How many O-Chem Passages did you have on the MCAT?

[kgpremed11]

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For people who took the test in 2011 and 2012, how man O-chem passages did you have?

 

[kgpremed11]

Just realized I should have allowed people to pick multiple responses because some people may have taken the MCAT both years. There's no way I can change it now. 🙄

 

[angemon89]

Is it ever more than half of the passages? Ochem is my strongest pre-req subject, so I hope so.

 

[kgpremed11]

Is it ever more than half of the passages? Ochem is my strongest pre-req subject, so I hope so.

NO. AAMC say O-chem equals ~ no more than 30%-40% of the bio section. I'm thinking now its reduced even more.

 

[OCDOCDOCD]

I had one (1) orgo passage on my MCAT. I was pretty taken aback by that, I was expecting at least 2 orgo passages.

Is it ever more than half of the passages? Ochem is my strongest pre-req subject, so I hope so.

Nope. Never more than 3 passages, although some of the bio questions might require some orgo knowledge. Not only has orgo been a relatively minor part of the exam for decades, but it's getting even more minor now that AAMC has an explicit policy of further de-emphasizing orgo on the exam. They've even gone as far as to remove topics in recent years from the orgo part of the exam.

 

[cuculici1]

I had one (1) orgo passage on my MCAT. I was pretty taken aback by that, I was expecting at least 2 orgo passages.



Nope. Never more than 3 passages, although some of the bio questions might require some orgo knowledge. Not only has orgo been a relatively minor part of the exam for decades, but it's getting even more minor now that AAMC has an explicit policy of further de-emphasizing orgo on the exam. They've even gone as far as to remove topics in recent years from the orgo part of the exam.

OCD I know you said you did well in the BS section on your MCAT, and used TBR to review content for orgo. Considering the fact that orgo is not emphasized very much in the BS section, would you still recommend going through all of TBR orgo in order to prepare (it's something like 600+ pages for both books)? I'm not really talking about the practice passages, just the content review.

 

[kgpremed11]

OCD I know you said you did well in the BS section on your MCAT, and used TBR to review content for orgo. Considering the fact that orgo is not emphasized very much in the BS section, would you still recommend going through all of TBR orgo in order to prepare (it's something like 600+ pages for both books)? I'm not really talking about the practice passages, just the content review.

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One of the reasons I asked this poll was because I wanted to know If I should order TBR organic chemistry or not. Studying 600 pages for 1-2 passages seems a bit much. However, if there is one thing I learned after my last MCAT, It is prepare for any and everything! They could switch it up next year and have 4 O - chem passages. The first time I took the MCAT I made a 10 on the bio section without studying at all. When I retook I said to myself "bio is easy, no need to study hard for that" and ended up getting a 6 on that section. So I think the MCAT is about being comprehensive , and if we are aiming to be physician, that probably a good thing. Just because something rarely shows up, doesn't mean it never will.

 

[OCDOCDOCD]

OCD I know you said you did well in the BS section on your MCAT, and used TBR to review content for orgo. Considering the fact that orgo is not emphasized very much in the BS section, would you still recommend going through all of TBR orgo in order to prepare (it's something like 600+ pages for both books)? I'm not really talking about the practice passages, just the content review.

One of the reasons I asked this poll was because I wanted to know If I should order TBR organic chemistry or not. Studying 600 pages for 1-2 passages seems a bit much. However, if there is one thing I learned after my last MCAT, It is prepare for any and everything! They could switch it up next year and have 4 O - chem passages. The first time I took the MCAT I made a 10 on the bio section without studying at all. When I retook I said to myself "bio is easy, no need to study hard for that" and ended up getting a 6 on that section. So I think the MCAT is about being comprehensive , and if we are aiming to be physician, that probably a good thing. Just because something rarely shows up, doesn't mean it never will.

I would still recommend using TBR orgo. Yes, it's ridiculous using 600 pages of prep material for 1-3 passages, but its better safe than sorry. For all you know, the one orgo passage on your exam might just be over that topic you decided to neglect, and you'll have your score wrecked by it as a result. In fact, it's my belief that's what stopped me from getting a perfect score on BS and a 40; the orgo passage I had on my exam ended up being over the one topic in orgo I hadn't really studied for beyond my initial review of it several months prior. Granted I got a 14 so the damage couldn't have been that bad, but I still think that whatever missed questions I got on that section that stopped me getting a 15 were on that orgo passage. A better example would be that a friend of mine didn't really focus on orgo much while studying and felt very unprepared when he sat for his exam; his score ended up dropping considerably (4 points) from his practice scores because of that.

Anyway, my recommended strategy for the MCAT is to not have any weaknesses when you take it. I know that sounds like ridiculous advise (kind of like "get all the questions right"), but what I really mean is that you should focus on minimizing your weaknesses rather than maximizing your strengths. Don't be one of those people who encounters a topic they find hard and instead of studying it more says "I'll just hope this won't be on my exam and move on". Instead, assume that everything you run across while studying will be on your exam. Thus, when studying for orgo, this means to put just as much effort into it as bio, gen chem, and physics.

