out of that scare!)

 

[coyfish]

I'm done with Kaplan and so far I've done Kaplan FL 1 & 2, and AAMC 3.

FL 1: 29 (P11,V8,B10)
FL 2: 32 (P12,V11,B9)
AAMC 3: 29 (P10,V11,B8)

Is that slight drop in AAMC to be expected? I thought the questions were a lot easier than Kaplan's, but I guess either I've been depending too much on Kaplan's curve or I overthought the easy questions. Is it realistic for me to get up to the mid to upper 30s (35-36, that kind of range)? How were some of you guys's scores 10 days out in comparison to your final scores? I plan on doing a new practice test a day until test day. Should I focus more on the AAMC's?

Thank you!

(Oh, and my Kaplan diagnostic was a 24, so I'm glad I got out of that scare!)

The AAMC's are the closest thing to the real MCAT so take all of those at a minimum. You have only taken 3 which is arguably the easiest so it is pretty futile to draw any conclusions yet.

 

[apoptosis123]

Definitely focus more on AAMC's. Kaplan curves are really unrealistic. I got a 34 on FL1, 33 on FL2, 30 on AAMC3 and 32 on AAMC4, so there's definitely some score inflation.

If you want to get into the upper 30's you better get busy on AAMC's and extra practice passages. Just don't burn yourself out right before test day.

 

[J ROD]

You look closer to a 30 than 35..........

 

[crazyasian]

A 35 is a big jump from 29. Take AAMC 7-10 and see how well you do. They are alot tougher, and should give you a more realistic idea of how you stand. If you don't get above a 35 on one of those, then I think it is highly unlikely that you will do so on the real thing (though not impossible). If needed don't be afraid to push the test date back to get the score you want. Its better to lose some time, then to try to explain a low mcat score.

 

[hanzz]

Thanks guys, sorry for starting a whole thread about me, me, me, but you all seem really nice. My best sections have added up to 33, and I feel like that's only a little bit of a jump away from a 34 or 35, which is of course easier said than done, but hopefully now that I'm a little more used to the AAMC format that I can rock it a little more?

What kinds of improvements have people seen in the last 10 days?

 

[LUCPM]

If you carefully analyze what you missed on AAMC 3 and do the rest of AAMC FLs (especially the recent ones, 7 - 10) the same way, I would say it is possible to bring that score up. Just my .02 cents.

 

[hanzz]

Hey all! Just wanted to update y'all on my progress. Yesterday I took AAMC 4 and got 32 (P10,V11,B11), and today I took AAMC 5 and got 35 (P12,V12,B11). I think I'm getting the feel for the kinks of the AAMC tests, so I really hope I can just keep this momentum up. Also, I've basically tossed all the Kaplan strategies I've learned out the window, so I don't passage map or triage the passages. I'm reading the passages instead like a good book and just highlighting liberally. I do still follow the Kaplegy of discretes first and predicting an answer as best I can before seeing the choices. I guess it's just all about figuring out what works for you. What's the general opinion regarding the difficulty of these last two AAMC's I've taken?

 

[crazyasian]

Those are some very nice scores. In my opinion AAMC 4 is similar to 3 (I did very well on it when I used it as my initial diagnostic). I think 5 was a little harder, but still pretty easy. 4 and 5 are much more straightforward than 7-10 and the real thing. But a 35 is still a very good place to be sitting at. Good luck on your upcoming exam. I'm sure you will do well.

 

[alopathik]

my first diagnostic i got 23. 7/10/6.

about a month before the exam i was scoring around 33-34.

two weeks before the exam i scored 31.

a week before the exam i scored 35.

took the exam in july and got a 37.

sometimes your score will dip before your exam but try to finish strong about a week before. then just take individual sections. about 3 days before my MCAT I got a 13 on verbal. checked my score on august 10th - got a 13.

not sure what i'm trying to say here...just don't stress!! you'll do fine. it's just a test. the worst thing that can happen is you have to take it again.