I studied for the MCAT about 18 months ago, completing AMCAS FL #3-10. I am retaking the exam in a few months; in your opinion, will these tests still be useful? if not, what are some other good FL, other than the AAMC?
Best FL Tests?
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Since it was long ago, you could probably retake the exams if you still have them available to you.
Kaplan and TPR would probably be your next best source of full length exams though I believe you have to purchase the entire course to have access to them.
There are other sources of FL MCAT exams, but they are generally not as good as the ones mentioned above.
Kaplan and TPR would probably be your next best source of full length exams though I believe you have to purchase the entire course to have access to them.
There are other sources of FL MCAT exams, but they are generally not as good as the ones mentioned above.
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Gold Standard and Berkeley Review are your best bets. I don't recommend retaking FLs.
Here's my long explanation of why I'm against it:
Should I retake FL X?
I don't suggest it for a few reasons. First, your score will be inflated. This alone negates the predictive power of the test. If you don't need it to gauge where you are, fine, retake them. For instance, you could simply be going over the problems again to, as others have mentioned, understand the thinking behind it. However, if you are using it as a practice FL, don't.
One of the most important aspects of a FL is that it's material you've never seen before. It forces you to quickly analyze an unknown passage, tap into your knowledge, and answer questions you've never seen. If you knew exactly what was going to be on the test, it would take away from the somewhat frantic experience of getting that weird passage. It also makes you more relaxed overall because you know what's coming. Unfortunately, you will not have the luxury of either on the test. You will have to deal with weird passages. You will have to get out of your comfort zone of knowing what's ahead.
Then, you get into the timing issues which you MUST get down before the test. When you have prior knowledge of the material, you miss the chance at gaining more experience with the clock. Too many people underestimate the effect of the timer. Again, you have to get used to it and retaking problems won't help.
Think of the whole thing like sports practice. Sure, you go over some standard plays again and again to get a feel for them. However, to practice for a real game, you have a scrimmage match or an exhibition game. The other team doesn't tell you what plays they're going to run. If they did, it would eliminate the usefulness of the scrimmage or exhibition game.
Here's my long explanation of why I'm against it:
Should I retake FL X?
I don't suggest it for a few reasons. First, your score will be inflated. This alone negates the predictive power of the test. If you don't need it to gauge where you are, fine, retake them. For instance, you could simply be going over the problems again to, as others have mentioned, understand the thinking behind it. However, if you are using it as a practice FL, don't.
One of the most important aspects of a FL is that it's material you've never seen before. It forces you to quickly analyze an unknown passage, tap into your knowledge, and answer questions you've never seen. If you knew exactly what was going to be on the test, it would take away from the somewhat frantic experience of getting that weird passage. It also makes you more relaxed overall because you know what's coming. Unfortunately, you will not have the luxury of either on the test. You will have to deal with weird passages. You will have to get out of your comfort zone of knowing what's ahead.
Then, you get into the timing issues which you MUST get down before the test. When you have prior knowledge of the material, you miss the chance at gaining more experience with the clock. Too many people underestimate the effect of the timer. Again, you have to get used to it and retaking problems won't help.
Think of the whole thing like sports practice. Sure, you go over some standard plays again and again to get a feel for them. However, to practice for a real game, you have a scrimmage match or an exhibition game. The other team doesn't tell you what plays they're going to run. If they did, it would eliminate the usefulness of the scrimmage or exhibition game.
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There are three polls on FLs that have been conducted here in the past year that gave the exact opposite results of what you said. The 100 or so people that responded actually rated those FLs as the worst, pretty far behind BR, GS, MA.
Given that I have decided to buy the AAMC FLs, what would you do if you were in my situation?
AAMC tests 4-10 ($35each x 7) = $245
or
TPR online access (includes 9 TPR exams, and AAMC tests 3-10) for $300
Do you think I will have any use for the TPR exams?
AAMC tests 4-10 ($35each x 7) = $245
or
TPR online access (includes 9 TPR exams, and AAMC tests 3-10) for $300
Do you think I will have any use for the TPR exams?
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Neither because you shouldn't retake FLs. Again, get BR or GS.
