SAT Reading and MCAT VR correlation?

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Radon XP

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Let's say somebody scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT reading. How much correlation is there between SAT Reading and MCAT VR, if any?

I know there have been threads on overall SAT and MCAT correlation, but I couldn't find one on Reading specifically.
 
Radon XP said:
Wow. So two wrong is what, a 13?

So you have to get zero wrong to get a 15?
Click to expand...

According to http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=725827, yes.

----PS----VR-----BS
15 52-52 40-40 51-52
14 50-51 39-39 50-50
13 49-49 38-38 47-49
12 46-48 37-37 46-46
11 44-45 34-36 43-45
10 41-43 31-33 39-42
9 38-40 29-30 35-38
8 33-37 27-28 32-34
7 28-32 24-26 29-31
6 23-27 21-23 26-28
5 19-22 19-20 23-25
4 15-18 15-18 20-22
3 11-14 12-14 16-19
2 8-10 9-11 14-15
1 0-7 0-8 0-13
 
Thanks. Was there any special way that you studied for it?

Couldn't somebody begin studying for VR years ahead of the test? I mean, it's not like BS or PS where you have to take pre-reqs for foundational knowledge, since it's based on critical reading ability.
 
Radon XP said:
Let's say somebody scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT reading. How much correlation is there between SAT Reading and MCAT VR, if any?

I know there have been threads on overall SAT and MCAT correlation, but I couldn't find one on Reading specifically.
Click to expand...


I personally found the SAT and MCAT verbal sections to be very similar. I had to get back into the standardized passage reading mode for MCAT studying and did poorly when just starting out, but once I got back in the groove of it all, it seemed more or less like the SATs again (though generally with much less interesting passages :laugh:).
 
I got a 730 on the SAT but an 8 on the MCAT...but hey I'm probably an outlier
 
Radon XP said:
Wow. So two wrong is what, a 13?

So you have to get zero wrong to get a 15?
Click to expand...

Yes. This is clear from the curves for the AAMC practice tests. And doing so depends almost entirely upon luck because sometimes, dammit, there are just multiple equally legitimate ways to interpret a passage/question.
 
I got a 680 on SAT CR and a 10 on MCAT VR. There's one additional flaw when comparing these two. On my SAT breakdown, I got 100% correct on my vocab questions so all my wrong answers were on the reading comprehension part. The MCAT VR is all reading comprehension so it's kinda hard to compare.
 
Radon XP said:
Thanks. Was there any special way that you studied for it?

Couldn't somebody begin studying for VR years ahead of the test? I mean, it's not like BS or PS where you have to take pre-reqs for foundational knowledge, since it's based on critical reading ability.
Click to expand...

Sure, you can 'study' for years for verbal, if by 'study' you mean invest in being a highly literate and well-read person. I would hope that is its own reward and not something you do for the MCAT.

I got a stellar verbal MCAT score. I did not ever 'study' for it. The only 'studying' I did was doing the verbal passages on my practice tests.

But. I've been a voracious reader all my life. I read most of the articles posted on longreads.com and a significant portion of the nytimes and the atlantic every day. Last year I read 90 full length books in my free time (fiction and nonfiction both). At work, I read at least a dozen journal articles a week, and I read and write all day. I read actively, happily, intensely. A friend and I frequently read the same short stories so we can discuss them. My kindle is stuffed with reading material of all kinds, from philosophical works to trashy young adults books I read during my early morning commute.

Was I 'studying' for the MCAT the last 20 years of my life? Hell no. But did it contribute to my score? Hell yes.
 
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Was scoring twelves and thirteens on the practice exams (highest was a fourteen), so I didn't bother studying. I'm an avid reader of book and comic books. I don't know if that helps at all.
 
590 SAT Reading ~ 78%
11 MCAT Verbal ~ 83-95%

...I would say no correlation? I think your reading comprehension should go way up in college if you're taking the right classes.
 
I feel like my numbers could help those who feel like they don't have the "chops" to overcome the MCAT.

I graduated high school with a 3.4 GPA and scored 1700 on the SATs (580 CR, 540 M, 580 W) – 71st percentile. My score wasn't because I didn't care or take it seriously enough. I studied and took practice tests like everyone else did. I just sucked at it and I was devastated by the outcome.

Three years later, I have a 4.0 cGPA at a highly regarded liberal arts college and recently scored a 33 (12 PS, 10 VR, 11 BS) on the MCAT – 91st percentile. I busted my ass and made certain history wouldn't repeat itself.