 

[YouNeverKnow22]

I would still recommend using TBR orgo. Yes, it's ridiculous using 600 pages of prep material for 1-3 passages, but its better safe than sorry. For all you know, the one orgo passage on your exam might just be over that topic you decided to neglect, and you'll have your score wrecked by it as a result. In fact, it's my belief that's what stopped me from getting a perfect score on BS and a 40; the orgo passage I had on my exam ended up being over the one topic in orgo I hadn't really studied for beyond my initial review of it several months prior. Granted I got a 14 so the damage couldn't have been that bad, but I still think that whatever missed questions I got on that section that stopped me getting a 15 were on that orgo passage. A better example would be that a friend of mine didn't really focus on orgo much while studying and felt very unprepared when he sat for his exam; his score ended up dropping considerably (4 points) from his practice scores because of that.

Anyway, my recommended strategy for the MCAT is to not have any weaknesses when you take it. I know that sounds like ridiculous advise (kind of like "get all the questions right"), but what I really mean is that you should focus on minimizing your weaknesses rather than maximizing your strengths. Don't be one of those people who encounters a topic they find hard and instead of studying it more says "I'll just hope this won't be on my exam and move on". Instead, assume that everything you run across while studying will be on your exam. Thus, when studying for orgo, this means to put just as much effort into it as bio, gen chem, and physics.

really strong advice here.

 

[Columbia09]

I thought they were doing away with orgo on the MCATs? I'm taking it summer 2014 so I expect the test to have little to no orgo on it. Which is good for me because orgo sucks !!!!!

 

[BABSstudent]

I has three passages of orgo both times I took it. Granted there were some biology questions mixed in, I was still shocked


Sent from my iPod using SDN Mobile app. Please excuse the typos.

 

[rbolt25]

I had 3 organic passages on 7/27/12 MCAT - maybe a couple stand alone ?s too, don't remember tho.

 

[xerxesc]

I had three orgo passages: one that went over a metabolic cycle, one went over an experiment, one in which a structure was given, with several reactions in between to end up as another product. Along the three orgo passages I also had a couple of orgo stand alones... It really pays to study Berkeley Reviews Organic Chemistry books - it's a nice review which will thoroughly prepare you for orgo on the MCAT.

 

[cuculici1]

I would still recommend using TBR orgo. Yes, it's ridiculous using 600 pages of prep material for 1-3 passages, but its better safe than sorry. For all you know, the one orgo passage on your exam might just be over that topic you decided to neglect, and you'll have your score wrecked by it as a result. In fact, it's my belief that's what stopped me from getting a perfect score on BS and a 40; the orgo passage I had on my exam ended up being over the one topic in orgo I hadn't really studied for beyond my initial review of it several months prior. Granted I got a 14 so the damage couldn't have been that bad, but I still think that whatever missed questions I got on that section that stopped me getting a 15 were on that orgo passage. A better example would be that a friend of mine didn't really focus on orgo much while studying and felt very unprepared when he sat for his exam; his score ended up dropping considerably (4 points) from his practice scores because of that.

Anyway, my recommended strategy for the MCAT is to not have any weaknesses when you take it. I know that sounds like ridiculous advise (kind of like "get all the questions right"), but what I really mean is that you should focus on minimizing your weaknesses rather than maximizing your strengths. Don't be one of those people who encounters a topic they find hard and instead of studying it more says "I'll just hope this won't be on my exam and move on". Instead, assume that everything you run across while studying will be on your exam. Thus, when studying for orgo, this means to put just as much effort into it as bio, gen chem, and physics.

Thanks for the reply. Also, what source did you use to review content for Biology? I'm currently using EK and am somewhat concerned it is on the opposite side of the spectrum (too concise and doesn't go into enough detail). I have TPRH science workbook and have been doing biology passages out of there, so I might consider getting TPRH bio book to review the content if you (or others) think it's better.

 

[OCDOCDOCD]

Thanks for the reply. Also, what source did you use to review content for Biology? I'm currently using EK and am somewhat concerned it is on the opposite side of the spectrum (too concise and doesn't go into enough detail). I have TPRH science workbook and have been doing biology passages out of there, so I might consider getting TPRH bio book to review the content if you (or others) think it's better.

I agree the EK bio book is too shallow in its coverage. I used TBR bio in addition to EK bio which really helped me out. However, a lot of what's in TBR bio is pointless and the illustrations are terrible. I looked at a friend's copy of the TPR bio book and from what I saw while briefly browsing through it, it looked pretty good. The illustrations were informative, and the topics seemed to go into good depth without straying off into unnecessary detail. So I'd recommend TPR bio. It's pretty cheap too I believe, like $20 on Amazon.

 

[Cinclus]

I had 3 passages and what seemed like quite a few discrete O-chem questions. This was in 2011. My test felt rather O-chem heavy; good thing I'm a strong guesser!

 

[ISUBird100]

My test back in Sept 2011 had one orgo passage. One or two questions had to do with material not presented in EK. I'm using TBR to prep for my retake. I'm feeling much more prepared with the material, though the passages do kill my confidence a little 😉