SN2'd first day

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EDIT: This was supposed to be a thread about the first day of SN2. However as with all intelligent life, things evolve. This thread has now become a support page for people following the SN2 plan. You can think of it as Alcoholics Anonymous for people studying to take the MCAT using the SN2 plan.

EDIT July 1, 2014:
If you are interested in @mehc012's Anki Deck, DO NOT SEND A PM. Here is the link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/7if6wgaif98rkoa/mehc012 SN2edCh4s.apkg
**A NOTE: @mehc012 and several others (myself included) want to tell you guys that studying from another person's deck will probably not be as beneficial to you as creating your own cards. Yes you can take advantage of @mehc012's generosity, but you won't get the same advantage. Study the material. Create cards as you go along. You will find it more helpful to your studying. **

EDIT July 22, 2014:
The following is @TBRBiosadist's official MCAT Verbal Reasoning Strategy:
@TBRBiosadist's strategy that got [him] from a 7 average to scoring 13-15 average..

Spend the bulk of your time reading. Up to 3 minutes per passage.
  • Read the first and last paragraph thoroughly to begin with. Understand what the authors main point will be because 90% of questions require nothing more than a general idea.
  • After this, read the entire passage slowly enough where you dont feel like you need to reread sentences for understanding.
Next is just answer questions, there is a few tricks here that work about 90% of the time
  • Unless the passage is asking you about a specific detail, dont look back. READ EVERY ANSWER THOROUGLY AND THEN Answer what makes sense from the general point of the passage. Its very easy to prove a wrong answer to be somewhat correct if you dig hard enough, dont. Answer what your gut says and move onto the next question, dont contemplate to much. With that being said...
  • Answer like you were dropped on the head as a child. Alot of times if Im arguing between two answers, there is the answer that is 100% correct, and one that is 90% correct. Be an idoit and choose the one that seems like it is correct. However.....
  • "Always" is a word to avoid. If an answer uses this word, or definites like it, it is something to avoid. I would say 80% of the time the wishy washy answer is more correct then the highly affirmative one. This leads to my final point....
  • 100% of the time you are not actually looking for the "right" answer in verbal, this isnt PS or BS where 1+1 almost always equals 2 (unless we are talking about the different sedimentation values for Ribosomes). In verbal you are looking for the answer that isnt wrong. Often times an answer will seem very "right" but one aspect of it is clearly wrong, as compared to an answer that isnt wrong, but doesnt seem as right as that answer, these are meant to fool you. Choose the answer that isnt wrong.
I understand that I few of these tips may be at odds with each other. Ultimately you must adjust slightly for each passage, but it comes down to one thing. Read thoroughly. Read every sentence in the passage. Read every question. Read every answer. Then the correct answer will be fairly obvious. This may seem like it takes longer, but it takes much less time than skimming, and then trying to find the correct information later.

Or to summarize in one sentence

Understand what the hell the author is arguing

EDIT July 26, 2014:
@DoctorInASaree uploaded a guide to Verbal Reasoning. If you're interested, it's worth a look. Here is the link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/2byivymmqwlvjms/MCAT VR Primer DRSAREE.pdf

EDIT 2, July 26, 2014: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/sn2d-first-day.1074344/page-52#post-15510851
________________________________________________
Just finished the first day of SN2...man is it long and exhausting.

The first day is BR physics chapter (translational motion) + 1/3 of the passages. I felt like I wasn't able to apply the stuff I read into the stuff I was tested on.

Has anyone felt this way when following the schedule? It just seems like the contents of the chapter didn't really stick in my head when I took the practice passages. Will this improve over time?

EDIT 3, March 4, 2015:

For verbal, if you are feeling lost and confused, I highly highly recommend you to look into the MCAT Strategy Course by @Jack Westin. I've been working with him, and nothing comes close to his course and teaching. It's a strategy course, so it will cover everything, not just the VR/CARS section.
 
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sillyjoe said:
Well ladies and gentlemen, I just finished studying for the MCAT. Hopefully it is the last time I need to pick up a TBR/EK/AAMC again. Pretty much thought I would never get to this moment. Feels great.

Thanks for all your support!

TkZWTyB.gif
Click to expand...

You are going to crush this test.

 
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Yesterday, I took a new path for my daily run and I had a chance to reflect a lot about this process. I know a lot of folks end up reading this thread, and I just wanted to share my thoughts.

Yes, this schedule, this exam, and this path in general will offer A LOT of emotional rollercoasters. But it does so because it teaches discipline, strength, and perseverance. At the end of the day, the only way to see how high you can go is to see how far you will fall. So keep at it, there is a silver lining, and one day those blood, sweat, and tears will be all worth it!


