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Anyone else here taking the MCAT in April? I really really only want to face this beast once, but I figure it will still give me some time to retake the exam in the summer just in case. 
The Official 4/17/2010 MCAT Club
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Anyone else here taking the MCAT in April? I really really only want to face this beast once, but I figure it will still give me some time to retake the exam in the summer just in case.
Do it once; do it right. If you are starting now, you should have ample time to be 100% ready come April. Best of luck!
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I'm taking the MCAT on this date too, I plan on starting to study a few days after new year's and go right up until the test date.
This should be enough time right, if i work 4-5 hours a day 6 days a week?
Good luck to everyone taking it on this day too I feel like this is the best test date to have for this coming application cycle!
This should be enough time right, if i work 4-5 hours a day 6 days a week?
Good luck to everyone taking it on this day too I feel like this is the best test date to have for this coming application cycle!
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I'm planning on taking the Kaplan course, which starts on January 16th. I'll probably do some reviewing over break. I started studying last summer but I burnt out by the time school started 
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bump....
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I just registered for this exam! Damn I hope it goes well. Now the fun part, studying!
Yep, im taking the MCAT on that date. I've already started studying and bought some books for it. I'm signed up for the Kaplan course that starts in Jan 11 or so and goes till just a bit after my MCAT date. I'm still trying to decide if I should keep the MCAT class or drop it and just study on my own 100%.
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A current MD applicant coming to drop a word of encouragement.
You guys will do great. I took a Kaplan class that started Jan 20th last year for my MCAT in April 24th. I was done with the class 2 weeks before my test. Spent the first week of that figuring out topics that I missed consistently and learning that stuff like a mad woman. The last week I spent chillin'.
You guys all have the knowledge that you need as long as you took the pre-reqs. Don't worry about it, just refresh and do a LOT of practices to get urself used to the format. I did 12 practices, I know people who have done ~20. Try to avoid the oldest AMCAS practice exams-in my opinion those are not representative at all of the current MCAT style.
You guys are going to do great and will be (semi) relaxed for the finals and who doesn't want that!
You guys will do great. I took a Kaplan class that started Jan 20th last year for my MCAT in April 24th. I was done with the class 2 weeks before my test. Spent the first week of that figuring out topics that I missed consistently and learning that stuff like a mad woman. The last week I spent chillin'.
You guys all have the knowledge that you need as long as you took the pre-reqs. Don't worry about it, just refresh and do a LOT of practices to get urself used to the format. I did 12 practices, I know people who have done ~20. Try to avoid the oldest AMCAS practice exams-in my opinion those are not representative at all of the current MCAT style.
You guys are going to do great and will be (semi) relaxed for the finals
and who doesn't want that!- Joined
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A current MD applicant coming to drop a word of encouragement.
You guys will do great. I took a Kaplan class that started Jan 20th last year for my MCAT in April 24th. I was done with the class 2 weeks before my test. Spent the first week of that figuring out topics that I missed consistently and learning that stuff like a mad woman. The last week I spent chillin'.
You guys all have the knowledge that you need as long as you took the pre-reqs. Don't worry about it, just refresh and do a LOT of practices to get urself used to the format. I did 12 practices, I know people who have done ~20. Try to avoid the oldest AMCAS practice exams-in my opinion those are not representative at all of the current MCAT style.
You guys are going to do great and will be (semi) relaxed for the finals
Hey thanks! That means a lot, especially from someone who has made it (congrats by the way!) It seems the overwhelming consensus from people who've given me advice is to focus on practice. I'll definitely heed this advice as I begin preparation.
I'm starting a Kaplan class on January 16th and I will also end 2 weeks before the exam. I hope I have as much success as you've had! Anyways, thanks for the encouragement!
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Hey guys how are you going about studying for this thing? Have you already started? How much time each day are you putting in at this point? Good luck!
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I've been studying a little bit here and there. I'm really going to start studying for real once the semester starts (along with my Kaplan course). I'm thinking 5 hours a day on days with no Kaplan, and just the 3 hours of course instruction on Kaplan days. Hope that works, but I'm sure I'll do some adjusting as needed.
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I'm retaking on this day. I wanted March 27th ideally. April 17th falls right before the first round of midterms for spring quarter in the UC system .
