How was the July 24th MCAT?

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ya its saved..no worries..

are u sure its 90%??? it was either 10 or 90, but it depends what the question was asking..how much was floating or how much was submerged...but ur 90% sure its 90...lol?
 
enough is enough...does anyone know if we can still void? rule about voiding a couple days after the exam?
 
Please do not discuss any specific MCAT questions on SDN. It is ok to talk about broad general topics--but please do not discuss actual questions.


This thread stresses me out and I didn't even take the exam--good luck everyone--just try to relax now!:luck:
 
this might be stupid...but what about the restriction fragment cutting with the chart given? how did you determine which figure was correct?

Oh right ... yea - so if you have an plasmid & you want to cut it, the first restriction site makes a long chain. Then the second restriction site cuts the first piece into two fragments and then you just count down from the 0 marker to the shortest fragment & that's the kB value you assign restriction site.

For example, if you have a plasmid length & you have three restriction sites: A, B & C & you add enzyme that chops up the DNA into two pieces each time:
(A & B) fragment length = (4, 6)
(A & C) fragment length = (2, 8)

To figure out B: Then you assign A = 0kB, then count the shortest fragment to B which is 4: therefore, B is @ 4kB

Similarly, assign A = 0kB, count the shortest fragment to C (which is 2): therefore, C is @ 2kB

That was probably gibberish to everybody else - hope it helps @least a bit - I got an N on writing last time (can't expect a lot from me there 😉)
 
I feel like all of the endless months of studying came down to a crappy test that only tested 5% of my total knowledge, and under a huge time constraint. I am so disappointed. I bought books, videos, note cards, practice exams, and I went through ALL of it, and still walked out feeling like an idiot, even though I know more information than 90% of the people walking out on the street. This test is incredibly innaccurate in the determination of a student's intelligence and probabilities of succeeding academically! 😡
 
I feel like all of the endless months of studying came down to a crappy test that only tested 5% of my total knowledge, and under a huge time constraint. I am so disappointed. I bought books, videos, note cards, practice exams, and I went through ALL of it, and still walked out feeling like an idiot, even though I know more information than 90% of the people walking out on the street. This test is incredibly innaccurate in the determination of a student's intelligence and probabilities of succeeding academically! 😡

totally agree with everything u said. i didnt do well because the test was horrible (my PS section anyway) - the curve is basically going to show who were good guessers and who werent.

thank god for this site otherwise i'd still feel like it was just me that got destroyed by the test today
 
Oh right ... yea - so if you have an plasmid & you want to cut it, the first restriction site makes a long chain. Then the second restriction site cuts the first piece into two fragments and then you just count down from the 0 marker to the shortest fragment & that's the kB value you assign restriction site.

For example, if you have a plasmid length & you have three restriction sites: A, B & C & you add enzyme that chops up the DNA into two pieces each time:
(A & B) fragment length = (4, 6)
(A & C) fragment length = (2, 8)

To figure out B: Then you assign A = 0kB, then count the shortest fragment to B which is 4: therefore, B is @ 4kB

Similarly, assign A = 0kB, count the shortest fragment to C (which is 2): therefore, C is @ 2kB

That was probably gibberish to everybody else - hope it helps @least a bit - I got an N on writing last time (can't expect a lot from me there 😉)

BTW... that's how I'd answer a plasmid question... It could be TOTALLY WRONG!! 🙁 (but I HOPE NOT!!)
 
Yea, are there experimental passages in each section? Are they not included in our score?

I think people mean the passage type was experimental. Like the passage was describing what two students did, or diff theories or whatever. I def had alot of that crap.
 
Sorta sounds like July 13 MCAT was harder (the one I took), but I suppose everything is relative. If everyone did better on this one, then the curve is less forgiving right?
 
