May MCAT practice test score

[andexterouss]

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I see quite few May MCATers still posting on the April thread so i've decided to start up another one specifically for us. Please state what day in May your test is, your FL score, the test you took(Kaplan,TPR, AAMC, or EK) and under what condition the test was taken.I guess I'll go first:

Test Date: May 11

AAMC CBT 3r: PS(9), Vr(10), BS(8)--->27
Alot people said that the aamc 3r is the easiest.....i guess my score doesn't reflect that.🙁

AAMC CBT 4R: PS(11), VR(9), BS(10)---->30
While i'm glad that I improved, i must say that i took it under non-standard condition. For example, the test was untimed and i had to "re-check" some concepts and formulas from my TPR book for may be two or three questions. The PS section was quite challenging .....at least for me.

 

[midn]

TPR Diag 4110 7-7-11 (25) (PS-VR-BS)
I kind of took a lunch break between PS and VR because I realized I was starving and couldn't concentrate.

TPR Diag 4120 10-5-11 (26)
Normal testing conditions. Bombed the crap out of verbal obviously.

AAMC 6 CBT 10-10-11 (31)
VR section is inaccurate because I got some glitch that gave me a few minutes extra. The actual VR score probably should be a 9 or 8. Also, I had to leave the library after the PS section and finish the rest of the test at home. I skipped the writing section since AAMC doesn't grade it anyways.

Going to try to take AAMC 7 this weekend.

 

[devlyyn]

Just took my first "real" FL today.

AAMC 3r
PS (10) VR (11) BS (10) 31

I plan on taking 2/week from now until the test (May 11). I figure I can do one per day and spend the next day going over what I missed and why. So, 1st on monday, review tues, 2nd on wed, review thurs, friday read read read.

 

[cathbig]

AAMC CBT 3: PS(12) VR(12) BS(12) - 36
AAMC CBT 5: PS(11) VR(11) BS(10) - 32


Took 5 after I had been up for like 19-20 hours which I shouldn't have done so I'm not too concerned with the score drop. I also took a TPR FL from a book and scored similar to my AAMC CBT 3(didn't list b/c I dunno the test #).

34-35 is my ideal score so hopefully I'll sleep well the night before the real deal

 

[andexterouss]

TPR Diag 4110 7-7-11 (25) (PS-VR-BS)
I kind of took a lunch break between PS and VR because I realized I was starving and couldn't concentrate.

TPR Diag 4120 10-5-11 (26)
Normal testing conditions. Bombed the crap out of verbal obviously.

AAMC 6 CBT 10-10-11 (31)
VR section is inaccurate because I got some glitch that gave me a few minutes extra. The actual VR score probably should be a 9 or 8. Also, I had to leave the library after the PS section and finish the rest of the test at home. I skipped the writing section since AAMC doesn't grade it anyways.

Going to try to take AAMC 7 this weekend.

The good thing is that your BS score is steady.You just have to work on your VR to be steady. I went down a point on my VR from aamc 3r.

AAMC CBT 3: PS(12) VR(12) BS(12) - 36
AAMC CBT 5: PS(11) VR(11) BS(10) - 32


Took 5 after I had been up for like 19-20 hours which I shouldn't have done so I'm not too concerned with the score drop. I also took a TPR FL from a book and scored similar to my AAMC CBT 3(didn't list b/c I dunno the test #).

34-35 is my ideal score so hopefully I'll sleep well the night before the real deal

Wow. your scores are impressive considering that the aamc has the strictest curve ever 😉 . Did you finish each section on time?

 

[Kraazy]

Test date: May 11

Kaplan diagnostic: 8P 13V 8B (29)
Kaplan FL 1: 12P 12V 11B (35)

Hoping to do at least 1 FL/wk from now on. I was thinking of doing 2/wk, but it takes me so long to review the tests afterwards and I'd rather spend the time on content review. Can't wait for this to be over!

 

[cathbig]

Impressive considering that the aamc has the strictest curve ever 😉 . Did you finish each section on time?

