Reason for panic?

[cwrig14]

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My mcat test date is June 21.
I've been studying since december and completed a kaplan review course. I've taken the majority of the kaplan practice tests and have consistently scored a 32-35. Over the past few days, I took AAMC FL's 4 & 5 and scored a 29 and 28, respectively. I felt that the tests were vastly different from the kaplan FLs. The kaplan FLs seemed much more difficult and more based off of material "outside" of the passage. I know 2 AAMC FL scores aren't much to go off of but those low scores are still very discouraging.
Has anyone experienced this same sort of thing? I plan on taking a later AAMC FL (maybe #7?) tomorrow to see if this pattern continues.

 

[dartmed]

My mcat test date is June 21.
I've been studying since december and completed a kaplan review course. I've taken the majority of the kaplan practice tests and have consistently scored a 32-35. Over the past few days, I took AAMC FL's 4 & 5 and scored a 29 and 28, respectively. I felt that the tests were vastly different from the kaplan FLs. The kaplan FLs seemed much more difficult and more based off of material "outside" of the passage. I know 2 AAMC FL scores aren't much to go off of but those low scores are still very discouraging.
Has anyone experienced this same sort of thing? I plan on taking a later AAMC FL (maybe #7?) tomorrow to see if this pattern continues.

That's why most of us on here don't trust Kaplan very much---they are completely different than the AAMC. I took the course, but it was completely pointless so I stopped going. Just keep studying, review concepts, take more FLs, and see where you are. A word of caution - AAMC 4 and 5 are on the easier end than 9, 10, and 11. Something to keep in mind while you are studying.

 

[cwrig14]

By easier do you mean the content is easier so you're required to get a higher % to earn a higher score than that of a more difficult test?
On the last FL I scored: 77% correct PS (10), 70% VR (8) and 75% BS (10).
These percentages likely would have resulted in closer to a 12/10/11 breakdown on the Kaplan tests which are more difficult.
I guess what I'm trying to ask is does the test material becoming more difficult in later FLs correspond with a lower % correct=higher score?
Sorry this is so jumbled still a little brain sore from the last FL

 

[orangeblossom]

Ive taken AAMC4 and Kaplan FL #1, in that order (a few days of content review in between). Scored 5 points higher on the AAMC4. Not sure why I did so poorly on the Kaplan, especially because I studied content after taking the AAMC. The grading for Kaplan does seem to be inflated but I thought the questions were harder.

Really hoping my AAMC score is more representative of where I'm at.

 

[OccamsRazor]

That's why most of us on here don't trust Kaplan very much---they are completely different than the AAMC. I took the course, but it was completely pointless so I stopped going. Just keep studying, review concepts, take more FLs, and see where you are. A word of caution - AAMC 4 and 5 are on the easier end than 9, 10, and 11. Something to keep in mind while you are studying.

I think to say Kaplan is completely pointless is quite an overstatement. I think they help you nail down a lot of content. The tests are also good practice and are in many ways the same level of difficulty you will see on the real exam. Don't count on your Kaplan score as being indicative of what you will score on test day, just use them as learning tools. With that said, when I switched from Kaplan to AAMC's, my score dropped dramatically but then quickly increased up to my Kaplan avg score as I got used to the AAMC style.

 

[AA|FCB|DOC]

I think to say Kaplan is completely pointless is quite an overstatement. I think they help you nail down a lot of content. The tests are also good practice and are in many ways the same level of difficulty you will see on the real exam. Don't count on your Kaplan score as being indicative of what you will score on test day, just use them as learning tools. With that said, when I switched from Kaplan to AAMC's, my score dropped dramatically but then quickly increased up to my Kaplan avg score as I got used to the AAMC style.

same thing that happened to me. It takes some getting used to because the styles are different. Kaplan is way harder but you can miss so much to get a good score while you can barely miss anything on the AAMC tests, but their difficulty level is slightly easier.

 

[cwrig14]

Is that the case for all the practice tests? Or does that change as the later practice AAMC tests get tougher?

 

[crazedpiggy]

When I first prepped for the MCAT, I found I scored lower on the earlier AAMC numbers even though they were notably easier. When you start doing CBT's (esp. AAMCs) is when you'll see yourself improving at the fastest rate, regardless of the test difficulty, though there may be outliers from a really good or bad day. This is mostly attributed to getting familiar with the exam, taking it under test conditions, and doing heavy post-game analysis.

Good luck!