<3

p.s. for those of you taking the exam tomorrow, I would wish you luck but you don't need it given your high averages, amazing work ethic, and optimistic mind sets. #Aug15FTW
 
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orangetea said:
Yesterday, I took a new path for my daily run and I had a chance to reflect a lot about this process. I know a lot of folks end up reading this thread, and I just wanted to share my thoughts.

Yes, this schedule, this exam, and this path in general will offer A LOT of emotional rollercoasters. But it does so because it teaches discipline, strength, and perseverance. At the end of the day, the only way to see how high you can go is to see how far you will fall. So keep at it, there is a silver lining, and one day those blood, sweat, and tears will be all worth it!


<3

p.s. for those of you taking the exam tomorrow, I would wish you luck but you don't need it given your high averages, amazing work ethic, and optimistic mind sets. #Aug15FTW
Click to expand...
Are you taking it tomorrow?!
 
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orangetea said:
Yesterday, I took a new path for my daily run and I had a chance to reflect a lot about this process. I know a lot of folks end up reading this thread, and I just wanted to share my thoughts.

Yes, this schedule, this exam, and this path in general will offer A LOT of emotional rollercoasters. But it does so because it teaches discipline, strength, and perseverance. At the end of the day, the only way to see how high you can go is to see how far you will fall. So keep at it, there is a silver lining, and one day those blood, sweat, and tears will be all worth it!


<3

p.s. for those of you taking the exam tomorrow, I would wish you luck but you don't need it given your high averages, amazing work ethic, and optimistic mind sets. #Aug15FTW
Click to expand...


I always love reading orange's posts.. always motivates to crack those TBR books open and get down to business.
 
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Ok super quick ******* question. If Im applying next summer is that considered the 2015-2016 application cycle?
I graduate in 2016
 
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orangetea said:
Yesterday, I took a new path for my daily run and I had a chance to reflect a lot about this process. I know a lot of folks end up reading this thread, and I just wanted to share my thoughts.

Yes, this schedule, this exam, and this path in general will offer A LOT of emotional rollercoasters. But it does so because it teaches discipline, strength, and perseverance. At the end of the day, the only way to see how high you can go is to see how far you will fall. So keep at it, there is a silver lining, and one day those blood, sweat, and tears will be all worth it!


<3

p.s. for those of you taking the exam tomorrow, I would wish you luck but you don't need it given your high averages, amazing work ethic, and optimistic mind sets. #Aug15FTW
Click to expand...

More of that @orangetea gold. Keep it comin.
 
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TexasSurgeon said:
As a biochem major I'll tell you right now that ketone bodies are only used by the brain in times of extreme starvation, where you haven't had any glucose for weeks. It's a different metabolic pathway that's a last resort in times of extreme fasting or high intensity/long duration exercise
Click to expand...

n=1

I feel awesome... and have for 2 years eating like this.
 
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I wrote AAMC 11 today and scored a 28. 3 points lower than my last one. I lost two points in BS and 1 in VR. I have two weeks left to the real thing. I felt way differently about the BS section on this thing and went from an 11 to a 9. Can someone shar some advice on how I can bring that back up? Pretty discouraged.
 
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Sigh !! messed up my research 3 times today, wasted $1000 of enzymes got yelled at and just reached home today ... Need to pull a extra all nighter !!
 
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poop420 said:
Sigh !! messed up my research 3 times today, wasted $1000 of enzymes got yelled at and just reached home today ... Need to pull a extra all nighter !!
Click to expand...

$1000 worth of Enzymes? That's one expensive bottle of Pepsi! ....get it? Pepsi...pepsin...😴

Lab work can become shambolic at times...have fun studying tonight!
 
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LOL! Thanks .. Thats the first time I cracked a smile today ! *not because the joke was funny but the way it was delivered *
**Goes into a corner and cries with my orgo book***
 
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Lokkja said:
I wrote AAMC 11 today and scored a 28. 3 points lower than my last one. I lost two points in BS and 1 in VR. I have two weeks left to the real thing. I felt way differently about the BS section on this thing and went from an 11 to a 9. Can someone shar some advice on how I can bring that back up? Pretty discouraged.
Click to expand...
Make sure you do a good post-game analysis. Poop recommended it after I took AAMC 9 and it helped a ton. Just go back through every question, right and wrong, and give the ones you got right a percentage or confidence level. Try and find the questions where you just knew the answer by reading the question and those where you had to do a little bit of elimination. Once you've gone through you'll see which areas you can get a little more depth on.

Also stay positive. You've got this!
 
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poop420 said:
Sigh !! messed up my research 3 times today, wasted $1000 of enzymes got yelled at and just reached home today ... Need to pull a extra all nighter !!
Click to expand...

I've been doing research for awhile, I've messed up a ton and wasted a lot of my schools money...but I pay for tuition and I'm not taking lones so I don't mind.

But research is tough though, the rewards are high (publication$) and the losses SUCK. I've been there where I've tried SO MUCH and nothing works. I've felt like a failure when I didn't succeed and my PI tells me that I should have completed it by now. But that's part of the field.