Yup. I usually finish with about 15 mins left on BS, 5-10 on PS/VR. I was so exhausted on 5 I didn't even bother to go back and double check any of my sections, so I'm sure that also had to do with me missing a few questions on the PS/BS sections.

 

[andexterouss]

Can't wait for this to be over!

I know ! My sleep pattern has been so screwed up since my test prep.

 

[Bernoull]

Can you guys provide some context/perpective.....

Have far along are you in your review when you sat for these tests. I took AAMC 3BCT for diagnostic purposes - completed 10% of my review and my score were dismal😕 😕 😕 😕 .

Bio - 9
PS - 7
VR - 8

total 24 (skipped the essay).

Can you guys state your review status to better contextualize your scores.

Thanks

 

[cathbig]

Can you guys state your review status to better contextualize your scores.

Thanks

I took CBT 3 as diagnostic too, pre-study. The TPR's and AAMC CBT 5 I took were done after I had studied everything but OChem.

I wouldn't get too upset, try to finish reviewing everything and then seeing how you're scoring. When you miss questions you'll know where you're weak and strong and can review your weaknesses.

 

[andexterouss]

Can you guys provide some context/perpective.....

Have far along are you in your review when you sat for these tests. I took AAMC 3BCT for diagnostic purposes - completed 10% of my review and my score were dismal😕 😕 😕 😕 .

Bio - 9
PS - 7
VR - 8

total 24 (skipped the essay).

Can you guys state your review status to better contextualize your scores.

Thanks

First off, your score is nothing to worry about considering you took it without much knowledge. You are bound to improve.I'm done with most of my major review. The TPR book covers everything you need to know and more(no kidding)! So i would advice you not to use it since your exam is within a month
(i assume you are May Mcater). ExamKrackers is brief and straight to the point but very skimpy and kinda all over the place in their chem and physics. It didn't work for me but it may work for you.I'm thinking of holding off taking any full-length practice for a week because I've forgotten quite a few Bio stuff in my TPR book. In fact, i'm thinking of doing one more major brief review of everything i've learnt. I noticed that a lot of my mistakes during the tests were on things I've learnt but didn't memorize.

 

[midn]

Oops, my AAMC 6 score was actually 11-10-10.

Anyways, I asked my TPR teacher (one of the "master" teachers that has taken every single MCAT test known to man) how easy AAMC 6 was and he said AAMC 3-6 are much easier than the actual MCAT, 7 is a bit more on-par with the correct difficulty, and 8-10 are the best.

I did feel a lot of the questions in 6 were really easy and straightforward. I'll try taking 8 this weekend instead of 7.

 

[SFMAV]

I'm taking the test on May 16th

These are the tests in the order I took them
Kaplan Diagnostic (22) PS 9 VR 5 BS 8
KFL 1 - (24) PS 10 VR 7 BS 7
AAMC 3 - (28) PS 9 VR 9 BS 10
KFL 2 - (29) PS 13 VR 9 BS 9
AAMC 4 - (33) PS 12 VR 11 BS 10
KFL 3 (34) PS 11 VR 11 BS 12

I feel like my studying is unorganized but I seem to be heading in the right direction so I'm going with it. I'm hoping for a 35+ on the real thing

 

[qtrlifecrisis]

test date: May 25th

Kaplan diag: PS: 8, VR: 8, BS: 7, total 23
Kaplan FL1: PS: 10, VR: 11, BS: 10, total 31
Kaplan FL2: PS: 14, VR: 9, BS: 12, total 35

I'm most worried about verbal.

 

[Bernoull]

cathbig vbmenu_register("postmenu_4989831", true);
Catholic not catheter

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bernoull
Can you guys state your review status to better contextualize your scores.

Thanks

I took CBT 3 as diagnostic too, pre-study. The TPR's and AAMC CBT 5 I took were done after I had studied everything but OChem.

I wouldn't get too upset, try to finish reviewing everything and then seeing how you're scoring. When you miss questions you'll know where you're weak and strong and can review your weaknesses.

andexterouss vbmenu_register("postmenu_4989848", true);
New Member​

Join Date: Feb 2005
Posts: 13 ​

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bernoull
Can you guys provide some context/perpective.....

