Test in a month - Just scored horribly on AAMC 3

[maanya88]

I have been studying since october for the January MCAT and just did horribly on my first MCAT practice exam (19!!)....I really don't know what to do. Honestly, I was surprised myself. I am back to square one where I was 6 months ago when I had initially decided to take the MCAT.
Any suggestions?

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[IndianVercetti]

Were you doing practice problems as you review? If you really were studying as you say you were since October, which is more than enough review, then it would seem that it's the format of the passages/questions that is throwing you off.

Definitely make sure you do practice passages and questions while you do your review this time. Never lose hope, there are a lot of success stories around here from peoples' first test to their real exam.

 

[Dr Yiot]

Were you doing practice problems as you review? If you really were studying as you say you were since October, which is more than enough review, then it would seem that it's the format of the passages/questions that is throwing you off.

Definitely make sure you do practice passages and questions while you do your review this time. Never lose hope, there are a lot of success stories around here from peoples' first test to their real exam.

DITTO, if you feel youve got content review down now its time to really ram the concepts into your head. pracice problems/ passages are the way to go. then hit full length exams.

 

[rockaction]

you gotta take tons of practice tests. that's standardized test prep rule #1. content review is not enough for the MCAT. I took like 15 practice tests before I took the real thing (granted, I took a Princeton Review course that supplied them to me).

take as many AAMC tests as you can afford/manage and get it done. you need to now learn how to apply the content you apparently know. that's the hard part and you made it really hard on yourself by waiting a month out to take your first practice test. bad, bad call.

 

[J ROD]

you gotta take tons of practice tests. that's standardized test prep rule #1. content review is not enough for the MCAT. I took like 15 practice tests before I took the real thing (granted, I took a Princeton Review course that supplied them to me).

take as many AAMC tests as you can afford/manage and get it done. you need to now learn how to apply the content you apparently know. that's the hard part and you made it really hard on yourself by waiting a month out to take your first practice test. bad, bad call.

very true...

I recommend taking 10-12 practice exams....

A couple early on to gauge progress...

 

[rama kandra]

What is the problem if he has 1 month to take these 10 exams? I have 15 exams, one for every other day starting tomorrow. I feel I could get those done and spend the second day reading the answers for everything and doing some enforcement content review.

Mind you, I am a third time test taker who knows what his scores were and where he improved last time... so I have a idea what I am going to do.

 

[maanya88]

Thanks for all your suggestions!

I had been reviewing using TBR and so I was doing the passages after each section. Also, as per my schedule, I am taking 15 exams total until my test day. This is the same as RamaKandra. I have decided to keep trying and not to give up. Good Luck to everyone

BTW: Happy New Year!

 

[IndianVercetti]

Thanks for all your suggestions!

I had been reviewing using TBR and so I was doing the passages after each section. Also, as per my schedule, I am taking 15 exams total until my test day. This is the same as RamaKandra. I have decided to keep trying and not to give up. Good Luck to everyone

BTW: Happy New Year!

Exactly, never give up!

 

[rockaction]

What is the problem if he has 1 month to take these 10 exams? I have 15 exams, one for every other day starting tomorrow. I feel I could get those done and spend the second day reading the answers for everything and doing some enforcement content review.

Mind you, I am a third time test taker who knows what his scores were and where he improved last time... so I have a idea what I am going to do.

Good luck on doing that. But that's a recipe for burnout. Hopefully you can survive it!

 

[ronaldo23]

What is the problem if he has 1 month to take these 10 exams? I have 15 exams, one for every other day starting tomorrow. I feel I could get those done and spend the second day reading the answers for everything and doing some enforcement content review.

Mind you, I am a third time test taker who knows what his scores were and where he improved last time... so I have a idea what I am going to do.

yerp. that sounds like a recipe for disaster- its essentially what I did the first time I took the the mcat and i was so burnt out by the end that I think I started to lose focus and it hurt me alot on test day. I think 10 practice tests + reinforcing the concepts your weak on is plenty sufficient.

 

[rama kandra]

Well actually I have taken all AAMC tests prior to the MCAT before this. I have not taken alternative exams. This time I got some BRK and kaplan/ek tests so I have a total of around 7 new exams and 7 older AAMC. I won't be taking 15 new FL exams, that would be terribly unhelpful.

Also I am doing EK 101 bio and verbal passages for my practice. I felt I did not do enough raw problems the last time.

 

[Global Warming]

Crap. I was intending on doing ~30 FLs.

 

[IndianVercetti]

what?? 30 exams!

 

[Global Warming]

what?? 30 exams!

Yeah..I have a good amount of time and I really do not mind studying for the MCAT at all. I feel like I'm learning so much material and the stuff I already knew is getting drilled into my brain even deeper.

Honestly, this will be my first standardized exam b/c I always just marked "C" on my STAR testing and I walked into the SATs w/o any studying and bombed it. Basically, I rather be safe than sorry..

 

[rama kandra]

this man is responsible for global warming and soon to be cooling

 

[robbinblue458]

I have been studying since october for the January MCAT and just did horribly on my first MCAT practice exam (19!!)....I really don't know what to do. Honestly, I was surprised myself. I am back to square one where I was 6 months ago when I had initially decided to take the MCAT.
Any suggestions?

Hey listen up. Its doable. If you've been studying before you def have some content down. Rather then wasting your time studying all your content books just take tons of practice sections and practice exams. After your done with each section/exam go over the questions. Review the content for the questions you messed up on. That is the most efficient way to study. I was in your boat a while ago and now I'm hitting the 30s! Remember one thing, there is no such thing as burning out. Having the desire and passion to study and wanting to go to medical school will supply you with an unlimited amount of energy to put towards studying. Good luck with your prep and feel free to message me if you have any questions.