first test

[kypreos]

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OK I have completed my first practice test today after SOLID content review. I am satisfied with my scores (even thought they are low for SDN standards lol) I took AAMC test 4, I scored a

PS 7
VR 8
BS 5

A couple things. Once I was done with the PS I was EXHAUSTED the fatigue from concentrating and making sure I completed everything in time etc it was hard I am hoping this is because its my first full length. I completely guessed on 2 questions in the PS section of the test because I was running out of time. When I hit verbal I was tired and I guessed on 5 questions because I was about to run out of time. By the time I hit the Biological science section I pulled a 5, I am thinking it is from fatigue as I took the PS section of test three alone 2 weeks ago UNTIMED and pulled a 7. I finished todays BS with 11 minutes remaining but i was even too tired to go back and check, looking back its almost like I gave up from fatigue.

A couple of trends im noticing in my test taking abilities.
1) I know the material, I am just running out of time and this is the first time I have taken a whole entire test, Time management has been rough. I need to build up some endurance. I have been reading difficult material etc. The bible, some autobiography written by a surgeon etc on a regular basis. I just need to improve my speed and comprehension. Im sure I could have pulled off more points if I had finished on time etc.

2)The social science passages in VR are detroying me. I have taken 9 FL verbal exams from EK and have been averaging 7's in them. The natural sciences and humanities passages have been well to me.


3) how to review for the test. Reviewing for the test tonight took me longer than actually taking it, and I havent even reviewed the actual BS section yet. thats still to come. I have been going over the write AND the wrong answers.

So how do you improve your timing? When I took the 9 FL tests from EK I timed it in 1 hour. However this wasnt a full length, putting it alltogether rocked my world. Also, I have no tricks up my sleeve for a certain type of passage. I know strategies for looking at different questions etc but not passages. This has been a trend or me.

I know I can pull higher for sure. I am just thinking this is my first test and I am a little shaky. any suggestions. I am absolutely not opposed to moving my date back later, I think I can fix things up seeying as I have 15 more tests to go and I write the exam july 31'st. I am thinking for now see how my next couple of tests go.

 

[kypreos]

bump

 

[vandyam]

Sorry this might be shorter than you are hoping for (I should be studying some more, but find myself taking many SDN breaks), but I would consider pushing your test back, depending on the types of schools you are applying to. That being said, if you improve really quickly then it is technically possible to be where you need in time.

I will say it seems like you are on the right track. I definitely think going over all of the mistakes you made on your exams, and practicing more (this will help w/ the fatigue and distractedness) will help you tremendously. Perhaps an end of August date would be more fitting for you? Keep at it, and take a bunch more practice exams to tweak where you are now and find out why your sections are 10+. Good luck! Feel free to PM me w/ any other concerns/advice (tho not pretending to be an expert)

 

[kypreos]

just took AAMC practice test 5.

PS 7
VR 8
BS 8.

Im improving. I'm thinking 3 points is a good improvement by one test. I will be taking AAMC test 3 tommorow. I took it almost a year ago so hopefully I forgot what was tested. We will see. Im going to take a test and review it everyday until the 15th and If I dont pull in the high 20's for at least one. Then Im rescheduling. lets see how well I can study and learn from my mistakes.

 

[vandyam]

Congratulations on seeing improvement! Keep us updated on how your progress goes!

 

[kypreos]

I don't know whats going on but my last 2 aamc practice tests were not great at all. I have studied for this thing so many times and I am beginning to think that because of one godamn test I should rethink careers.
AAMC 3
PS 8
VR 5
BS 6

AAMC 4
PS 6
VR 5
BS 6

I just pushed back my test date till august 14th. im in dire need of some orgo review it seems as AAMC 3 and 4 have been heavy in it and I have managed 10-12 ?'s wrong in orgo. its killing me here. The way the mcat tests is ruining me. I know all the material etc I have done 3 months content review TWICE. this is friggin pissing me off.

 

[SN2ed]

It sounds like you don't have a solid grasp on application of topics and synthesizing multiple topics together. Have you been drowning yourself in practice problems? Is your analysis thorough? For help synthesizing, you could try the Hat Trick.

You may also need to improve your understanding of the material. Typically, a score below 9-10 demonstrates a lack of knowledge. Another reason why I believe your content knowledge could use a boost is the fluctuation present in your test scores. If your problem was solely application and synthesis, I would expect a steady low score.

