Raising RC score on OAT

[preODgirl]

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Hey guys I'm pretty new to this forum but I really need some help. I recently took the OAT and got these scores:

Bio: 330
Gen Chem: 330
O Chem: 300
Physics: 320
QR: 290
RC: 260 🙂scared:!!!)
Tot Sci: 320
AA: 310

My GPA is a 3.7 overall and 3.52 science, which is pretty good so I figured my OAT scores would be acceptable for an interview. (Btw I'm applying to SCCO, Western U of Health Sciences, and Midwestern AZ). I reallyyyyy need to raise my RC score! SCCO told me they want a 300 minimum. I already took Kaplan and I was getting 330's and higher on their RC practice exams so I'm soooo confused as to why I did so poorly on the real deal. I think the Kaplan RC's were way too easy and didn't accurately represent the OAT.
Any advice on what program I can use to raise my RC score???? Please help! Thanks 😳

 

[live2serve]

Hi preODgirl,

Unfortunately, I can't give you a specific answer or easy solution to RC on the OAT, as I don't know of any that exist. However, that being said, I can tell you what works for me. To be quite honest, reading comprehension is the only section of the exam that I did NO preparation for... but the section I scored the highest in (370). Go figure. 😕

Personally, I am a very VISUAL person, and am good at manipulating images in my head (probably due to my engineering background). So what I do, is read the entire passage, while visually creating an image of whatever is going on in it, inside my mind. I try to bring it to life, and look at the scenario from multiple vantage points. If I finish a sentence, and it wasn't clear enough to add to my minds image, I just read that sentence again (this usually happens only if my mind starts to drift). Using this method, I can get through the entire passage in several minutes. Then I start reading the questions. Most of them are pretty straightforward, and just seem to naturally fit with my imagery. If there are some questions that don't seem to fit, or require more details than my mental image provided, I'll just reskim that sentence or paragraph of the text. This becomes much simpler with mental imagery as well, because you'll know almost exactly where in the text this detail was discussed, so you can get back to it to re-read in a matter of seconds.

I don't know if this helps you at all, as really it's just sort of second nature for the way that my mind works, but if yours doesn't work this way, perhaps you could give it a try and see if it helps you at all?

Good luck, and let us know!

 

[preODgirl]

hey live2serve,

thanks for your reply! that's a reallyyy good score you got there. unfortunately for me, visualizing is not usually my strength. i've always been better at crunching out formula's and memorizing concepts than the visual part. i'll definitely give it a try though, maybe it can work for me too....just to clear up, you mean that i SHOULD read the whole article then do the questions? or just skim it?
so far my method has been skimming over the articles and writing down keywords then going to the questions. i heard some people don't even read at all, they just hunt for the questions right away. ideally i think it would be best for me to actually READ the passage but then i feel like timing would be huge obstacle for me...ahh so stressful!
if anyone else can share what method they like best or any resource they recommend for RC i would reallyyyyy appreciate it!
thanks!!

 

[live2serve]

preODgirl,

In my opinion, YES, you should read the entire passage first. Your reading through the entirety of the article should give you at least two important things. First, a good overview and basic understanding of the subject matter. This was enough for me to answer a good number of the questions without even having to go back into the article. Second, for the questions that you are unsure, that entire read-through provides you with a "mental road map" of where the detail is discussed in the article. Any of the questions that I was unsure of or needed more details on, I was able to locate that particular portion of the document very quickly, as I had already read through it, and thus knew where to look for that detail.

I think for me, I would be MORE stressed about time trying to do the "hunt and peck" method to look for details just based on the question. Not knowing where in the document to look for that specific detail would just stress me out, and make me even more worried if I didn't find it quickly. Additionally, I think that I would've probably spent quite a bit of time re-reading and re-skimming the same info over and over again while "hunting and pecking."

In my opinion, as long as you can read at a reasonable rate, retain a little bit of the detail, and maintain a level head, the RC section should be doable, without a lot of stress. This is what worked for me. Others may find that other strategies have worked for them, but ultimately you are the only one who knows your strengths and weaknesses, and you need to make the choice on how to approach it. Try several methods with practice exams, and see what works best for you.

Good luck!

 

[hhannah]

I just wanted to throw out an idea that worked for me when I was doing the RC section. As I read the passage through the first time, I literally wrote down a numbered list of the paragraph #s and a couple of words about the main idea of each. That way I had to at least think about the passage a little bit instead of passively reading. I didn't spend a whole ton of time doing that though...just really to know where to go back if the question was more in depth. If I needed to go back into the passage to answer a question, I would know exactly where to look too. It might not work for you, but then again it just might!
Good luck!

 

[eyelikeeyes]

wow. you're like my twin. i am in EXACTLY the same position as you...same GPA, RC score, scores on kaplan tests...but unfortunately, it's not good enough for SCCO. i honestly think that the time crunch was a big factor in performance, in addition to the type of passages you get. i wanted to let you know that you're not the only one (sometimes it helps when people are in the same boat as you are). what i'm attempting to do now, is to do what my kaplan instructor said: read 1 or 2 scientific journal articles every day, and create a "road map" by jotting down keywords from each paragraph. if its an everyday thing, then the real thing should be a breeze.

we can do this! 🙂

 

[preODgirl]

eyelikeeyes,

thanks for your post...that does kind of make me feel better. i also heard that TopScorePro is a pretty good practice for the RC...heard anything about that?
I'm going to try your method too tho. Did you Kaplan instructor recommend any specific journals you should be reading?
If anyone else has any other input on Top Score Pro or RC or the OAT in general please let me know! Thanks!!! 😳

 

[blysssful]

Try searching the OAT forum for OAT advice... a lot of different methods are discussed there.

More specifically, if you have a little while before your retake, try reading scientific journals in your "spare" time. Preferably on a topic that you're NOT interested in. The more material of that nature you read, the faster and more accurate you'll get. The language in the RC section is pretty dense, and if you're not accustomed to that, it won't matter how many practice tests you take.

For QR, practice shortcuts and estimating if you're running out of time. If it wasn't a time issue then make sure you understand the concepts.

 

[snettig]

wow. you're like my twin. i am in EXACTLY the same position as you...same GPA, RC score, scores on kaplan tests...but unfortunately, it's not good enough for SCCO. i honestly think that the time crunch was a big factor in performance, in addition to the type of passages you get. i wanted to let you know that you're not the only one (sometimes it helps when people are in the same boat as you are). what i'm attempting to do now, is to do what my kaplan instructor said: read 1 or 2 scientific journal articles every day, and create a "road map" by jotting down keywords from each paragraph. if its an everyday thing, then the real thing should be a breeze.

we can do this! 🙂

how did you do with the retake?