*The Official MCAT June 2018 Thread*

[pretty_positron]

June 2nd, 2018 here.

81 days until the test, here.

Let's rock, brothers and sisters.

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[iqe2010]

I'm right there with you...I feel like I have increasingly poor focus and that's really not where I want to be so close to my exam date! How are you doing on the practice materials and FLs?

I have done 3 FLs so far and have only broken 500 once, which was TPR FL#2. So that's kind of discouraging. Finished Chemistry & Physics QP and scored around 55% on both. Currently working on CARS & Bio part 1, hope to have those finished by tonight.

Right now I plan on finishing up question packs and starting SB this week. Probably doing AAMC FL#2 Saturday the 9th and FL#3 Tuesday the 12th.

If I don't get 505+ on AAMC FLs I don't know what I'm gonna do. I'm a Texas resident so it's imperative I take it early enough and right now I'm borderline late. So it's kind of a crappy situation lol.

 

[Blanky]

I was 69% physics and 82% chem for the qpacks and was 127 CP on FLs if that helps, Then I went back through them and did section banks and was around 129 CP.

I will also say sleep is huge when it comes to focus (def not too little, also don't sleep too much.)
I found out some ways into my FL progression that if I over caffeinate during CP I will be burned out during PS.

 

[mariposas905]

I have done 3 FLs so far and have only broken 500 once, which was TPR FL#2. So that's kind of discouraging. Finished Chemistry & Physics QP and scored around 55% on both. Currently working on CARS & Bio part 1, hope to have those finished by tonight.

Right now I plan on finishing up question packs and starting SB this week. Probably doing AAMC FL#2 Saturday the 9th and FL#3 Tuesday the 12th.

If I don't get 505+ on AAMC FLs I don't know what I'm gonna do. I'm a Texas resident so it's imperative I take it early enough and right now I'm borderline late. So it's kind of a crappy situation lol.

Keep pushing through! I really hope you get above a 505 and reach your goal. TX is a good place to be a pre-med in

 

[mariposas905]

Does anyone have tips for how to control perfectionist tendencies? Starting out in my studying, I had so many resources I wanted to get through...and now I'm super anxious because I won't be able to finish them all. How do I continue moving forward and focusing on content and FLs without worrying about the things I won't have time to do and how it will affect me? I wish I could just let it go and calm down. That would probably help me focus better

How do you also stop being a perfectionist on the real exam? Obviously, I'm going to be second-guessing myself all through test day, but what are some tips you guys have to stop it from affecting performance?

 

[Blanky]

Does anyone have tips for how to control perfectionist tendencies? Starting out in my studying, I had so many resources I wanted to get through...and now I'm super anxious because I won't be able to finish them all. How do I continue moving forward and focusing on content and FLs without worrying about the things I won't have time to do and how it will affect me? I wish I could just let it go and calm down. That would probably help me focus better

How do you also stop being a perfectionist on the real exam? Obviously, I'm going to be second-guessing myself all through test day, but what are some tips you guys have to stop it from affecting performance?

Are you losing composure during practice FLs now?

 

[mariposas905]

Are you losing composure during practice FLs now?

Usually, I do okay, but today I lost composure/freaked out and had to break apart the FL I'm taking to ease my anxiety. I'm doing the timed sections, but with longer breaks between each. So, I'm considering it as just general practice questions, not accurate FL.

It's not even that the exam was that bad (doing Altius FL 1), but just thinking about my upcoming MCAT and how much I have to do made me anxious such that I had to stop I have got to let things go and understand I can't do everything perfectly!!!

 

[Blanky]

It would have been excellent practice to fight that feeling and try and gather yourself and remain focused.
My testing center was amazing, but I will say that bathrooms are going to be farther farther farther from the one in your house plus you have to sign in and out and that can fluster you.
Some peoples computers freeze mid test, some centers are too hot or cold and sometimes people make noises.
There is nothing wrong with getting flustered especially by an overly difficult section or passage. Grab yourself mentally and remain calm.
How you handle it is going to make the difference.

 

[sillyxwabbit]

I'm honestly not feeling ready at all. Like it's gonna kick me in the butt. I'm still doing practice questions and getting lots wrong. But at this point, just gonna go in with confidence and hope for the best. Any advice for my last day tomorrow?!

Hey, how did you feel the exam went????

 

[PopeKnope23]

Hey, how did you feel the exam went????