How incredibly sad is it that it's almost one in the morning and my mind is still REELING regarding this test? LOL.... I feel like I have been scarred for life! What an experience...I guess the hard part to process is the finality of it all: if you pass, you get to pursue your dreams. If you don't pass, you either spend another enormous amount of money applying and taking tests and still end up getting an impossible test like the one we took today. Ugh....Somebody, please make me feel better about this..... 🙁
 
Hi y'all. I tried to promise myself I wouldn't come on SDN, but it's made me feel better, so here I am. 🙂

PS - Definitely my worst score. I am praying, praying, praying that I got a 9 or better. A 10 would be a godsend. Luckily I didn't get the angular momentum one, all I remember is one about lenses and one about a bike. WTF with that bike one. Grr. I keep thinking back to all the questions I weren't sure about (which were A LOT) and I'm really holding myself back from looking up all the answers, cuz then I'll know how terribly I did.
I will say, another reason this was my worst was because I was pretty anxious.

Verbal - I have no idea, as I usually do, but hopefully it was fine. It's been fine on my practice tests, at least. Hopefully I didn't second-guess myself too much.

Writing - was fine... shrug?

BS - This was actually better than I expected, probably because I really like Verbal and Writing (I'm an English and Bio double major) and so at this point I was pretty relaxed. We'll see!!

I'm praying to all the gods in heaven and all sorts of foreign deities that I got a 30 or better. I'm seriously worried about PS though. I could see that one being like an 8. Ouch!

Nothing left to do at this point than relax, pray, and ask my pre-med advisor if I should sign up to retake it before I get my scores back or not. Heh.
 
I'm praying to all the gods in heaven and all sorts of foreign deities that I got a 30 or better. I'm seriously worried about PS though. I could see that one being like an 8. Ouch!

Nothing left to do at this point than relax, pray, and ask my pre-med advisor if I should sign up to retake it before I get my scores back or not. Heh.


I'm right there with you. If I can just get a 30, I would be extremely happy, considering the MONSTER exam we got dealt. I would be curious to see other versions of this year's exams to see if we were the only ones who got screwed. It's just so crazy that this test was NOTHING like any resource I used.
 
Wow, I've never seen so many negative comments about the PS section posted on this forum. Could it be that we received the worst PS section in the history of the MCAT?
 
eh, every test has its section. i think we just joined a fairly large club.
 
yea it definitely seems like you guys were given a very hard ps section..i took the july 13th and while most thought the ps was hard, we didnt think it was as bad as yours.. most people thought the bio was harder/more confusing on our test. the may 31sters also said the ps was ridiculous, so it seems its one section on evry test that sucks,.. i guess well see when the scores are released..
i think 95% of everyone agrees that the real thing is def. harder than the practices.
 
did anyone else make uneducated guesses on 10-20% (5-10 questions) of the PS section?

and then some educated guesses on another 60-70% or so

leaving me with about 5-10 problems i was "sure" of
 
After I got destroyed in physical sciences and again in verbal I couldnt read the bio passages and understand them. The discretes werent bad but I think I had just became unraveled.

Had to void...

The exam made me feel really unprepared, I dont really know what to do.
 
It's really nice to come home to this group and be reassured that we all feel the same way and can empathize with each other.

Today sucked. I think the hardest thing for me is to know that I studied so hard, I devoted my life to this test for the last several months, I breathed the MCAT..... and I walked out today thinking gee, I probably did as well as I would have if I had studied for 2 weeks and guessed on half of them 🙁

Someone told me that all I can do is my best, and that I should go to sleep tonight happy because I know that there was nothing that I did NOT do. I worked hard and went in there and took it, and whatever happens happens, at least I know how much effort I put in. (Lovely advice... but I want medical schools to know too!!! heehee)

Anyway... I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking about the questions in the PS that I didn't get to go back to 😛 (I have astranauts and BaCl and muscular something or other and freud floating in my head).

And what was up with that, it took me so long to analyze and comprehend the passages I finished every section down to the wire. Usually I have about 10 mins left on PS and about 20 left on BS. And where was organic???? That made me sad. I'll stop now 🙂

Well yay it's over. I hope all of you enjoy the rest of your summer.

