I'm officially an idiot

[Turkelton]

---

Members do not see this ad.

When it comes to the MCAT I have learned that I'm officially an idiot. After 5 months of full time study (30 to 50 hrs a week), taking the TPR course, having completed all the pre-reqs in addition to genetics, physiology, and anatomy, as well as completing 16 full length tests I ended up with a 19R from the 7/10 administration. It's a proper living nightmare.

My break down P7 V5 B7

I'm still trying to figure out how I shot myself in the foot so efficiently,
and I'm looking for some help/advice. My average score from the aamc practice tests was 26.62

AAMC 3 B13 V8 P9 30
AAMC 4 B10 V4 P9 23
AAMC 5 B9 V10 P10 29
AAMC 6 B10 V6 P9 25
AAMC 7 B9 V8 P9 26
AAMC 10 B12 V8 P8 28
AAMC 9 B9 V3 P8 20
AAMC 8 B12 V10 P10 32

As you can see my scores are all over the friggin place. I also took 8 of the GST tests and averaged a 22 (supposedly those tests are harder, but who the f*** knows).

My question is after 5 months of studying, I don't where to start again? I tried to do everything single thing right the first time, and I ended up with a score that a chimpanzee from the zoo could obtain.

During my 5 months of study I completed all of: the TPR workbooks, the EK Verbal Book, the EK 1001 Bio passages, TBR Physics, TBR General Chemistry, as well as those 16 FL's. As well as memorizing every PS equation.

Evaluating what exactly happened during real MCAT:

Time really hurt me on this beast. I trained really hard under timed conditions, but none of that paid off. For PS/BS I was forced to guess on 1 entire passage for each section. For verbal I completed 5 passages (to what I thought was really well), and then had to do the last two passages in 8 minutes. I walked out of the test feeling that I had scored about 26-28, and then ended up with that beautiful 19 of mine.


The annoying part about the real MCAT for me was that it was so repetitious i.e. bio section was almost entirely on renal and molecular genetics material, ps had 6 passages on Gen Chem. Are most other MCATs so repitious or did I have an abnormal one?

Anyways does anyone have recommendations for new material I could use, or approaches I could take?? I don't want to use any material I've used before since that will give me a false sense of progress.

Also I submitted my primary apps in July, and don't really know what to do next?

A.) Sign up for Sept. 13th MCAT. Which gives me a month to work on my timing problems. Worst case scenario I void it.

B.) Sign up for January 30th MCAT . Which puts me at a huge
timing disadvantage for the application season.

Also now that I have used up all of the AAMC practice exams, how can I tell if I'm ready to take it again? Kaplan, TPR, and GST all make their exams at a different level of difficulty making it difficult to gage where one is at on a AAMC level. Any advice is really appreciated. Thank you.

 

[Cp22kjer]

Sounds like anxiety is playing some role in all of this. I am sorry to hear about your troubles, I scored much lower than expected myself.

The 19 seems like a fluke to me, and you seem well prepared so you may want to take the earlier date if you feel that the 19 really wasn't your true ability (judging by practice tests it surely was not).

If you take the January one be sure to check as some schools do not accept it.

 

[engineeredout]

I say take it as soon as possible. Worst case you'll take it again in january.

 

[anon y mous]

I say take it as soon as possible. Worst case you'll take it again in january.

I agree, and I sympathize with you as I unexpectedly scored worst than any of my practices. 🙁 I'm retaking it in Sept. Sign up soon, as when I tried to sign up, the center I wanted was already full.

 

[umean2tellme]

Dude I'm sorry about your score. But always try to put a positive spin on things. You got a 19 for a reason and it wasn't from lack of studying b/c you did 30-50 hrs a week. So just use different study materials ( I recommend exam krackers) and try and find the other reasons why you didn't do as well as your practice exams. Take it again asap and when you get a 30+ it'll give you something great to write about in secondaries and to talk about in interviews. Med schools like a success story. Good luck.

