IS IT TRUE THAT.............

[UrSexyLatinDr]

OK, This is a question that belongs to the MCAT forum, but since that place is too slow I decided to post here and get more opinions. Ok, A lot of people have told me that a good way to prepare your self for the verbal section is to read a lot, read stuff like: The New York Times, The economist, The wall street journal, is this true? What else can you do to prepare yourself for this part if you have a year away from the actual test? Any other reading stuff? Also, is there anything for the Physical and Biological sciences sections you can do separate from the review stuff? You know, kind of like to start preparing earlier? Any advice?

Muchas gracias Chicos y Chicas, que tengan un lindo dia!

Eduardo

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[Vin Scully]

I think getting your hands on as many practice passages as you can is a good way to prepare for the verbal section. Getting used to reading something somewhat quickly but still getting the main points, and how to read a question and quickly go back and find the answer. I think reading the newspaper, The Economist, etc...are good prep for the written part (to keep you up on current events) but not so much good prep on the verbal.

 

[trouta]

I agree. I dont know that doing a bunch of reading will really help your performance. Practice pasages however are totally key to doing well.

 

[The Fly]

The reading advice that I would give would be to buy the NYT for a couple of months and read the OP-ED section -- these passages are rougly the same length as many of the MCAT passages. Read them QUICKLY and try to comprehend them such as you would in a verbal passage -- also, use these to develop your 'marking technique' -- that is, the method you'll use to mark/underline the passages on the test.

I will also reiterate that doing as many passages as possible is key -- when you think you're done, do more. . .

 

[vyc]

i think reading will help you both on the Verbal section and also the writing section.

though with the verbal section, the above posters are right... you really do need to do practice problems. but reading NYT, the economist, Time magazine, etc., will help you get used to reading fast and also reading topics of different subjects.

it will also help you in the writing section bc it should give you examples that you can use to personalize the essay. this is key!!!

 

[vhl]

Another good magazine to read to prep is the Atlantic Monthly-I swear a few of the passages were taken straight from it

 

[Sweet Tea]

I found reading articles (NYT, Times) was a good way to prepare not just for the verbal section but for all the sections-- you get used to reading and understanding passages quickly if you practice. I also did just about every single practice verbal passage Kaplan offered. I felt that many of the BS and PS questions could be answered based on the passage alone without any outside science knowledge, so improving your reading skills should help your VR and science scores. I also agree with the previous poster-- reading articles will also give you material to draw from for the writing samples.

 

[Assassin]

reading the heavy duty stuff you mentioned will surely help (a lot) on the MCAT verbal if you just keep a couple of things in mind:
1-you should not chose the articles that interest you, instead, go for the ones that are of LEAST interest to you (very few people find MCAT passages enjoyable)
2-reading for the sake of reading is a waste of time; you must read quickly and you must train yourself to paraphrase everything as you're reading to become efficient in seeking out the important points of the passage (and to remain awake )

 

[Assassin]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by curlyMD:
• I felt that many of the BS and PS questions could be answered based on the passage alone without any outside science knowledge, so improving your reading skills should help your VR and science scores. •••••it's not just your feeling, it's purposely designed that way

 

[TechMan]

I don't think that reading a bunch of stuff like those magazines and newspapers is going to help. The people who read these things every day are the ones who do well on the verbal section (not just reading them a month or so in advance, hoping to prepare for some test) Instead, focus on the practice passages and really get your timing down.

 

[Future_Doc]

Pull out any one of your basic bio or economics textbooks. Pick out a section, time yourself, and then try to summarize in your head what you read. Sounds lame, I know. But the more boring material you are able to read and comprehend quickly, the better off you are. They really pick the worst material they could find for those passages.

 

[deva]

You should read the New York Times because it is the best newspaper in the country, not to help you for some test!

 

[vyc]

the passages in the verbal section are usually not on science so you don't really need to read your bio textbooks...

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Future_Doc:
•Pull out any one of your basic bio or economics textbooks. Pick out a section, time yourself, and then try to summarize in your head what you read. Sounds lame, I know. But the more boring material you are able to read and comprehend quickly, the better off you are. They really pick the worst material they could find for those passages. •••••

 

[UrSexyLatinDr]

Thanks a lot for your help guys!

So what some of you mean is that having great reading comprehension skills will make the BS and PS section easier? Thanks again!

Eduardo

 

[The Fly]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by deva:
•You should read the New York Times because it is the best newspaper in the country, not to help you for some test! •••••As a NYT subscriber, I couldn't have worded it better myself. . .

 

[lady bug]

Reading those newspapers really hasn't helped me that much, and its kinda frustrating b/c I don't have a way of checking my comprehension....I much rather prefer doing verbal passages...one right after another.

 

[gizzdogg]

i third the NYtimes thing. I subscribed for the free online version 6 months before the MCAT and read at least a few articles a day, mostly for pleasure. A few months before the MCAT (when I started to panic) I started printing off articles that i wasn't interested in, particularly about Art and the humanities, and began to practice marking the paragraphs,etc. All the work definitely paid off. Go to <a href="http://www.nytimes.com" target="_blank">www.nytimes.com</a> and sign up for free! And it is the best damn newspaper in the country!

 

[Future_Doc]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by vyc:
•the passages in the verbal section are usually not on science so you don't really need to read your bio textbooks...
•••••I wasn't meaning that you should read a biology book in order to gain some knowledge. But a lot of the reading in those textbooks is very detailed and boring. If you can quickly read thru a passage and clearly interprete it, then that is good practice for the verbal section - IMO. But your right - there won't be any Bio in the verbal section.

 

[Hercules]

One suggestion that hasn't been throw out yet is to use some of your electives in the upcoming year to take the non-sci courses. Try out some history, philosophy, econ, art appreciation, golden age of Latin literature, etc. I know everyone likes to do the practice passages, but I think it's also helpful to just get your mind used to thinking about things other than natural sciences. Not to mention the fact that it will make you more well-rounded :wink: I'm somewhat biased since I was a classics major, but to qualify my advice I did max out the VR section of my MCAT. As was posted before, reading comprehension will help you out in the BS & PS sections, too. I guarantee you that the majority of people taking the MCAT knew their natural sciences better than I did, but I still came out pretty well on those sections just based on my reading comprehension and test-taking skills. Just my $.02

 

[Jersey Girl]

For the most part, Your verbal is your verbal. Take a practice test and see where you stand on that section. Reasonably, you may be able to pull that score up 2 points. There are rare instances where people pull it up more. If you see your verbal score is weak, you know that you have to make up for that with the sciences. I had people in my Prep class who wasted so much time studying for the verbal section only to come up a point. They were overly confident with the science sections, and didn't get as many points there as they could stand to. You have to set reosanable goals, if your verbal is poor, don't waste tons of time trying to fix it. You most likely won't be able to. Allocate your study time more efficiently. Sorry if that isn't the answer you don't to hear.