But I have all this stuff in my head!!!!!!! I wonder if I should take it again? Nothing I have studied was tested.... I feel... like a ripe peach that just got dropped in the mud!! 😛
 
Oh one more thing - pray - before the test, during the test, and after the test...lol.

Yep... did that. My only hope, miracles.

From what everyone's saying, it seems like a few people (including me) had the easier physics version. Which means a lower curve and stupid mistakes/content errors at a high cost...

I need to take a break from any talk relating to MCAT before I get extremely worked up and nervous about an answer sheet that's already turned it. Peace... I'll post again come Aug 23 and I have my score.
 
I'd buy you all rounds, but I'm probably pretty isolated around here.

Only 5 MCAT writers this session.
 
It's really nice to come home to this group and be reassured that we all feel the same way and can empathize with each other.

Today sucked. I think the hardest thing for me is to know that I studied so hard, I devoted my life to this test for the last several months, I breathed the MCAT..... and I walked out today thinking gee, I probably did as well as I would have if I had studied for 2 weeks and guessed on half of them 🙁

Someone told me that all I can do is my best, and that I should go to sleep tonight happy because I know that there was nothing that I did NOT do. I worked hard and went in there and took it, and whatever happens happens, at least I know how much effort I put in. (Lovely advice... but I want medical schools to know too!!! heehee)

Anyway... I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking about the questions in the PS that I didn't get to go back to 😛 (I have astranauts and BaCl and muscular something or other and freud floating in my head).

And what was up with that, it took me so long to analyze and comprehend the passages I finished every section down to the wire. Usually I have about 10 mins left on PS and about 20 left on BS. And where was organic???? That made me sad. I'll stop now 🙂

Well yay it's over. I hope all of you enjoy the rest of your summer.

But I have all this stuff in my head!!!!!!! I wonder if I should take it again? Nothing I have studied was tested.... I feel... like a ripe peach that just got dropped in the mud!! 😛

I totaly feel your pain since I am suffering the same way. I too, put a lot of time and money for this test. I felt prepared and confident, but now I feel like an idiot who does not deserve to be in medical school. I wish you good lock. At least you eased my pain a little since I know I am not alone.
 
Could anyone please tell me how can I register to take another test? when I go to register it shows I am already registered for July 24th. I don't know what to do. I really want to retake the test. Please help...
 
So I took the test today, had all the passages you were talking about, but now I'm getting paranoid as to whether I clicked "score my exam" or if I clicked "void my exam"...It's really bugging me, I'm gonna try call the AAMC tomorrow. I hate this test.
 
hey guys I don't think we can discuss this specifically?
Correct. I have already deleted several posts and warned/infracted people who made them. Any further posting of specific MCAT questions or answers will result in a 1 week PH. Please don't make us do that to you.
 
Advice: Don't hold any key for too long, and read the messages that pop-up on your screen before clicking anything!!

F&^%! I always seem to trip the stickykeys dialog by holding the shift key. Gotta keep that in mind. Hope it turns out okay for you.
 
Could anyone please tell me how can I register to take another test? when I go to register it shows I am already registered for July 24th. I don't know what to do. I really want to retake the test. Please help...


You have to wait a couple days. They say 48 hours, so maybe Thursday night or Friday morning. You'll appear as registered until then, after that when you sign on you'll see that it is asking you if you would like to register 🙂 I'm thinking about maybe doing the same... I wish you could see your score as soon as you finish like on the practice tests 😛 Good luck!!
 
Could anyone please tell me how can I register to take another test? when I go to register it shows I am already registered for July 24th. I don't know what to do. I really want to retake the test. Please help...

You wont be able to register for a next test date until its been 48 hrs since your first one. So Thursday after 12, you should be able to. If they don't have it available by then, call them up!

Here's my rant about the MCAT: I feel that with it being on the computer and asking a lot less questions it doesn't cover everything but concentrates on only a few subjects and I was really surprised that a lot of the topics overlapped in BS/PS.

I really feel as if this test got the best of me but I really don't know what I could have done more/differently. I did extensive content review, I did so many problems because that's what everyone kept saying, so many practice tests and I just think that it was all worthless. Should have just cut my preparation time in half and just taken it.