 

[MikeTheGipper]

I agree that it sounds like you scoring a 19 was a fluke. If I were you I would retake in September if you can while most of the material is still fresh in your head. Unless you feel like you've lost a lot of the content knowledge already and that you won't be able to catch up in time for a September exam I would not wait until January '09. I honestly had some timing issues myself, mainly in Verbal. After trying my best, without success, to improve reading speed without sacrificing comprehension of the passage, I had to resort to an alternative strategy. I essentially would completely guess on one passage without even reading it and just focus on the other passages. On my test day, I think with about 8 or 9 minutes left I had two passages remaining. One had 6 questions after it and one had 5. I plugged in answers for the one with 5 and went after the one with 6 questions. I know it's not an ideal strategy, but personally I found that it worked better for me as opposed to rushing and trying to read all of the passages and sacrificing some comprehension of them. Just something to think about for your next test day. Plus, out the passage that you completely guess at you may very well get a few of them correct.

You are not an idiot. It was definitely a fluke. Thousands and thousands of physicians took the mcat twice and have gone on to be extremely competent and successful.

 

[Saregamapadanis]

AAMC 3 B13 V8 P9 30
AAMC 4 B10 V4 P9 23
AAMC 5 B9 V10 P10 29
AAMC 6 B10 V6 P9 25
AAMC 7 B9 V8 P9 26
AAMC 10 B12 V8 P8 28
AAMC 9 B9 V3 P8 20
AAMC 8 B12 V10 P10 32

Anyways does anyone have recommendations for new material I could use, or approaches I could take?? I don't want to use any material I've used before since that will give me a false sense of progress.

From what I see, your practice test scores are all over the place too. This is because each AAMC test is different when it comes to the topics that it tests the students on. So, you might have done well on AAMC 8 because it tested you on topics which were easier for you but you may have suffered through the AAMC 9 because it tested you on topics that were harder for you.

My advice is go back to these tests and look at the topics where your score is weak. Study those weaker topics and come back to these tests and try to see if you can figure out solutions on your own without looking at the given solutions .

Also look at your studying more closely, are you simply reading the material and memorizing equations? or are you practically able to understand the concepts and apply them in situations that the test asks you to apply them in. Sometimes you know everything there is to know about mechanics, but you may not realize how to solve a problem on the test dealing with mechanics because the question is critically worded. To get over this dilemma you may probably have to practice on 20+ practice tests and like I said before, after practicing on each practice test , go back to the test and see what areas you are weak in and improve yourself in those areas.

My first practice test scores too were very weak ... around 20 , but I managed myself to get a high score (30+) in the end, so don't worry, just stick to your daily practice and you will eventually succeed.

 

[AirJLastDance]

I feel your sentiments. Don't give up tho and CHARGE FORWARD with a Sept MCAT!

you can do it, especially with your range of tests, the timing will be an issue so just work on that because the real thing feels a lot more pressed for time than anything

you seem to have exhausted a lot of resources and done all you could to study. a friend of mine took it once got a 23 and then took it again and got a 30, another girl i knew got an 18 the first time and then took it again and got a 27 and got in to a pretty decent state school (MD at that which are even more strict in general for MCAT scores). So don't give up and beat yourself up too much, these things happen but pick yourself up and believe in yourself!

Best of luck!

 

[JaggerPlate]

Everyone is giving good advice OP, but, in my opinion, you personally need to figure out what is making your scores go all over the place. You've clearly worked hard and understand the material, but something - probably nerves - is making you jump everywhere and you really don't want to sit for the test until your consistently scoring where you want to. Once you get whatever this is under control, I think you'll do great.

 

[GreenShirt]

OP, did you take all the AAMC practice tests under timed conditions? Because it seems like you may have had a problem with timing on the real exam. You could enroll in TPR or Kaplan so that you could practice with some new tests. On the one hand, if it's a fluke, you want to take the test again as soon as possible so that the info is fresh, but on the other, you want to figure out what the problem is before you tackle another test.

 

[MossPoh]

There is this common misconception that the MCAT is all about the hours you put in studying. It is cliche, but it is quality over quantity. That is A LOT of time to spend. After I reviewed material for a while I went to strictly refining test taking technique. I took any and every test I could get my hands on....multiple times. If you retook a test and got a 35 then you still don't know all the material. My one friend would retake sections until he got at least a 14. He just made sure to go through the "whys" of each answer rather than simply clicking the correct answer.

Anxiety is a big part of it as well. Get some inderal or something to help mellow you out. It does wonders and is dirt cheap. Try not to beat yourself up too much. Retake the test when you're ready. Worst case scenario is that you have to wait a year.....big deal. Builds character. 😉

 

[MLT2MT2DO]

Having your Verbal range from a 3-10 brings up questions, such as what were the scenario's when taking these tests. Out of all of the sections verbal should fluctuate the least. It is the most consistant throughout practice tests.

