FL's dropping 4 weeks from test date- help!!

[AB92]

My FL scores have continually dropped, with my MCAT on 5/15 and I'm freaking out/at a loss of what to do at this point!! Any suggestions and insights are welcome and so appreciated! I am happy going to any DO school, so I really would be happy with anything > 500. But my fear is that I'm hovering right around that, and I realize that score drops on the actual test are common, and my trend right now is worrisome.

Part of me thinks I'm struggling with burn out. The entire time I was doing FL 3, I felt like my brain wasn't working. I couldn't sift through the passage or think clearly. I admittedly haven't been the best with taking time off. I'll either say I'm gonna take the day off from studying, and end up trying to do something. Or I'll just worry and stress the whole day about taking it off. Both are probably counterproductive.

I took the TPR online class from Dec-Mar, but with working full time (I'm a non-trad career changer), I felt like I wanted to give myself some time to review and work through AAMC materials prior to testing. My scores are below.

FL 1 506 (127/124/126/129)
FL 2 503 (126/126/124/127)
FL 3 501 (126/124/125/126)

After every FL, I have thoroughly reviewed each section, noting why I got the question wrong, and working through the question until I understand the logic. Oftentimes I noted that I got the question wrong because I skimmed the question too fast, or the answer was the passage and I just didn't use the passage appropriately.

I've worked through the AAMC Qpacks, but haven't yet done the SB's. I also have UWorld.

Does anyone have any suggestions/tips/advice? Thank you so much!!!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[8YearsLate]

This happened to me - I had a bit of a bell-curve going on and ended up with a score 6 points lower than what I'd been averaging about 3 weeks earlier. Looking back, I probably was burnt out and would have benefited from a break and reformulating my study plan to reflect what felt more authentic to me. Stay off the online forums (this and reddit included) because you will get all this feedback about the "right" way to study for MCAT. Everyone's different and when I look back I think I tried to hard to mimic study methods that didn't benefit my learning style. For example, I'm historically high tester in language-related stuff (my first 3-4 CARS tests were around 128-130, but 125 on test day), but read too much into how others approached it. So just know your strengths and weaknesses, and hit them in the way that makes sense to you. Also, section banks are particularly helpful study tools. How you are answering CP/BB stuff on there is a good indicator of test day response. Good luck!

 

[AB92]

This happened to me - I had a bit of a bell-curve going on and ended up with a score 6 points lower than what I'd been averaging about 3 weeks earlier. Looking back, I probably was burnt out and would have benefited from a break and reformulating my study plan to reflect what felt more authentic to me. Stay off the online forums (this and reddit included) because you will get all this feedback about the "right" way to study for MCAT. Everyone's different and when I look back I think I tried to hard to mimic study methods that didn't benefit my learning style. For example, I'm historically high tester in language-related stuff (my first 3-4 CARS tests were around 128-130, but 125 on test day), but read too much into how others approached it. So just know your strengths and weaknesses, and hit them in the way that makes sense to you. Also, section banks are particularly helpful study tools. How you are answering CP/BB stuff on there is a good indicator of test day response. Good luck!

Thank you for this response! Honestly just knowing someone else has experienced this makes me feel not as lonely. Also, I like your advice. At this point I don’t have much time to try a bunch of new things and I probably just need to focus on doing the best I can with the time I have left.

 

[Blueprint Med School]

Don't read into it- there were only 3 exams, which isn't enough to determine that you're having a downwards trend. I think it's more likely your true score is somewhere around a 503-504 with some deviation in FL1 and FL3. If you want a 500+, I think you're in good shape.

Kevin W, MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

 

[AB92]

Don't read into it- there were only 3 exams, which isn't enough to determine that you're having a downwards trend. I think it's more likely your true score is somewhere around a 503-504 with some deviation in FL1 and FL3. If you want a 500+, I think you're in good shape.

Kevin W, MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

Kevin, thank you for that perspective!

 

[JimKimSlim]

I’d say literally take a break from FL for about a week, in case you were burnt out.

 

[AB92]

I just wanted to come back here and post an update in case anyone in the future is experiencing the same thing. I just got my MCAT score back and I got a 507! Now, I know that's not much by many people's standards, but for me it is a huge accomplishment and I am proud of it!

I realized I was burnt out, and needed to start prioritizing my mental health. After my initial panic post, I took 3 full days off of anything MCAT related, and only did things that I enjoyed and hadn't been doing since studying. Think exercising, cooking, shopping, napping, etc. That in itself did wonders. I took FL 4 the following weekend and scored a 506! Then I began to focus on my confidence level. Every time I had a negative or anxious thought about the MCAT pop in my head, I reminded myself that I have been preparing for this for a long time and that I am capable. Sometimes, I even had to say these things out loud to drown out the negative thoughts.

I once saw someone on here say that the most productive thing you can do for your score in the last 2 weeks leading up to your test is prioritizing your mental and physical health, and that is by far the best advice I could have read. PRIORITIZE IT people!! If it's you rest day, REST. Don't say, oh while I watch tv, I'll just flip through anki. No! That is counterproductive. Tell yourself you can do this! Because you can!! It might sound cooky, but say it enough, and you do start to believe it. And until then, fake it til you make it!

I hope this update gives confidence and hope to anyone in the future who may be going through the same things I did and panicking. The answer may be easier than it seems (like take a break!).