Dr. Collins Reading Comprehension section

[socalpharm86]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hey guys, looking over the scores of everyone who took the PCAT, one common trend I notice about people with mid and high composite scores is that they have a very low RC score. People always seem to mention that they thought RC was the easiest section as well.

I suppose it's hard to quantify my reading comprehension skills but English is my first language and I don't do very much reading outside of the occasional biology textbooks for class.

I picked up the Dr. Collins Packet and have been breezing through the RC section finishing each packet under 50 minutes and averaging around 43 out of 48 correct. To be honest the RC section seems VERY easy, but that's exactly what people who scored in the 50th percentile on RC are saying as well. This is making me fearful of the fact that Dr. Collins material isn't an accurate representation of what I will be facing on the actual PCAT this October.

Could it be that RC is truly as easy as they say, but the national average is so high that a deviation of 2-4 questions below the curve results in a ranking of 50th percentile? Maybe all the 90th percentile RC scorers aren't posting because of their sub 60th percentile composite?

Can anyone offer some input?

 

[powerlifter8]

Hey guys, looking over the scores of everyone who took the PCAT, one common trend I notice about people with mid and high composite scores is that they have a very low RC score. People always seem to mention that they thought RC was the easiest section as well.

I suppose it's hard to quantify my reading comprehension skills but English is my first language and I don't do very much reading outside of the occasional biology textbooks for class.

I picked up the Dr. Collins Packet and have been breezing through the RC section finishing each packet under 50 minutes and averaging around 43 out of 48 correct. To be honest the RC section seems VERY easy, but that's exactly what people who scored in the 50th percentile on RC are saying as well. This is making me fearful of the fact that Dr. Collins material isn't an accurate representation of what I will be facing on the actual PCAT this October.

Could it be that RC is truly as easy as they say, but the national average is so high that a deviation of 2-4 questions below the curve results in a ranking of 50th percentile? Maybe all the 90th percentile RC scorers aren't posting because of their sub 60th percentile composite?

Can anyone offer some input?

I agree with you in that Dr. Collins Reading Comprehension section is severely lacking. When I practiced with those tests, I would miss an average of 3-5 questions.

Despite a 96 composite score, I received a 66 on the Reading Comprehension section.

I think that Kaplan's by far has the most difficult of Reading Comprehension review followed by Cliff's 5. I would say that Barron's is on par with Dr. Collins.

I believe it is the types of questions asked by Dr. Collins and not the material itself. Most questions seemed very basic and asked for superficial answers whereas Kaplan's focused on author's tone/purpose etc.

Dr. Collins definitely needs a revision to its Reading Comprehension section - not for the material but for the difficulty of questions asked.

 

[gregb]

Can anyone point me where to find this Dr. Collins study guide? I've searched Google and can only find used copies for sale from ppl? Thanks

 

[jung1]

I read something similar about the MCAT. Students say that RC was the easiest section but find that they score the worst there. They reasoned that since it's easy for everyone, only a few right or wrong can make a huge difference in the score.

Plus, the questions are like "is this guy excited or serendipitous?" The answers are sometimes nuanced so it's easy to pick an answer that you think is right, feel confident about it, and get it wrong.

I'm thinking if it's easy, not enough effort is being put in. If effort is made, it's not easy by definition. I got a 95%tile on VA, finished 15 minutes early, giving me time for a much needed restroom break, but I wouldn't call that section easy because I tried on that section. Wish I tried harder on RC.