I wish I could give a simple good/bad answer, but honestly, I have no idea. I’m a nervous wreck waiting for my scores, I havent slept well since Saturday night. But let me give you a break down.

C/P: Literally all gen chem and physics calculations. What pissed me off was that the equations needed weren’t difficult at all, but I literally can’t do such long calculations in such a short amount of time. I would write out all my work and get confused and next thing ya know 3 min went by so I’d panic and just move on. In other words, I choked on those calculations and what’s scaring me is that they were’t overly difficult, so I feel like it won’t be a big curve. I cried during my 10 min break after bc I felt the test tested my strong points but I still effed up. Little to no ochem, what was on it was very basic.

CARS: I can never tell how I do on CARS. My FL scores went from 123 to 124 to 126, so I literally could get anything. The passages weren’t too bad though, only one made me question my existence lol. Advice though—WATCH THE TIME. I made sure to have 3 passages done within 30 minute chunks. Don’t be one of those people that has 4 passages left with 20 min bc then youre going to get real rattled.

B/B: This section pissed me off (as you can see I was just angry during my test lol) bc there was SO MUCH rote memorization recall. I’ve never taken such a content-based exam in my practice. A ton of stuff on human physiology that I was not expecting, and once again, not hard stuff, but stuff I choked on bc I hadn’t reviewed basic bio well enough. Spent all my time teaching myself biochem and there was nothing. A lot of super short passages too. Maybe only 1-2 SB-like passages.

P/S: This was hard af. First off they had a ton of biochem questions in it LMAO. Also, the questions kept referring to only one part of the passage so I literally wouldn’t even read the whole thing. They focused on questions that gave hypothetical scenarios and asked you what theory/heurisitc/etc that scenario would demonstrate. I would not only know what terms mean (bc thats only going to get you 50% thru a question), but also know examples of the terms and how they can be applied to real life. Highly recommend UWorld for this. Oh yeah, and know your biology in terms of P/S.

So overall, I was upset with how ~not~ hard it seemed even though I was screwing up so much. A lot of test takers on my day felt the same tho (based on reddit), so maybe the curve wont be as brutal as I’m expecting it to be. Ugh. Taking this month off but if I have to retake I’ll be back to the books soon.

 

[esob]

Did yours have a lot of metabolism questions on it?

Trying to decide if I can answer that without going to "MCAT jail" lol. I will say this, it is extremely beneficial to know glycolysis, the ETC, and the ctiric acid cycle inside and out. I would say next to amino acids, those pathways are the next highest yield topic from my perspective.

 

[esob]

I wish I could give a simple good/bad answer, but honestly, I have no idea. I’m a nervous wreck waiting for my scores, I havent slept well since Saturday night. But let me give you a break down.

C/P: Literally all gen chem and physics calculations. What pissed me off was that the equations needed weren’t difficult at all, but I literally can’t do such long calculations in such a short amount of time. I would write out all my work and get confused and next thing ya know 3 min went by so I’d panic and just move on. In other words, I choked on those calculations and what’s scaring me is that they were’t overly difficult, so I feel like it won’t be a big curve. I cried during my 10 min break after bc I felt the test tested my strong points but I still effed up. Little to no ochem, what was on it was very basic.

CARS: I can never tell how I do on CARS. My FL scores went from 123 to 124 to 126, so I literally could get anything. The passages weren’t too bad though, only one made me question my existence lol. Advice though—WATCH THE TIME. I made sure to have 3 passages done within 30 minute chunks. Don’t be one of those people that has 4 passages left with 20 min bc then youre going to get real rattled.

B/B: This section pissed me off (as you can see I was just angry during my test lol) bc there was SO MUCH rote memorization recall. I’ve never taken such a content-based exam in my practice. A ton of stuff on human physiology that I was not expecting, and once again, not hard stuff, but stuff I choked on bc I hadn’t reviewed basic bio well enough. Spent all my time teaching myself biochem and there was nothing. A lot of super short passages too. Maybe only 1-2 SB-like passages.

P/S: This was hard af. First off they had a ton of biochem questions in it LMAO. Also, the questions kept referring to only one part of the passage so I literally wouldn’t even read the whole thing. They focused on questions that gave hypothetical scenarios and asked you what theory/heurisitc/etc that scenario would demonstrate. I would not only know what terms mean (bc thats only going to get you 50% thru a question), but also know examples of the terms and how they can be applied to real life. Highly recommend UWorld for this. Oh yeah, and know your biology in terms of P/S.