My experience with the SAT terrified me of the MCAT, particularly the VR section which seemed difficult to improve. Yet VR was never a problem for me because I developed skills to master it in my academic and research endeavors.

My point is that there's probably very little meaning you could take from a correlation between the two tests. The VR and CR sections are vastly dissimilar in style, content and purpose, where the SAT CR uses words that no one would know unless they read a thesaurus for fun on the Jon.
 
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I got 99% for Reading on my ACT and only managed an 8 on VR...ugh.
 
KillerPanda said:
I got a 730 on the SAT but an 8 on the MCAT...but hey I'm probably an outlier
Click to expand...

This scares me
SN12357 said:
Sure, you can 'study' for years for verbal, if by 'study' you mean invest in being a highly literate and well-read person. I would hope that is its own reward and not something you do for the MCAT.

I got a stellar verbal MCAT score. I did not ever 'study' for it. The only 'studying' I did was doing the verbal passages on my practice tests.

But. I've been a voracious reader all my life. I read most of the articles posted on longreads.com and a significant portion of the nytimes and the atlantic every day. Last year I read 90 full length books in my free time (fiction and nonfiction both). At work, I read at least a dozen journal articles a week, and I read and write all day. I read actively, happily, intensely. A friend and I frequently read the same short stories so we can discuss them. My kindle is stuffed with reading material of all kinds, from philosophical works to trashy young adults books I read during my early morning commute.

Was I 'studying' for the MCAT the last 20 years of my life? Hell no. But did it contribute to my score? Hell yes.
Click to expand...

I am an avid reader as well. But in addition to reading in general, I think it might be possible to do practice problems/formal MCAT prep ASAP. Amirite?
HH8911 said:
I got 99% for Reading on my ACT and only managed an 8 on VR...ugh.
Click to expand...

This scares me too.
 
Avid reader here; scored 630 & 710 on reading SAT, 32 and 35 reading ACT, 11 and 12 verbal MCAT.

Honestly, I think it's all because I read big fantasy novels and read/comprehend things easily; I hardly practiced for verbal on the MCAT (and am always surprised when people say its their hardest section--I instead struggled to get my physical sciences section up to par and I spent almost all of my time practicing that section).
 
cyaneidae said:
Avid reader here; scored 630 & 710 on reading SAT, 32 and 35 reading ACT, 11 and 12 verbal MCAT.

Honestly, I think it's all because I read big fantasy novels and read/comprehend things easily; I hardly practiced for verbal on the MCAT (and am always surprised when people say its their hardest section--I instead struggled to get my physical sciences section up to par and I spent almost all of my time practicing that section).
Click to expand...

I feel you. I got 10s on both science sections. Verbal was by far the easiest section for me. FWIW I also enjoy a lot of fantasy novels.
 
Doctor Strange said:
I feel you. I got 10s on both science sections. Verbal was by far the easiest section for me. FWIW I also enjoy a lot of fantasy novels.
Click to expand...

We are MCAT twins, then--same with me, even after being a bio major (altho I hardly practiced that section either, trying to do well on PS).

My freshman seminar was on Tolkien and it was by far one of my most favorite college classes. HBO got me started on "A Song of Ice and Fire"--and while Tolkien sometimes killed me on the detail, GRRM's got the perfect mix of detail & dialogue.

I've been reading 200/300+ page difficult books since 7th grade; that more than anything helped me on verbal--once you learn how to read high-level enjoyable books, reading boring passages and answering questions on them isn't that hard (you just have to force attention despite boredom).
 
cyaneidae said:
Honestly, I think it's all because I read big fantasy novels and read/comprehend things easily; I hardly practiced for verbal on the MCAT (and am always surprised when people say its their hardest section--I instead struggled to get my physical sciences section up to par and I spent almost all of my time practicing that section).
Click to expand...


I got an 800 on SAT CR, and I have yet to take the MCAT, but I agree that Fantasy novels are the way to go. I read ASOIAF the summer before my SATs, and I'm pretty sure it was partly responsible for my score.
 
Which one was the reading section? Was it the new section they added in with the essay? Because if so I got 550 (I think). If it was the one with all those analogies though then I got 670. On the essays I got 6/12.

