Acing the PCAT the first time

[moi]

So I was talking to this guy who works as a tech at the pharmacy I volunteer at, and he took the PCAT in June for the 3rd time and made a 73 composite, which was a big improvement over his previous two scores. This has got me worried - I'm taking it for the first time in October, and it's the only shot I've got since it's the latest score a lot of the schools I'm applying to will accept.

So, basically, I was wondering if it's unrealistic to hope to do well (>85 composite) the first time? Have any of you done that well the first time and, if so, how did you prepare for it, and for how long did you prepare?

Thanks!

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[DJ_Pop_N'_Fresh]

So I was talking to this guy who works as a tech at the pharmacy I volunteer at, and he took the PCAT in June for the 3rd time and made a 73 composite, which was a big improvement over his previous two scores. This has got me worried - I'm taking it for the first time in October, and it's the only shot I've got since it's the latest score a lot of the schools I'm applying to will accept.

So, basically, I was wondering if it's unrealistic to hope to do well (>85 composite) the first time? Have any of you done that well the first time and, if so, how did you prepare for it, and for how long did you prepare?

Thanks!

It's definitely not impossible to get that high your first time taking it. I just took the test for the first time in June and I ended up with a 96 composite.

The best advice I can give you is to buy the 2006-07 Kaplan PCAT book and use that along with your lecture notes/textbooks from your math and science courses to review. Also, try and start reviewing early, since studying an hour or two each day is a lot better than trying to cram the week before the exam.

 

[Hosstheboss]

You can cram the night before and do well though too if thats how you study. I did it and got a 95 composite.

 

[moi]

It's definitely not impossible to get that high your first time taking it. I just took the test for the first time in June and I ended up with a 96 composite.

The best advice I can give you is to buy the 2006-07 Kaplan PCAT book and use that along with your lecture notes/textbooks from your math and science courses to review. Also, try and start reviewing early, since studying an hour or two each day is a lot better than trying to cram the week before the exam.

Thanks! I feel so encouraged. I've started studying for it - a little studying over a long period of time works better for me than studying a lot over a couple of days.

I just bought the Kaplan book last week - has a lot of information! I think my weakness is going to be time - on the diagnostic test, I only got halfway through the Math and Chemistry sections

 

[dvilla56]

i took the test for the first time in june and did really well. def go over the kaplan's book and know that stuff really well. also go over more calculus and orgo and you should do fine. if u have trouble with time, try to get as many practice tests and time yourself. i found a couple of pcat books in my local library that i used. good luck.

 

[moi]

Thanks everyone for your input!

 

[RachGator]

I took the January '06 test for Fall '06 admissions and was blessed to get a 99 composite the first and only time I could take the test. I used a South Florida based prep class that emphasized taking practice exams and timing. The info in the prep books should prepare you so just work on timing. In prep for Orgo we focused on naming compounds, recognizing what type it is (alcohol, ester, alkane, etc.), and reactions like Markovnikov (spelling?) and anti-Markovnikov. For bio we studied a good amount of A&P. Good luck !

 

[rxlynn]

Hi - I got a 98 composite the first time. My big recommendation for you is to make sure that you do plenty of timed practice test sections ahead of time. You need to know how it will feel when you have 15 math questions left, and you have 3 minutes left to finish the section. Have a strategy in place for how you will mark/find the questions you want to go back to. Be sure that you fill in some answer for every question before time is called. Part of doing well on this test is being able to manage your time well.

As far as content, I liked the Kaplan book, although I thought the chemistry section was much more computational than the actual test. Unless they have revised from the 2005 version that I used, you need to find other review materials for calculus and organic. I spent a lot of time reviewing my basic textbooks, and after I started doing practice test sections, then I would make flashcards on all the topics that I missed questions - that was helpful to identify weak areas that I needed to look at more.

I spent almost no time prepping for verbal and reading - I am strong in those areas, and I wasn't really sure what would help increase those scores.