Turn it around and put a smile on 🙂 you know your smart and you know you can do this. Don't let it influence your studying, i did before and it make me lose my day. You got this bro.
 
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Just wanted to poke my head in and give everyone who's taking the test tomorrow a 'good luck!'. I'm sure you guys will rock it! <3

poop420 said:
Sigh !! messed up my research 3 times today, wasted $1000 of enzymes got yelled at and just reached home today ... Need to pull a extra all nighter !!
Click to expand...

That's tough Mr. Lupin. Research as a whole is a stressful experience, but you know, life will go on! I'm sure that's not the worst an undergrad has done...if that makes you feel any better...haha. But just keep your chin up, and go for gold!
 
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Well good afternoon beautiful people of SDN,

It's finally over. I am so exceedingly happy now because I came out of there knowing I did the best I could. I wanted to share with you guys/ladies why that is. I finished the SN2ed schedule a few days ago and spent yesterday mentally preparing myself for the exam. I decided it would be best to stay in a hotel 5 min away from the prometric center so I wouldn't need to drive 45 minutes in the morning. This was great, because once I checked into the hotel last night, my goal was to get myself in the proper mindset.

I went to sleep ~10:00PM last night which I probably have never done in my life and woke up very early. Before I went to bed, I spoke with the important people in my life, and then turned my phone on airplane mode. I figured that any stress that could arise in my life could wait until after the MCAT. This helped a lot because when I woke up in the morning all I thought of was destroying the MCAT. I swam about .5 miles in the morning to get my blood flowing and myself relaxed. After, I went down and ate a big ass breakfast, then traveled to the testing center. Once I got there, I was pretty anxious so I sat in my car with the windows down and listened to 1 song just to relax myself (Call me up- St Lucia). I just closed my eyes and focused on what I needed to do, looked myself in the mirror, and then walked into the center. From that moment on I didn't talk to anyone and was just oriented on the MCAT. It was my only focus.

The exam was probably about 10% harder than any practice exam I have taken. The PS was the hardest, followed by BS, then VR. My general confidence level for each section is BR > PS > VR. I know I had to give an educated guess on a few questions, but I didn't let not knowing impact my performance or freak me out, which it had in the passed. I just guessed, marked, and moved on. This strategy afforded me the ability to have extra time at the end of every section (time at the end of BS > VR > PS). One VR passage got me, but I just moved on and was able to re-read the passage and answer the difficult questions confidently because I had so much time at the end due to not freaking out and wasting time.

All in all, it was definitely a challenging, but fair exam. I probably didn't do my best on this exam relative to my scores on the practice exams, but I am ecstatic knowing that I did my best. Now it is out of my control and all I can do is be happy that I am done with it (potentially forever).

Thank you to all you wonderful people for your help and support through this. You have no idea how helpful it was to come to this forum whether it is the Q&A section of SDN or to this craayyy thread.

Best of luck to all of you. I am off to do some day drinking with my friends who I haven't really seen for 3 months. Probably am not going to be speaking english by tonight. Don't worry, I'll redact this statement when my apps are in.
 
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sillyjoe said:
Well good afternoon beautiful people of SDN,

It's finally over. I am so exceedingly happy now because I came out of there knowing I did the best I could. I wanted to share with you guys/ladies why that is. I finished the SN2ed schedule a few days ago and spent yesterday mentally preparing myself for the exam. I decided it would be best to stay in a hotel 5 min away from the prometric center so I wouldn't need to drive 45 minutes in the morning. This was great, because once I checked into the hotel last night, my goal was to get myself in the proper mindset.

I went to sleep ~10😳oPM last night which I probably have never done in my life and woke up very early. Before I went to bed, I spoke with the important people in my life, and then turned my phone on airplane mode. I figured that any stress that could arise in my life could wait until after the MCAT. This helped a lot because when I woke up in the morning all I thought of was destroying the MCAT. I swam about .5 miles in the morning to get my blood flowing and myself relaxed. After, I went down and ate a big ass breakfast, then traveled to the testing center. Once I got there, I was pretty anxious so I sat in my car with the windows down and listened to 1 song just to relax myself (Call me up- St Lucia). I just closed my eyes and focused on what I needed to do, looked myself in the mirror, and then walked into the center. From that moment on I didn't talk to anyone and was just oriented on the MCAT. It was my only focus.

The exam was probably about 10% harder than any practice exam I have taken. The PS was the hardest, followed by BS, then VR. My general confidence level for each section is BR > PS > VR. I know I had to give an educated guess on a few questions, but I didn't let not knowing impact my performance or freak me out, which it had in the passed. I just guessed, marked, and moved on. This strategy afforded me the ability to have extra time at the end of every section (time at the end of BS > VR > PS). One VR passage got me, but I just moved on and was able to re-read the passage and answer the difficult questions confidently because I had so much time at the end due to not freaking out and wasting time.