There is really no way to "prepare" for this test.

. . and I thought after the MCAT I would be able to get a good night's sleep. I don't think that's going to be happening for a REALLY REALLY long time.
 
Hello! Another July 24th MCATer here!

PS: I thought it was out of this world. NOTHING, absolutely NOTHING like the practice tests...so very hard. I think I guessed like 5 : (

VR: Pretty long but actually it was ok!

Writing: Pretty solid. I managed to talk about my iPHONE : )

BS: ALL BIOLOGY! As a bio major, it was a plus for me : ) 🙂

P.S. OMG! Who design the interface!!! It was straight out of 1950s! SO outdated and nothing like any of the AAMC interface! ARRRRRRHHH!!!!!:meanie:
 
I agree with everyone.... except some of you.

the PS was without a doubt the hardest PS I have ever seen and I took all AAMC practice tests and TPR tests in addition to 2 other real MCATs last year. I'm pissed off because I studied a great deal of stuff when only 3 real subjects were covered. The weighting of physics was horrific!!!!! WTF???? it wasnt even close to 50/50. Without a doubt this section better have a killer curve unless there are a lot of people out there who are the rainman. I had the Fe57 problem but I left that to last and didnt even finish it.

The verbal was tough but I could do it. Just ran out of time.

(side note): its really lame that they dont allow watches in the testing lab... I like to time individual passages to keep on pace... and they used to allow them. What a bunch of tools

The biology was challenging and waaaaay too much molecular and genetics. I had hardly any orgo passages (just one on b-keto oxidation)


overall IT BLEW! they better curve the hell out of this test because it was not a fair test at all.
 
I mean, I feel like I totally wasted my time studying for it. I would have gotten the same score with ZERO prep work.

Seriously, what was the point of wasting my time studying for that test?

I studied my tail off for that test, and I was still forced to guess on a lot of questions. I had to actually make blind guesses on several questions.

That PS section was seriously hard. I mean really, really hard. On my AAMC's, I usually got ALL of the stand alones correct. On this thing, I got several stand alones right, but there wasn't one passage that I was comfortable with. That damn 57Fe passage sucked. That astronaut in the pool sucked too.

VR I smoked rather easily. I feel that I pulled at least a 10 on that one.

BS kicked my butt. Before that section, I was like, "All right, you got pwnd on the PS, but you are about to make your money back with this section."

Then I got served again.
 
i feel like im doomed with physics!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🙁 🙁 🙁 😡 😡 😡

any past experiences where u performed poorly on a section but in the end it turned out ok?
 
i thought the test was awful. i made a 29 (10p, 10v, 9b) on the paper test last year, and i was hoping this one would help improve my score. at the moment, i'm just praying my score didn't go significantly down (ie. <27).

my impressions are the same as many of you guys. i studied and practiced a lot of material, but i though a majority of the questions were passage-based, so i felt i was learning all my material as i was reading it. i *do* felt i could've done just as well with only 2-3 weeks of studying, instead of the 4-5 months i actually invested.

i barely remember a lot of the exam (ptsd?), anyways, here's my breakdown:

P - i don't remember making a lot of calculations. a lot of the questions appeared like reading comprehension items. i finished the section with a few minutes to check "marked" answers, but i honestly was unsure about a lot of questions.

V - it was long. the passages were long. i ended up speed reading through the last two passages b/c of a lack of time.

B - i also was short on time. i didn't have time to review my "marked" items. most of the questions were passage-based and some of the passages were confusing. i remember rushing through a least one important passage.

i took about 7 of the aamc practice exams, and they did not prepare me for this test. it felt almost like a different test entirely. i also felt it tested little actual science knowledge, and the passages and even the discretes had very little range.

so yeah. i'm not happy. but thanks for the vent med board. i guess we just wait.

-db
 
Do you guys think that maybe the test writers are cracking up a bit? Like they can't come up with decent, fair and properly weighted tests so many times in the year? It seems like there is a problem now with making the tests fair because they have so many different test dates to fulfill.