Aren't these tests, though, much further from the actual MCAT?
is it really worth it to stray from the AAMC tests; I really don't see how taking these tests 2 years ago would have any effect...?
is it really worth it to stray from the AAMC tests; I really don't see how taking these tests 2 years ago would have any effect...?
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You'd be surprised how much people can remember. Your AAMCs stopped being accurate predictors the moment you took them. It is especially important to take new tests for a retake so you have a better idea of where you stand.
I appreciate your insight very much.
This is a tough decision for me; I just don't know how much I will remember from two years ago, especially considering that the next best option(s) (BR or GS FLs), in relation to the AAMC FLs, are precipitously less reflective of the actual MCAT.
argh
This is a tough decision for me; I just don't know how much I will remember from two years ago, especially considering that the next best option(s) (BR or GS FLs), in relation to the AAMC FLs, are precipitously less reflective of the actual MCAT.
argh
How do you get the TPR online access for 300?? I went to their site and I cannot find it. Much better deal than buying from AAMC. Are the AAMC tests identical with respect to the testing software though?
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Why don't you try AAMC 3 , which is free, and see how much you remember from that. If it's less than 10%, then you're okay. If it's more than 10%, then your scores and experience won't be valid. You can adapt by finishing each section in less time, but that still might not be optimal.
And by several accounts, BR and GS are excellent exams, close to AAMC. The BR exams are pretty similar to the MCAT, albeit a bit harder and complete with a couple wtf passages on each practice exam.
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I got the 9 TPR exams for half that, and I also got 10 GS exams for under $50 on ebay. Seems like a no brainer to me. 27 FL CBT for under $200 or 8 for $245
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Kinda reviving this thread, though it's not tooo old. OP - what did you end up doing??
I am on a similar boat, in that I took the MCAT for the first time in May 2008, and in preparation for that, I took all the AAMC (#3-10) within like 10 days before the MCAT (not the smartest plan, that time).
I retook the AAMC #3 a few days ago, and my score differed from 2008 by 2 points (for the better). But I also had started doing serious content review recently (which *was* lacking in 2008, hence my lower score on the real deal than I wanted...), so that may have been it. Or, it might have been me unconsciously remembering things.
Personally, most of the verbal passages looked familiar. I remembered reading about those wolves and the power of "li" way back then, but I didn't remember any of the answers or the explanations I read. But I'm sure it should have been "easier" this time, since they were a little more familiar to begin with... maybe. None of the PS or BS stuff seemed as familiar though. They just looked like... another set of practice problems.
Reading the 1/29-1/30 threads scared me into thinking that the model AAMC exams (even the later ones) are a significantly easier than the real thing (though I guess somehow the score prediction is still the same? maybe the curve is nicer?)... so my plan was to buy the TBR FL's (3? 5? 7?!??), but now I'm not too sure. They're quite expensive. And they're not similar to the real MCAT??
Well, anyway, I was also thinking of re-purchasing a couple of the official AAMC ones (especially the ones I did the most poorly back in 2008) just to "stay on track" with the official material. Opinions??
I am on a similar boat, in that I took the MCAT for the first time in May 2008, and in preparation for that, I took all the AAMC (#3-10) within like 10 days before the MCAT (not the smartest plan, that time).
I retook the AAMC #3 a few days ago, and my score differed from 2008 by 2 points (for the better). But I also had started doing serious content review recently (which *was* lacking in 2008, hence my lower score on the real deal than I wanted...), so that may have been it. Or, it might have been me unconsciously remembering things.
Personally, most of the verbal passages looked familiar. I remembered reading about those wolves and the power of "li" way back then, but I didn't remember any of the answers or the explanations I read. But I'm sure it should have been "easier" this time, since they were a little more familiar to begin with... maybe. None of the PS or BS stuff seemed as familiar though. They just looked like... another set of practice problems.
Reading the 1/29-1/30 threads scared me into thinking that the model AAMC exams (even the later ones) are a significantly easier than the real thing (though I guess somehow the score prediction is still the same? maybe the curve is nicer?)... so my plan was to buy the TBR FL's (3? 5? 7?!??), but now I'm not too sure. They're quite expensive. And they're not similar to the real MCAT??
Well, anyway, I was also thinking of re-purchasing a couple of the official AAMC ones (especially the ones I did the most poorly back in 2008) just to "stay on track" with the official material. Opinions??
