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I wrote my OAT and wrote this up more than a year ago, but forgot to post it lol. I came across it again, so I thought I'd post it finally. (Also procrastinating from studying finals...) I remember that posts like this were super helpful for me before my OAT, so hopefully this helps some of you out there.
Timeline
Half-hearted studying for 1 month + 3h/day for 1 month + all day er'day for 2 weeks
Materials
I ain’t got the money for courses, so I got the following:
1. Kaplan blue book (from the library)
- 2 practice tests and 2 shorter sets of practice questions for each section.
- Orgo was way too easy, physics was way too calculations-heavy, but good practice for pacing.
2. Kaplan DAT big fat review book
- Same test-maker as #1, so same content. Solid review of everything except physics.
3. OAT destroyer
- I didn’t do much of the gen chem or bio questions, so can’t comment on those.
- The physics destroyer is only useful as a diagnostic tool. Not that many questions, and all plug-and-chug. Also a few errors. Certainly doesn’t prepare you for conceptual questions. Use it to find your weaker spots (for me: thermo, static equilibrium, optics), then find a good book to study those topics from.
- Doesn’t have a RC section.
- Orgo was DEFINITELY OVERKILL. I did the orgo problems twice over because the first time I got maybe 40% of the questions right. Some questions involved reactions from 3rd year orgo (way beyond OAT level). It prepared my very well, and got me to overcome my previous fear of orgo. In terms of orgo difficulty: Destroyer >> OAT > Kaplan.
4. Princeton cracking the OAT (from the library)
- I didn’t actually use this since I didn’t find it until 5 days before my exam. The book seemed decent, but it's the online resources (review notes, drills, practice tests) that probably would have been really helpful.
5. Master organic chemistry: http://www.masterorganicchemistry.com/
- Orgo was probably my worst subject before studying. This plus the destroyer definitely helped.
6. Free online practice tests from a) Kaplan, b) Princeton
7. ADA practice test: http://www.ada.org/~/media/OAT/Files/oat_sample_test.ashx
- I saved this one for 2 days before my OAT.
Study tips
1. Make cue cards (anki or physical ones)
- Equations (esp. physics and gen chem)
- Orgo reactions
- Bio terms
2. Make lists
- Orgo reactants
- Syn/anti
3. WRITE things out (esp. orgo)
- Someone has already mentioned this before. But simply reading reactions won’t teach you much. Write it out over and over.
Reading comprehension
Extra study material: Examkrackers MCAT 101 verbal passages (I did maybe 4 tests).
They were pretty challenging, (probably unnecessarily difficult) but were great practice. I would suggest just doing 3 passages at a time, not all of them, so that you don’t drain all your “studying energy” for the day. But keep in mind that this book is heavier on conceptual and interpretive questions than necessary.
Strategy: 1. Skim and map 2. Read questions, answer/mark 3. Review
I’m a pretty slow reader, so at the start of my studying I was really nervous about this section. I know many people swear by the “search and destroy” method, but it never worked for me, because looking for the answers in a passage I’ve never read takes me longer than just reading the passage. On the actual OAT I would 1. Skim the whole passage very quickly (2-3 minutes) 2. Read the questions, and answer based on proof in the text, previous knowledge (ex. biology/chemistry related questions), or memory. However, FOR THE ANSWERS YOU GAVE WITHOUT PROOF (i.e. without an explicit statement in the text), MARK THE QUESTION. 3. This method should give you plenty of time to review, so take that time to look at the questions you’ve marked and try to find proof for it in the text. If the text supports a different answer, or fails to support your original answer, revise.
Biology
Extra study material:
1. Notes from previous courses in physiology, cell biology, immunology
I didn’t review all of it, but referred to them when the Kaplan DAT book didn’t explain clearly.
