MCAT Next Month - Advice Needed

[enTropeeeeeeeee]

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So I have been preparing for this test for months and awaiting my 6/16 test day. I generally feel ready for the test due to 7 BR FLs and another 6 more AAMC in the upcoming days. I've been getting decent scores ranging from 29 - 35. The other qualitative observation that I have made is getting a hang of that MCAT testing style. I can't really explain it other than the fact that I feel comfortable with the format/questions/length.

However, as the days approach, I admit that my anxiety is steadily increasing. I assume this to be normal, but was hoping for the reassurance of others.

What is the difficulty of BR FLs in comparison to the real thing? Should I assume that they are similar?

 

[enTropeeeeeeeee]

Bump

 

[MDminded]

I saw your post earlier, but I don't have an answer as to the difficulty of TBR exams in comparison to AAMC firsthand. It has been discussed on several other threads, so try doing a search and you should find that answer.

With regards to TBR CBTs, I think it just takes time for them to process your payment, but try getting in touch with BerkReviewTeach. BRT may be your best contact person.

With regards to your anxiety, yes, that is totally normal. Everyone feels that way. Read through the recent MCATers' thread from 5/20/2011...and tomorrow's (5/21) if you really want to hype your anxiety. Just be confident and attack each passage and discrete like you would your practices - assess the topic they are testing you on, do a quick knowledge vomit for yourself, and tackle the questions. You will be fine! Just keep practicing, keep drilling, keep pushing yourself to do better.

 

[enTropeeeeeeeee]

I saw your post earlier, but I don't have an answer as to the difficulty of TBR exams in comparison to AAMC firsthand. It has been discussed on several other threads, so try doing a search and you should find that answer.

With regards to TBR CBTs, I think it just takes time for them to process your payment, but try getting in touch with BerkReviewTeach. BRT may be your best contact person.

With regards to your anxiety, yes, that is totally normal. Everyone feels that way. Read through the recent MCATers' thread from 5/20/2011...and tomorrow's (5/21) if you really want to hype your anxiety. Just be confident and attack each passage and discrete like you would your practices - assess the topic they are testing you on, do a quick knowledge vomit for yourself, and tackle the questions. You will be fine! Just keep practicing, keep drilling, keep pushing yourself to do better.

It's interesting to observe myself from a third-person perspective because I'm at the cusp of attaining my dreams or not. I assume it to be easier for someone to unemotionally assess this about somebody's abilities. However, we often become our own toughest critics. Again, when I take an objective view, I know I'll probably do just fine. But when I zoom back into my own scope, I end up feeling anxiety. I guess this is normal for anything in life. The uncertainty. Whether it's the MCAT, USMLE, IPO, corporate merging, having a child, marriage, etc, I'd like to think that each and every of these big life events will generate a substantial amount of anxiety. In fact, I'd even argue that the MCAT ranks near the bottom of this short list. Therefore I should chill out and keep pushing further.

 

[MDminded]

It's interesting to observe myself from a third-person perspective because I'm at the cusp of attaining my dreams or not. I assume it to be easier for someone to unemotionally assess this about somebody's abilities. However, we often become our own toughest critics. Again, when I take an objective view, I know I'll probably do just fine. But when I zoom back into my own scope, I end up feeling anxiety. I guess this is normal for anything in life. The uncertainty. Whether it's the MCAT, USMLE, IPO, corporate merging, having a child, marriage, etc, I'd like to think that each and every of these big life events will generate a substantial amount of anxiety. In fact, I'd even argue that the MCAT ranks near the bottom of this short list. Therefore I should chill out and keep pushing further.

enTropeeeeeeeee, your self-analysis is dead-on. You are right - before any big event, we all have our moments of hesitation/doubt/anxiety, but in the end, it works out just fine! Either we find we have to move on, or we trudge on with the path that we see before us. And yes, we ARE our own toughest critics. I am beating myself up now because I didn't take a SMP because I thought my GPA was too low...and now I find myself at the ripe age of 24 on the verge of being 25, applying to Carribbean schools because now I've sat with my low GPA for three years and have done nothing about it, solely because of my own fear of rejection/failure.

Oh well. Just gotta push forward, whether it be with low GPAs, or BR bio passages, or anything else life throws at us. In the end...it all works out. So don't stress 🙂

 

[enTropeeeeeeeee]

enTropeeeeeeeee, your self-analysis is dead-on. You are right - before any big event, we all have our moments of hesitation/doubt/anxiety, but in the end, it works out just fine! Either we find we have to move on, or we trudge on with the path that we see before us. And yes, we ARE our own toughest critics. I am beating myself up now because I didn't take a SMP because I thought my GPA was too low...and now I find myself at the ripe age of 24 on the verge of being 25, applying to Carribbean schools because now I've sat with my low GPA for three years and have done nothing about it, solely because of my own fear of rejection/failure.

Oh well. Just gotta push forward, whether it be with low GPAs, or BR bio passages, or anything else life throws at us. In the end...it all works out. So don't stress 🙂

Agreed. When dealing with the anxiety of any big event in my life, I try to draw an analogy between myself and any big-time athlete. I think of Michael Phelps before he started his race in Beijing. Relative to an Olympic swimmer, the MCAT fails to compare. In that regard, it neutralizes much of the jitters that undoubtly will surface.