Bad Kaplan scores OAT..Help

[08eyes]

Hi Everyone,
My test is booked for September 4th , but My highest score has been only a 280 with my lowest sections being physics and General Chemistry. Is there any advice you guys can suggest? should I postpone my test? I have been using Chads videos for both General Chemistry and Physics , However the highest I received in both on Kaplan test is a 300 in both sections.

I appreciate any input , thanks !

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[seedubs]

What is your goal for your score? I’m thinking if your highest Kaplan practice test is a 280 and you still have a couple of weeks left to study you will at least get a 300, probably even higher than that. Kaplan physics is rough, my last few physics portions of practice tests were like 280-300, but I managed to get a 340 in that section on the real thing. For physics, I recommmend knowing all the formulas given by Kaplan and when to use them. What topics in gen chem are you struggling with?

 

[08eyes]

My goal is to get a minimum of 300. I know all the formulas , but I feel Kaplan’s physics is mostly topic / conseptual based. For gen chem I feel like I understand the material , but I’m so inconsistent with my scores and it’s so fustrating ! Did you only use KAplan as study materials ?

 

[seedubs]

My goal is to get a minimum of 300. I know all the formulas , but I feel Kaplan’s physics is mostly topic / conseptual based. For gen chem I feel like I understand the material , but I’m so inconsistent with my scores and it’s so fustrating ! Did you only use KAplan as study materials ?

Yeah I pretty much only used Kaplan to prepare, with maybe the occasional YouTube video or something if I really wasn’t getting it. The conceptual stuff is good to know, but I from what I remember of Kaplan’s practice tests was lots of more complicated physics problems than I saw on test day, which was really discouraging. Do you have any more practice tests or have you taken them all already? I really think you can get at least a 300 (but again, probably even higher than that). I scored 30 points higher on the actual OAT than the last Kaplan practice exam I took, and that was with just 1 week in between. Are you still in school (ie will classes get in the way of your OAT studying if you postpone the test?) just something to think about. I know for a fact I never felt ready for it, but I’d hate to tell you not to postpone it based on my own experience.

 

[08eyes]

I do have more practice test, I have 3 more. I'm just getting discouraged on the fact that I keep fluctuating with my scores. I start classed the 5th, that's why I really don't want to postpone the exam. I'm just worried that I won't do as well as I hope. Did you notice from exam to exam that one section would be higher, then on another test it would be lower? this is what's truly frightening me and making me doubt if I know the material enough to take the exam.

 

[Bananaican]

If you're having trouble with Gen Chem, I would definitely recommend using Chad's videos. I paid for his ultimate Gen Chem guide, which was only $10/month and it was really helpful watching his videos and completing the quizzes. If you're taking the Kaplan course, I would recommend creating and completing all the quizzes from the Q bank (there isn't any for physics though), and knowing all the flashcards.

If it makes you feel any better, I took the Kaplan course and all the Kaplan tests were way harder than the actual OAT.

 

[seedubs]

I do have more practice test, I have 3 more. I'm just getting discouraged on the fact that I keep fluctuating with my scores. I start classed the 5th, that's why I really don't want to postpone the exam. I'm just worried that I won't do as well as I hope. Did you notice from exam to exam that one section would be higher, then on another test it would be lower? this is what's truly frightening me and making me doubt if I know the material enough to take the exam.

I remember my organic scores fluctuating a lot on full length practice tests and section tests and my physics scores were actually decreasing with each one. And definitely there were fluctuations with all of the other sections as well between tests. You still have a couple of weeks left, just use your time wisely to solidify any material you don’t think you know well and practice more. Personally, I know I would like to have it done and over with before the semester starts. I took my OAT back in July and it was like a huge weight off my shoulders. I scored 10 points higher than my goal score I set before starting to study, which even then I didn’t think I would get. I’m sure you will do fine!

 

[08eyes]

If you're having trouble with Gen Chem, I would definitely recommend using Chad's videos. I paid for his ultimate Gen Chem guide, which was only $10/month and it was really helpful watching his videos and completing the quizzes. If you're taking the Kaplan course, I would recommend creating and completing all the quizzes from the Q bank (there isn't any for physics though), and knowing all the flashcards.

If it makes you feel any better, I took the Kaplan course and all the Kaplan tests were way harder than the actual OAT.

I heard the actual Oat is easier compared to Kaplan! I have been studying all the cards as well as all the necessary formulas. I am using Chads videos and find them very helpful ! I'm just extremely worried about physics.

 

[08eyes]

I remember my organic scores fluctuating a lot on full length practice tests and section tests and my physics scores were actually decreasing with each one. And definitely there were fluctuations with all of the other sections as well between tests. You still have a couple of weeks left, just use your time wisely to solidify any material you don’t think you know well and practice more. Personally, I know I would like to have it done and over with before the semester starts. I took my OAT back in July and it was like a huge weight off my shoulders. I scored 10 points higher than my goal score I set before starting to study, which even then I didn’t think I would get. I’m sure you will do fine!

My Organic scores have been pretty consistent ( 300 plus ) Physics I'm all over the place. How was the Quantitative sections compared to Kaplan?

 

[seedubs]

My Organic scores have been pretty consistent ( 300 plus ) Physics I'm all over the place. How was the Quantitative sections compared to Kaplan?

I did my best quantitative on the actual OAT. During practice tests I felt very rushed like I didn’t have enough time, but the actual OAT I finished that section with a decent amount of time to spare and scored a 390 in that section. I was scoring lower than I thought I should have been on the practice tests and I was frustrated because usually I’m pretty good at math (it just didn’t show until I took the real thing).