Have far along are you in your review when you sat for these tests. I took AAMC 3BCT for diagnostic purposes - completed 10% of my review and my score were dismal .

Bio - 9
PS - 7
VR - 8

total 24 (skipped the essay).

Can you guys state your review status to better contextualize your scores.

Thanks
First off, your score is nothing to worry about considering you took it without much knowledge. You are bound to improve.I'm done with most of my major review. The TPR book covers everything you need to know and more(no kidding)! So i would advice you not to use it since your exam is within a month
(i assume you are May Mcater). ExamKrackers is brief and straight to the point but very skimpy and kinda all over the place in their chem and physics. It didn't work for me but it may work for you.I'm thinking of holding off taking any full-length practice for a week because I've forgotten quite a few Bio stuff in my TPR book. In fact, i'm thinking of doing one more major brief review of everything i've learnt. I noticed that a lot of my mistakes during the tests were on things I've learnt but didn't memorize.


Guys I apologize for posting on the wrong thread, I'm taking the test in July not May..OOOoopss!! ANyways your advice and suggestions are still very apt.

CathBig:
Thanks, I kinda took the test knowing what to expect bcos of my review status (10%) but anyway it's a diagnostic so I can better hone in on my weak areas during review. Good job on the scores quite impressive!!!!!!

andexterouss
Man i can't agree more with you. I think EK is for people with non/weak science backgrounds or insufficient time for a proper review. It really does not do justice to the material in my opinion. I stated off with the EK Complete pack. 6th Ed. and it's quite superficial compared to TPR MCAT CBT. My idea was to complete both book sequentially starting with EK but now I'm just focusing on the TPR which I believe emphasizes comprehension of the material rather than rote memorization.
ANyway thanks to all of you and BEST OF LUCK ON D-DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[midn]

I went ahead and took AAMC 7 because my TPR instructor told me to save 8-10 for the last three scheduled test dates for my class.

I took it with realistic testing conditions (8 am, no skipping sections, i.e. writing), but, as luck would have it, the test glitched after the writing section and wouldn't load. I had to call TPR tech support and they helped me fix the error. My second essay didn't get saved so rather than doing it all over again, I just went on (didn't really affect the timing).

Anyways, I did much better than I expected since I really felt iffy on the material in BS and PS. VR was VR. I finished in time but had some difficulty on one passage.

My score distribution is 12-10-12 (BS-VR-PS) summing to a 34! Personal record!

I take AAMC 8 next week because it is scheduled for class.

 

[Swiperfox]

CBT 3 - PS 13 VR 11 BS 14 (38)
CBT 8 - PS 13 VR 13 BS 15 (41)

this week:
CBT 9 - PS 14 VR 11 BS 14 (39)

I missed only 1 on BS, 2 on PS and 5 on VR compared to 0/5/4 last week. Not too bad really I suppose. I have 4 weeks remaining to get that verbal score up consistently past 12 (test on may 11th).

 

[cathbig]

From Fri:

AAMC CBT 4: PS(10) VR(11) BS(13) - 34

Internet cut out during PS and naturally I got extremely angry. I was so pissed I just flew through the rest of the section. I'm usually scoring 11-12 on PS so this had an impact. Acceptable overall even with that garbage.

 

[shaqkillz451]

Diagnostic - 12PS, 7BS, 5VR
Kaplan FL1- 11PS, 9BS, 8VR
Kaplan FL2- 13PS, 13BS, 9VR

Hopefully the trend continues in the upward direction. I know a lot of posters say to take AAMC's as a better indicator of actual mcat scores, which AAMC# do u think I should take next. I was thinkin of taking AAMC 3 next week.

 

[Swiperfox]

don't bother with 3, it was unrealistically easy I think. 8 was pretty tough though, which is odd because I did better on 8.