So overall, I was upset with how ~not~ hard it seemed even though I was screwing up so much. A lot of test takers on my day felt the same tho (based on reddit), so maybe the curve wont be as brutal as I’m expecting it to be. Ugh. Taking this month off but if I have to retake I’ll be back to the books soon.

Your breakdown of the sections seems very similar to what I had.

 

[sillyxwabbit]

I wish I could give a simple good/bad answer, but honestly, I have no idea. I’m a nervous wreck waiting for my scores, I havent slept well since Saturday night. But let me give you a break down.

C/P: Literally all gen chem and physics calculations. What pissed me off was that the equations needed weren’t difficult at all, but I literally can’t do such long calculations in such a short amount of time. I would write out all my work and get confused and next thing ya know 3 min went by so I’d panic and just move on. In other words, I choked on those calculations and what’s scaring me is that they were’t overly difficult, so I feel like it won’t be a big curve. I cried during my 10 min break after bc I felt the test tested my strong points but I still effed up. Little to no ochem, what was on it was very basic.

CARS: I can never tell how I do on CARS. My FL scores went from 123 to 124 to 126, so I literally could get anything. The passages weren’t too bad though, only one made me question my existence lol. Advice though—WATCH THE TIME. I made sure to have 3 passages done within 30 minute chunks. Don’t be one of those people that has 4 passages left with 20 min bc then youre going to get real rattled.

B/B: This section pissed me off (as you can see I was just angry during my test lol) bc there was SO MUCH rote memorization recall. I’ve never taken such a content-based exam in my practice. A ton of stuff on human physiology that I was not expecting, and once again, not hard stuff, but stuff I choked on bc I hadn’t reviewed basic bio well enough. Spent all my time teaching myself biochem and there was nothing. A lot of super short passages too. Maybe only 1-2 SB-like passages.

P/S: This was hard af. First off they had a ton of biochem questions in it LMAO. Also, the questions kept referring to only one part of the passage so I literally wouldn’t even read the whole thing. They focused on questions that gave hypothetical scenarios and asked you what theory/heurisitc/etc that scenario would demonstrate. I would not only know what terms mean (bc thats only going to get you 50% thru a question), but also know examples of the terms and how they can be applied to real life. Highly recommend UWorld for this. Oh yeah, and know your biology in terms of P/S.

So overall, I was upset with how ~not~ hard it seemed even though I was screwing up so much. A lot of test takers on my day felt the same tho (based on reddit), so maybe the curve wont be as brutal as I’m expecting it to be. Ugh. Taking this month off but if I have to retake I’ll be back to the books soon.

I felt pretty similar to you ! I have no idea how I did! I took it the same day as you and you're pretty spot on.

Luckily, I kept my cool and timing was great. But besides that, I was struggling with what seemed like easy concepts. I felt like I've mastered so many topics that we're not on there. Actually, I don't think it mattered how well I knew the content. It felt all passage-based and stuff that didn't show up on KA, Kaplan, or AAMC. It felt like it had no similarity to anything I did in the SB or FLs lmao. But if the truth about how the last FL is representative, then maybe it's just us feeling like we did bad and the amount of pressure we feel from this exam

 

[sillyxwabbit]

I wish I could give a simple good/bad answer, but honestly, I have no idea. I’m a nervous wreck waiting for my scores, I havent slept well since Saturday night. But let me give you a break down.

C/P: Literally all gen chem and physics calculations. What pissed me off was that the equations needed weren’t difficult at all, but I literally can’t do such long calculations in such a short amount of time. I would write out all my work and get confused and next thing ya know 3 min went by so I’d panic and just move on. In other words, I choked on those calculations and what’s scaring me is that they were’t overly difficult, so I feel like it won’t be a big curve. I cried during my 10 min break after bc I felt the test tested my strong points but I still effed up. Little to no ochem, what was on it was very basic.

CARS: I can never tell how I do on CARS. My FL scores went from 123 to 124 to 126, so I literally could get anything. The passages weren’t too bad though, only one made me question my existence lol. Advice though—WATCH THE TIME. I made sure to have 3 passages done within 30 minute chunks. Don’t be one of those people that has 4 passages left with 20 min bc then youre going to get real rattled.