I'd wonder about things like caffeinated vs non...tired vs wide awake...topics you find interesting vs topics that are boring to you....some undiagnosed condition along the lines of A.D.D.?

Something is going on here that has nothing to do with studying. Not to put you down or anything but if you are a native english speaker you should be nowhere near a 3 on Verbal, you need to get to the root of your problem with that section.

Edit: Also like the above posts have said, if you are still hoping for an acceptance this go around, take the MCAT in September (lighten up on the studying and figure out what else is going on). I believe a majority of D.O. schools don't accept Jan MCAT

 

[Turkelton]

Thank you friends for all of the replies. SDN is my only contact for obtaining info, and I really appreciate all the extra insight.

I've signed up for Sept. 13th MCAT. Reno friggin Nevada, 4 hours from home was the only thing that was open.

I think timing and nerves are a bigger issue for me than knowing the material. I'm a really slow test taker in general, i.e. 9 out of 10 classes I've taken I'm usually one of the last people to hand in the exam, but I usually do pretty well because of the extra time. In the MCAT this is obviously not an option, and I need to learn to change my ways.

Also I was looking back at my practice exams, especially verbal and I've noticed that on the verbal exams I did poorly on the passages were of topics I find completely uninteresting, and vice versa the verbal exams I did well on were of topics I find interesting. I guess I need to fill my verbal practice with completely boring passages in order to boost my verbal skills.

 

[anon y mous]

I've signed up for Sept. 13th MCAT. Reno friggin Nevada, 4 hours from home was the only thing that was open.

Whoa, not to sound negative but I do not think this is a good situation to be in. I tried to warn you since it happened to me. I postponed my test a month later than i wanted because I wanted my own site; maybe you don't have that option but I just don't think this will help your psyche any. If you drive or fly there that morning you'll have to be up so early and not be in the best frame of mind and have very little sleep. If you go there the day before you'll be sleeping (or probably not sleeping) in a strange bed and you'll be driving to an unfamiliar testing center in an unfamiliar area. Good luck!

 

[Turkelton]

Thanks for looking out anonymous, but I'm not too worried about it. I've spent a couple years of my life backpacking overseas, and I feel completely at home wherever I'm at. I'll be driving up 1-2 days in advance, and I'm pretty familiar with Reno.

 

[tkim]

Anxiety is a big part of it as well. Get some inderal or something to help mellow you out. It does wonders and is dirt cheap.

Really, really bad advice.

 

[anon y mous]

Thanks for looking out anonymous, but I'm not too worried about it. I've spent a couple years of my life backpacking overseas, and I feel completely at home wherever I'm at. I'll be driving up 1-2 days in advance, and I'm pretty familiar with Reno.

Ok, great then; all the best of luck to you!

 

[MossPoh]

Really, really bad advice.

A low dosage was suggested to me by multiple doctors. (Family physician, an internist, ER, and a Cardiologist....I felt pretty safe since they knew my medical history.) Musicians and performers use it all the time. Its not like you're high or popping a bunch of hardcore pills. Just keeps your heart from jumping out of your chest. A 10 mg tablet won't do anything. Especially when around 40 mg is the normal dosage and 20 is recommend for performance anxiety. I mean, diazepam works well too. You're right in that there are two journal articles I can think of that say it does nothing for the treatment of general anxiety, but that doesn't necessarily apply to short term phobia. Either way, I can tell you first hand that just thinking it helps does wonders.

 

[Turkelton]

I'm taking the sept. 13th administration, and get those scores back in the middle of october. Do I.....

A.) Release my 19 to AACOMAS now, and indicate that I'm taking my 2nd MCAT on 9/13.

B.) Wait until my 9/13 score comes out in October, then send both scores at the same time.

Is there an advantage to doing one over the other?

 

[niranjan162]

I'm taking the sept. 13th administration, and get those scores back in the middle of october. Do I.....

A.) Release my 19 to AACOMAS now, and indicate that I'm taking my 2nd MCAT on 9/13.

B.) Wait until my 9/13 score comes out in October, then send both scores at the same time.

Is there an advantage to doing one over the other?

they are pretty much the same, as they will hold off looking at ur app until the new scores come in, which is pretty much the same as them not having an MCAT to look at.