so depressed :(

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supernareg

i got a 17 on my 1st Kaplan take home test


edit: My mcat test date is April 12 :(:(


caribbean here i come :(
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The scores really go up, and Kaplan's are notoriously hard. don't worry.
 
Don't be discouraged by the low practice test score, but do be alarmed. Let that score be your motivation to really apply yourself for the next month or so in preparation and I'm sure you will be much happier with your results come test day. You can do it!
 
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There are people here that are re-applying for several years. Compare to them you should feel very fortunate. Your 1st Kaplan diag is nothing to get depressed over. If you are re-applying for the fourth-time, that is a different story...
 
yeah, don't get discouraged....your score will go up as long as you go to class, study at home, and practice practice practice! i think that my score on test day was 11 points higher than my diag score.....
 
practice, practice, practice... it will go up. get in the mode that every time you practice it will go up, get some practice books and hunker down
 
Fear not, supernareg... those tests are not exactly like the real thing and are often more difficult in my experience. I for one scored an 18 on my first test, freaked out, and ended up scoring MUCH better ... you can totally make a recovery before the test date. You have a little over a month, let this be your focus. Review on your own for several hours each day out of class, take as many practice tests (official tests if possible) as you can, at least one per weekend, and you will do much better. Put in the time now, make the sacrifice each day, and enjoy the rewards later. You can do this!
 
Study as much as you can this month. If you don't improve to 27+ on your practice tests, I would postpone the MCAT.
 
jennifermov said:
yeah, don't get discouraged....i think that my score on test day was 11 points higher than my diag score.....
Click to expand...

Agreed on this one. I was a TPR student, and my real, final score was 9 points higher than my first diag score.
But it doesn't come without hard work. I quit my job to take TPR. Class was 2 1/2 hours a day, and I regularly studied 6-8 hours a day outside of class. So go to all your classes, read all the material, take all the practice tests, and use every resource available. I mean, you paid good money for this class, why not take advantage of it? :)
 
supernareg said:
i got a 17 on my 1st Kaplan take home test


edit: My mcat test date is April 12 :(:(


caribbean here i come :(
Click to expand...

Start kicking some @ss. If your practice scores haven't gone up significantly (enough to be competitive where you want to go), then I wouldn't even sit for the test in ~1 month. Many people take the test 2 times, but you dont want to make it look like your first time was a "practice test"
 
Just a note. Try not to compare TPR and Kaplan diags, they are very very different. The average for the first TPR diag where I taught has been consistently 12-14, whereas kaplan has a significantly higher average. Its been a cause of confusion for a lot of people.

That being said, a kaplan first diag of 17 is fine. You have a lot of work ahead of you, but you have a month or so for it. Get cracking down HARD. If you want to PM me your breakdown I can try to help you with how to study for particular sections and overall strategy that has worked really well for my students in the past. Just lemme know.
 
My practice scores (TPR): 14, 14 (greeeat -- I swear I got a 2 on verbal for this one.. wtf?), 19 (woo!), 23, 29?, then back down to 26. 29 on the real thing. Breakdown: 10, 10, 9 Bio. Not great, but good enough it seems. 17 on the first woulda been great ;). Did not take it too seriously either since it was the summer after my sophomore year, but I definitely regret not taking it more seriously.
 
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I think I scored a 5 in PS the first time I took one of those practice MCATs that AMCAS sells. Fortunately, PS is probably the easiest section to "learn". If you keep at it, it will click.
 
Kaplan's first test is hard on purpose so they can make it seem like they helped you even more. I think I scored a 19 on the first diagnostic test but still received a 31 on the actual MCAT (while throwing up 2x during the test). You will be fine. Just study and try to keep from freaking out :luck:
 
You will do great as long as you study, study, study. The one thing that will bring you down is making excuses. Don't make excuses during this process. All you have to do is work as hard as possible and you will be happy with your result. Good luck :luck:
 
thanks guys, starting tomorrow (my eyes are burned out from staring at the comp screen for the test for 4 hours) i'ma study atleast 3-4 hours a day, more on weekends.

i really need to get atleast 30+ or i'ma feel like a failure, to myself, and more importantly to my family. baad thing :( lol

but anyways, thanks again for all ur movitation, it really helps. it just wow, i was expecting atleast 20's.

a few important things to note: i have never taken OCHEM, all i know is what i'm teaching myself from the kaplan books. this is about 2 weeks of reading / note taking. i have 5 more weeks to REALLY crack on it.
 
push your date back until you feel comfortable.

you can do it. take plenty of breaks. set small goals each day. people go from less than 20 to over 30 all the time.
 
i'm debating on if i should postpone from april 12 to may 16.

that gives 1 extra month of studying to do.

but, the reason why i signed up for april, is so i can get my scores early and submitt AMCAS like the 1st / 2nd day they open. that way i can be early. If i take it in MAY, then i get scores back in mid / late JUNE.

If i submitt and am complete by JULY, am i EARLY? do i have that advantage?

edit: I just postponed my date till may 16. i figure its better to have a BETTER mcat score than a low 1 and apply really early.
 
supernareg said:
i got a 17 on my 1st Kaplan take home test


edit: My mcat test date is April 12 :(:(


caribbean here i come :(
Click to expand...

FYI, I got a 6 on my first verbal practice test, but ended up with a 12 2 months later on the actual test. Keep studying.
 