B/B: This section pissed me off (as you can see I was just angry during my test lol) bc there was SO MUCH rote memorization recall. I’ve never taken such a content-based exam in my practice. A ton of stuff on human physiology that I was not expecting, and once again, not hard stuff, but stuff I choked on bc I hadn’t reviewed basic bio well enough. Spent all my time teaching myself biochem and there was nothing. A lot of super short passages too. Maybe only 1-2 SB-like passages.

P/S: This was hard af. First off they had a ton of biochem questions in it LMAO. Also, the questions kept referring to only one part of the passage so I literally wouldn’t even read the whole thing. They focused on questions that gave hypothetical scenarios and asked you what theory/heurisitc/etc that scenario would demonstrate. I would not only know what terms mean (bc thats only going to get you 50% thru a question), but also know examples of the terms and how they can be applied to real life. Highly recommend UWorld for this. Oh yeah, and know your biology in terms of P/S.

So overall, I was upset with how ~not~ hard it seemed even though I was screwing up so much. A lot of test takers on my day felt the same tho (based on reddit), so maybe the curve wont be as brutal as I’m expecting it to be. Ugh. Taking this month off but if I have to retake I’ll be back to the books soon.

HAHAHA I just went to the reddit for our day and I feel so much better! Everyone feels the same about those ***** passages lmao

 

[Thecomposer]

Trying to decide if I can answer that without going to "MCAT jail" lol. I will say this, it is extremely beneficial to know glycolysis, the ETC, and the ctiric acid cycle inside and out. I would say next to amino acids, those pathways are the next highest yield topic from my perspective.

This just activated both my parasymathetic and sympathetic nervous system The only things I have mastered is the krebs cycle, ETC, and all of sugar metabolism--down to protein phosphatase 2a (xylulose/insulin) and Protein Kinase A (Glucagon). I really hope i get lucky.

 

[Thecomposer]

What is your strategy for getting thru the really tough experimental passages? Could you describe how you approach it step by step? Like do you read the passage slowly, skim through the figures first and go directly to questions, etc...

The best strategy is to understand the experimental design and not get panicked over terms. Biochemical research almost always looks at what effect a gene or protein acts on another gene or protein and the way these are determined are with either loss of function evidence: knockdown (siRNA), knockout (Crispr/mice); or gain of function: overexpressing plasmid or increased dose of inducing ligand/agent. I would suggest reading papers and doing practice.

With practice your anxiety and perfectionism will disappear. It is very helpful to flag the questions you are 50/50 on and mark down your reasoning as to why you picked one and not the other.

 

[chappystick393]

I wish I could give a simple good/bad answer, but honestly, I have no idea. I’m a nervous wreck waiting for my scores, I havent slept well since Saturday night. But let me give you a break down.

C/P: Literally all gen chem and physics calculations. What pissed me off was that the equations needed weren’t difficult at all, but I literally can’t do such long calculations in such a short amount of time. I would write out all my work and get confused and next thing ya know 3 min went by so I’d panic and just move on. In other words, I choked on those calculations and what’s scaring me is that they were’t overly difficult, so I feel like it won’t be a big curve. I cried during my 10 min break after bc I felt the test tested my strong points but I still effed up. Little to no ochem, what was on it was very basic.

CARS: I can never tell how I do on CARS. My FL scores went from 123 to 124 to 126, so I literally could get anything. The passages weren’t too bad though, only one made me question my existence lol. Advice though—WATCH THE TIME. I made sure to have 3 passages done within 30 minute chunks. Don’t be one of those people that has 4 passages left with 20 min bc then youre going to get real rattled.

B/B: This section pissed me off (as you can see I was just angry during my test lol) bc there was SO MUCH rote memorization recall. I’ve never taken such a content-based exam in my practice. A ton of stuff on human physiology that I was not expecting, and once again, not hard stuff, but stuff I choked on bc I hadn’t reviewed basic bio well enough. Spent all my time teaching myself biochem and there was nothing. A lot of super short passages too. Maybe only 1-2 SB-like passages.

P/S: This was hard af. First off they had a ton of biochem questions in it LMAO. Also, the questions kept referring to only one part of the passage so I literally wouldn’t even read the whole thing. They focused on questions that gave hypothetical scenarios and asked you what theory/heurisitc/etc that scenario would demonstrate. I would not only know what terms mean (bc thats only going to get you 50% thru a question), but also know examples of the terms and how they can be applied to real life. Highly recommend UWorld for this. Oh yeah, and know your biology in terms of P/S.