 

[dolemike]

In order
KFL 1 PS 9 V 11 BS 10
aamc 8 PS 10 V 13 BS 11
KFL 11 PS 9 V 7 BS 8 umm this one was so tough that i think it is a waste of time 😱
aamc 9 PS 13 V 13 BS 13
KFL 2 PS 14 V 12 BS 13


Well i don't really know the purpose of score posting other than to say/prove that my biggest improvements come from reviewing the questions i missed from the test and getting that material down. Most of the questions i have been getting wrong now are from not reading the question carefully and mistaking 10 kilo-ohms for ten ohms.

I think that the Kaplan verbal is a bit harder than AAMC.

mike

 

[Kraazy]

Test date: May 11

Kaplan diagnostic: 8P 13V 8B (29)
Kaplan FL 1: 12P 12V 11B (35)

Kaplan FL 2: 14P 12V 14B (40)

Skipped the writing section; I've already finished my first round of review, focusing on comprehension, and I'm going through the material once more to memorize stuff.

I heard FL2 is easier then the others, but still, OMFG, I can't believe this is for real! Now I'm going to have work my ass off so that I can measure up to this on the real thing.

 

[andexterouss]

Good work guys! Things seems to be going pretty well for May Mcaters and we still have a month to go! As for me, i took the aamc cbt 5r yesterday.My BS score was the same as the last two (a 10), my PS went down a point (10) and my verbal was an 8 but there was too much noise and inference so i'm not bothered with my score on the verbal(or is that just a good excuse?...hehehe).

 

[SpartanBlueJay2]

Taking the real thing on 5/31.

Kaplan Diagnostic: 25 (PS = 9, VR = 6, BS = 10)

Kaplan FL 1: 32 (PS = 11, VR = 9, BS = 12)

AAMC 3: 34 (PS = 11, VR = 10, BS = 13)

I'm not really sure how real that score jump from the diagnostic is, since I really rushed when I took it. I finished every section w/ 25 min. to spare. I definitely took my time on the other 2.

 

[midn]

Looks like we got some MCAT masters here. I hope none of yall get the same test form as I do 😀 .

 

[apricotattack]

I guess I'll contribute... although I feel like a dumsh*t around some of y'all...

Diag: 19 (let's not go there... NOT a science major)
Kaplan FL1: 25 (8 PS, 8 VR, 9BS)
Kaplan FL2: 23 (7, 9, 7)
Kaplan FL3: 25 (8, 10, 7)
(they're out of order on the Kaplan page)
Kaplan FL5: 28 (9, 11, 8)

Soo I like where verbal is going, but the sciences need work.

I'm taking another this weekend, and boning up big time beforehand on my gen chem and bio, so I hope to raise it up to the magic number 30 and keep on going from there!

What's everyone's target score??

 

[dr.kicia]

I guess I'll contribute... although I feel like a dumsh*t around some of y'all...

Diag: 19 (let's not go there... NOT a science major)
Kaplan FL1: 25
Kaplan FL2: 23
Kaplan FL3: 25
(they're out of order on the Kaplan page)
Kaplan FL5: 28

I'm taking another this weekend, and boning up big time beforehand so I hope to raise it up to the magic number 30 and keep on going from there!

What's everyone's target score??

that is an amazing improvement.
What major are you? I am also non-science major (art history to be exact).

 

[midn]

I would really, really like a 33 on the real thing, but I know from past experiences with standardized tests that I never do as well on my real test as my practice tests.

A 30 at the very minimum so I could have some chance at getting into a top public med school like UTSW (which will be slim to none with a 30).

Hopefully my wishes will come true.

 

[apricotattack]

that is an amazing improvement.
What major are you? I am also non-science major (art history to be exact).

thanks 🙂 that brightens my study break!

i'm an international studies major, w/ an emphasis on global health. i love my major, but i haven't been exposed to much of the bio stuff it seems like 90% of the other premeds have. lucky i'm okay with working ridiculously hard. i think our off-beat majors will help us out, come interview time!

