The Official June 5, 2014 MCAT Thread

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The purpose is to create "weighted" scores based on performances... not sure if it's a good or bad thing. I had a kid taking it with me group... and dear lord his dad, mom and siblings were there pumping him up and quizzing him on bio. pretty sure he'll score a 45... damn.
Oh god, if that was going on in my test center I might have snapped.
 
Oh god, if that was going on in my test center I might have snapped.
imagine if you were in the testing center and you overheard one of the questions they asked him. You answer the question quietly but when the answer is given, it turns out you're wrong lol. imagine how bad you would've freaked out considering the test is in a few minutes lol.

I wouldve just started screaming outloud
 
Oh god, if that was going on in my test center I might have snapped.

Ditto. Well I would've most likely thought "I can't wait to get on SDN and mention this."

imagine if you were in the testing center and you overheard one of the questions they asked him. You answer the question quietly but when the answer is given, it turns out you're wrong lol. imagine how bad you would've freaked out considering the test is in a few minutes lol.

I wouldve just started screaming outloud

Really? I would've been like "well then, thank god it's multiple choice." Of course, I am not quick to panic. Gotta be like Reggie Miller, always think my next shot is going in. However, at the end of that PS section, I felt like I had so much adrenaline coursing that I could've pulled the door [to the testing room] off the hinges.
 
Went running today in 85 degree heat and I ran by an ice cream truck playing music. Instead of my mind filling with thoughts of Choco Tacos and Bomb Pops all I could think about was the Doppler Effect. #MCATprobs

Thinkin' like a scientist, awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwright
 
The only mcat thinking Ive had was when I was building a fence this past week and I was considering the best way to adjust my had to increase the lever arm and provide the most torque. Also, I came across sand and started thinking about why its not conductive since its made of silicon dioxide. Thought something like that would straight up be on the mcat physical sciences section
 
They do not weight the scores based on performance. The score ranges are determined prior to anyone taking the test, and nobody's performance changes that. It is not "curved" based on the performance of the people taking that actual test.

Here's a quote from the AAMC site. I should not have put based on performances. Hope this clears it up 🙂

Although all test forms of the exam measure the same basic skills and concepts, each form contains different questions. Since one form may be slightly more difficult or slightly easier than another, we convert the raw scores to a scale that takes into consideration the difficulty of test questions. Regardless of the particular test form used, equal scaled scores will represent the same level of skill mastery.
 
Went running today in 85 degree heat and I ran by an ice cream truck playing music. Instead of my mind filling with thoughts of Choco Tacos and Bomb Pops all I could think about was the Doppler Effect. #MCATprobs
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Who's planning on using the Amazon gift card from AAMC to buy some Step 1 study books?!

...

JK!!!! I'll probably use it on some Kindle light reading 😀
 
The third is when we should get the gift card right. I hope they feel I put in good faith effort... I mean I only guessed on all but one passage because I was tired...
 
The third is when we should get the gift card right. I hope they feel I put in good faith effort... I mean I only guessed on all but one passage because I was tired...
I think we're getting them on the 2nd! as long as you didn't click "End section" 5 mins later you should get one!
 
so the may 31st guys did alright on their rough physical sciences section. However, for the most part, there was a curve that worked against them for verbal. I hope that doesnt happen to our verbal
 
so the may 31st guys did alright on their rough physical sciences section. However, for the most part, there was a curve that worked against them for verbal. I hope that doesnt happen to our verbal

YA i saw...but i think it will be the same for us cuz most of 6/5 ppl said verbal was easy which I don't agree with...i'm a retake bcuz of verbal and it scares me!
i found PS manageable expect for 2-3 crazy calculation problems...idk...by this time next week, a lot of things will change!! scary
 
I just hope my verbal didnt screw me over. That section felt like AAMC 11 and I did well on AAMC 11
 
Yeah, the 5/31 thread is freaking me out pretty hard core. A ridiculous number of people dropped 2-3 points from their AAMC averages.
 
I spent the first two weeks post exam thinking that bio would be my worst performance, since I crashed pretty hard during that one uber difficult passage from exhaustion and nerves, and as a result was short on time for the last couple pages of bio.