So overall, I was upset with how ~not~ hard it seemed even though I was screwing up so much. A lot of test takers on my day felt the same tho (based on reddit), so maybe the curve wont be as brutal as I’m expecting it to be. Ugh. Taking this month off but if I have to retake I’ll be back to the books soon.

June 2 right? This is EXACTLY how I felt about the test! After the test I felt the same way I felt about FL 3 but I really messed up on FL 3 so it's freaking me out now waiting for my score. But it was my first time taking the MCAT so it wasn't as daunting as I expected it to be. I was fine with time and for someone that can't sit still without fidgeting too much, I got through it pretty well. I'll probably retake end of August if necessary, but hopefully it doesn't come down to it.

 

[JeniferWilliams]

Best of luck everyone, do your best.

 

[Thecomposer]

Update: Just wanted to say hi during my 30 min break of my first full length. Taking NS1.

My brain hurts. But it's weirdly a satisfying feeling? 1 MIN UNTIL MY FAVORITE SECTION! B/B TIME

 

[Cheerfulcheeto]

Update: Just wanted to say hi during my 30 min break of my first full length. Taking NS1.

My brain hurts. But it's weirdly a satisfying feeling? 1 MIN UNTIL MY FAVORITE SECTION! B/B TIME

Holy cow...at what time did you start testing

I hope you will do well!!

 

[Thecomposer]

Holy cow...at what time did you start testing

I hope you will do well!!

3am haha. Do not question my sanity. I ended up starting Next Step 1 just for C/P practice but realized it isnt a pause and resume later type of thing. So after finishing C/P i was like screw it, lets do the whole thing. I just finished B/B and am SO mad that I had to speed guess on an entire GLYCOLYSIS PASSAGE w/ 30 seconds left.

NOOOOOOOOOoooooOooo!!! Glycolysis is my JAM

 

[Thecomposer]

I got a 506 on NS1.

C/P: 127
CARS: 125
B/B: 127
P/S: 127

I actually CANNOT believe I did better on P/S than CARS, especially since I am so behind on my Psych review haha.

PHEW. What a brutal 8 hours. I need sleep, haha.

 

[Shotapp]

I got a 506 on NS1.

C/P: 127
CARS: 125
B/B: 127
P/S: 127

I actually CANNOT believe I did better on P/S than CARS, especially since I am so behind on my Psych review haha.

PHEW. What a brutal 8 hours. I need sleep, haha.

What time did you start your test?

Edited: my b. I just saw the posts above

 

[Thecomposer]

I am reviewing and just hate the fact that I ran out of time. I could have easily had a 130 on B/B had I not spent so much time on certain questions. Also, not sure how I feel about that CARS. Do I follow the reddit NS-CARS is crap bandwagon and not worry too much? Or do I worry...either way, it won't hurt to review.

Does anyone know if NS1 is inflated? For my three 127 sections, that was 40/59 correct (which is just unacceptable). I don't want to get more than 5 wrong on any section.

 

[PopeKnope23]

Lol yeah the June 2 reddit is what got me through the first couple days after the test. It gave me a sense of comfort knowing there's hundreds out there who felt the same way I did. Because when I originally walked out, I was like "I bet everyone thought this was so easy." Apparently not, thank goodness.

 

[esob]

June 2 right? This is EXACTLY how I felt about the test! After the test I felt the same way I felt about FL 3 but I really messed up on FL 3 so it's freaking me out now waiting for my score. But it was my first time taking the MCAT so it wasn't as daunting as I expected it to be. I was fine with time and for someone that can't sit still without fidgeting too much, I got through it pretty well. I'll probably retake end of August if necessary, but hopefully it doesn't come down to it.

yep june 2nd. im trying to stay studying in case my score deviates significantly from my FL scores

 

[BobbyKoch]

I did Altius 1 (501), 2 (500) and 3 (507). With today being he last day to cancel before the 6/16 test I did aamc FL1: 512.

I’ve done PS and CP section banks and most of the bio SB as well. Did most of the qpacks as well except CaRS. Also a few Altius psych and B.B. sections on their own, timed. Reviewed everything with copious notes at least once.

I want to review FL1 and make another pass at the SB before I do FL2 and 3. My CP needs work and I can squeeze more out of PS too. After today I feel good but want to keep pushing hard since I’m targeting >515.

Best of luck all!!!

