How to improve your verbal score in 15 days?

[MedGrl@2022]

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So I have got my science scores to a comfortable place, although I am sure with more practice they will increase... my verbal score still SUCKS... like 7-8... I want at least a 10 and 11 would be AWESOME!!!

I am scheduled to take my exam April 26th and I really don't want to reschedule...

I am doing EK1001 and I feel like I am all over the place with the passages... some of them I understand... sometimes I am lucky and get none wrong and other times I get 3 wrong... I have been reading the entire passage and trying to just picture the author in my mind and try to figure out what the main idea was... sometimes I get lost in the details or like just get messed up because I feel like I have NO idea what the author is talking about.... maybe my main ideas are not focused or detailed enough to help me answer the questions...

I want to do the AAMC verbal self assessment soon but I am not even sure I will know what to do with the score report... How can I use that to help me?

I still have AAMC 8, 9, 10 and 11 to go before my exam as well...

I feel like I am almost done with MCAT... I just need to improve my verbal score... What do you suggest?

 

[Postictal Raiden]

So I have got my science scores to a comfortable place, although I am sure with more practice they will increase... my verbal score still SUCKS... like 7-8... I want at least a 10 and 11 would be AWESOME!!!

I am scheduled to take my exam April 26th and I really don't want to reschedule...

I am doing EK1001 and I feel like I am all over the place with the passages... some of them I understand... sometimes I am lucky and get none wrong and other times I get 3 wrong... I have been reading the entire passage and trying to just picture the author in my mind and try to figure out what the main idea was... sometimes I get lost in the details or like just get messed up because I feel like I have NO idea what the author is talking about.... maybe my main ideas are not focused or detailed enough to help me answer the questions...

I want to do the AAMC verbal self assessment soon but I am not even sure I will know what to do with the score report... How can I use that to help me?

I still have AAMC 8, 9, 10 and 11 to go before my exam as well...

I feel like I am almost done with MCAT... I just need to improve my verbal score... What do you suggest?

I suck at verbal worse than you, so take my advice with grain of salt.

After countless practice with EK, TPRH, and AAMC, I realized that practicing AAMC passages is the only helpful one. TPRH passages are good, but they are still very different from AAMC passages. EK is the worst of the three, by far. I don't understand why people on SDN praise EK passages. Neither the passages nor the questions resemble AAMC verbal.

After going through the entire EK book twice, I was only able to score 5 on AAMC 3. When I laid off the EK book and started re-doing AAMC passages, I was able to score 6-8 on the successive tests. That's because if you analyze the questions on the AAMC verbal, you'll find out that there is only a handful of different types of questions that are asked in different format throughout the entire test. If you get familiar enough with these questions, you'll be able to predict the questions as you're reading the passage. Also, most AAMC questions are heavily geared toward the main idea. If you have that established from reading the passage, you can answer at least 60% of the questions without having to recall small details and referring back to the passage.

If you have a different approach, please let me know. I'm struggling with verbal as well.

 

[gwjib04]

I generally start every passage with 3 steps:

1. 5 second break for composure
2. Scan all the question prompts but not the answers
3. Check the source of the article

These are from EK AO and TBR suggestions I think

 

[Postictal Raiden]

I generally start every passage with 3 steps:

1. 5 second break for composure
2. Scan all the question prompts but not the answers
3. Check the source of the article

These are from EK AO and TBR suggestions I think

Interesting. Why do you do that?

 

[MedGrl@2022]

I suck at verbal worse than you, so take my advice with grain of salt.

After countless practice with EK, TPRH, and AAMC, I realized that practicing AAMC passages is the only helpful one. TPRH passages are good, but they are still very different from AAMC passages. EK is the worst of the three, by far. I don't understand why people on SDN praise EK passages. Neither the passages nor the questions resemble AAMC verbal.

After going through the entire EK book twice, I was only able to score 5 on AAMC 3. When I laid off the EK book and started re-doing AAMC passages, I was able to score 6-8 on the successive tests. That's because if you analyze the questions on the AAMC verbal, you'll find out that there is only a handful of different types of questions that are asked in different format throughout the entire test. If you get familiar enough with these questions, you'll be able to predict the questions as you're reading the passage. Also, most AAMC questions are heavily geared toward the main idea. If you have that established from reading the passage, you can answer at least 60% of the questions without having to recall small details and referring back to the passage.

If you have a different approach, please let me know. I'm struggling with verbal as well.

EKs questions so far have seemed really complicated whereas AAMCs questions seem less so.... I have only done AAMC 3-7 though... does this seem to be the trend with AAMC questions?

 

[gwjib04]

Interesting. Why do you do that?

2 reasons.

1: More like real reading. How often do you read an article without already knowing the magazine/newspaper/website its on? For me that would be rare. New Yorker? Scientific American? Its a little hint about what you're getting in to.

2: Can give hints about the nature of the author which is helpful for questions about the author's message, beliefs, etc.

 

[dudewheresmymd]

All 450 seconds-480 seconds that you spend per passage should be devoted to 1) what the hell is the main idea? 2) how is the author conveying the main idea 3) What is the tone/structure of the overall passage. I think reading the questions beforehand biases you when determining these so it's probably better if you don't read them beforehand, but that's just my opinion..

480 seconds is A LOT of time. All pre-meds are capable of discerning the main idea within the allotted amount of time, but it just takes practice and more familiarity with your "weaker" subject areas be it humanities, social science, philosophy, etc. I don't know how much you can improve in 15 days, but I would prioritize

AAMC full lengths > AAMC verbal self assessment > AAMC official guide to MCAT (5-6 passages) > TPRH Verbal Workbook >> EK 101.

If I were you, I would cease doing EK at this stage in your prep. If you do not want to extend your date, focus on finishing all of the AAMC material you have with respect to verbal and any of the other sections.