I'm also taking a full load of classes along with studying. I have no idea how I will balance things out! Ah!
On the bright side, I did >10 on PS/BS the first time, but I bombed VR. I'm just hoping I can bring up my VR while not totally forgetting the sciences this time around.
Wish me luck; I need a lot of it!
. I'm also taking a full load of classes along with studying. I have no idea how I will balance things out! Ah!
On the bright side, I did >10 on PS/BS the first time, but I bombed VR. I'm just hoping I can bring up my VR while not totally forgetting the sciences this time around.
Wish me luck; I need a lot of it!
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i will also be taking it on the 17th! i read very little over the break but im taking a princeton class that starts jan 11th or so until march 30 so i have 2 weeks to finish off any last studying i need. i wish i started a little earlier but oh well i hope its enough. i am planning on studying about 4 hours a day on class days (including class) and 3 hours on non class days, and take 1 practice test every week once i get some material in my head and then do 1 test every other day the last 2 weeks before the exam.....
oh well for classes i know my gpa will take a hit while im studying
oh well for classes i know my gpa will take a hit while im studying
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bumppp
What practice aamc exams do you suggest we do? I am taking kaplan and have access to some but would really like to do additional aamc because the kaplan are not as good of a source since they seem so different from aamc tests.
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im going to use the aamc and some princeton tests.
i think if u use some goldstandard or BR, it would be productive too, but im not going to do that because princeton provides a total of 17 tests (aamc included) which i think is plenty
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I PMed you to see if you wanted to study thinking you were taking BR (I thought I read in a thread you were). Please disregard my PM.
Not sure you really want to hear this now, but having taken BOTH PR and BR at UCLA, BR has much better teaching and strategies. Their materials are better too. If I could have afforded a class this go around, I would have taken BR in a heart beat over PR. PR wasn't bad, but BR was so much more into the MCAT and how to take the test under timed stress.
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this thread gets no love!
i read through some physics and gchem so i decided to take a practice test just covering that section...timed and same conditions as the test
i got a 39/52 which was my raw score, but how is that scaled to a 1-15 score?
the test was part of mcGraw hills mcat prep book, which comes with a practice test on a cd, and for the most part the test was pretty hard with some easy bs questions in there....a lott of math type problems so im gonna have to work on that and i missed alot of easy questions if i had read the question properly
anyone else?
ps please tell me if u kno how to scale the 39/52 score to a 1-15 score
i read through some physics and gchem so i decided to take a practice test just covering that section...timed and same conditions as the test
i got a 39/52 which was my raw score, but how is that scaled to a 1-15 score?
the test was part of mcGraw hills mcat prep book, which comes with a practice test on a cd, and for the most part the test was pretty hard with some easy bs questions in there....a lott of math type problems so im gonna have to work on that and i missed alot of easy questions if i had read the question properly
anyone else?
ps please tell me if u kno how to scale the 39/52 score to a 1-15 score
You might want to use some outside sources for practice exams, because as the many threads that rank practice exams show, PR exams are really bad (worst in every poll so far). I tried a couple and they were pretty unrealistic and poorly written. The AAMC ones are good, but generally too easy. You need to do a couple realistic practice MCATs that are harder than the real thing to get an idea of how prepared you are.
Also, two weeks from the end of your lectures until your MCAT is a really short time. Last year I took about four and a half weeks from our last lecture until my MCAT, using office hours and going to a some impromptu review sessions from time to time (they sprouted out of office hours). The review exams they gave at the end of my class were by far the best materials of anything I took, but I'm quite sure it's something you have to be in the class to get.
Just stay focused and keep working towards April.
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hey Malayna,
where do you think i can get a few outside sources? also, my first Princeton practice test im going to take is next week, how do you think i should space those and the AAMC ones our from now until april 17th, because im thinking of saving aamc 7-10 for the last 2 weeks, or even less (last week), but i dont know for sure. any advice helps, thanks
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this thread is running dry.....and im getting lazy and dont wanna study...
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Yeah, seems like not many people on this forum are taking this MCAT. I'm finding it hard to stay motivated because I don't feel the sense of urgency for some reason. Ironically, I was more motivated to study for it last semester. Maybe it's the cold weather?
btw, nice avatar... I'm going to see the Lakers play Wednesday night in Indy.
