The MCAT Twitter Thread (AKA MCAT-oholics)

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ridethecliche

ridethecliche

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Alright, so many of us are in the same boat, right?

We all have to take this exam, and lets be honest, it sucks. It's a roadblock and it's annoying. But we HAVE to do it, so we might as well enjoy it.

At the same time, I think having a 'support group' would be helpful. So why not post about MCAT trials/tribulations here?

Did you have an awesome study session? Grasp concept that you were having trouble with? Beast that practice test?

If so, post!

Did you have a crappy study session? Are you failing miserably at figuring out something seemingly simple? Just get frustrated at that practice exam you just took?

If so, post!

MCAT-oholics unite!
 
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Both mcats and girls are similar in the sense that they cost a ton of money, take a lot of time, and once its over, you look back and think that you could've tried harder.
 
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ridethecliche said:
You and the MCAT are like me and girls.
I wake up every day saying that I won't think about them and stress out about texts and all sorts of stupid crap but without fail I'm freaking out by noon.

Oy vey.
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PingPongPro said:
Both mcats and girls are similar in the sense that they cost a ton of money, take a lot of time, and once its over, you look back and think that you could've tried harder.
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I like to think we girls aren't that terrible. Maybe you've just had terrible, terrible luck.
 
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ridethecliche said:
Not applying this year. GPA was okay at 3.56 or so. Nothing special, but cGPA and sGPA were pretty much the same. Had some documented medical issues in college (bike crash while training).

We'll see.

I gotta give myself some time to refresh and go for it again. Life has been good lately and I'm planning on riding it through so I can prepare myself for some self loathing and hermitude.
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You aren't applying? I don't want to delve into your personal life, but it seems like you stand a pretty good chance based on your stats.

Are you shooting for high tier schools? Are you lacking clinical experience?
 
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MDminded said:
enTropeeeeeeeee! How I've missed you! 😍
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Hi! How are you? I'm living moment to moment trying not to think about my score. However, the more I not think, the more I think. The paradox of life....

It's a little reassuring to look at MSAR and know that if I scored a 27-29 I would still have a 74% chance. Although that score may be low by SDN standards, hopefully schools view apps holistically.

Did you get your score back yet? If not, you suffering like the rest of us?
 
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Mbeas said:
You aren't applying? I don't want to delve into your personal life, but it seems like you stand a pretty good chance based on your stats.

Are you shooting for high tier schools? Are you lacking clinical experience?
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enTropeeeeeeeee said:
+ 1
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Nah. I don't have that much volunteer in the US. But I've worked in Uganda as an intern at 2 HIV/AIDS NGO's. So that's a ton of volunteer hours as I basically put in 40hrs a week for 3 months over 2 years.

I'm not applying because I want to go and work abroad for a year after I finish the job I have now (ends in june '12). Not shooting for HMS, but it's cheaper to retake for peace of mind than to have to apply twice. I don't really want to retake because it's going to suck, but I know I can do better and that sucks more.

I work at a HMS affiliated hospital in an outpatient clinic, so I'm racking up the experience here working with physicians and seeing the occasional outpatient/inpatient depending on what I have going for me that day. My job is actually expanding, so I'm probably going to be doing a bunch of recruiting for clinical research stuffs.

If I get a different job, I might just go abroad for a few months, but I want to live abroad for a year with maybe a couple of trips back. Life might change that, but I have terrible wanderlust and based on my interests, I'm going to be working abroad a lot so I want to get used to the feeling of being again.

I'm also not applying to any DO schools. It makes international work a little more complicated and honestly there's enough stuff to deal with.

I never planned on applying this year. I graduated college at 21 and I'll apply the year I turn 23. I'm in no rush.
 
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ridethecliche said:
Nah. I don't have that much volunteer in the US. But I've worked in Uganda as an intern at 2 HIV/AIDS NGO's. So that's a ton of volunteer hours as I basically put in 40hrs a week for 3 months over 2 years.

I'm not applying because I want to go and work abroad for a year after I finish the job I have now (ends in june '12). Not shooting for HMS, but it's cheaper to retake for peace of mind than to have to apply twice. I don't really want to retake because it's going to suck, but I know I can do better and that sucks more.