 

[Shotapp]

I did Altius 1 (501), 2 (500) and 3 (507). With today being he last day to cancel before the 6/16 test I did aamc FL1: 512.

I’ve done PS and CP section banks and most of the bio SB as well. Did most of the qpacks as well except CaRS. Also a few Altius psych and B.B. sections on their own, timed. Reviewed everything with copious notes at least once.

I want to review FL1 and make another pass at the SB before I do FL2 and 3. My CP needs work and I can squeeze more out of PS too. After today I feel good but want to keep pushing hard since I’m targeting >515.

Best of luck all!!!

Is your 510 MCAT score expiring? I guess getting a higher score would be a better/cheaper alternative versus doing a SMP.

 

[mariposas905]

I did Altius 1 (501), 2 (500) and 3 (507). With today being he last day to cancel before the 6/16 test I did aamc FL1: 512.

I’ve done PS and CP section banks and most of the bio SB as well. Did most of the q-packs as well except CaRS. Also a few Altius psych and B.B. sections on their own, timed. Reviewed everything with copious notes at least once.

I want to review FL1 and make another pass at the SB before I do FL2 and 3. My CP needs work and I can squeeze more out of PS too. After today I feel good but want to keep pushing hard since I’m targeting >515.

Best of luck all!!!

That's a good score for FL 1! Did you end up sticking with your 6/16 date? also, how far out did you do the Altius before taking AAMC FL 1?

 

[Thecomposer]

Hey guys, I just posted a thread about this on the general SDN Mcat community, but would really appreciate your feedback as well.

Taking MCAT in a week, can people please give me feedback on my proposed Practice FL schedule?

 

[BobbyKoch]

Is your 510 MCAT score expiring? I guess getting a higher score would be a better/cheaper alternative versus doing a SMP.

510 is expiring, which is genuinely crushing. I know I can do better, but it has been pretty humbling just to get back to where I was! since I prefer belt and suspenders I'm doing and SMP and retaking. And I've added ~30 credits at a 3.9 in the last year. And added 100 more hours of clinical experience. Hopefully this will all be meaningful to adcoms!!!

That's a good score for FL 1! Did you end up sticking with your 6/16 date? also, how far out did you do the Altius before taking AAMC FL 1?

Yes, I decided if I cracked 510 on FL1 I would not cancel. Altius 1 was way back in February. Seeing the 501 I realized I needed to brush up on some content (PS especially). So I proceeded to not do any content review (I was finishing three classes), took Altius 2 in April (I think) and basically scared myself by scoring less. I spent some serious time on content review and then did Altius 3 mid May. I saw some progress so I dove into AAMC materials, using them and Altius sub sections to guide review. It seems to be working.

 

[yankeekd25]

How much emphasis are you guys putting into Physics, especially Physics 2? I just did some practice physics passages on Electromagnetism and just got slayed. Should we expect a lot of this on the test or does it really just vary? Do we really need to know the right hand rule?

 

[BobbyKoch]

based on the content outlines, AAMC materials, and actual MCATs I've sat for, the physics is limited in general. however, the emphasis does seem to be on physics 2 topics. very often I've noticed that the questions/calculations are really quite basic but they will be shrouded in the context of a biological system or experimental context. so thinking critically about the question and info provided by the passage is key.

all that being said, my friend Louie Pasteur definitely had a RHR question on one of his MCATs. thanks for reminding me!

 

[Thecomposer]

Taking AAMC FL1 tomorrow. It is going to be a disaster lol. So behind on content review

 

[Cheerfulcheeto]

Taking AAMC FL1 tomorrow. It is going to be a disaster lol. So behind on content review

Good luck!! You got this!! Let us know how it goes

 

[BobbyKoch]

so I took AAMC 2 yesterday and scored a 511. 128 129 129 125! This is down from 512 on AAMC 1 a few days ago: 125 130 128 129!

My PS and CP scores flipped. I'm not going to let this rattle me because I know I need work on both of these sections. Today I'm reviewing FL2, finishing the BB SB and going over all my notes for PS. Tomorrow, FL3.

One thing I noticed about CP yesterday: I have often run into timing issues on this section. Before beginning the test, I went to the bathroom and centered myself and gave a little pep talk along the lines of "if you don't know it, move on. don't stress. get to the end with 6-10 minutes margin and use the time to go back if necessary." Well, sure enough I plowed past anything I knew I didn't know, made my guess and moved on. This got me a ten minute margin at the end and I used it to go back to a simple Hendersen-Hasselbach question that I initially guessed. With the pressure of finishing off I was able to recall the formula, see how the given information fit and made it easy to calculate, and changed my incorrect guess to the correct answer.

