please help..1 week left and very frustrated

[holla]

what up guys...there's one week left to the mcat and im very frustrated..here's the deal..this the second time im taking the test. i bombed verbal but got 10 in PS and 9 in BS... so lately ive been takin the kaplan tests and my bio has gone up like a point or 2 and physics has stayed pretty much the same as my score from last year...and im goin through the test and its not like i dont know the material its just im making careless errors...and its bothering me cause i feel that i can do well on the test if i can just somehow not make those idiotic errors..cause i gotta do better the second time around and not get the same science scores cause that'll really hurt me..anyways, any suggestions that you guys got for me that might help me this last week before saturday.

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[rCubed]

if u finish early, try slowing down, maybe ur rushing through it, hence the careless mistake.
also make sure that u take a couple of the practice exams in conditions similar to the real thing, to practice staying alert. i've started getting up early in the morning and doing a couple of passages just to get used to reading that early in the morning. i was horrendous at first, but i'm getting to where i'd like to be.


also, are ur careless mistakes on the physical science section? if the answer that u get after doing some calculations isn't as close to any of the answer choices as u think it should be, go back and look over the calculations, see if u can reach an answer that matches the answer choices. also, remember to round, working with large whole numbers, ur less likely to make stupid math mistakes, and usually the answer choices r so well spaced out that ur able to round and still come out close.

if ur being careless while reading the questions, it might be a good idea to underline exactly what they're asking...but only if u feel ur not pressed for time...hope any of this advice is helpful

 

[freakazoid]

Careless mistakes happen for a reason. If you know the reason, then just try not to do it again (not a reason like, "geez, I was stupid", but "well, this part of the passage made me think of this outside material, and that was why I ended up picking the answer that was outside the scope of the passage"). If that's not enough, take more tests and try to redevelop your confidence. Good luck!

 

[rCubed]

freakazoid, i love ur little icon under ur screen name



and holla, have u improved in the verbal section or are careless mistakes ur problem in that section too?

 

[holla]

well ive def gone up in verbal..but its been wavering between a 9-12..havent had consistent scores..bio im ok in..physics is where the mistakes occur..and i maybe have like 3 minutes to spare for the physics...but arent kaplan physics supposed to be a bit harder than the actual one..so do i got some hope there...im gonna try to read the questions more carefully and actual read the passages..maybe that might help.

i dont know i hate reading those damn passages..they are so irrelevant sometimes..why cant they just be straightforward that be so much better.

 

[freakazoid]

Thanks rCubed. It is Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes.

 

[rCubed]

well, if ur finishing the kaplan physics at all, i think ur in good shape, how're u doing in the AAMC exams?
i think the best thing to do for the science passages is to skim through them, but not sit there and analyze the data or equation or whatever it may be, if there is a question about it, u can always go back and figure it out.

as for the verbal, i'm fluctuating between a 9 and a 12 too, it all depends on how focused i am.

freakazoid, i know its calvin...out of all the cartoon characters, i think i would want calvin as my best friend, and then snoopy

 

[freakazoid]

I dunno, dude, Calvin always seemed like a real bratty kid to me . . . though he'd probably be super-cool as a friend. I might prefer Hobbes, but then again, it might be cool to have both of them around since they complement each other so well. Snoopy's a mighty fine choice . . .

 

[lady bug]

How have you guys brought up your verbal score? Do you read a lot, or was it just practice passages. I'm doing horribly on verbal.

 

[SuzyQ]

I am also doing very poorly on Verbal. The highest VR score I got was an 8 on my diags and that only happened once For the most part...i've been getting 6's and 7's I just cant seem to focus very well when Im reading and I dont know what to do! Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[Sonya]

I don't know if this is your case, but if you're studying waayy too much for MCAT (or overworking yourself too much lately, and/or not sleeping enough) you can become more careless in you exams.

Other than that, try not to rush yourself. i find it sometimes better to quickly check over a problem right after doing it than come back to check it.
Sonya

 

[holla]

thanks for the advice everyone...well i've only taken test 3 for the aamc and got an 11 on both bio and physics, the verbal i got a 10 on..but see this a practice test and i just feel that in a real testing environment and the pressure on that i might end up doing a few points lower than my practice..im not very good at delivering on crucial situations...

anyways lady bug and suzy q..honestly i hate reading..and havent read anything extra to improve the verbal part. one thing is, and i dont know if you are doing this already, that take the tests at a library somewhere quite where it will feel llike a testing environment..im tryin this to ease my nerves for test day. also one thing that people do is time themselves at least 9 minutes per passage so they make sure they finish the test..now this technique never helped me at all cause i would keep checkin my watch every so often to make sure when 9 minutes were up and that really caused me to lose focus and concentration. so now all i do is check the time when ive done 5 passages just to see where im at..and that's helped me out and i have no problem finishing the section and i stay focus. so try that, it might help.

sonya i think that also might have a lot to do with it..ive been studying a lot not really takin any breaks..and im starting to get a lil worn out..so im pacing my self this last week..so i can stay focus.