SAT and MCAT score correlation and other MCAT questions

[Mskincer]

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Im still a freshmen in college, so i'll admit that as a newbie there are some stuff I have to wait and see. with that said I have questions that have been bugging me in the past week:

1.) I got a 600 on the reading on the SAT (560 on the first try and tried every book I could to do well) and I heard the verbal section on the MCAT is the most difficult part and way tougher than the SAT reading. Is there a correlation between SAT reading and MCAT verbal?

2.) have there been students that have studied extensively for the MCAT and still did poorly. is this more of the student or the difficulty of the MCAT. just trying gauge of how i might do on the exam in the future

3.) is the verbal section best prepared by reading a lot of journals from now or is it best if I wait during the 3-4 month study schedule to practice the verbal tests from TPRH, BR, Kaplan. etc.

 

[Spinach Dip]

1. No relationship. Perhaps a correlation, but that does not imply causation.

2. Yes.

3. Read a lot. Subject doesn't really matter.

 

[Mskincer]

1. No relationship. Perhaps a correlation, but that does not imply causation.

2. Yes.

3. Read a lot. Subject doesn't really matter.

for question 2, Im guessing you meant yes that students do poorly on the mcat, did they not study properly or is the MCAT just that difficult

ppl have told me to read US news, economist, and national geographic. Have some of the periodicals/newspapers actually helped people do better on the verbal?

 

[felixfelicis]

I'm of the opinion that if you've struggled with SAT CR, you will probably struggle with MCAT VR because the latter can be more subtle and ambiguous at times. SAT CR is straightforward in that the passages present clear arguments that are not as subtle as those in the MCAT and has more passage-mining. The MCAT VR presents often convoluted and nuanced arguments, making reading comprehension tougher, and its questions are much more punishing if you do not exactly understand not only the nature of the author's point but also its derivation, extent, and qualifiers.

Different people have different ceilings for standardized testing, and mainly this depends on background and critical thinking ability. Because I took difficult science courses seriously my entire life, all I needed to do to prepare for the MCAT was to get used to the test. Others need more time to learn concepts. But whatever the route one takes, as long as one reaches a point where every tested concept is intuitive, the MCAT should be very doable beyond a certain threshold of critical thinking ability. Critical thinking is developed over long periods of time, and will not change significantly in a 3-month stint to study for the MCAT (though learning to take the MCAT is a quickly learned skill). Because critical thinking and background are both so important, I am of the controversial opinion that one's ceiling score is pretty much determined by the time you start studying for the test. I know people personally who have studied upwards of a year, with prep courses, and still cannot manage to understand the concepts much less do well on the exam.

 

[Mskincer]

I'm of the opinion that if you've struggled with SAT CR, you will probably struggle with MCAT VR because the latter can be more subtle and ambiguous at times. SAT CR is straightforward in that the passages present clear arguments that are not as subtle as those in the MCAT and has more passage-mining. The MCAT VR presents often convoluted and nuanced arguments, making reading comprehension tougher, and its questions are much more punishing if you do not exactly understand not only the nature of the author's point but also its derivation, extent, and qualifiers.

Different people have different ceilings for standardized testing, and mainly this depends on background and critical thinking ability. Because I took difficult science courses seriously my entire life, all I needed to do to prepare for the MCAT was to get used to the test. Others need more time to learn concepts. But whatever the route one takes, as long as one reaches a point where every tested concept is intuitive, the MCAT should be very doable beyond a certain threshold of critical thinking ability. Critical thinking is developed over long periods of time, and will not change significantly in a 3-month stint to study for the MCAT (though learning to take the MCAT is a quickly learned skill). Because critical thinking and background are both so important, I am of the controversial opinion that one's ceiling score is pretty much determined by the time you start studying for the test. I know people personally who have studied upwards of a year, with prep courses, and still cannot manage to understand the concepts much less do well on the exam.

I've heard this too, and I am heavily concerned that regardless of countless studying/practicing my VR score never gets higher than a 9. What would a 560 on SAT reading equal on the MCAT VR.

anyone had a low SAT reading score and had a high VR score. If so, what you do to get that score.

 

[Columbia09]

I've heard this too, and I am heavily concerned that regardless of countless studying/practicing my VR score never gets higher than a 9. What would a 560 on SAT reading equal on the MCAT VR.

anyone had a low SAT reading score and had a high VR score. If so, what you do to get that score.

I think there was a guy who answered one of my previous forms who said he got in the 500 zone for reading but scored a 32 on his second try on the MCAT (25 on his first). I looked at some of the MCAT practice passages, yes they are convoluted and some of them are just plan awful. However they are beatable if you have the right motivation and prep material. A lot of people say the TPRHL verbal is the best and helped them out a lot.

 

[Mskincer]

I think there was a guy who answered one of my previous forms who said he got in the 500 zone for reading but scored a 32 on his second try on the MCAT (25 on his first). I looked at some of the MCAT practice passages, yes they are convoluted and some of them are just plan awful. However they are beatable if you have the right motivation and prep material. A lot of people say the TPRHL verbal is the best and helped them out a lot.

so a lot of ppl say here that TPRH verbal > BR verbal?

also is summer the best time to take study for the mcat so I can take the exam in September. I plan to have no work or school from mid-May to end of August. that should be enough time to cover everything correct?

 

[Columbia09]

so a lot of ppl say here that TPRH verbal > BR verbal?

also is summer the best time to take study for the mcat so I can take the exam in September. I plan to have no work or school from mid-May to end of August. that should be enough time to cover everything correct?

Yes. I heard bad things about the BR verbal that's why it wasn't suggested that I buy it.

See that's what I originally wanted to do, except I wanted to take it in August. All the people on here though stated that If I took the MCAT in August then my app would be in the late pile. I also have to take into account that I'm going on a geology field expedition the entire month of June and WILL NOT have time to study. So I decided to take it in May right before the trip. The problem with that is now apparently some people thing 14 credits along with MCAT studying is "bad news". I'm taking two biology classes (physiology and ecology) and two geology classes with labs attached to them. I made my schedule so that the majority of the afternoon I'm free to study. Except on Mondays and Thursday were my labs take me until 5:30 -_-