All in all, it was definitely a challenging, but a fair exam. I probably didn't do my best on this exam relative to my scores on the practice exams, but I am ecstatic knowing that I did my best. Now it is out of my control and all I can do is be happy that I am done with it (potentially forever).

Thank you to all you wonderful people for your help and support through this. You have no idea how helpful it was to come to this forum whether it is the Q&A section of SDN to this craayyy thread.

Best of luck to all of you. I am off to do some day drinking with my friends who I haven't really seen for 3 months. Probably am not going to be speaking english by tonight. Don't worry, I'll redact this statement when my apps are in.
Click to expand...
glad to hear you had a good experience xx
congrats, ur done!! ^o^

did u feel that the TBR passages helped you with the difficulty level of the passages?
 
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my feelings on the test. Meh

PS: Weird, but not to hard
V: Meh, nothing crushingly difficult but not easy either
BS: Got close to running out of time, very specific discretes, lotsa orgo, not bad, think I know I made a silly mistake on a discrete
35+ guess, but who knows,

Apparently alot of people on the 15th page felt like it was terrible
 
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TBRBiosadist said:
my feelings on the test. Meh

PS: Weird, but not to hard
V: Meh, nothing crushingly difficult but not easy either
BS: Got close to running out of time, very specific discretes, lotsa orgo, not bad, think I know I made a silly mistake on a discrete
35+ guess, but who knows,

Apparently alot of people on the 15th page felt like it was terrible
Click to expand...
glad to hear u werent that stressed xx congrats on finally being done :~)

did u think that the sn2 plan helped prepare you for the weirdness? especially tbr's passages ?
 
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ayocaptain628 said:
glad to hear u werent that stressed xx congrats on finally being done :~)

did u think that the sn2 plan helped prepare you for the weirdness? especially tbr's passages ?
Click to expand...
Kindaaa....... Physics was just plain weird today, super conceptual but applying it to weird situations, kinda felt like 11 if people turned up the weirdness. Being solid in concepts from tbr was a good idea
 
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TBRBiosadist said:
my feelings on the test. Meh

PS: Weird, but not to hard
V: Meh, nothing crushingly difficult but not easy either
BS: Got close to running out of time, very specific discretes, lotsa orgo, not bad, think I know I made a silly mistake on a discrete
35+ guess, but who knows,

Apparently alot of people on the 15th page felt like it was terrible
Click to expand...

Good job Biosadist. Proud of you! 😀:highfive:
 
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Grats to all the people that wrote today, hope you get the scores you need!

I just went through AAMC 11 over the last hour and it really wasn't nearly as difficult as I made it out to be in my head. I lost most of my marks on ochem stuff, and there were a couple really silly mistakes I made based on reading the passage. I think everyone's comments of it being harder got to me on the BS, if the real MCAT is like this one it shouldn't be a reason for not scoring 11+ on BS, I just have to approach it with a mindset differently than I did yesterday, because at least half of my errors I face palmed on. On the VR I found one answer that I must have misclicked on which would have made the difference between getting a 10 and 11, I felt the VR on this one was a lot more ambiguous than the others were, not really phased by it as this would change on a test-to-test basis. The PS I actually made dumb mistakes on too, and answered a lot more mathematical questions correctly than I normally do, I think I could have picked up a 10 here. All in all I don't think AAMC 11 is really all that more difficult than the others, I think it's just easy to go into it scared and for the passage questions to distract you from recognizing when a question doesn't require outside knowledge at all, and when it doesnt require passage information at all.
 
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verbal was standard. Ps was just plain weird and really conceptual, not like anything that much. Bio was like nothing, but probs closest to 11

It was a weird test
 
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TBRBiosadist said:
verbal was standard. Ps was just plain weird and really conceptual, not like anything that much. Bio was like nothing, but probs closest to 11

It was a weird test
Click to expand...
Having taken it, would you say that your caffeine timing was good? When did you down your energy drinks, if at all?
 
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Lokkja said:
Having taken it is there anything you would have done differently in preparation?
Click to expand...
More orgo then expected, and study the things I didnt think would come up as often

Cafiiene timing was prime, I had A drink before and then would slug down a quarter of a bottle during y breaks
 
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The English primer league starts tomorrow... This will be my hardest MCAT hurdle to overcome ... Must resist the matches !!
 
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TBRBiosadist said:
More orgo then expected, and study the things I didnt think would come up as often

Cafiiene timing was prime, I had A drink before and then would slug down a quarter of a bottle during y breaks
Click to expand...
You chugged it in the few minutes before you entered the test room or did you drink it an hour in advance? Did you slowly sip it up until your test over a period of 2 hours? I'm trying to emulate what I know has worked for you.
 
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