On the MCAT VR I got 13 (>99th percentile) and an S in writing (also >99th percentile). Since you seem curious about people's verbal backgrounds, in my case all my teachers, professors, and every test other than the SAT have always told me my verbal skills are top notch. I won national competitions in high school, I had professors in college telling me I wrote better than them, and one of my PIs questioned me for several minutes after he read a publication manuscript I handed him because he was incredulous that anyone other than a tenured professor could have written it. I still had to bust my ass on VR prep though; used TPRH verbal workbook, EK101, and all the AAMC stuff. Even though I scored lower on the SAT, I'd say MCAT verbal is leagues harder than the SAT.
 
A7X said:
I got an 800 on SAT CR, and I have yet to take the MCAT, but I agree that Fantasy novels are the way to go. I read ASOIAF the summer before my SATs, and I'm pretty sure it was partly responsible for my score.
Click to expand...

Haha, same, only I ended up reading ASOIAF during thesis crunch time, and it was definitely more than partly responsible for my score. My not-very-good-because-I-spent-my-writing-week-reading-GRRM score 🙄:laugh:
 
A7X said:
I got an 800 on SAT CR, and I have yet to take the MCAT, but I agree that Fantasy novels are the way to go. I read ASOIAF the summer before my SATs, and I'm pretty sure it was partly responsible for my score.
Click to expand...

I think you'll be fine. 🙂 Fantasy novels FTW; enjoyable & they help build vocab/comprehension.

Hardest part of MCAT verbal for me was to not get bored with the passages and zone out; I think the reason I did worse the second time I took the MCAT (an 11 though) was because I absolutely hated the passages and wanted nothing more than to burn my eyes out rather than read them.
 
cyaneidae said:
We are MCAT twins, then--same with me, even after being a bio major (altho I hardly practiced that section either, trying to do well on PS).

My freshman seminar was on Tolkien and it was by far one of my most favorite college classes. HBO got me started on "A Song of Ice and Fire"--and while Tolkien sometimes killed me on the detail, GRRM's got the perfect mix of detail & dialogue.

I've been reading 200/300+ page difficult books since 7th grade; that more than anything helped me on verbal--once you learn how to read high-level enjoyable books, reading boring passages and answering questions on them isn't that hard (you just have to force attention despite boredom).
Click to expand...

Just started Song of Ice and Fire a few weeks ago! Despite having watched the show, I find the book to be much better!
 
Doctor Strange said:
Just started Song of Ice and Fire a few weeks ago! Despite having watched the show, I find the book to be much better!
Click to expand...

I just started it this May during senior week! My parents and I marathoned in one weekend seasons 1&2 of the show before season 3 came out in March (yay comcast watchathon week) and I'd been dying to read it since (but didn't have time).

I'm ~1/2 way thru A Clash of Kings right now (slow going because of secondaries)--my dad and I are in an informal competition to see how fast we can get through the series (though it's not quite fair since he got nearly a book head start; he's on book 3 and probably has 500 pages on me).


I like the show for the visuals (very visual person here--fantasy's great for that) and the humor, but in a lot of things I agree the books are better. Wish GRRM would write faster--not looking forward to angrily putting down the fifth book and having nothing more to read...
 
cyaneidae said:
I just started it this May during senior week! My parents and I marathoned in one weekend seasons 1&2 of the show before season 3 came out in March (yay comcast watchathon week) and I'd been dying to read it since (but didn't have time).

I'm ~1/2 way thru A Clash of Kings right now (slow going because of secondaries)--my dad and I are in an informal competition to see how fast we can get through the series (though it's not quite fair since he got nearly a book head start; he's on book 3 and probably has 500 pages on it).


I like the show for the visuals (very visual person here--fantasy's great for that) and the humor, but in a lot of things I agree the books are better. Wish GRRM would write faster--not looking forward to angrily putting down the fifth book and having nothing more to read...
Click to expand...

Meanwhile, I'm still on the first book... My comic book reading is taking up a lot of time... :laugh:

But anyway... Back on topic...

😴
 
SAT Verbal - 560.
First time taking the MCAT - 5 VR.

I read a **** ton during my year off, increased my comprehension skills, and made a 10 on my retake. It was definitely correlated for me. Probably not for most people, though.
 
I can't make myself watch the show...too damn slow, even though I love the visuals and the actors!
But seriously, by the time I watch 2 or 3 episodes and gotten like, a few chapters into the damn plot, I could have read the entire book! Generally the main advantage video has over books is that they're at least quicker, but it's like they found a way to make it last 10x longer than reading it!
 
I got a 790 on SAT CR and a 36 on ACT Reading.

I took the MCAT twice. 11 on VR first time and 12 on VR the second time.

Also, I didn't realize you could only miss 3 questions to get a 12 on VR. Holy **** that curve is harsh!

