Should I postpone after these FL MCATs?

[Chromatic543]

So I have taken four FLs now in this specific order:

TBR 2 (502)
TBR 1 (502)
TBR 3 (502)
EK FL 1 (50%)

For the TBR FL MCATs, I thought it was pretty tricky, but it seemed to have less data interpretation than EK, which seemed to be almost all data interpretation. With each of the TBR tests, I stayed at 502, but my percentage went up slightly each time, but for EK 1 it just seemed to be a lot more difficult! My MCAT is on the 10th of September, and I am getting nervous because I want a 510 at least, and I am seeing nothing around that score. I keep hearing that these FL exams are supposed to be "harder" than the actual MCAT, but it is hard to believe without seeing any kind of real success. So what do you think, should I postpone?

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[LIC2015]

Do you think you can improve to a 510 over the next ~3 weeks? If not, postpone. Take the practice AAMC FL scored and see what you get. That'll give you a good idea of what your real score will be.

 

[Chromatic543]

Do you think you can improve to a 510 over the next ~3 weeks? If not, postpone. Take the practice AAMC FL scored and see what you get. That'll give you a good idea of what your real score will be.

Have you taken TBR FL, EK FL, or the practice scored AAMC FL? Have you taken the actual MCAT? How would you think they compare, in your opinion?

 

[LIC2015]

I haven't taken TBR or EK so I'll let others discuss their experiences, but I have taken the Next Step exams and can say with tremendous certainty that they are more difficult than the real thing. The percentiles seem to be adjusted though, so if you get some low % correct like 60% raw, that could translate to as high as 65-70% on the AAMC scale. I would highly recommend that if you need more practice material, invest in a few NS exams because their passages will really force you to find relevant information quickly and not waste time. Then again, they may be a bit discouraging if you forget that they're harder than the real thing.

 

[Chromatic543]

I haven't taken TBR or EK so I'll let others discuss their experiences, but I have taken the Next Step exams and can say with tremendous certainty that they are more difficult than the real thing. The percentiles seem to be adjusted though, so if you get some low % correct like 60% raw, that could translate to as high as 65-70% on the AAMC scale. I would highly recommend that if you need more practice material, invest in a few NS exams because their passages will really force you to find relevant information quickly and not waste time. Then again, they may be a bit discouraging if you forget that they're harder than the real thing.

I like that these exams are supposed to be "harder" than the MCAT, but it is not very good for confidence

 

[LIC2015]

Don't let it bog you down, always keep your eye on the prize. You're the product of billions of years of evolution, and you've got anywhere from 80-100 billion mini computers in your skull that are constantly working to help you get a better score. There is yet to be a single machine made that is more powerful than your brain.

And you're going to let an exam get in the way of your interest in pursuing medicine? Just keep working hard and keep looking for that thing that's holding you back (content? not understanding the passage? overlooking details in the passage or question stem?)