2. AP Bio book
(same as above)
Strategy: Biology is just so broad, I didn’t even try to learn everything. I would suggest just looking at the list of topics here: http://www.ada.org/~/media/OAT/Files/2014_oat_guide.ashx and STARTING your studies with topics that you’re not as familiar with (for me, embryology, plant physiology, diversity of life, ecology). I procrastinated a lot at the beginning by reading about topics that I already knew (“what is DNA?”). On the actual test, WORK FAST. You’ll want to save the majority of the 90 minutes for the GC section.
General Chem
Extra study material: Google
Strategy: can’t really think of any, just do LOTs of practice.
Orgo
Extra study material: Old orgo notes
Strategy: This isn’t really strategy, but for anyone who hates orgo like I did, remember that it’s just gruntwork. I used to think I didn’t get orgo because I wasn’t smart enough, but really, it’s all about exposure/experience/memory. Do lots of problems, and you’ll start memorizing what reactants do what, and from that you’ll start to have an intuition for which reactions should happen when. Many reactions are basically the same thing (the differently named condensations). Do problems and start noticing patterns.
Physics
Extra study material: Old physics textbook – Wolfson
Strategy: Instead of memorizing equations and practicing how to plug and chug, learn the big ideas.
Quantitative reasoning
Extra study material: Math destroyer
The hard part isn’t content, it’s speed. So do as many as you can under timed conditions. If you can finish these tests on time, you’re good.
Strategy: This is the last section of the test, with the least time per question. So it’s really more about stamina than anything else. I did well in the OAT up to QR, at which point I was just burnt out. Pep talk yourself! Muster all the strength you can for the final round!
Additional advice
1. The whiteboard markers they gave me weren’t very erasable. So I definitely suggest ASKING FOR EXTRA WHITEBOARDS during your break.
2. EAT WELL the day of. Seriously. I was so nervous in the morning I didn’t eat much, and by the end of the test (QR) I was hungry and tired and distracted (which showed in my marks).
3. Remember to KEEP ACTIVE during your studying period. I ran with a friend, and it was a great way to practice endurance and performance concentration, as well as staying healthy.
Final scores
QR 360 / RC 400 / Bio 400 / GC 400 / OC 400 / Physics 400
TS 400 / AA 390
Happy studying and good luck! 🙂
Timeline
Half-hearted studying for 1 month + 3h/day for 1 month + all day er'day for 2 weeks
Materials
I ain’t got the money for courses, so I got the following:
1. Kaplan blue book (from the library)
- 2 practice tests and 2 shorter sets of practice questions for each section.
- Orgo was way too easy, physics was way too calculations-heavy, but good practice for pacing.
2. Kaplan DAT big fat review book
- Same test-maker as #1, so same content. Solid review of everything except physics.
3. OAT destroyer
- I didn’t do much of the gen chem or bio questions, so can’t comment on those.
- The physics destroyer is only useful as a diagnostic tool. Not that many questions, and all plug-and-chug. Also a few errors. Certainly doesn’t prepare you for conceptual questions. Use it to find your weaker spots (for me: thermo, static equilibrium, optics), then find a good book to study those topics from.
- Doesn’t have a RC section.
- Orgo was DEFINITELY OVERKILL. I did the orgo problems twice over because the first time I got maybe 40% of the questions right. Some questions involved reactions from 3rd year orgo (way beyond OAT level). It prepared my very well, and got me to overcome my previous fear of orgo. In terms of orgo difficulty: Destroyer >> OAT > Kaplan.
4. Princeton cracking the OAT (from the library)
- I didn’t actually use this since I didn’t find it until 5 days before my exam. The book seemed decent, but it's the online resources (review notes, drills, practice tests) that probably would have been really helpful.
5. Master organic chemistry: http://www.masterorganicchemistry.com/
- Orgo was probably my worst subject before studying. This plus the destroyer definitely helped.
6. Free online practice tests from a) Kaplan, b) Princeton
7. ADA practice test: http://www.ada.org/~/media/OAT/Files/oat_sample_test.ashx
- I saved this one for 2 days before my OAT.
