Horrible Test Taker! Help!

[Juliaekoorb]

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Okay so I have been studying for the OAT for three months (between work and classes) using Chad's videos. But my practice scores have horrible!

Kaplan free online test:
Bio 320
Chem 260
Org 240
Phys 280
Read 280
Quant 380
TS 260
AA 290

Gold Standard free online test: (which seems a lot harder than it should be)
Bio 290
Chem 320
Org 250
Phys 200
Read 350
Quant 330
TS 250
AA 290

ADA free sample test: (Just took this today)
Bio 310
Chem 320
Org 330
Phys 320
Read 360
Quant 350
TS 330
AA 330
But I have heard this test is easier than the real thing. Is that true?


I have already submitted my applications to schools and I am taking the OAT August 31st. What can I do to get these scores up without spending a ton of money?
I have a good GPA (3.54) and but only 40 shadowing hours so I feel like I will need a better score.

 

[Salmon]

My ADA scores were slightly higher than my actual score, but they were still the closest. Just keep taking practice tests and review each problem and rework them if you got it wrong or didn't understand it. If you can get it in time I would suggest using an old version of the Kaplan small OAT book (I used the 2009 edition). Those tests were pretty good, albeit harder than the actual OAT.

EDIT: I meant to say that my ADA scores were slightly higher than my actual OAT scores.

 

[MEAtech]

I think the ADA is pretty reflective of what your score should be around. I studied for the past 2 months and a half and took the ADA test right before my actual OAT (which was yesterday) and scored a 340. Yesterday I got 330 for my AA on the OAT. All your scores seem pretty high. I think you can make an improvement on bio by looking at AP Bio cliff notes. It goes really in depth and tells you more than you need but can be good for referencing.

 

[whatwhowherewhywhen]

my ada scores were spot on with my real scores (only 10 or so off in each section) though i did feel the real test was harder. i chalk it up to the adrenaline + focus that came with test day. i would get as many practice tests as possible and do them. they boost scores the most imo.

 

[Mark2K8]

ADA was actually very very close to my real OAT, however, I took the ADA one 3 weeks before my actual exam and I definitely did not feel ready/as ready as I was on actual test day. The natural sciences were a tad easier on the ADA, but RC, QR and definitely physics were very accurate representations.

 

[canada17]

like everyone has said, the ADA practice test is most reflective of your score. Something that definitely helped me bring my Physics score up was the Princteon review for the OAT. I got it from my library about 1.5 weeks before my exam and everything just made so much more sense!

 

[Juliaekoorb]

These were my actual scores:

Bio: 360 (-Better!)
Chem: 360 (-Better!)
Org: 340 (-Better!)
Phys: 280 (-Sucks that this brought my TS down so much...)
Read: 290 (-Ran out of time!)
Quant: 330 (-A lot harder than I expected!!)
TS: 330
AA: 330

Hopefully they are good enough!

 

[tdell]

Your test results are amazing! Congrats!
I'm newly interested in taking this exam and trying to do all the research I can to gather the best study materials. Do you mind listing everything you used as a study guide?
I have my BS in Biology, minors in chemistry and math from 2008.. so it's been a while, and I definitely have a lot of refreshening to do! I've been working in a complete opposite industry, but I miss the sciences and it's definitely time for me to go back to school.
Wish me luck guys and any advice is well appreciated 🙂

 

[Juliaekoorb]

I used Chad's videos for a month ($50). And also used Crash Course on youtube for Biology. But that's really all I did. Chad's videos are very helpful, I just didn't study the physics notes as much as I did the Chemistry notes.