Practice Scales vs. Real

[ak21]

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How do you guys think the real scoring scale is scored compared to the practice tests. Do you guys think a 46 on every PS/BS gives you a 12 like it does on the practice test? Or do you think there is a lot more that goes into giving out section grades. Do you think it's possible that you could get a 40/52 and ever get a 12? The 7/6 BS section makes me wonder if that could be true. Not to mention the whole spiel on "experimental items". What do you guys think?

 

[PingPongPro]

Probably the best thing to do is not think about it too much.

I'm also pretty sure that the score conversions from raw-->scaled for the practice tests are not exactly the same as the real AAMC tests, but set in a way so that scaled scores are close to each other.

It may be possible for 40/52 to get a 12, but the score calculation and test standardization is a lot more complex than most people think. There are people who are hired professionals who are paid to deal with standardizing the test. It is a futile effort to try and figure out how experimentals actually work, so just go have a beer and forget about it 🙂

I know someone in real life who thought experimental questions were in the AAMC practice tests so he would "not count" like 4-5 questions as misses if he got them wrong since he would deem them as "experimental". He did not do well on the MCAT.