The Official November 7, 2014 MCAT Thread

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Hey all! I am signed up for this date. 8:00 a.m. Yikes!!! I am aiming hard to make 40+ my reality so hence me making this thread so early. A former lab- mate and current medical student had a ton of MCAT prep stuff she gave to me. So I have the Examcrackers set, Hyperlearning set, regular Princeton Review, audio osmosis, and practice MCAT tests from a variety of sources I also do the MCAT questions a day through email and on my phone (to help with super quick recall). I am officially studying legitimately now. Currently starting with Examcrackers. I'd love to hear from you all doing the same. Let's do this!!!
 
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Hey everyone!

I've been following the thread for awhile and decided to join in. I'm currently way behind in content review, but planning on preparing as fully as I can and taking the November exam anyway. Based on how well I feel I did/how lucky I get on passage topics I'll decide whether or not to void. I plan on taking a last-change exam in January regardless. I realized a little too late that the SDN 3-month plan is for someone who has a pretty decent grasp of the content going in. It's taking me more than a day to read/understand each TBR chapter.

How many of you took a diagnostic? Like the above poster, I don't want to waste a practice exam, but it'd be nice to have a feel for where I stand. Anyway, hope the studying is going well for everyone and I hope you're all ahead of me😱
 
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Do you guys always use the "turbo method" from TBR instead of traditional physics methods? I am finding it a bit difficult to learn, as I am used to doing it the traditional way. However, since timing is an issue of mine, I guess I have to try using turbo method. Any advice on how you guys overcame the challenge of using the turbo method?
 
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poop420 said:
have you taken a FL yet?? Everyone driving me crazy about taking one .. The I see people on this thread taking them makes me feel like im behind ... But I start limiting my time on this site to focus more about me and doing things in my own time ....
Click to expand...

I have taken 3. That's all. Not gonna take anymore until content is forever .....over. Lol
 
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IcyMedPath said:
Do you guys always use the "turbo method" from TBR instead of traditional physics methods? I am finding it a bit difficult to learn, as I am used to doing it the traditional way. However, since timing is an issue of mine, I guess I have to try using turbo method. Any advice on how you guys overcame the challenge of using the turbo method?
Click to expand...
What is the turbo method??
 
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Perry6 said:
Do you guys/gals think a Kaplan would be a good place to take my first FL? I don't want to waste an AAMC! If so, and one in specific? Or are there any ones you'd recommend more online? I have already read through AAMC 3 🙁
Click to expand...

I'm doing their free online one tomorrow because like you I didn't want to waste a AAMC!
 
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DrButt2112 said:
Hey everyone!

I've been following the thread for awhile and decided to join in. I'm currently way behind in content review, but planning on preparing as fully as I can and taking the November exam anyway. Based on how well I feel I did/how lucky I get on passage topics I'll decide whether or not to void. I plan on taking a last-change exam in January regardless. I realized a little too late that the SDN 3-month plan is for someone who has a pretty decent grasp of the content going in. It's taking me more than a day to read/understand each TBR chapter.

How many of you took a diagnostic? Like the above poster, I don't want to waste a practice exam, but it'd be nice to have a feel for where I stand. Anyway, hope the studying is going well for everyone and I hope you're all ahead of me😱
Click to expand...
I have already taken the AAMC 3, and will be taking a Kaplan free diagnostic tomorrow (only so I don't waste a AAMC) to see where I am. I am on the same page as you with content review taking more time because my content foundation was very weak in chem, physics, and organic. I will actually probably postpone for Jan or if I improve drastically, stick with Nov.
 
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PhysicsFailure said:
I have already taken the AAMC 3, and will be taking a Kaplan free diagnostic tomorrow (only so I don't waste a AAMC) to see where I am. I am on the same page as you with content review taking more time because my content foundation was very weak in chem, physics, and organic. I will actually probably postpone for Jan or if I improve drastically, stick with Nov.
Click to expand...
I just tried signing up for that and it was such a pain!! Please let me know if there is a secret to signing up for it 🙂
 
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PhysicsFailure said:
I have already taken the AAMC 3, and will be taking a Kaplan free diagnostic tomorrow (only so I don't waste a AAMC) to see where I am. I am on the same page as you with content review taking more time because my content foundation was very weak in chem, physics, and organic. I will actually probably postpone for Jan or if I improve drastically, stick with Nov.
Click to expand...