You gotta put time into it if you haven't already. I started with a low score but it only motivated me to study my A$$ off. I studied day and night for two months and my score improved 12 points. It's definitely possible, but you have to put time into it. Just make sure you are scoring consistently where you want to be before taking the exam. Good luck!
 
supernareg said:
thanks guys, starting tomorrow (my eyes are burned out from staring at the comp screen for the test for 4 hours) i'ma study atleast 3-4 hours a day, more on weekends.
Click to expand...

One more thing...
try to avoid Studentdoctor.net while you are studying. :)
This place sucks up your time like you wouldn't believe!
Now, when you start applying, it will be your most valuable resource. ;)
 
If you're score is that bad, and you are truly scared, buy 2 loaves of bread, peanut butter, milk, and water. Barricade yourself inside a room and don't leave unless you are to use the restroom. Study until you think you know it cold. until you can recite facts in your sleep. until you can do problems in your dreams.

then study some more.
 
supernareg said:
i got a 17 on my 1st Kaplan take home test


edit: My mcat test date is April 12 :(:(


caribbean here i come :(
Click to expand...

I am not sure how Kaplan works, but I teach for Princeton. Our guarantee states that if you score lower on the actual test than you do on your FIRST diagnostic test we have to give you all your money back. From an economics standpoint it makes sense for the first diagnostic to be the hardest. Just a thought from someone in the business. BTW: My MCAT score was 11 points above my first diagnostic. And I had taken the MCAT already. There is lots of hope! Study hard.
 
nikorette said:
I am not sure how Kaplan works, but I teach for Princeton. Our guarantee states that if you score lower on the actual test than you do on your FIRST diagnostic test we have to give you all your money back. From an economics standpoint it makes sense for the first diagnostic to be the hardest. Just a thought from someone in the business. BTW: My MCAT score was 11 points above my first diagnostic. And I had taken the MCAT already. There is lots of hope! Study hard.
Click to expand...

suparna - keep your head up. Hit the books and keep practicing; I have seen tremendous progress. Just work hard.
 
Don't worry, just study hard- I improved 17 points from my diagnostic!
 
The initial Kaplan practice tests are fairly worthless. The first test I took from them I got sub 20s (dont remember exactly). I gained at least 7 points the first time I took the test with Kaplan (27) . Two years later, I crammed for two weeks. All I did was take practice tests. 1 practice test a day, for 14 days. It sucked quite a bit, but the results were fantastic. I dont know if this style will work for you, but I think its worth a try if you HAVE to take the test soon, but Id say put it off if you can.
 
supernareg said:
i got a 17 on my 1st Kaplan take home test


edit: My mcat test date is April 12 :(:(


caribbean here i come :(
Click to expand...

ahhh i remember the days of freaking out over my first mcat..... typical pre-med neurosis. dont worry, i ended up doing just fine :thumbup:
 
I went from a 17 to a 32 on the real thing.

You have nowhere to go but up my friend.

Excelsior!
 
Hey Hey

Don't worry!! I started with a 21 and went to a 34. I did the Kaplan class, but didnt really go to the sessions because my other grad school class conflicted- I would recommend lots of flash cards! Oh and I never got higher than a 29 on any of the Kaplan practice tests so don't worry- I would def see how you do on the AAMC tests because those are better indicators!

Good Luck!!
=)
 
I more than doubled my score from my first Kaplan test to my actual MCAT... and not like going from a 5 to a 10 either- did well and only had to take the MCAT once for admission. Work your arse off and do NOT wallow in self pity.... it is more detrimental to this process than a faulty MCAT or a subpar GPA. My reaction to my first Kaplan score- though a kick in the stomach and a blow to the ego for a few minutes- was inacceptance. I did not believe that it reflected my abilities and made damn sure when I took it for reals, that score did reflect my abilities.
 
just as a suggestion....

if one week before your MCAT in april you are scoring very low still, you can study more and defer your MCAT until a later date, getting an extremely score wont help....i wouldnt take the MCAT unless your showing you can get around the score you want...i dont know how often the test is offered nowadays...but yeah take the real MCAT practice tests, the KAPLAN ones mess you up sometims because i never was able to finish them, id still get high scores, but it changed the way i timed myself...take the real tests to make sure you really have a good gauge...
 
You still have a month to go. Make the most of your time and PRACTICE. Take as many practice tests as you can. Try and get your hands on AAMC's 6R-9R series. They are more like the real thing. Good luck :thumbup:
 
The tests kaplan and pr give are always harder than the real thing. That said, you just need to figure out what your weak areas are and work on them. I got <20 the first time I took it and on the real one I was in the 36+ range.
 
Hi! I agree that you shouldn't give up hope yet - I teach for Kaplan, and yes, the diagnostic score is notoriously disappointing for people - my own real MCAT score was 12 points higher than my diagnostic. That being said, I don't know why your first Kaplan test is only about a month before the exam - usually classroom courses are drawn out over the course of a couple of months to allow you sufficient time to study.

As for what to do, I agree with everyone else who's posted here. Study as much as possible between now and the first week of April and then take a practice test. With your Kaplan course, you should have access to paper copies of the latest AAMC practice exams. You can also take a free real MCAT at this site:

http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/practicetests.htm

If your score on this exam is not within a few points of what you are honestly shooting for, I would think twice about taking the MCAT, even though that is a very expensive solution, as I doubt you will be able to get a refund.
 
Exactly. How else can they say they 'guarantee a higher score'? Helloo??
Don't worry about it - it is obviously done on purpose. Good luck!
 
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