Mental math practice

[Deleted member 1077394]

I am so accustomed to being allowed to use a calculator for Chemistry and Physics calculations that the lack of a calculator whilst MCAT studying has been a rough adjustment. I find myself missing questions simply based on math errors.

Do any of you have any apps you have used or similar that gave helped with your mental math?

I have found Magoosh's free GRE mental math app useful for practicing doing arithmetic in my head, but I don't know if I should be doing something more. (?) I am afraid to lose points because of silly math errors on test day.

Just polling the room to see what has worked for you guys. 🙂

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Blueprint Med School]

Most questions requiring numbers are based on rounding and logic. The question requiring 18*5 can be thought of as 'slightly below 100' and the answer 90 should be waiting for you. The number 103 is probably there as well, so be careful. It sounds like you found a good resource and that's fine, but make sure you understand the concepts of rounding and whether you are looking for a number higher or lower than your rounded answer.

David D, MD - USMLE and MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

 

[Deleted member 1077394]

Most questions requiring numbers are based on rounding and logic. The question requiring 18*5 can be thought of as 'slightly below 100' and the answer 90 should be waiting for you. The number 103 is probably there as well, so be careful. It sounds like you found a good resource and that's fine, but make sure you understand the concepts of rounding and whether you are looking for a number higher or lower than your rounded answer.

David D, MD - USMLE and MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

Thank you! 🙂

 

[PlsLetMeIn21]

I found that knowing ratios and being able to make denominators equal to 10 or a 100 was mostly what I did on the exam. Be able to set questions up, because they may ask for a set-up rather than an actual number. Also be able to recognize trends in numerical data.