 

[dr.kicia]

thanks 🙂 that brightens my study break!

i'm an international studies major, w/ an emphasis on global health. i love my major, but i haven't been exposed to much of the bio stuff it seems like 90% of the other premeds have. lucky i'm okay with working ridiculously hard. i think our off-beat majors will help us out, come interview time!

i agree that it will help...and i can see it helps with the MCAT study too. Although i am a non-native english person i have pretty good reading comprehension and it helps on passage based exam.
I am taking MCAT on may 31st but have very little time to do anything right now because i am really loaded with all my 6 classes. But once i have time i seem to study really fast. I went thru almost all of the EK books during my spring brake (about 8hrs/day of study...which i acctually prefare over 2-3 hrs a day). My diagnostic was 23 (7-8-8) before i studied. I kind of slacked off on the BS because i was rushing to finish so i was done 15 min before and didn't bother to go back and use that time to check my answears. I was 1 point away from 9. The PS score is low bc i am still taking physics2 and gen chem2 and didn't study for some of the stuff like electrochem, termodynamics, optics. Other then that i think i could pay more attention to what the questions ask. I feel like all i need right now is a minor review in bio and a lot of FL practice, to be honest i didn't even know how many passages are in each section LOL...so i am hoping for this score to improve couple good points. I would love to get a 30 but i will be happy with 26-27 since i am applying only to DO schools anyways.
I haven't had time to do the next FL but i hope to get time to do it this weekend and then once this semester is over i will be rolling with FL every other day and reviewing weak areas.
i will post once i do more FL's

 

[mvenus929]

Ok, here we go...

Test Date: May 11

AAMC 3R (Nov 3) - 31 (9P-12V-10B)
GS-1 (Feb 3) - 27 (8P-9V-10B)
GS-2 (Feb 17) - 25 (7P-8V-10B)
GS-3 (Mar 10) - 26 (8P-9V-9B)
Kaplan Diagnostic (Mar 17) - 26 (8P-7V-11B)
GS-4 (Apr 6) - 26 (8P-11V-7B) - I took it all in one shot, at night
Princeton Diagnostic (Apr 9) - 27 (10P-7V-10B)

I plan to take another 6 GS tests, and 2 AAMC, I think. Which means basically two per week until the test comes up. Plus I have another few chapters in EK books, and 101 passages to help me even out that Verbal score.

 

[meddoc1]

Test date May 11

Test Bio Sci Physical Verbal total

TPR MCAT 5 9 8 11 28 (not timed)
TPR MCAT 8 8 10 9 27
TPR MCAT 6 9 8 7 24

I am so discouraged. I have been getting worst instead of improving. OMG!! Anyway, I have a question, I know I know my stuff, but how come I can never get only one or two wrong only. Its like everyone in this forum are extremly bright. So please tell me what do you do to make no mistake. I always make stupid mistake and I know why I got it wrong, just don't know how not to get it wrong.
Another thing, I can never ever finish my verbal section, pls tell me how you guys can finish 15 min before time. I am so sad. I know I need to do more passages which I do. I finished my TPR workbook and I am half way through my EK.
Last question, I have a 4.0 GPA but I predict that i might not do that well in my MCAT mainly because of my Verbal "Non-Native speaker". How much should I aim for my MCAT in order to get into a medical school (no need to be top ten school, but must be private because I am not resident of any state).

 

[mvenus929]

Test date May 11

Test Bio Sci Physical Verbal total

TPR MCAT 5 9 8 11 28 (not timed)
TPR MCAT 8 8 10 9 27
TPR MCAT 6 9 8 7 24

I am so discouraged. I have been getting worst instead of improving. OMG!! Anyway, I have a question, I know I know my stuff, but how come I can never get only one or two wrong only. Its like everyone in this forum are extremly bright. So please tell me what do you do to make no mistake. I always make stupid mistake and I know why I got it wrong, just don't know how not to get it wrong.

Go over your tests thoroughly, figure out why you got the question wrong. It sounds like you're doing that, so my next suggestion would be to take a test untimed. That was your first test, and you did well on it, so maybe it's the stress factor getting to you. If your score goes up, then work on just making it through the sections.

