Kaplan FL 1 - lost hope

[podiatrytime]

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I took Kaplan FL #1 yesterday and didn't do as expected. I'm 60% done with content review and still received a pretty low score. Although I've heard Kaplan exams are way harder than the actual exam, I don't know if these percentages are good for now :/

C/P: 46%
CARS: 39%
B/Biochem: 49%
P/S: 42%

I'm registered to take the MCAT August 22nd. Do I have time to improve?

 

[Dreamstoo]

I took Kaplan FL #1 yesterday and didn't do as expected. I'm 60% done with content review and still received a pretty low score. Although I've heard Kaplan exams are way harder than the actual exam, I don't know if these percentages are good for now :/

C/P: 46%
CARS: 39%
B/Biochem: 49%
P/S: 42%

I'm registered to take the MCAT August 22nd. Do I have time to improve?

What was the scaled score?

 

[podiatrytime]

488

I've heard the percentages are more accurate than the scaled score (at least for Kaplan). Is that true?

 

[sparksfly21]

I took Kaplan FL #1 yesterday and didn't do as expected. I'm 60% done with content review and still received a pretty low score. Although I've heard Kaplan exams are way harder than the actual exam, I don't know if these percentages are good for now :/

C/P: 46%
CARS: 39%
B/Biochem: 49%
P/S: 42%

I'm registered to take the MCAT August 22nd. Do I have time to improve?

I'm in a similar situation as yourself since I took my first full length yesterday. However, I couldn't see my percentages so where did you find those? I'm about 30% done with the content review and from what I have heard, the first FL is one of their harder ones. Plus it'll take some time for you to get used to taking a test for ~7hrs. How were you with timing? I noticed that to be a big down fall for myself while taking the C/P and CARS section. Another thing I noticed was that I was EXHAUSTED by the time I was getting close to being done with CARS so endurance is a big factor too.

With enough practice, I think you
May be able to fair a good score. Keep up with your study schedule and practice practice! If you feel that you have increased your score to what you want then go ahead and take the test as scheduled. Otherwise if you're consistently in your current score range then consider rescheduling it

 

[ready2go2]

Just did Kaplan fl #1 today and was discouraged as well (got a 495) but a quick search suggest that Kaplans Fl scores are super deflated and that people who score 500+ ended up getting 510+. I'm also taking the exam August 22.


My percent correct are
P/c 54%
CARS 74%
Bio 51%
Psych 54%

But I did the AAMC official guide to mcat questions (30 Q per section 2 weeks ago) and got:

P/C 56%
CARS 70%
Bio 70%
psych 76%

And I thought the passages were very different, so all in all I think Kaplan is a terrible representation of the real exam but I think it is great to find holes in content knowledge.

 

[podiatrytime]

I'm in a similar situation as yourself since I took my first full length yesterday. However, I couldn't see my percentages so where did you find those? I'm about 30% done with the content review and from what I have heard, the first FL is one of their harder ones. Plus it'll take some time for you to get used to taking a test for ~7hrs. How were you with timing? I noticed that to be a big down fall for myself while taking the C/P and CARS section. Another thing I noticed was that I was EXHAUSTED by the time I was getting close to being done with CARS so endurance is a big factor too.

With enough practice, I think you
May be able to fair a good score. Keep up with your study schedule and practice practice! If you feel that you have increased your score to what you want then go ahead and take the test as scheduled. Otherwise if you're consistently in your current score range then consider rescheduling it

Click on 'Performance Summary" on the upper right hand corner (it'll be located on the page that gives you a scaled score) for specific percentages. I hope that helps!

I think you're right! After the CARS section, I felt mentally exhausted...so I definitely need to practice taking a 7 hr exam. Timing wasn't really an issue for me until I got to the last section. I think that has a lot to do with endurance/ability to stay focused.
As I was reviewing the exam today, I found so many careless mistakes (either I didn't read the question correctly or didn't "think the answer through")--which I guess is better than lacking content?!?
Hopefully my score shows an upward trend as I focus more on my weak areas.

Good luck studying!!!

 

[podiatrytime]

Just did Kaplan fl #1 today and was discouraged as well (got a 495) but a quick search suggest that Kaplans Fl scores are super deflated and that people who score 500+ ended up getting 510+. I'm also taking the exam August 22.


My percent correct are
P/c 54%
CARS 74%
Bio 51%
Psych 54%

But I did the AAMC official guide to mcat questions (30 Q per section 2 weeks ago) and got:

P/C 56%
CARS 70%
Bio 70%
psych 76%

And I thought the passages were very different, so all in all I think Kaplan is a terrible representation of the real exam but I think it is great to find holes in content knowledge.

You're right, they're definitely deflated and discouraging! I plan on using the Kaplan exams for practice and improvement on weak areas...rather than to monitor my growth.

Your AAMC percentages look good! I think I'm going to use their material two weeks before my scheduled date. Hopefully that gives me enough time to get used to their formatting/question-style.

 

[ready2go2]

You're right, they're definitely deflated and discouraging! I plan on using the Kaplan exams for practice and improvement on weak areas...rather than to monitor my growth.

Your AAMC percentages look good! I think I'm going to use their material two weeks before my scheduled date. Hopefully that gives me enough time to get used to their formatting/question-style.

Planning on using them the same way as well. Going to take #2 and #3 next weekend and the weekend after that as a stamina builder and content knowledge strengthening and take the AAMC full length 2 weeks before as well. Looks like we are on the same page.

Do you not have the AAMC official guide book? I think it was helpful to see the style of questions early on, and is giving me less reason to panic (besides my terrible physics/chem section lol)

 

[podiatrytime]

Planning on using them the same way as well. Going to take #2 and #3 next weekend and the weekend after that as a stamina builder and content knowledge strengthening and take the AAMC full length 2 weeks before as well. Looks like we are on the same page.

Do you not have the AAMC official guide book? I think it was helpful to see the style of questions early on, and is giving me less reason to panic (besides my terrible physics/chem section lol)

I recently got a hold on the AAMC Official Guide and haven't really had much time to look into it. I do plan on completing the question packs before I take their full length though. Would you say that their STYLE of questions are easier than Kaplan's?

 

[BryanBeid]

The important part is exposure. The last FL score I got before my june exam was a 500, and I am going to end up with a 515+. Unfortunately, the scores are confidence killers but to do your best you HAVE to take them with a grain of salt. Do more, and learn what and why you're getting things wrong.