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haha then i guess the pacers can add another loss to their record?
but i feel exactly the same way. i took my first practice test after 2 weeks of studying...and wow did i do bad (too low to post hahahaha). i think taking that test motivated me to realize the reality that if i dont study i wont do well, so ive been doing a little more practice and rereading some texts to make sure i get it.
im going to try and take 4-5 practice tests for the month of feb, more in jan, and 7-8 in march and the rest that i have up to the test date
anyone else take a practice test or anything?
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Moved test to summer.
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how u guys doing with this mcat stufff??this thread just keeps getting thrown to the back lol
but my problem is that i've been doing a bunch of reading and then when i go to do a practice passage, i tend to still get 1 or 2 wrong on the topic i JUST read and its sooo frustrating. will probably take my second practice test this weekend or monday sometime...
but my problem is that i've been doing a bunch of reading and then when i go to do a practice passage, i tend to still get 1 or 2 wrong on the topic i JUST read and its sooo frustrating. will probably take my second practice test this weekend or monday sometime...
I think I am doing alright. I'm almost done with content review. I will be taking a full length aamc this weekend to see how I am coming along. When midterms came I had too slow down a decent amount but I am getting back on track. Hows everyone else doing? Has anyone taken any full lengths yet?
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i took one...not so good the verbal killed but everythign else was ok. probably another one this weekend to see if ive improved
I'm in the same boat and taking the MCATs on the 17th!
Time has really flown by and I'm a little nervous that I'm not going to be prepared. Especially after reading how much you all have been studying. I'm putting in about 12 hours a week due to being a full-time student and working....
I wish you all good luck...you guys are superstars!
Time has really flown by and I'm a little nervous that I'm not going to be prepared. Especially after reading how much you all have been studying. I'm putting in about 12 hours a week due to being a full-time student and working....
I wish you all good luck...you guys are superstars!
Hey guys I just found this thread. I'm taking the April 17 MCAT also. I just started studying Sunday, but after looking through the info I feel like 2 months should be just enough time to really feel prepared. I'm shooting for at least a 30 and I'm only using the ExamKrackers books as well as the audio osmosis. I scored a 23 on my first test with VERY limited recall of some concepts. Think it's possible to raise score to 30 in two very dedicated months?
ahh, I live in Vancouver and the olympics is crazy here and its hard to stay focused when there's so much going around in the city....
How's studying for you guys?
4/17th is getting close.... its scary..........
How's studying for you guys?
4/17th is getting close.... its scary..........
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Awesome! Always nice to see boilermaker fans! Really hope the men's basketball team can go far in the tournament.
How's everyone's studying going for this MCAT? I know we still have two months, but I feel like my confidence is falling a little bit (not sure why). I'm right in the thick of content review and it's getting to be a little draining when I see how much I've forgotten from my classes.
I wanted to test on this date since it's before finals and it gives me another chance to retake if something goes wrong. For some reason, however, I'm feeling like I may need to postpone until May or June. I don't know right now, just so confused
Anyone else feeling blue about the looming test?Also, has anyone started taking full-lengths? I'm anxious to take one just to gage where I'm at, but some tell me not to if I haven't finished content review...
Awesome! Always nice to see boilermaker fans! Really hope the men's basketball team can go far in the tournament.
How's everyone's studying going for this MCAT? I know we still have two months, but I feel like my confidence is falling a little bit (not sure why). I'm right in the thick of content review and it's getting to be a little draining when I see how much I've forgotten from my classes.
I wanted to test on this date since it's before finals and it gives me another chance to retake if something goes wrong. For some reason, however, I'm feeling like I may need to postpone until May or June. I don't know right now, just so confused
Also, has anyone started taking full-lengths? I'm anxious to take one just to gage where I'm at, but some tell me not to if I haven't finished content review...
Hey! Don't be discouraged. You'll do just fine. Take it on the date you're scheduled and don't change the date; just work super hard and try and get it all done. Pull a few all-nighters if you must; just pretend you have 5 cum finals on April 17th and study accordingly. You'll do fine! Promise.