Another thing, I can never ever finish my verbal section, pls tell me how you guys can finish 15 min before time. I am so sad. I know I need to do more passages which I do. I finished my TPR workbook and I am half way through my EK.

Read the passage through once, and go to the questions and answer them all before going back to the passage. Mark the ones you guessed on and just keep moving through the test until you've answered all the questions. Then go back to the first passage and work on the ones you guessed on from there. That way, at least you have all the questions answered, and you'll probably cut your time dramatically that first time through.

Last question, I have a 4.0 GPA but I predict that i might not do that well in my MCAT mainly because of my Verbal "Non-Native speaker". How much should I aim for my MCAT in order to get into a medical school (no need to be top ten school, but must be private because I am not resident of any state).

Explain your non native speaking in your Personal Statement. Aim for a 45 regardless, but if you get a 10 on each of the other two sections, you'll probably get in somewhere.

 

[meddoc1]

Thanks for your reply!!! I am going to try that on my verbal today. I have to admit that I like to over analyze my verbal question and I always spend way too much time on a particular question. I will keep it posted. Hope it work!!!
By the way, are there 6 or 7 passage? Cos my TPR teacher say we have 40 question so one min per question and 3min per passage.
6 passage and 40 Q will be 58min
7 passage and 40 Q will be 61min
Hmmm....
Is it always 7? I think I heard it somewhere that it is always 7

 

[phrmboy123]

hi, im taking the mcats this summer and i am not sure about all these practice exams--these may sound like a bunch of stupid questions but id like to know:

*are the practice exams on the aamc website updated monthly?

*was is "TPR mcat" the princeton review??

*and where are you guys taking these exams? from mcat classes or did you buy them offline like the aamc ones?

im sorry if these are obvious and dumb questions or if they were answered already, so if someone can just answer them or send me a link to a thread with all of this explained--i will be very grateful. thanks a lot.

 

[meddoc1]

*was is "TPR mcat" the princeton review??

-->>Yes, at least to me... Ha ha ha ha

*and where are you guys taking these exams? from mcat classes or did you buy them offline like the aamc ones?

-->> Well, for me, I took TPR and they provide 5 exam plus 8 AAMC exams(3-10). They are all online, so you don't have to take them in class. I am not sure if they sell them seperatly. There is one free Kaplan CBT available on the Kaplan home page. I don't know much about Kaplan since I took TPR (other ppl pls help!!).
If you think you need more test, Exam Krackers(EK) Verbal 101 is great. If you need more CBT MCAT, then you can pay $150 for Gold Standard. They sell 10 of their CBT exams online w/o requiring enrollment to their class.

Well, thats a long msg. Hope it helps.

 

[phrmboy123]

wow thanks for the quick and awesome response!

 

[midn]

Thanks for your reply!!! I am going to try that on my verbal today. I have to admit that I like to over analyze my verbal question and I always spend way too much time on a particular question. I will keep it posted. Hope it work!!!
By the way, are there 6 or 7 passage? Cos my TPR teacher say we have 40 question so one min per question and 3min per passage.
6 passage and 40 Q will be 58min
7 passage and 40 Q will be 61min
Hmmm....
Is it always 7? I think I heard it somewhere that it is always 7

My verbal score became consistently better as soon as I realized that if I don't understand a question, I should just guess and move on. Then, when I finish the passage, I'll go back to those guessed questions and if I still can't get them, I just leave it be. I scored a 7 and a 5 on the first two TPR diags in the verbal section but have managed to score a 10 in AAMC 6 and a 10 in AAMC 7. The passages in TPR's diags are more difficult to read.

Also, practicing passages is not enough. You need to go back and review each question you missed or guessed on and see how you could possibly get it right in the future. You need to do this immediately after you finish an exam or else the review is useless since you don't remember what you were thinking. I know I'm not going to get a 15 on the VR section so if I go back to review questions and still don't understand how I could get the correct answer, I just ignore it.

The quickest way to get time on the verbal section is accept that you are going to get questions wrong. Just keep moving along.

