RC speed

[dentist_dude]

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Hi
I was wondering how long are the passages in the RC? I heard they are about 1500 words.
How fast do you think my reading speed should be per passage?
I'm a very slow reader! Right now I can read a 1650 word passage in 16 minute which is about 100 word per minute! I just feel terrible now!

 

[Rambunctious]

you need to be reading at least 300 wpm. I was also a slow reader, but practiced reading a lot. I know it sounds simple, but just pick up anything and read. A lot of advice on here is to read scientific articles, which is going to be a waste of time if you cannot read at a decent speed.

 

[dentist_dude]

which is going to be a waste of time if you cannot read at a decent speed.

What are ways to increase your reading speed? Because that's what I'm doing rn

 

[DAT Destroyer]

you need to be reading at least 300 wpm. I was also a slow reader, but practiced reading a lot. I know it sounds simple, but just pick up anything and read. A lot of advice on here is to read scientific articles, which is going to be a waste of time if you cannot read at a decent speed.

Wow, I could not have said it better. I agree with what you said 100 percent. To increase speed and comprehension you should make it a goal to read daily. You can read at the end of the day before bed. Get a book, newspapers, national geographic magazine whatever you like. If you put in at least 30 minutes a day reading it will help.

Good luck to you!

Nancy

 

[okiedokeartichoke]

What are ways to increase your reading speed? Because that's what I'm doing rn

I'm pretty sure there are existing apps out there that do just that -- speed reading. I'm not sure which one is the best one out there though, but try looking at the ratings. And if that doesn't work out, just read daily every day.

 

[alasra]

Check out http://www.spreeder.com/app.php. It's helped me increase by reading speed from 500 wpm to about 900 wpm. Here's how it works:

1) Find an article, something you're interested in, and paste it into the space.
2) Click the Spreed! button
3) Click on settings and try reading at about 500 wpm. The first reading should be FAST and you shouldn't be able to grasp a lot. After spreeding the article a couple times at fast speed,
4) Click on settings and change the speed to about 200 wpm. This time, try to really understand and read the article.

This method helps a lot because the first time, you'll only catch a few words which will help silence that "reading inner voice" in your head. The second time around with the lower speed helps you to grasp the understanding. Continue doing this and increasing the speeds every week or every few days.

 

[gentlerwave]

I'm not a fast reader either but I remembered the RC section wasn't bad at all. They give you more than enough time to comprehend the passages, and the ones I got were actually very interesting (3 were science and 1 was somewhat random). When I took the DAT, the consensus for this RC section was essentially search & destroy, but I don't know whether that's still the case. My advise would be to do practice exams and time yourself, as long as you finish the section within the time slot with a good score, you're good. RC is not weighed as heavily as the other sections (for admissions sake) - if anything I'd focus on doing very well on the TS and PAT.

 

[Dr. Dan]

I've heard that the speed you read the passages is not necessarily where you lose most of your time. Most people lose the bulk of the time deciphering and re-reading questions and answer choices. Be wary of this (once I learned this, my RC score improved a lot) and don't spend too long on any single question (be especially careful if you don't initially understand what its asking).

Hope this helps

PS I'm a terribly slow reader and that is not an exaggeration. Even I still did okay on RC

 

[BioForLife]

My advice would be to read efficiently, but emphasizing understanding even more than speed. It's better to take a few extra minutes to fully comprehend an article than having to skim through the whole thing to answer each question. That said, I felt the time was pretty generous. With enough practice, you should be able to finish with a few minutes left over.

 

[grannick]

There's a variety of techniques that help to save you time reading. Search and destroy isn't necessarily the best for you, but its worth looking into as its meant to be as quick as possible and can lead to a very solid score

 

[BYU4you]

I would read practice SAT or ACT articles. They are like an easier version of what the DAT is like. That would help prepare you for DAT practice materials and then practice those a lot.