PCAT July!

[lhs9696]

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Hi everyone!

I was wondering if today's PCAT takers would be open to sharing anything they thought about the exam and how it related to all of the different study guides. Also, can you guys share what you got on the PCAT if you dont mind?

Thanks so much

 

[Tourettes Guy]

I used the Kaplan and Pearson practice tests. I thought the chemistry section was easier on the actual test than the practice tests. Everything else was about the same. The Kaplan tests aren't as realistic as Pearson's, but the chapter material and questions provide a good review. The Kaplan test format looks exactly the same as the actual test that I took. I recommend looking at it.


BP 69
CP 92
CR 93
QR 57
Composite 84

By the end of the test I was tired and forgot to pace myself on the QR.

 

[nicolechristi]

hi I just joined this forum and this thread because im taking my first pcat next week, july 18.
I did Kaplan live online review, and also self studied. my Kaplan package came with 5 full length tests, but I am worried because Kaplan recommends a 415 and until now only 6 days away, I am still just below 400. My scores are stagnant, 397-399. I know people say Kaplan is harder than the actual test but how true is this?
and how was the exam, was Kaplan sufficient? what portion was the hardest? and im confused, when you say composite isn't it a large number, 200-600 and percentile would be the smaller number, 1-100? so when you say you got a 69 on bio, you got a 69 percentile?
I plan on applying for the 2019 school year as well, and I have a 3.7 gpa with volunteer hours and hospital service. I am a ball of nerves however, any advice?

I used the Kaplan and Pearson practice tests. I thought the chemistry section was easier on the actual test than the practice tests. Everything else was about the same. The Kaplan tests aren't as realistic as Pearson's, but the chapter material and questions provide a good review. The Kaplan test format looks exactly the same as the actual test that I took. I recommend looking at it.


BP 69
CP 92
CR 93
QR 57
Composite 84

By the end of the test I was tired and forgot to pace myself on the QR.

 

[Tourettes Guy]

hi I just joined this forum and this thread because im taking my first pcat next week, july 18.
I did Kaplan live online review, and also self studied. my Kaplan package came with 5 full length tests, but I am worried because Kaplan recommends a 415 and until now only 6 days away, I am still just below 400. My scores are stagnant, 397-399. I know people say Kaplan is harder than the actual test but how true is this?
and how was the exam, was Kaplan sufficient? what portion was the hardest? and im confused, when you say composite isn't it a large number, 200-600 and percentile would be the smaller number, 1-100? so when you say you got a 69 on bio, you got a 69 percentile?
I plan on applying for the 2019 school year as well, and I have a 3.7 gpa with volunteer hours and hospital service. I am a ball of nerves however, any advice?

In my opinion Kaplan is harder than the actual test. I bought the Kaplan review book so I can't speak for the online review, but I thought the book gave a good overview. I thought each section was equally difficult, although the math portion is probably the hardest simply because its at the end of the test. All the numbers I listed are percentile ranks. My composite scaled score (large number) is 422 and my percentile rank (small number) is 84.

Best advice I read before taking the test was to not obsess over it. You have a good gpa and nice exp. I think you'll do fine.

 

[TofuBlock]

Hello, I'm going to take the Sept PCAT and I'm just wondering if you can tell me, how many passages were there in the bio and chem section? I'm trying to search for an official number but I don't have any luck so I'm thinking, maybe the number of passages varies each time? Anyway, thank you for your help 🙂

 

[Tourettes Guy]

Hello, I'm going to take the Sept PCAT and I'm just wondering if you can tell me, how many passages were there in the bio and chem section? I'm trying to search for an official number but I don't have any luck so I'm thinking, maybe the number of passages varies each time? Anyway, thank you for your help 🙂

Around 5 from what I recall.

 

[TofuBlock]

Oh, so around 5 for bio and 5 for chem right? Thanks 🙂

 

[nicolechristi]

In my opinion Kaplan is harder than the actual test. I bought the Kaplan review book so I can't speak for the online review, but I thought the book gave a good overview. I thought each section was equally difficult, although the math portion is probably the hardest simply because its at the end of the test. All the numbers I listed are percentile ranks. My composite scaled score (large number) is 422 and my percentile rank (small number) is 84.

Best advice I read before taking the test was to not obsess over it. You have a good gpa and nice exp. I think you'll do fine.

thank you for the input! yea I noticed on my practice full lengths I always run out of time towards the end of the math portion, though my scores for math on the last practice exams I took were 412 (73 percentile according to Kaplan but I know percentile will matter on the day of the exam and the other test takers) 84 percentile is great! id be ecstatic, because honestly my first choice school accepts a minimum of 40 percentile though of course I wont aim for that, I aim to be as competitive as possible. congratulations!

 

[nicolechristi]

Oh, so around 5 for bio and 5 for chem right? Thanks 🙂

highly recommend reviewing with Kaplan now, if you aren't already reviewing with a review company. you can have all the bio knowledge but knowing how to analyze passages and deal with them and the questions under time constraints is a big deal and can account for a huge portion of your score, given missing one question can affect your composite score by a few points. (as much as 3-5 points according to my Kaplan instructor)

 

[macrolide93]

Borrowed a used but newer Dr Collins version to study for most of it and a little bit of barron. Pearson practice test was accurate where I would score. Aced the Chemistry, Biology, Quant. Reading I did terrible but I've always struggled with reading. You just have to do really well with at least two sections and your composite should be competitive. Collins prepared me pretty well.

 

[LApgx]

Hi everyone!

I was wondering if today's PCAT takers would be open to sharing anything they thought about the exam and how it related to all of the different study guides. Also, can you guys share what you got on the PCAT if you dont mind?

Thanks so much

Hey! I took the PCAT earlier today. It was certainly a draining test–by the end I was so glad to be done! For study materials I used Kaplan and the Pearson practice multiple choice tests. I think it prepared me pretty well, considering that I have not taken A&P, biochem, or organic chem yet!
For critical reading, I ran out of time so I ended up not choosing answers carefully for the last passage :/

These are my preliminary scores:

Bio: 99
Chem: 99
CR: 84
QR: 99
Composite: 99

 

[ebonyxtasy]

Hey! I took the PCAT earlier today. It was certainly a draining test–by the end I was so glad to be done! For study materials I used Kaplan and the Pearson practice multiple choice tests. I think it prepared me pretty well, considering that I have not taken A&P, biochem, or organic chem yet!
For critical reading, I ran out of time so I ended up not choosing answers carefully for the last passage :/

These are my preliminary scores:

Bio: 99
Chem: 99
CR: 84
QR: 99
Composite: 99

What material did you use to prepare for the exam?

 

[LApgx]

What material did you use to prepare for the exam?

I used the Kaplan PCAT book and the Perason practice exams. The practice exams were very helpful!
Since I had not taken A&P or ochem before taking the PCAT, I studied A&P from a textbook and I studied the ochem and biochem sections in Kaplan thoroughly.