 

[meddoc1]

I did a EK verbal test yesterday and I only got 8 wrong out of 40. For me its a great improvment. Yeah Yeah! I tried the method that I was told earlier(read the earlier msg) and it work. But most importantly, I finished it on time. Well, I guess I am more confident now!!! Thank you all so much! 👍

 

[Kraazy]

"Also, practicing passages is not enough. You need to go back and review each question you missed or guessed on and see how you could possibly get it right in the future."

You should also review the questions you get right. You nee to make sure that you used the correct reasoning to get the right answer, and it might also help you figure out other ways you could have gotten the right answer with fewer calculations/less time. I've realized while reviewing my FLs that there are lots of questions for which I only needed info from the passage and some quick trial-and-error rather than pulling out prior knowledge and working out equations or something.

 

[moto_za]

Go over your tests thoroughly, figure out why you got the question wrong. It sounds like you're doing that, so my next suggestion would be to take a test untimed. That was your first test, and you did well on it, so maybe it's the stress factor getting to you. If your score goes up, then work on just making it through the sections.

I sorta have a similiar situation to the person who posted. It seems I know my stuff pretty good, but I get nervous and can't think right. Do you guys think it will help taking a test untimed and see how I do? and then work on stress and time strategies? thanks for any advice/tips

 

[andexterouss]

Go over your tests thoroughly, figure out why you got the question wrong. It sounds like you're doing that, so my next suggestion would be to take a test untimed. That was your first test, and you did well on it, so maybe it's the stress factor getting to you. If your score goes up, then work on just making it through the sections.

I sorta have a similiar situation to the person who posted. It seems I know my stuff pretty good, but I get nervous and can't think right. Do you guys think it will help taking a test untimed and see how I do? and then work on stress and time strategies? thanks for any advice/tips

Definitely. Take your first 2 tests untimed. I took my aamc 3 and 4 untimed. My verbal was a 10 and 9 ( one question away from a 10).When i took aamc 5 and 6 timed, my PS and BS continued to be within the same range (10 -11) while my verbal took a nose dive from 10 to 5!! I always finished my PS with 7 minutes to spare and while i finish the BS section with 15 minutes to spare( no kidding! I was freaked out at the speed). But when it came to the verbal, I usually sramble to finish. Sometimes I get so anxious that i just click whatever i see first.So now i know that my problem isn't with reading comprehension rather I have to come up with a verbal strategy that produces consistent results.
So basically, you have to compare and contrast your tests(timed and untimed). If there is no fluctuation in your scores,then the problem isn't with timing rather you have to go back to the drawing board and keep practicing/understanding those concepts.

 

[moto_za]

Definitely. Take your first 2 tests untimed. I took my aamc 3 and 4 untimed. My verbal was a 10 and 9 ( one question away from a 10).When i took aamc 5 and 6 timed, my PS and BS continued to be within the same range (10 -11) while my verbal took a nose dive from 10 to 5!! I always finished my PS with 7 minutes to spare and while i finish the BS section with 15 minutes to spare( no kidding! I was freaked out at the speed). But when it came to the verbal, I usually sramble to finish. Sometimes I get so anixous that i just click whatever i see first.So now i know that my problem isn't with reading comprehension rather I have to come up with a verbal strategy that produces consistent results.
So basically, you have to compare and contrast your tests(timed and untimed). If there is no fluctuation in your scores,then the problem isn't with timing rather you have to go back to the drawing board and keep practicing/understanding those concepts.

OMG, Thanks a lot, I appreciate it. I will take a FL untimed and see what happens. Whenever I take a FL timed, I could so excited/nervous and looking at the timer makes me always speed up without thinking right or even logically. After reviewing my FL, I get really pissed b/c I miss a lot of questions which I believe is due to time/stress. One more thing, from reviewing my FL it seems that I always get the question down to two answers and about half the time I pick the wrong one (stress/nervous?). I have taken about 3-4 FL and my score is still at a 15 total , and seriously I think it shoud be double that once I review my answers.....