My exam room was more than a hundred degrees and I passed out in the beginning of verbal. I only got through the PS, which seemed far more challenging than anything I've done before. I've always liked atomic physics more than anything else, but there were fewer questions than 52 and I ran out of time for the first time ever on a science section. I think that says something.

We shouldn't get too down on ourselves. We've all prepared ridiculously and if the scores are bad, we'll just take it again. Well, I have to because I didn't finish the test, but most of you probably didn't have that problem 🙂 So cheer up! You could have passed out and now need to justify how hard it is to concentrate in choking heat to test administrators who don't care...

I've never liked having more difficult tests than others, even though the scoring is different. It's simply crushing not knowing what's going on - I'd rather get the passages and try my hardest than dodge dungbombs like that test.
 
i feel like im doomed with physics!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🙁 🙁 🙁 😡 😡 😡

any past experiences where u performed poorly on a section but in the end it turned out ok?

Well, it went both ways for me on May 31 - I walked out of Physics feeling terrible & ended up with my average (12); But I also walked out VR feeling like crap & ended up with a 9 when I never scored less than 10 on all practice tests.

I feel bad coming out of the test too - but you know, it's over & we can't really do anything about it anymore 🙁
 
I agree with most of you

PS: definately the hardest section. It was a huge "WAKEUP, THIS IS REALLY THE MCAT" so not only was i thrown off by the rediculous passages/questions, i still hadn't fully gotten my composure

VR: Really had to pee, dont remember much. I just remember that it wouldn't end no matter how fast I went. I ended up only having 6 min's for the last passage after going faster than I've ever gone on any AAMC practice tests. Some of the questions were tricky, but thats expected

BS: Not too bad. I hate how every1 is complaining about how there wasnt enough physio and way too much molecular genetics. If you expect to not be a bio major cuz its too hard, and then take on an econ, humanities, or writing major cuz its easier for you, then you have to expect that this section could possibly end up biting u in the ass. For me, I'm a bio major, and so I thought this section was a breeze. But as always, verbal is hard for me since they put 4 HUMANITIES PASSAGES ON IT! In the end, they screw u somewhere, but they'll help u somewhere. They want the well-rounded candidate, so if ur not a bio major, and you didn't do well on bio, suck it up. You prolly made up for it somewhere else. And that'll be reflected in ur composite score. Anyways, molecular gentics basically make up 90% of physio anyways, so if you really think u know ur physio well, you'd know ur molecular genetics cold too.

overall, hardest test ive ever taken in my life. I'm projecting an 11/9/12...we'll see in a month though..:scared:
 
I agree with most of you

PS: definately the hardest section. It was a huge "WAKEUP, THIS IS REALLY THE MCAT" so not only was i thrown off by the rediculous passages/questions, i still hadn't fully gotten my composure

VR: Really had to pee, dont remember much. I just remember that it wouldn't end no matter how fast I went. I ended up only having 6 min's for the last passage after going faster than I've ever gone on any AAMC practice tests. Some of the questions were tricky, but thats expected

BS: Not too bad. I hate how every1 is complaining about how there wasnt enough physio and way too much molecular genetics. If you expect to not be a bio major cuz its too hard, and then take on an econ, humanities, or writing major cuz its easier for you, then you have to expect that this section could possibly end up biting u in the ass. For me, I'm a bio major, and so I thought this section was a breeze. But as always, verbal is hard for me since they put 4 HUMANITIES PASSAGES ON IT! In the end, they screw u somewhere, but they'll help u somewhere. They want the well-rounded candidate, so if ur not a bio major, and you didn't do well on bio, suck it up. You prolly made up for it somewhere else. And that'll be reflected in ur composite score. Anyways, molecular gentics basically make up 90% of physio anyways, so if you really think u know ur physio well, you'd know ur molecular genetics cold too.

overall, hardest test ive ever taken in my life. I'm projecting an 11/9/12...we'll see in a month though..:scared:

Take it easy dude!