And for a bit of background, on my very first practice test with zero prep, I got a 10 on the Verbal. And my score never fell below a 10 on any practice test. So I was lucky in that regard.
 
Lamel said:
Reading the exact same series this summer; will increase my MCAT VR by 7 pts guaranteed.

No spoilers plz.
Click to expand...

I don't know if you are joking, but it would probably do you more good to read NYT and Wall Street Journal Op-eds and the economist.

The Verbal content on the MCAT is not literary, but is more of the argumentative, direct prose that is used in persuasive writing.
 
SN12357 said:
Sure, you can 'study' for years for verbal, if by 'study' you mean invest in being a highly literate and well-read person. I would hope that is its own reward and not something you do for the MCAT.

I got a stellar verbal MCAT score. I did not ever 'study' for it. The only 'studying' I did was doing the verbal passages on my practice tests.

But. I've been a voracious reader all my life. I read most of the articles posted on longreads.com and a significant portion of the nytimes and the atlantic every day. Last year I read 90 full length books in my free time (fiction and nonfiction both). At work, I read at least a dozen journal articles a week, and I read and write all day. I read actively, happily, intensely. A friend and I frequently read the same short stories so we can discuss them. My kindle is stuffed with reading material of all kinds, from philosophical works to trashy young adults books I read during my early morning commute.

Was I 'studying' for the MCAT the last 20 years of my life? Hell no. But did it contribute to my score? Hell yes.
Click to expand...

+1👍

I have both of these bookmarked on my computer and kudos on The Atlantic. I feel like it is one of those sites that very few people know about, but it is really great!
 
around 95th on the SAT, got a 13 in VR. I'm also an anthropology major though, so that helps with reading gnarly texts
 
800/14
Took it again 10 years later, got a 10. I blame on line games taking away my reading time.
 
Another avid reader here. Been reading adult novels since 6th grade, which mostly started with my mom's books (Stephen King, Michael Crichton, etc. -not the best childhood reading, lol). I read various news sources daily and always have a book going for fun (right now it's "The Plantegenets" about a history of the pre-Tudor dynasty in England).

My verbal on the old school SAT (two part) was 720 without really studying much. It was the math I was trying to raise and I raised my verbal a couple times trying to get the math up:laugh:. Got a 12 on the verbal MCAT with similar minimal studying.

My recommendation to you, if you don't already read regularly outside of school work, then right now (two years prior) is a great time to start.
 
720 and 13. Also, 730 on math and 14 on PS. I feel like the math and PS sections should be highly correlated for anyone who bothers to study; the gen chem and physics equations you're expected to know are pretty minimal so it ends up coming down to your ability to do math quickly.

I read the New Yorker and Foreign Affairs regularly, and think they help.
 
got an 800 on SAT reading & a 36 for ACT reading... 11 on VR.

however, that 11 is lower than the 12-15 range I was scoring on the practice AAMCs.
 
I got in the 99th percentile on SAT reading and MCAT verbal, and both were without any studying on those sections. I like to read but honestly didn't do a ton in my undergrad because I didn't have any extra time so I don't think you need to read a ton, but you need to be a good critical reader and think about what you read.
 
720 on SAT Verbal (old test where 1600 was the perfect score)

13 on MCAT VR

Even though I did have to study for the MCAT VR (study tips shared on the MCAT forum), I know that the fact I've loved reading most of my life gave me a leg up.
 
xffan624 said:
Another avid reader here. Been reading adult novels since 6th grade, which mostly started with my mom's books (Stephen King, Michael Crichton, etc. -not the best childhood reading, lol). I read various news sources daily and always have a book going for fun (right now it's "The Plantegenets" about a history of the pre-Tudor dynasty in England).

My verbal on the old school SAT (two part) was 720 without really studying much. It was the math I was trying to raise and I raised my verbal a couple times trying to get the math up:laugh:. Got a 12 on the verbal MCAT with similar minimal studying.

My recommendation to you, if you don't already read regularly outside of school work, then right now (two years prior) is a great time to start.
Click to expand...

I love Crichton! I started reading him when I was in 6th grade too lol.
 
I'm getting the feeling that the 12-15 range relies heavily on luck, since a single question can make a big difference. Would y'all say that's accurate? Can you reliably score 13+ every time?
 
Radon XP said:
I'm getting the feeling that the 12-15 range relies heavily on luck, since a single question can make a big difference. Would y'all say that's accurate? Can you reliably score 13+ every time?
Click to expand...

I think you can consistently score 12+.
 
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