Reading Faster for MCAT

[ModernAlchemist]

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Hey everyone, I'm doing pretty well on everything else, but I'm scared as hell of the MCAT because I've always been a pretty slow reader. I comprehend things really well the first time I read them, but it takes me a pretty long time to do it. Does anyone have any advice on how to learn to read faster? (I'm not sure if those books, classes, or computer programs work and I don't want to waste me precious time if they don't)

 

[PRodulous]

Generally the best way is to read more newspapers and books. Unfortunately, it takes time to build reading speed with comprehension (comprehension varies with a person's reading speed). The more you read at a faster rate, the better the comprehension is at that rate. If you have time (months to years) this works very well. If your MCAT is next week, I wouldn't recommend this method.

 

[ModernAlchemist]

I'm starting the second quarter of my sophmore year. I plan to take it in like a year and a half, so I have time. I just need to get system going where I can learn techniques and test myself. I feel disabled. Any system anyone tried that worked?

Thanks for your help

 

[PRodulous]

One more thing I can add. Since you do have some time, I hear a book club helps with comprehension. Maybe you can read the books quicker and meet with the group to gauge your comprehension.

 

[AspiringOne]

While increasing your reading speed will definitely help, there's an important thing to consider: the mcat verbal is not about reading and comprehending the entire text. That's not to say you couldn't do it or that you would get a bad score if you did. But what I'm saying is you don't HAVE to do it.

Reading for the gist and then referring to the details when the questions call for it is a faster method that doesn't require full comprehension of the passages.

So, what I'm trying to say is since you read the passages a different way than you read other materials, your reading speed on the mcat may be faster than you think.

 

[Decicco]

Reading for the gist and then referring to the details when the questions call for it is a faster method that doesn't require full comprehension of the passages.

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