More than any content review, I believe this strategy of cool, calm analysis won me 2-3 points in CP.

 

[mariposas905]

so I took AAMC 2 yesterday and scored a 511. 128 129 129 125! This is down from 512 on AAMC 1 a few days ago: 125 130 128 129!

My PS and CP scores flipped. I'm not going to let this rattle me because I know I need work on both of these sections. Today I'm reviewing FL2, finishing the BB SB and going over all my notes for PS. Tomorrow, FL3.

One thing I noticed about CP yesterday: I have often run into timing issues on this section. Before beginning the test, I went to the bathroom and centered myself and gave a little pep talk along the lines of "if you don't know it, move on. don't stress. get to the end with 6-10 minutes margin and use the time to go back if necessary." Well, sure enough I plowed past anything I knew I didn't know, made my guess and moved on. This got me a ten minute margin at the end and I used it to go back to a simple Hendersen-Hasselbach question that I initially guessed. With the pressure of finishing off I was able to recall the formula, see how the given information fit and made it easy to calculate, and changed my incorrect guess to the correct answer.

More than any content review, I believe this strategy of cool, calm analysis won me 2-3 points in CP.

That's a good idea, I need to try that because I also run out of time in C/P and B/B. I tend to panic and focus on questions I don't know too much and then, I end up guessing more on the easy ones due to lack of time. I'm going to try this for FL 3.

 

[mariposas905]

@BobbyKoch also, you said you sat for the MCAT before? Did you already do the AAMC materials back then and are redoing them now?

 

[duckdoc20]

Just finished my last AAMC test: 515,512,517 on the three respectively. For anyone yet to take them I thought the second one was really hard comparatively. To my fellow testers next weekend best of luck your going to do amazing

 

[BobbyKoch]

@BobbyKoch also, you said you sat for the MCAT before? Did you already do the AAMC materials back then and are redoing them now?

no, I only did the sample in the past. I didn't really understand how to improve/the value of the AAMC materials back then. I erroneously focused on...you guessed it...content review!

 

[mariposas905]

Just finished my last AAMC test: 515,512,517 on the three respectively. For anyone yet to take them I thought the second one was really hard comparatively. To my fellow testers next weekend best of luck your going to do amazing

How did you feel about FL 3? I heard it was harder compared to FL 1 and 2. Are you testing this coming weekend?

 

[duckdoc20]

I thought that it was the easiest of the bunch. After having gone back through all of the three tests, it has become pretty clear to me that they all pretty much ask the same thing in slightly different ways for the most part. The P/S had stuff I had never seen before in terms of concepts and definitions. I have been using Kaplan edition 2 books so I think they are a little out of date which probably accounts for this. I also have been told that the cars section uses passages that appear somewhere else in the AAMC material but having not really gone through any of the cars stuff outside of the FLs idk if this is true or not. and yes I am testing next on the 16th!

 

[Cheerfulcheeto]

Quick question: for the gas laws-- do you all memorize which was which (Boyle, Charle's etc.) or do you just memorize the equations and use which ever one is useful to solve the problem? I wonder if the MCAT will ever ask "According to which deviation of the ideal gas law...."

Thoughts? Experiences?

 

[mariposas905]

Quick question: for the gas laws-- do you all memorize which was which (Boyle, Charle's etc.) or do you just memorize the equations and use which ever one is useful to solve the problem? I wonder if the MCAT will ever ask "According to which deviation of the ideal gas law...."

Thoughts? Experiences?

I memorized which one was which, but I think it's unlikely the MCAT will ask specifically for Boyle's Law, Charles Law etc.

 

[Cheerfulcheeto]

I memorized which one was which, but I think it's unlikely the MCAT will ask specifically for Boyle's Law, Charles Law etc.

I'm doing too although I find it unnecessary....I guess it's the MCAT related OCD kicking in. lol It feels really uncomfortable to skip memorizing it ugh

 

[duckdoc20]

Quick question: for the gas laws-- do you all memorize which was which (Boyle, Charle's etc.) or do you just memorize the equations and use which ever one is useful to solve the problem? I wonder if the MCAT will ever ask "According to which deviation of the ideal gas law...."