 

[andexterouss]

OMG, Thanks a lot, I appreciate it. I will take a FL untimed and see what happens. Whenever I take a FL timed, I could so excited/nervous and looking at the timer makes me always speed up without thinking right or even logically. After reviewing my FL, I get really pissed b/c I miss a lot of questions which I believe is due to time/stress. One more thing, from reviewing my FL it seems that I always get the question down to two answers and about half the time I pick the wrong one (stress/nervous?). I have taken about 3-4 FL and my score is still at a 15 total , and seriously I think it shoud be double that once I review my answers.....

Yes, we are all use test prep companies trying to trick us in their tests. TPR likes to put obvious choices to screw kids over. However, when it comes to the AAMC tests,what looks like the right answer usually is especially in the science section! We are all trained to look for the less obvious ones but that won't work with the AAMC. Alot of time, I see the right answer screaming at me but I say to myself "no, it can't be. they won't make it that obvious". Wrong! They do. I guess that's their own trick. You won't believe the amount of students that go against their intuition. I have stopped second guessing myself and my PS and BS score is holding steadily. Although I would like to raise them up....

 

[devlyyn]

So I managed to take 2 kaplan FLs this week. The first one I got a 30 (10 PS, 10 BS, 10 VR) and the second I got a 35 (14 PS, 12 BS, 9 VR).

I was very pleased with the huge improvement in PS on this last test, I just hope it wasnt a fluke. The biggest change I made for both the PS and BS sections was to be certain I didnt miss the questions with the information contained in the passage. Actually I found myself glancing at the questions before even looking at the passage just to get an idea what I should pay attention to. I'm still having time issues as I finished each section with literally no time to spare.

 

[moto_za]

Is it generally helpful to look at the questions before reading the passage? Any thoughts on that? It makes me feel less stressed if I do this for science passages.. but still not sure??

 

[midn]

I think looking at the questions is more distraction than you need. It works for some people though. The most important thing I think for verbal is that you read actively and just don't gloss over words while thinking about something else. If you think that you'd be able to focus better after reading the questions, give it a shot. If it doesn't work, don't stick with that strategy.

My verbal score improved a lot after I bought some cheap foam ear plugs with a 33 DB rating. Whenever I would take the test in the library, people would start talking and I'd get extremely frustrated to the point that I could no longer concentrate. Foam ear plugs work really well if you use them right.

You need to find out why you're getting questions wrong, only then can you begin to improve. (And why you're getting them right as the person before my post shrewdly pointed out; you need to mold your logic to fit that of AAMC's.)

 

[cathbig]

From today:

AAMC CBT 6 - PS(11) VR(11) BS(12) 34

Can't wait for the night of May 16th when I don't have to think about this test ever again

 

[midn]

Took another TPR MCAT diagnostic (4130) since I'm saving AAMC CBT 8-10 for the last few scheduled test dates before my actual MCAT.

I made a 12-9-11 (PS-VR-BS) = 32, which is good for a stupid TPR test. Verbal was brutal as usual with the opening passage being ridiculous that caused me a lot of discouragement. The science passages in VR were really easy but all the ones about art were just plain impossible for me to understand. I skipped the writing again because I didn't really feel like doing it since it would add another hour. I got super lazy on BS and just went through it wanting to push "end section" every step of the way. I still finished with 20 minutes to spare so I went back and checked, but still half-assed it.

There were random glitches as usual which was frustrating. The science stuff in TPR is really easy all the time and takes a cursory understanding of the concepts so it's hardly comparable to the actual MCAT which usually throws one really difficult passage at you with new information.

That's 5 practice MCATs down including two AAMC tests.

I'm so damn tired of taking these tests...

 

[snsboy16]

Kaplan Diag January -- 16 (3 PS 8 VR 5 BS)
Full Length 1 -- 24
Full Length 2 -- 27
Full Length 3 (took yesterday) -- 29 (9 PS 9 VR 11 BS)

Omg -- I can't wait for this to be over. I'm hoping I'll be able to get at least a 30 on Test day -- May 11th.