Am I on track for the Jan MCAT?

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zmhs95

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Hey all!

So I'm currently studying for the MCAT and planning to take it on Jan 19. I started studying in October so its been about a month and a half in so far so I still haven't finished all the content yet. I've taken two TPR Full lengths, and scored a 498 on both of them (the last one was taken about a week ago). I am a little discouraged by my scores since I am aiming for a score thats at least between 509 and 513, so I was just wondering if its reasonable to raise my score in the time I have left remaining? Also, how similiar are TPR full lengths to the real test? I have heard that TPR is way harder from my friends, but my MCAT instructor said they are pretty comparable. Thanks!

Also these are my breakdowns:

TPR FL 1: 122/125/125/126
TPR FL 2: 122/126/124/126

*** I know my C/P section is pretty bad but I am pretty weak at orgo and have forgotten so much from physics, so I still need to do thorough content review for those topics***

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Honestly I didn't like TPR and felt like 1) they were severely deflated and 2) the way they asked questions was not all that representative of the actual MCAT. My TPR average on 3 FLs was like a 507 and I ended up getting a 524 on the real thing. Kaplan was a bit better, but I recommend NextStep and ExamKrackers for practice FLs, as I found them to be much more representative and really good practice. And obviously the official AAMC material is the best.

You still have 2 months which is a lot of time, I would just recommend buying some extra FLs from other companies and using the AAMC FLs to gauge your readiness closer to your test date.


Ok thanks so much for your input! I'll definitely look into trying those practice tests out! :)
 
Hey all!

So I'm currently studying for the MCAT and planning to take it on Jan 19. I started studying in October so its been about a month and a half in so far so I still haven't finished all the content yet. I've taken two TPR Full lengths, and scored a 498 on both of them (the last one was taken about a week ago). I am a little discouraged by my scores since I am aiming for a score thats at least between 509 and 513, so I was just wondering if its reasonable to raise my score in the time I have left remaining? Also, how similiar are TPR full lengths to the real test? I have heard that TPR is way harder from my friends, but my MCAT instructor said they are pretty comparable. Thanks!

Also these are my breakdowns:

TPR FL 1: 122/125/125/126
TPR FL 2: 122/126/124/126

*** I know my C/P section is pretty bad but I am pretty weak at orgo and have forgotten so much from physics, so I still need to do thorough content review for those topics***
TPR C/P is ridiculous...I scored 122s on my TPR C/Ps and a 128 on my actual C/P. Use third party FLs as timing practice only. Use AAMC FLs to help you determine if you are ready for the actual exam.

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Next Step's tests are pretty good as far as giving you a rough idea of what your scores are. Many other companies deflate scores.
 
I am a little discouraged by my scores since I am aiming for a score thats at least between 509 and 513, so I was just wondering if its reasonable to raise my score in the time I have left remaining?

*** I know my C/P section is pretty bad but I am pretty weak at orgo and have forgotten so much from physics, so I still need to do thorough content review for those topics***

The test is nearly two months away, so that is PLENTY of time if you spend it wisely. You have to do passages and review all questions, not just the ones you missed. We ask our students to write one new question for every passage they do, including (and especially) writing three wrong answers. It is a great way to summarize the passage and its concepts, and at the same time learn to think like a test writer (essential to becoming good at PoE). It is unorthodox in many people's eyes, but the students who do it takes some amazing scores.

You need to stop worrying about practice test scores two months out. You need to worry about how to get more questions right. Exams are rarely a good diagnostic tool or score predictor; they serve more as realistic practice for how your body and mind will handle the setting. Use them as a learning tool only, until you take the AAMC exams the last week or so. Even for people using our exams, we say the same thing. We pride ourselves on the most realistic scale anywhere, so they may be short of their goal on the first exam or two. They have time to develop master skills to raise their score. You still have time to reach 509 to 513. I'd say you have time to climb even higher.

As far as C/P goes, that is by far the easiest score to raise. There are SO MANY shortcuts and tricks that can shave time off and help you avoid careless mistakes. For instance, if you get a question like "What is the pH of a 0.02178 M HA with pKa = 7.318 (way beyond the scope of the MCAT to make the point), within five seconds you should be able to say it's a little less than 4.6, probably around 4.4. You do not need to calculate it; you need to quickly estimate it well enough to narrow to one answer choice. If they ask for the equivalent resistance for a pair of parallel resistors of 8 ohms and 3 ohms, it should take you five seconds to come up with 2 2/11, which is slightly less than 2.2. If you can get fast at the number-based questions (which usually slow most people), then you will have more time for the conceptual questions. We train our students to read a passage in 3 minutes, answer calculation questions in less than 20 seconds, and to do conceptual questions in one to one and half minutes. This approach has been doing great so far on the new exam, so if you can shift into that mindset it will help a lot. You have plenty of time to learn and practice about 300 shortcuts, which should shoot your C/P score up to 128 or 129 in no time at all.
 
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The test is nearly two months away, so that is PLENTY of time if you spend it wisely. You have to do passages and review all questions, not just the ones you missed. We ask our students to write one new question for every passage they do, including (and especially) writing three wrong answers. It is a great way to summarize the passage and its concepts, and at the same time learn to think like a test writer (essential to becoming good at PoE). It is unorthodox in many people's eyes, but the students who do it takes some amazing scores.

You need to stop worrying about practice test scores two months out. You need to worry about how to get more questions right. Exams are rarely a good diagnostic tool or score predictor; they serve more as realistic practice for how your body and mind will handle the setting. Use them as a learning tool only, until you take the AAMC exams the last week or so. Even for people using our exams, we say the same thing. We pride ourselves on the most realistic scale anywhere, so they may be short of their goal on the first exam or two. They have time to develop master skills to raise their score. You still have time to reach 509 to 513. I'd say you have time to climb even higher.

As far as C/P goes, that is by far the easiest score to raise. There are SO MANY shortcuts and tricks that can shave time off and help you avoid careless mistakes. For instance, if you get a question like "What is the pH of a 0.02178 M HA with pKa = 7.318 (way beyond the scope of the MCAT to make the point), within five seconds you should be able to say it's a little less than 4.6, probably around 4.4. You do not need to calculate it; you need to quickly estimate it well enough to narrow to one answer choice. If they ask for the equivalent resistance for a pair of parallel resistors of 8 ohms and 3 ohms, it should take you five seconds to come up with 2 2/11, which is slightly less than 2.2. If you can get fast at the number-based questions (which usually slow most people), then you will have more time for the conceptual questions. We train our students to read a passage in 3 minutes, answer calculation questions in less than 20 seconds, and to do conceptual questions in one to one and half minutes. This approach has been doing great so far on the new exam, so if you can shift into that mindset it will help a lot. You have plenty of time to learn and practice about 300 shortcuts, which should shoot your C/P score up to 128 or 129 in no time at all.

Hi, I'm dreadful at C/P and could use some advice myself. I've been using TBR. I went through the C/P books once and most of it flew over my head. I'm going through them a second time now, except this time I'm memorizing the formulas prior to reading the chapter, which is helping me understand better. My question is, for someone with a horrible foundation in C/P and only 2 months left, what chapters should I focus the most on? I believe I saw a post of yours one time about the highest yield things in the C/P books. If you could guide me to those, I can focus on at least mastering those chapters/concepts/tricks. I love the idea of mastering 300 shortcuts to get a 128 or above. Thanks!
 
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