Thoughts? Experiences?

If they referred to one of them specifically there'd be a reason why the other answers could not possibly be the correct choice. Unless you have everything down perfectly IMO there is no need to worry over stuff like that it just takes up space that could be used for other things. keep in mind none of us are MCAT questions writers so who really knows

 

[Cheerfulcheeto]

If they referred to one of them specifically there'd be a reason why the other answers could not possibly be the correct choice. Unless you have everything down perfectly IMO there is no need to worry over stuff like that it just takes up space that could be used for other things. keep in mind none of us are MCAT questions writers so who really knows

That's exactly right! And also the reason why I study them anyways...it only takes a few minutes and in return I get some peace of mind- if that's at all possible with this beast of a test.

I'm currently doing practice problems and I'm so confused over why Kaplan just turned the 0.0821 L*atm/mol*K into 8 to simplify the calculation... I don't know if anyone is using their material but it's on page 264. I'm sure I'm skipping over a mini detail..if anyone could help out, you'd be my savior.

 

[yankeekd25]

Just finished Aamc FL3. That PS was absolutely brutal. Walked away with 127 and I'm lucky to have gotten that. Holy crap.

Overall I got 130/125/130/127 for a 512. Showing an upward trend in my FLs going from 505 to 509 to 512. Shooting for 515 still but really need to work on CARS in the next week. At least my score went up. Anyone take FL3 and think the PS was a killer too? I've watched all the KA videos multiple times but still it was a crazy section.

 

[mariposas905]

Just finished Aamc FL3. That PS was absolutely brutal. Walked away with 127 and I'm lucky to have gotten that. Holy crap.

Overall I got 130/125/130/127 for a 512. Showing an upward trend in my FLs going from 505 to 509 to 512. Shooting for 515 still but really need to work on CARS in the next week. At least my score went up. Anyone take FL3 and think the PS was a killer too? I've watched all the KA videos multiple times but still it was a crazy section.

What made the P/S so crazy? Was it definition heavy or inference heavy? I'm taking FL 3 on Wednesday and wondering how much I need to review for PS before going in. Do you think reviewing P/S would have helped in this section for you? Or was it one of those "killer wtf" sections that seemed out of nowhere lol

Also, those are great sciences scores! How did you feel about these sections and any tips on prep?

 

[yankeekd25]

What made the P/S so crazy? Was it definition heavy or inference heavy? I'm taking FL 3 on Wednesday and wondering how much I need to review for PS before going in. Do you think reviewing P/S would have helped in this section for you? Or was it one of those "killer wtf" sections that seemed out of nowhere lol

Also, those are great sciences scores! How did you feel about these sections and any tips on prep?

Lots of inference types, but I thought even the definition types were tricky and misleading too. I got 10 wrong on FL2 for 127 and then 14 wrong here for a 127. Just goes to show you how hard it was. Lots of 50/50 questions to me and I could've argued more than one correct for quite a few of them.

CP was a lot of calculations. Concept wise it was to me about the same as the others.
BB was the same if not a little easier to me than FL2. However, I have been reviewing this section a lot including the metabolic pathways genetics and other seemingly "high yield" material.

Cars wasn't bad, but I just suck at it.

I'm just trying to figure out how I can break the 128-129 mark on PS on the real thing Saturday. Going to go through the SB again I guess.

 

[mariposas905]

Lots of inference types, but I thought even the definition types were tricky and misleading too. I got 10 wrong on FL2 for 127 and then 14 wrong here for a 127. Just goes to show you how hard it was. Lots of 50/50 questions to me and I could've argued more than one correct for quite a few of them.

CP was a lot of calculations. Concept wise it was to me about the same as the others.
BB was the same if not a little easier to me than FL2. However, I have been reviewing this section a lot including the metabolic pathways genetics and other seemingly "high yield" material.

Cars wasn't bad, but I just suck at it.

I'm just trying to figure out how I can break the 128-129 mark on PS on the real thing Saturday. Going to go through the SB again I guess.

Thanks for sharing! Were the C/P calculations tough or simple/easy to manipulate if you knew the formulas? I'm definitely going to review all my formulas before I take FL 3. I keep forgetting the Physics ones! I feel like P/S is turning into a big crapshoot. It used to be my favorite section, but the P/S on the last MCAT I took was absolutely brutal. I know the material pretty well, but I think it depends on a lucky test day too