I work at a HMS affiliated hospital in an outpatient clinic, so I'm racking up the experience here working with physicians and seeing the occasional outpatient/inpatient depending on what I have going for me that day. My job is actually expanding, so I'm probably going to be doing a bunch of recruiting for clinical research stuffs.

If I get a different job, I might just go abroad for a few months, but I want to live abroad for a year with maybe a couple of trips back. Life might change that, but I have terrible wanderlust and based on my interests, I'm going to be working abroad a lot so I want to get used to the feeling of being again.

I'm also not applying to any DO schools. It makes international work a little more complicated and honestly there's enough stuff to deal with.

I never planned on applying this year. I graduated college at 21 and I'll apply the year I turn 23. I'm in no rush.
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I value your outlook on life. I was sort of the opposite, but the mcat changed all of that. For the first time in 4 years, I'm becoming more patient.
 
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I learnt my lesson the hard way. A couple of times over.

Being stubborn has its cons. Hopefully I'm past them now.

🙂
 
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ridethecliche said:
Nah. I don't have that much volunteer in the US. But I've worked in Uganda as an intern at 2 HIV/AIDS NGO's. So that's a ton of volunteer hours as I basically put in 40hrs a week for 3 months over 2 years.

I'm not applying because I want to go and work abroad for a year after I finish the job I have now (ends in june '12). Not shooting for HMS, but it's cheaper to retake for peace of mind than to have to apply twice. I don't really want to retake because it's going to suck, but I know I can do better and that sucks more.

I work at a HMS affiliated hospital in an outpatient clinic, so I'm racking up the experience here working with physicians and seeing the occasional outpatient/inpatient depending on what I have going for me that day. My job is actually expanding, so I'm probably going to be doing a bunch of recruiting for clinical research stuffs.

If I get a different job, I might just go abroad for a few months, but I want to live abroad for a year with maybe a couple of trips back. Life might change that, but I have terrible wanderlust and based on my interests, I'm going to be working abroad a lot so I want to get used to the feeling of being again.

I'm also not applying to any DO schools. It makes international work a little more complicated and honestly there's enough stuff to deal with.

I never planned on applying this year. I graduated college at 21 and I'll apply the year I turn 23. I'm in no rush.
Click to expand...

Seems like you've got a plan, which is good. I've been out of school for a year now, so I'm pretty desperate to get started. I wish I had your patience. Yea, I know, patience is a virtue blah blah blah.
 
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andrew31332 said:
Haha...well I graduated high school a month ago, so technically I'm Class of '15, but I'm most likely graduating with Class of '14. It's because the high school I went to was on a college campus, and I already have like 70 college credits, including a year of Orgo and Physics. So I figure just to take it now before I forget everything 😀

I see your taking MCAT August 12th as well! How's it goin' with the content reviews? What FLs do you use for practice besides AAMCs? (I'm trying to save those for last, but I took 3 already just for fun :X)
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Sorry I missed this post; it got buried at the bottom of the last page.

To answer your questions, I finished content review about a month ago and I have mostly been doing practice problems ever since. Originally, I was going to take the test on July 6 so I finished content review pretty early, but I had to push it back because I have a lot on my plate right now. As a side note, I used TBR for most of my content review with supplemental Kaplan books.

Anyways, I've been supplementing my practice problems with some online videos (freelanceteacher on YouTube👍👍) in any areas where I am weak (Electromagnetism comes to mind). I finished the TPR Science workbook last week, and I started on the EK 1001 Chem/Physics to fine tune my physical sciences. I have the TPR practice tests plus the AAMC tests, and at this point, I am just going to be taking one AAMC test per week up until test day. I have taken 4 of the TPR tests already, but the score is not very accurate. I may do 2-3 more of them in the next couple of weeks, but just for practice, not to predict my score. If you have anymore questions, let me know!

andrew31332 said:
👍 Nice job!
Click to expand...

Thanks!
 
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enTropeeeeeeeee said:
Hi! How are you? I'm living moment to moment trying not to think about my score. However, the more I not think, the more I think. The paradox of life....

It's a little reassuring to look at MSAR and know that if I scored a 27-29 I would still have a 74% chance. Although that score may be low by SDN standards, hopefully schools view apps holistically.

Did you get your score back yet? If not, you suffering like the rest of us?
Click to expand...