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which practice test did u take? was it AAMC or examkrackers?
and DocDude, i do feel the same way, everythings just getting so hectic right now i feel like im not going to be prepared. But i think this is normal, and thats part of what the MCAT tests, your ability to stay in tune and stay focused towards your goal. We're gonna do well
the verbal is still killing me i cant seem to get even a few passages with all the answers right,and the timing is even worse
the sciences are eh, the ochem is a little hard especially because i had a crappy teacher
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took another practice test today...WOW the verbal is really messing me up! im doing fine on everything except that damn verbal...2 points progress overall :/
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Hey Guys. I am taking the 4/17 admin too but I have been studying for a while. My target is +30, alright all the best to everyone and lets remain steadfast.
It was AAMC. I don't know if I mentioned it but I recalled VERY little from my classes so I almost feel like I am relearning a lot of it. I'm studying Bio right now, though, and I'm getting the feeling that a 30 might be doable for me. I am good at memorization and normally very good at standardized test-taking.
I should be done with the Bio by this weekend. Does anyone know of any big jumps people's science scores have taken? On my 23 I actually made an 11 on the verbal and 6's on the sciences...I'm shooting to get them up to at least 10's and hopefully 11's.
I should be done with the Bio by this weekend. Does anyone know of any big jumps people's science scores have taken? On my 23 I actually made an 11 on the verbal and 6's on the sciences...I'm shooting to get them up to at least 10's and hopefully 11's.
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Thanks for the encouragement everyone.
I just took my first full-length exam yesterday (Kaplan Full-Length #1). I guess I'm OK with the results (29 - 11BS, 10PS, 8VR). For some reason the verbal section was very hit or miss for me when it came to the passages. It was like some passages I finished in 5 minutes with all answers right and others took me over 10 minutes with wrong answers.
I have heard that the Kaplan tests can be unreliable at times (the Bio section seemed way too simple, while the PS section seemed overly complex). I'm planning to take AAMC #3 this Sunday - hopefully that will give me a better idea of what to expect on the real deal.
I just took my first full-length exam yesterday (Kaplan Full-Length #1). I guess I'm OK with the results (29 - 11BS, 10PS, 8VR). For some reason the verbal section was very hit or miss for me when it came to the passages. It was like some passages I finished in 5 minutes with all answers right and others took me over 10 minutes with wrong answers.
I have heard that the Kaplan tests can be unreliable at times (the Bio section seemed way too simple, while the PS section seemed overly complex). I'm planning to take AAMC #3 this Sunday - hopefully that will give me a better idea of what to expect on the real deal.
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how did your aamc 3 go?
im still working on getting through the rest of the material, and doing more practice in between....next practice test on saturday and i am going to seriously go crazy if i dont improve my verbal ive been hitting it so hard the last 2 weeks
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i took the 1/30 exam, and got my scores back yesterday and didnt do as well as i wanted to, so i will probably be joining all of you for one of the april exams.
One piece of advice that i would give all of you is: keep in mind that the real MCAT is harder than the aamc ones, especially much more time consuming.
One piece of advice that i would give all of you is: keep in mind that the real MCAT is harder than the aamc ones, especially much more time consuming.
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on all sections? or just the verbal?
because im finishing bio with ~15 min to spare, but barely finishing physics, and coming NOWHERE nearrr to being done with verbal lol
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In all sections. (I'd say, especially verbal but it's my weakness so who knows, right?)
I finished on time in both sciences on the real test in January.. and August, and I was ending with ~15 minutes to spare in BS, and ~10 in PS, BOTH times around.
Yes, I'm a third timer. Rough. But it gets easier. And more fun!
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Hey! I ended up taking Kaplan full-length #2 instead. I plan to take AAMC #3 sometime this weekend hopefully (if I have time). I'm a little happier with my score this time (PS 12, VR 9, BS 12), but like you, that darn verbal keeps getting to me. I'm really having trouble finishing on time with the verbal since the passages are so freakin' long!
I think I have a pretty good handle on the sciences, but verbal is just another thing altogether. Perhaps it's just Kaplan's verbal, but we'll see after I do some AAMC tests. Then again, maybe it's good that I'm practicing with long passages, after having read the feedback from the January test-takers!Back to the grind...