Study tips
1. Make cue cards (anki or physical ones)
- Equations (esp. physics and gen chem)
- Orgo reactions
- Bio terms
2. Make lists
- Orgo reactants
- Syn/anti
3. WRITE things out (esp. orgo)
- Someone has already mentioned this before. But simply reading reactions won’t teach you much. Write it out over and over.
Reading comprehension
Extra study material: Examkrackers MCAT 101 verbal passages (I did maybe 4 tests).
They were pretty challenging, (probably unnecessarily difficult) but were great practice. I would suggest just doing 3 passages at a time, not all of them, so that you don’t drain all your “studying energy” for the day. But keep in mind that this book is heavier on conceptual and interpretive questions than necessary.
Strategy: 1. Skim and map 2. Read questions, answer/mark 3. Review
I’m a pretty slow reader, so at the start of my studying I was really nervous about this section. I know many people swear by the “search and destroy” method, but it never worked for me, because looking for the answers in a passage I’ve never read takes me longer than just reading the passage. On the actual OAT I would 1. Skim the whole passage very quickly (2-3 minutes) 2. Read the questions, and answer based on proof in the text, previous knowledge (ex. biology/chemistry related questions), or memory. However, FOR THE ANSWERS YOU GAVE WITHOUT PROOF (i.e. without an explicit statement in the text), MARK THE QUESTION. 3. This method should give you plenty of time to review, so take that time to look at the questions you’ve marked and try to find proof for it in the text. If the text supports a different answer, or fails to support your original answer, revise.
Biology
Extra study material:
1. Notes from previous courses in physiology, cell biology, immunology
I didn’t review all of it, but referred to them when the Kaplan DAT book didn’t explain clearly.
2. AP Bio book
(same as above)
Strategy: Biology is just so broad, I didn’t even try to learn everything. I would suggest just looking at the list of topics here: http://www.ada.org/~/media/OAT/Files/2014_oat_guide.ashx and STARTING your studies with topics that you’re not as familiar with (for me, embryology, plant physiology, diversity of life, ecology). I procrastinated a lot at the beginning by reading about topics that I already knew (“what is DNA?”). On the actual test, WORK FAST. You’ll want to save the majority of the 90 minutes for the GC section.
General Chem
Extra study material: Google
Strategy: can’t really think of any, just do LOTs of practice.
Orgo
Extra study material: Old orgo notes
Strategy: This isn’t really strategy, but for anyone who hates orgo like I did, remember that it’s just gruntwork. I used to think I didn’t get orgo because I wasn’t smart enough, but really, it’s all about exposure/experience/memory. Do lots of problems, and you’ll start memorizing what reactants do what, and from that you’ll start to have an intuition for which reactions should happen when. Many reactions are basically the same thing (the differently named condensations). Do problems and start noticing patterns.
Physics
Extra study material: Old physics textbook – Wolfson
Strategy: Instead of memorizing equations and practicing how to plug and chug, learn the big ideas.
Quantitative reasoning
Extra study material: Math destroyer
The hard part isn’t content, it’s speed. So do as many as you can under timed conditions. If you can finish these tests on time, you’re good.
Strategy: This is the last section of the test, with the least time per question. So it’s really more about stamina than anything else. I did well in the OAT up to QR, at which point I was just burnt out. Pep talk yourself! Muster all the strength you can for the final round!
Additional advice
1. The whiteboard markers they gave me weren’t very erasable. So I definitely suggest ASKING FOR EXTRA WHITEBOARDS during your break.
2. EAT WELL the day of. Seriously. I was so nervous in the morning I didn’t eat much, and by the end of the test (QR) I was hungry and tired and distracted (which showed in my marks).
3. Remember to KEEP ACTIVE during your studying period. I ran with a friend, and it was a great way to practice endurance and performance concentration, as well as staying healthy.
Final scores
QR 360 / RC 400 / Bio 400 / GC 400 / OC 400 / Physics 400
TS 400 / AA 390
Happy studying and good luck! 🙂
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