I haven't taken my exam yet. I'm a 7/28-er. 🙂

ridethecliche said:
Nah. I don't have that much volunteer in the US. But I've worked in Uganda as an intern at 2 HIV/AIDS NGO's. So that's a ton of volunteer hours as I basically put in 40hrs a week for 3 months over 2 years.

I'm not applying because I want to go and work abroad for a year after I finish the job I have now (ends in june '12). Not shooting for HMS, but it's cheaper to retake for peace of mind than to have to apply twice. I don't really want to retake because it's going to suck, but I know I can do better and that sucks more.

I work at a HMS affiliated hospital in an outpatient clinic, so I'm racking up the experience here working with physicians and seeing the occasional outpatient/inpatient depending on what I have going for me that day. My job is actually expanding, so I'm probably going to be doing a bunch of recruiting for clinical research stuffs.

If I get a different job, I might just go abroad for a few months, but I want to live abroad for a year with maybe a couple of trips back. Life might change that, but I have terrible wanderlust and based on my interests, I'm going to be working abroad a lot so I want to get used to the feeling of being again.

I'm also not applying to any DO schools. It makes international work a little more complicated and honestly there's enough stuff to deal with.

I never planned on applying this year. I graduated college at 21 and I'll apply the year I turn 23. I'm in no rush.
Click to expand...

RTC, you make me jealous. You've lived your life the way I wanted to live mine. Unfortunately, I'm limited in financial resources.
 
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Today I realized: MCAT will destroy your soul if you don't have a good support system. Whether that be family, friends, alcohol, or some of the wonderful souls that I have had the extreme pleasure to meet in the MCAT chat going through hell with me. Everyday you learn something you didn't know previously, building and expanding your knowledge and foundation. Keep that going, don't lose momentum, and NEVER give up---eventually you will reach your goal and improve. Finally, ALWAYS remember: NEVER SAY NEVER.

Tomorrows thought to follow in 24 hours.
 
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biebs said:
today i realized: Mcat will destroy your soul if you don't have a good support system. Whether that be family, friends, alcohol, or some of the wonderful souls that i have had the extreme pleasure to meet in the mcat chat going through hell with me. Everyday you learn something you didn't know previously, building and expanding your knowledge and foundation. Keep that going, don't lose momentum, and never give up---eventually you will reach your goal and improve. Finally, always remember: never say never.

Tomorrows thought to follow in 24 hours.
Click to expand...

i will fight til forever.
 
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After majorly failing on the 5/21 test, I'm alas back here. Taking the 8/23 test 🙁

Studying using EK, and will probably take BR tests. Good luck everyone!
 
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MDminded said:
RTC, you make me jealous. You've lived your life the way I wanted to live mine. Unfortunately, I'm limited in financial resources.
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Lolwut?

I'm a first gen immigrant. My parents have $0 to their name. I feel weird when they give me money before I leave when visiting home, but I know it makes them feel good so I take it. That and I'd offend the hell out of them if I didn't.

All my travels have been self or grant funded. I've been saving up for next year since I got this job. Put aside enough for MDapps, now saving for a trip for the next year. I started working in middle school haha.
 
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So, you guys may have seen my post in the 5/26 thread, but I thought I would directly ask y'all...

It seems like more people on the 5/26 thread scored 3-4 points below their AAMC average than those that actually scored their average. Do you think this is a normal distribution, or do you think that AAMC needs to release more tests that more accurately represent the current MCAT so we can more accurately gauge where we stand?

Anyways, just curious...it's not like our opinions will actually change the AAMC.
 
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Mbeas said:
So, you guys may have seen my post in the 5/26 thread, but I thought I would directly ask y'all...

It seems like more people on the 5/26 thread scored 3-4 points below their AAMC average than those that actually scored their average. Do you think this is a normal distribution, or do you think that AAMC needs to release more tests that more accurately represent the current MCAT so we can more accurately gauge where we stand?

Anyways, just curious...it's not like our opinions will actually change the AAMC.
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It's been said that the actual MCAT is indeed slightly harder than the older AAMCs, but I believe 10 and 11 are the most accurate indications of Test Day performance.
 
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My score was the same as AAMC11 with a different breakdown (11/9/10 instead of 10/10/10 on aamc11).

Score on AAMC 10 was a 33.

/shrugs
 
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MDminded said:
Page 3 guys? Really? Seriously?

