Kaplan Full length #1....

[Mr. Beefy Lion]

I am taking the exam on June 20th....before I started studying I took the kaplan diagnostic and got a 498. I did quite a bit of content review then took the next step half length 2 weeks ago and scored a 513.

I just got done taking the Kaplan full length #1 (books, not class) and got a 499 (124/125/127/123). Anyone else experience anything similar? I was feeling really good and actually thought I did well on the kaplan full length too.

What would be your next move?

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[mcatjelly]

Forget the score. What were your percentages?

 

[Mr. Beefy Lion]

Not in front of it now but they were somewhere in the ballpark of:
PS: 60%
CARS: 65%
Bio: 77%
Pysch: 60%

Pysch was brutal with a combination of words I had never heard and being fatigued.


Is there an undisputed best source to study psych from?

 

[mcatjelly]

Not in front of it now but they were somewhere in the ballpark of:
PS: 60%
CARS: 65%
Bio: 77%
Pysch: 60%

Pysch was brutal with a combination of words I had never heard and being fatigued

Just to put those scores in perspective... had this been the old CBT-10, your scores would have been:

PS: 7
CARS: 7
Bio: 10
Psych: anywhere from a 6-8

And the first 3 would put you at a 24. So, yeah, you have some work to do, but it seems like you're at a good place in bio. And remember that these FLs are almost always harder than AAMC's stuff.

A month to go is plenty of time to raise that score. What I think you just need to do is SO. MANY. PRACTICE PASSAGES, and as many FLs as you can afford/get your hands on.

As for the Psych stuff--no, there's no one best prep book, although many people (myself included) like TPR, with Kaplan being a close second. But honestly, I would spend money on practice vs. more content review, because you could easily learn the material using a free online textbook and the AAMC outline.

 

[ElectricNoogie]

I am taking the exam on June 20th....before I started studying I took the kaplan diagnostic and got a 498. I did quite a bit of content review then took the next step half length 2 weeks ago and scored a 513.

I just got done taking the Kaplan full length #1 (books, not class) and got a 499 (124/125/127/123). Anyone else experience anything similar? I was feeling really good and actually thought I did well on the kaplan full length too.

What would be your next move?

I agree w/ @mcatjelly that going from a half-length exam to a Full length exam may be a big part of your dip. Take a look at the topics tested on each exam. Odds are there were many more topics tested on the FL than on either of the diagnostic exams. Rather than rushing out to buy a ton of exams, take stock of what you have and focus on building your test taking endurance. Taking 4-5 Full lengths + the AAMC exam should be plenty for prep, but that doesn't mean you don't need additional practice. If you need more practice pick up and MCAT practice Q books, or additional Full lengths that you can break up and use as section tests. Ideally you could take up to 2 FLs in a single week but you would not want to do that till near the end. For now analyze the topics & passages you missed, so that you can learn from this exam before you go jumping into the next practice session.

As for the Psych/Soc, have you gone through the Khan Academy videos and passages yet? They are a good FREE resource for Psych/Soc prep.

Good luck!

 

[Mr. Beefy Lion]

I really appreciate the responses. Thanks for the help. What are these mcat practice Q books and where can I buy them?