MCAT Verbal

[MedGrl@2022]

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Hi SDNers,

How long should I give myself per practice verbal passage? I am doing the EK 101 Verbal passage and I am giving myself 9 minutes per passage and section. I feel like I am reading way too fast and missing important information because I get obvious questions wrong that I would have been able to get had I been able to read the passage a little more thoroughly. Do you think that real AAMC verbal passages are shorter?

Does reading better and faster just come with practice?

Thank you for your advice. 🙂

 

[LaughingMan]

Hi SDNers,

How long should I give myself per practice verbal passage? I am doing the EK 101 Verbal passage and I am giving myself 9 minutes per passage and section. I feel like I am reading way too fast and missing important information because I get obvious questions wrong that I would have been able to get had I been able to read the passage a little more thoroughly. Do you think that real AAMC verbal passages are shorter?

Does reading better and faster just come with practice?

Thank you for your advice. 🙂

Hey Tiny,

The consensus is that AAMC Verbal Passages are longer, so you'd need more time.

I am practicing under 7 minutes per passage, and I feel that is adequete. You're gonna need breathing room on the real thing so you should try to bring that down to at least 8 minutes.

Vihasadas (I think thats his ID) actually recommends 6.5 minutes.

Best of luck

 

[dudewheresmymd]

Although some people recommend practicing significantly under (8 mins) ie. 6 or 6.5 mins...this is simply unrealistic for the real thing. You need closer to 8 mins on the real thing since the passages are longer. I used to practice at 6 at first just to show myself that I could...but upon doing this you realize that you are foregoing comprehension. So yes, at first try to do a few practice tests at 6.5 mins or 7 mins/ passage and then bump it up to 8. 8*7 passage = 56 mins so it should still give you a 4 min buffer that you can use at the end...but most likely on the real deal that 4 min buffer will vanish due to the length of the passages. Good luck.

 

[MedGrl@2022]

Although some people recommend practicing significantly under (8 mins) ie. 6 or 6.5 mins...this is simply unrealistic for the real thing. You need closer to 8 mins on the real thing since the passages are longer. I used to practice at 6 at first just to show myself that I could...but upon doing this you realize that you are foregoing comprehension. So yes, at first try to do a few practice tests at 6.5 mins or 7 mins/ passage and then bump it up to 8. 8*7 passage = 56 mins so it should still give you a 4 min buffer that you can use at the end...but most likely on the real deal that 4 min buffer will vanish due to the length of the passages. Good luck.

Does the 6.5 minutes include answering the questions too? Does one just improve comprehension with little time with practice?

Thank you again for all your help! 🙂

 

[dudewheresmymd]

Yes, try to read and answer all of the questions in 6.5 minutes. I know it will be difficult at first. Then after you've done this where you can consistently read and answer the questions in both 6.5 minutes (don't worry about comprehension, it will come with practice), bump it up to 7 minutes...do this for a few practice tests and or sets of 3-4 passages. Lastly, bump it up to 8...when you do it this way you will feel like 8 is too much time At least that's how it should work in theory 🙂

 

[MedGrl@2022]

Yes, try to read and answer all of the questions in 6.5 minutes. I know it will be difficult at first. Then after you've done this where you can consistently read and answer the questions in both 6.5 minutes (don't worry about comprehension, it will come with practice), bump it up to 7 minutes...do this for a few practice tests and or sets of 3-4 passages. Lastly, bump it up to 8...when you do it this way you will feel like 8 is too much time At least that's how it should work in theory 🙂

Awesome! Thanks! I will be working on this tomorrow. 🙂