Pick up the activity.
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Hello MDminded! I've been away for quite a while, sick, volunteer trip etc. not much studying done but i'm down to the final month now😱 cortisol levels sky high. ha. how's studying going?
 
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taking aamc 4 now.... just BS portion left. my 9 day break from content review is kicking me hard.
 
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Pissed!

29 (9/9/11) on TPR #5.

😡Seriously, WTF?😡

Anyone else have experience with this particular test? I know TPR scores are usually lower than the AAMC's, but I thought TPR 5 was supposed to be one of the easier ones.

That's demoralizing...anyways, now I have to go to work and NOT study 🙁
 
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Mbeas said:
How did you end up doing?
Click to expand...

PS:10 VR:12 BS:8

Was so exhausted during BS! well, I did get the 30 I was aiming for, for this practice test.... but a more balanced score would be nice. off to work now too.. will review this tomorrow!
 
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Thought I'd share:

I was at the gym today and saw someone doing heavy squats. I thought to myself "this dude is a powerhouse". Then, I thought "if he was an organelle, he'd be the mitochondria". 😳

Literally, a true story. Less than three weeks until this **** is over fo' life!
 
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I am going to take TPR #5 in an hour...Hopefully, I get the same score as I did on TPR #4, but that's highly unlikely 😛.

Is it bad that I'm having a tequila sunrise beforehand? I needed something to calm my nerves. I hate that whenever I'm idle, I start making up rather complicated MCAT questions in my head and then solve them, in my head. 3.5 weeks until this test can take a backseat in my life.
 
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Abscissa said:
I am going to take TPR #5 in an hour...Hopefully, I get the same score as I did on TPR #4, but that's highly unlikely 😛.

Is it bad that I'm having a tequila sunrise beforehand? I needed something to calm my nerves. I hate that whenever I'm idle, I start making up rather complicated MCAT questions in my head and then solve them, in my head. 3.5 weeks until this test can take a backseat in my life.
Click to expand...

Don't drink beforehand unless you're planning to do so before the real deal.
 
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ridethecliche said:
Don't drink beforehand unless you're planning to do so before the real deal.
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dude, this thread is dead without you!

Just done with aamc 8 - PS 11, VR 11, BS 10. Gonna hit the books hard the next 3 days and go for the last 3 practice tests. Im still making stooopid mistakes, hopefully i can eliminate them in time. Got 9 days left to battle with the beast.
 
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sydneyy said:
dude, this thread is dead without you!

Just done with aamc 8 - PS 11, VR 11, BS 10. Gonna hit the books hard the next 3 days and go for the last 3 practice tests. Im still making stooopid mistakes, hopefully i can eliminate them in time. Got 9 days left to battle with the beast.
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Haha, I'm staying away for as long as I can.

I'll probably start light review for my retake in the next couple of months. Got good things going on in life right now and I'm probably not going to retake before early next year. I guess I'll put my 3-4 months together when the time comes. I plan on doing a lot less studying and a lot more practice this time around.
 
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paul411 said:
👍 Recipe for MCAT success right here.
Click to expand...

Physical science and ochem need to stop playing hard to get with me. We need to bond and they are not cooperating. I have this syndrome, whenever I sit down to study I get so bog down to review the concept that I do not have much time to practice the passages. September 10th is the apocalypse.

MCAT-oholics... anyone in the same boat?
 
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I'm here to report on the effects of alcohol prior to testing. Yesterday, I had about 3 shots of tequila 2 hours prior to TPR Online Diagnostic 5. Got a 39, which is lower than my last full-length, but still pretty darn good for being buzzed! The test was a lot less stressful, though I found myself more interested in finishing the test than doing the best I could on it. So, no more mixing MCAT and alcohol for me 😎
 
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paul411 said:
👍 Recipe for MCAT success right here.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'll be ordering TBR soon. I have TPR's science workbook and verbal book, so I should be good on those. I'm having second thoughts on whether to even get TBR since TPR has a ton of passages, but I'll just resell the TBR anyway so no point worrying about a loss of a couple of bucks.

Besides, more flavors from different strategies will lend towards a better recipe.

Hoping to go 30->34 at the very least.
 
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So apparently the BS section of the actual MCAT is most similar to AAMC 11; both of them are apparently very different from the 'fact recall' type questions on previous BS sections.