Hat Trick:

Get a hat and write every single MCAT PS and BS topic onto a piece of paper. Then, when you're ready to practice PS, put all the PS topics into the hat. Draw two or three pieces of paper and connect the topics together. In addition to connecting them, come up with what a passage might look like and what kind of questions you might get. If you can't do this, go back and review each of the three sections. Rinse and repeat.

The hat trick days are important because they aid you in synthesizing the various topics together. On the MCAT, you utilize this skill for every passage because MCAT passages combine topics. Furthermore, you may also discover content weaknesses that you will need to go over.

 

[kypreos]

It sounds like you don't have a solid grasp on application of topics and synthesizing multiple topics together. Have you been drowning yourself in practice problems? Is your analysis thorough? For help synthesizing, you could try the Hat Trick.

You may also need to improve your understanding of the material. Typically, a score below 9-10 demonstrates a lack of knowledge. Another reason why I believe your content knowledge could use a boost is the fluctuation present in your test scores. If your problem was solely application and synthesis, I would expect a steady low score.

Hat Trick:

Get a hat and write every single MCAT PS and BS topic onto a piece of paper. Then, when you're ready to practice PS, put all the PS topics into the hat. Draw two or three pieces of paper and connect the topics together. In addition to connecting them, come up with what a passage might look like and what kind of questions you might get. If you can't do this, go back and review each of the three sections. Rinse and repeat.

The hat trick days are important because they aid you in synthesizing the various topics together. On the MCAT, you utilize this skill for every passage because MCAT passages combine topics. Furthermore, you may also discover content weaknesses that you will need to go over.

After every exam I take, I go through every problem i get right and wrong(cause I know I guess on a few and get them right) and then go back and read the chapter. I will be using the hat trick. I hope it works. So far I have just reviewed the PS section tonight. I wrote down reasons as to why I got 27 out of 52 problems wrong. I missed 4 because of simple calculations (ie. converting to lbs etc). I missread 3 questions and placed the complete wrong answer when going over them I knew the correct one and felt like an idiot. I missed 7 questions from purely applying the knowledge. I knew what they were asking, recognized the proper formula and did not apply it properly. I got 10 wrong from simply not knowing the material. I will definitly be reading about voltaic cells tommorow. and I got another 3 wrong from misunderstanding what the passage mentioned. Alot of its applying the knowledge, and reading comprehension. Alot of it however is content. I guess it just didnt shine as much during the previous exams. thank you for your suggestions, I will be taking them.

 

[ShinyDome19]

Im not sure if your doing this already or not, but you may want to examine how you are taking the exam as well. If you are still getting exhausted during the differnt parts of the exam, you may want to adapt your technique to take advantage of getting all the easy points possible before you start making stupid mistakes because of a tired mind.
I had to do this myself because I found myself making alot of dumb errors towards the end of each section as I got tired and started to run out of time. One easy way to do this is to go through and do all of the problems not associated with passages first. Secure yourself a decent base score (~18-20 questions per PS and BR section of the exam arnt based off passages). If your weaker in chemistry than Physics, then hit up your passages that are pure physics before you do pure chemistry passages etc...

 

[vandyam]

It seems like you are doing what we have all done in the past as neurotic premeds, which is over killing it but getting no where. It is really great that you are thoroughly going through the exams and figuring out why you are missing questions. If it is not due to lack of content review in that subject area, you are capable of getting the question right. Are you looking at the passages enough? I got a 13 on an AAMC PS section last night by just using (at least it seemed this way from me) the passages. I felt like the answer was hidden in there. I also found myself wanting to pick the answer I thought was right (the one that "felt good"), but then referred to the passage and had to pick a different answer do to logic.

Also, I'm not sure if you are doing this or not, but I would suggest taking your next AAMC (after reviewing mistakes on the first two exams) untimed, and after you've woken up in the morning, showered, had a decent breakfast, had some coffee and are alert and awake. All of us fall into the trap of just not caring when taking the exams when you are tired/pressed for time, etc. Esp. tired. This is easy to do and can greatly affect your score. Break down why you are missing these and then conquer it.

Another suggestion: perhaps try taking just a section of an AAMC exam (like just BS or just PS) and see if it is fatigue (knowing you have 4 hrs of hell infront of you) or actual knowledge that is affecting your score so much. If you can score a 10 on PS just giving all your energy into that one section, then with time and training, you can get a 10 when you have 4 more hrs after that section. However, only do this once to help identify the problem -- don't waste exams taking them just one section at a time... endurance is part of it.

I hope this helps -- I feel your frustration, but you don't need to consider another career path, you can do this. Even if it takes another year, you'll get there some way. Master these skills and have confidence going into the exams and I think it will help you a lot (along w/ reviewing of course!)