How many practice MCATs did you take

[Apparition]

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If you scored a 30 or above, how many full length practice tests did you take before the real thing?

 

[jlee9531]

just one the week before. its all i had time for.

 

[mlw03]

i took the kaplan class and took only the 5 full-lengths as part of the course. my opinion is that beyond that, you're just burning yourself out. after 2 or 3 you'll know the format - after that, it's knowing the material and being able to apply it.

 

[davika0]

In my opinion, practice tests are key, specifically aamc ones. Being familiar with the format is crucial and understanding that for the aamc tests especially, most of the answers can be found by applying minimal knowledge to a thorough reading of the passage and questions. My pre-med advisor proctored a full length practice exam every two weeks in the spring and I took them all, 5 aamc total, and my score in April was 10 points higher than my first practice test. A little more advice... my advisor stressed how important conditioning yourself for the time was, but without taking the time in between the sections that are used on the actual test day for instructions, we got out about an hour earlier for the practice tests than for the actual test and I actually felt myself burning out at the end of bio. Judging by my practice tests, that burn out cost me a point... so make sure you do the practice tests as similarly to actual testing conditions as possible. Good luck!

 

[Pinkertinkle]

I did a lot of practice passages but never sat down for the whole 6 hours worth.

 

[matthew45]

I 2nd everyhing davika said. The AAMC tests are your BEST FRIEND. Taking them is much more important than any class you can do. All in all I think I took 12 or 13 practices tests. That may sound excessive but consider this:
a) I was learning material in an active way, i.e. not just looking at notes but thinking about concepts, b) I was always preparing myself for that "fifth section on the MCAT" which is endurance.
I'm not a gunner by anyone standards, quite the opposite really, but the MCAT is really important. Especially for us white boys.

 

[Bad Mojo]

I did the five Kaplan full-lengths. What I thought was more important, though, i that I did a ton of individual science sections, whether full length or 1/2 length. It made me really confident.

 

[quideam]

I took the 5 Kaplan tests, plus 3 tests from the test bank... I definetely agree that practice tests are key; doing tons and tons of passages helps a lot!!!!!

 

[gschl1234]

I took 6 Kaplan tests and 1 MCAT from AAMC (3R). I ended up getting my average on the real thing.

 

[joe42581]

just do a full-length one every weekend for 5-6 practice tests and the real mcat should feel just like another practice session. You wont burn out in the middle coz you are already conditioned for it. Course I couldnt actually make myself do that, the review course forced you to take practice ones every weekend

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

I'm planning on doing all the practice exams from AAMC and then whatever my prep course company (probably Princeton Review) gives me. I'm working on verbal passages right now from EK 101 MCAT Verbal Passages....it's a great book.

 

[MDmiracle]

I took all eleven of the kaplan tests and 3 of the five aamc tests. I scored slightly below my average, maybe a point or two. So when it came time to take the real thing it felt like just another practice test. I think my drop in score was related to the testing center the seats were all wooden and the desks were about 12" wide, I was getting really uncomfortable at the end.