I'm a little annoyed because I didn't realize that I'd only get good practice in with one exam, so I chose not to invest in "The Official Guide to the MCAT Exam," which has many accurate (to the real deal) BS passages. In hindsight that was a bad decision, I guess.

Anyone else writing on August 5/6? I'm scheduled for the latter.
 
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AlphaMagnum said:
So apparently the BS section of the actual MCAT is most similar to AAMC 11; both of them are apparently very different from the 'fact recall' type questions on previous BS sections.

I'm a little annoyed because I didn't realize that I'd only get good practice in with one exam, so I chose not to invest in "The Official Guide to the MCAT Exam," which has many accurate (to the real deal) BS passages. In hindsight that was a bad decision, I guess.

Anyone else writing on August 5/6? I'm scheduled for the latter.
Click to expand...

What do you mean? Are you saying, " The Official Guide To The MCAT Exam" has good practice problems for the BS?
 
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elusiveCHILD said:
What do you mean? Are you saying, " The Official Guide To The MCAT Exam" has good practice problems for the BS?
Click to expand...

Exactly that. Both the Official Guide and AAMC FL11 have BS sections which are most similar to what you can expect on the real deal, or so heard on one of the other threads here.

The other FLs apparently have a different style of BS. I'll add that in my experience (AAMC FL3,4,5,7,8), the BS passages themselves have been incredibly short, taking barely a minute or two to read and maybe a minute more to digest.

I plan on taking FLs 9, 10, and 11 over the next week, after which I'll hopefully have a better idea of how things are going to turn out.
 
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AlphaMagnum said:
Exactly that. Both the Official Guide and AAMC FL11 have BS sections which are most similar to what you can expect on the real deal, or so heard on one of the other threads here.

The other FLs apparently have a different style of BS. I'll add that in my experience (AAMC FL3,4,5,7,8), the BS passages themselves have been incredibly short, taking barely a minute or two to read and maybe a minute more to digest.

I plan on taking FLs 9, 10, and 11 over the next week, after which I'll hopefully have a better idea of how things are going to turn out.
Click to expand...

hmm, i have 9,10,11 left too. testing on the 5th. I hope the BS isn't too complicated on 11. cause that will scare the crap outta me, really near the big day.
 
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sydneyy said:
hmm, i have 9,10,11 left too. testing on the 5th. I hope the BS isn't too complicated on 11. cause that will scare the crap outta me, really near the big day.
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Agreed. I just finished FL9 and the results were spectacular (13PS/11VR/14BS). It was my first time writing the full exam as intended, breaks and all. (Though I cut all but one of the breaks down to about 2 minutes or so. Didn't really feel tired or braindead so I figured that continuing early was the best option.)
 
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AlphaMagnum said:
Agreed. I just finished FL9 and the results were spectacular (13PS/11VR/14BS). It was my first time writing the full exam as intended, breaks and all. (Though I cut all but one of the breaks down to about 2 minutes or so. Didn't really feel tired or braindead so I figured that continuing early was the best option.)
Click to expand...

spectacular is an understatement.


MDminded said:
Heyyyyyyyy guys. Miss me?
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ha. yes! All the best for the test! (not sure why i'm speaking in a jingle.)
 
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Why the hell couldn't they include line numbers for passages?

"In line 394, the author describes this obscure BS. What can you infer?"

I can infer the sadistic nature of your test-making. 😡
 
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Yeah, I don't like how the CBT MCAT no longer has line references like the good ol' paper-based one.
 
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Abscissa said:
Why the hell couldn't they include line numbers for passages?

"In line 394, the author describes this obscure BS. What can you infer?"

I can infer the sadistic nature of your test-making. 😡
Click to expand...

agreed! one of the most stressful parts of VR is when i'm hunting down the particular word they're asking about in the question!! exactly what i was doing on aamc 9 today.
 
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I've tried to wean myself from relying on line numbers, and using my memory to think "oh, that was in paragraph 3". That's helped me save some time.

But I agree - sadistic methods of inflicting torture.
 
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Figured I'd ask here too:

Is anyone looking to sell a set of TBR sciences? Some highlighting/underlining is fine as long as there is none in the passages.

Looking for everything, but can do without physics.

Starting to gear up for my retake next year.
 
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