First of all you don't know if the people complaining about the bio section are not Bio majors.
Also I am a bio major (Neurobiology) and I personally do not think that 90% of the physio is molecular genetics. I took an upper division physio class and had no section on molecular genetics at all. 🙄
People are complaining about the MCAT covering only one or two sections out of the whole bunches of sections we prepared for and I think this is a valid and reasonable complain.

I think it is better to treat other's opinions respectfully.
 
Folks, I've just had to give two more people 1-week post holds for posting specific MCAT questions and answers on SDN. We are dead serious about this; you may NOT post ANY MCAT questions or answers on this website. I don't want to have to take away people's posting privileges, but if y'all can't control yourselves, I don't have a choice.
 
Great, everyone has refreshed my memory. Physics/Chem kicked my ass. Harder then any of the practice tests i took. I think i can now piece together all the passages. Trying not to be too specific:

Bicycles
Soil
Hydrated Crystal
Xenon
Copper in Greenhouse
Prism
Astronaut

Anyone have this section?
I had astronaut last and it absolutely killed me. I think the math in the prism passage killed me as well. I thought the bycicle one was easy enough. I thought the other 4 were not horrible, but they were pretty tough, had to do some educated guesses. All-in-all i can remeber 6 questions i had to guess on, i'm sure there were more i cant remember. My practice physcis were 13,10,13. I thought i did badly yesterday though.

Bio and verbal were ok for me.
 
any reason why they couldnt just give us our scores for everything besides the essays now? then we could make our decisions about retaking sooner ...
 
I mean, I feel like I totally wasted my time studying for it. I would have gotten the same score with ZERO prep work.

Seriously, what was the point of wasting my time studying for that test?

I studied my tail off for that test, and I was still forced to guess on a lot of questions. I had to actually make blind guesses on several questions.

That PS section was seriously hard. I mean really, really hard. On my AAMC's, I usually got ALL of the stand alones correct. On this thing, I got several stand alones right, but there wasn't one passage that I was comfortable with. That damn 57Fe passage sucked. That astronaut in the pool sucked too.

VR I smoked rather easily. I feel that I pulled at least a 10 on that one.

BS kicked my butt. Before that section, I was like, "All right, you got pwnd on the PS, but you are about to make your money back with this section."

Then I got served again.

I am preparing for the mcat now and with all the talk on the board I was wondering is it really worth it to purchase all of those mcat practice exams?
 
I don't think it is worth it to purchase more than a few practice exams--5 probably at the very most. It appears, based especially on this thread, that falling into a pattern of thinking that content of practice sections should mirror content on the real sections is misguided. Rather, take the practice tests merely to practice answering 52/40 tough ps/vr/bs questions in the alotted time, then be prepared for anything content-wise.

Not that I think that's great, but it looks like it's the way it is.
 
As far as practice tests go, just understand that all they are going to do for you is get you used to the time constraints.

My AAMC tests were so much different than that actual MCAT that it isn't even funny.

Like I said previously, I rarely missed a discrete on my AAMC's. I was told that if you get all the discreets correct, than any questions you miss on the passages is because you aren't sure what you are being asked.

Well, on that MCAT, I got owned in every aspect of it.

Like, that MCAT didn't test me on any of the material that I was responsible for. Well, I honestly feel that only 25 to 30% of that MCAT was content based.

The other 65 to 70% was stuff from these passages that were hard as hell. That astronaut passage was bad, so was the 57Fe.

I can usually answer 75% of each passage question with confidence, then have trouble with the others. Of those ones I had trouble with, I was able to narrow it down and usually pick the best answer.

But not here.

I am praying that I don't have to retake that test. I seriously do not want to retake that test.
 
As much as I agree that this test was nothing, (for the most part), like any practice exam I took, AAMC or Kaplan, I still think that I am going to do better had I reviewed content and not taken any practice tests.

The practice tests, no matter how far off from the real thing, get you used to thinking in terms of MCAT question and answer, IMO.
 
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