Then I realized I shouldn't assume that I did well on verbal just because I finished on time and did not find any particular passage to be unreasonable. These are actually signs that I may need to be worried. During practice, I did not find correlation between my comfort with the passage topics and performance. In fact, easier passages sometimes were accompanied by trickier questions.

So verbal is the section that scares me the most now, such a wild card.
 
I am kind of angry about the verbal. I worked my butt off for a year on verbal always trying new ways to bring it up from a 5. I got my groove and started scoring 9s-10s on verbal in my last 2 weeks of studying and finally thought that I really had a chance to score a 30 if I get 30 out of the 40 questions right in VR. Now it appears that even if I do get 30/40 questions right, I might score lower because they might be setting the curve against us. So lame. I hate standardized tests. Always have
 
MCAT Verbal made this **** personal man. For a year I was convinced I couldn't read because I was scoring 5's on my Verbal section. It made me think I was not smart enough and that if I had only read as a child, I would be capable of scoring well on the section. I tried reading convoluted philosophy books that I absolutely hated just so I could increase my verbal score while my friends were scoring 11+ on the section without even studying. I became that paranoid guy who kept asking his friends for their "secret techniques" to verbal and who beat himself up when he couldn't read labels fast enough. I really hope my verbal comes out strong
 
I am kind of angry about the verbal. I worked my butt off for a year on verbal always trying new ways to bring it up from a 5. I got my groove and started scoring 9s-10s on verbal in my last 2 weeks of studying and finally thought that I really had a chance to score a 30 if I get 30 out of the 40 questions right in VR. Now it appears that even if I do get 30/40 questions right, I might score lower because they might be setting the curve against us. So lame. I hate standardized tests. Always have

Agreed! Makes me wonder if someone with 40/40 would score less than a 15, if indeed these passages were easier. I ranged 9-12 on verbal, but wouldn't be shocked if I get a 7. The idea that people thought verbal was easy is unsettling.

Reading your post though I think it's admirable that you tried your best and invested a significant amount of time to improve VR, and even more impressive is that your methods worked. VR is the "toughest section to improve" after all. The skills gained from practicing verbal will still be with us, hopefully long after the emotions associated with this wait, and with this standardized exam, have been forgotten.
 
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Who's planning on using the Amazon gift card from AAMC to buy some Step 1 study books?!

...

JK!!!! I'll probably use it on some Kindle light reading 😀

DON'T DO THAT!

I used my gift card to buy myself a digital copy of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, the new Coldplay album, and some songs. Twas a good week that week.
 
Well we should know our trial scores tomorrow. And the slow countdown to the D-Day shall begin. Good news is that I am going to Six Flags for a couple of days!
 
On the day our scores release, I am going to go to campus and wait for my friend very impatiently. It will most likely be past the time scores are released so I will be on these forums reading up on how you guys did. As soon as my friend gets here, I am going to go to the website, sign in, and let him see my score first. I am gonna pace around the room back and forth and tell him not to say anything or make any facial expressions. Then i will finally look when I am good and ready

I really hope its good so he can say break his promise and say "dude, get over here!".
 
Well we should know our trial scores tomorrow. And the slow countdown to the D-Day shall begin. Good news is that I am going to Six Flags for a couple of days!

My brain was so fried during the trial section that I'll be happy if I get 30% right. I could barely read the questions.
 
Went running today in 85 degree heat and I ran by an ice cream truck playing music. Instead of my mind filling with thoughts of Choco Tacos and Bomb Pops all I could think about was the Doppler Effect. #MCATprobs

This has happened to me twice in the past 4 days. I went camping this past weekend with my wife and there was ~2500 foot elevation change between our home and the campground. I didn't really think anything of it when she opened a bottle of sunscreen and it went everywhere. But when I opened the bottle of mustard about 2 hours later with a similar result, I chuckled and muttered "Boyle's Law." My wife's response: "You sure you don't mean Murphy's Law?"

Then today at work I had my annual employee evaluation. This also includes a review of our company's strategic plan...and what you're going to be working on the next year. My assignment: overseeing the evaluation of a new piece of equipment that continuously monitors ET tube cuff pressure changes during flights. Damn Boyle's Law again. At least it is clinical though...most of the other stuff made my eyes glaze over.
 
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