Amen sister...to being weak. I am gonna do some Kaplan quizzes today to see where I am at.
 
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Perry6 said:
I just tried signing up for that and it was such a pain!! Please let me know if there is a secret to signing up for it 🙂
Click to expand...

Not sure if there is a secret! Ha. I think I did have to make a login, then go back through to sign up.

But I tried to login last night just to make sure and it seemed their server was down or something??
 
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linlintran said:
I didnt even start yet 🙁 Im hoping to find a study buddy who hasnt started yet lol
Click to expand...


well I started much earlier so i guess thats an unfair question. (pushed back my date twice lol)

will be taken my first FL tomorrow. I will be done with my Content review and will gauge where I stand
 
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PhysicsFailure said:
I have already taken the AAMC 3, and will be taking a Kaplan free diagnostic tomorrow (only so I don't waste a AAMC) to see where I am. I am on the same page as you with content review taking more time because my content foundation was very weak in chem, physics, and organic. I will actually probably postpone for Jan or if I improve drastically, stick with Nov.
Click to expand...

Just a heads up about the Kaplan diagnostic:

I took it a few years ago and IIRC, the curve is overly (and unrealistically) lenient.
 
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I will just say that Kaplan is the worst indicator. Based on their results, I have gotten WORSE taking the MCAT after studying (from previously not studying) and that my understanding of the English language is subpar to say the least.

There goes my confidence. I'm going to go postpone to a January test date now...
 
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DrButt2112 said:
Hey everyone!

I've been following the thread for awhile and decided to join in. I'm currently way behind in content review, but planning on preparing as fully as I can and taking the November exam anyway. Based on how well I feel I did/how lucky I get on passage topics I'll decide whether or not to void. I plan on taking a last-change exam in January regardless. I realized a little too late that the SDN 3-month plan is for someone who has a pretty decent grasp of the content going in. It's taking me more than a day to read/understand each TBR chapter.

How many of you took a diagnostic? Like the above poster, I don't want to waste a practice exam, but it'd be nice to have a feel for where I stand. Anyway, hope the studying is going well for everyone and I hope you're all ahead of me😱
Click to expand...

TPR Diagnostic: Around 27.
Kaplan Diagnostic: Around 34 (again, like I've said, overly lenient curve)

I didn't really find taking a diagnostic to be that useful. Perhaps the only thing that helped was to know I had to take content review seriously.
 
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PhysicsFailure said:
I will just say that Kaplan is the worst indicator. Based on their results, I have gotten WORSE taking the MCAT after studying (from previously not studying) and that my understanding of the English language is subpar to say the least.

There goes my confidence. I'm going to go postpone to a January test date now...
Click to expand...
Why are you going to make one practice test make you reschedule or I am just way too sleep deprived to notice the sarcasm ?
 
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texan2414 said:
I will be incorporating Anki flashcards in my study schedule. I found a great tutorial for this software at:

Thought I would share this with everyone.
Click to expand...

I downloaded that before and had a horrible time figuring out how to use it. Never had the interest of browsing on youtube to find out, but now that it's right there, I just might! haha, thanks!
 
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I now someone who used nothing but anki to cover content and was scoring steady 40s on her AAMC exams .. To get the most out of them you have to make them yourself .. I am a slow reader and take a while to understand things so I dont think its wise for me personally to add to my very little time available so I mostly stay away from an anki but I do recommend it to the kids I tutor .
 
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Anyone else feel like they're getting so bored with Verbal?
I'm starting to really hate forcing myself day in and day out to read articles I'm not interested in just so I can be ready for the Verbal section of the exam.
I think I'm in that state where I need to get back to reading things I enjoy to liven up my mind again, and then perhaps I can get back to these relatively dull, wordy, and complicated articles. (Note: I read articles in journals and news reports, such as The New Yorker, Scientific American, etc. to practice my reading for Verbal passages.)
 
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Oh and anyone else also feel their legs going numb from sitting for hours at your desk? lol, my study sessions and my breaks are all at the desk. i swear i feel to move around more to get that blood flowing!
 
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j9260 said:
Anyone else feel like they're getting so bored with Verbal?
I'm starting to really hate forcing myself day in and day out to read articles I'm not interested in just so I can be ready for the Verbal section of the exam.
I think I'm in that state where I need to get back to reading things I enjoy to liven up my mind again, and then perhaps I can get back to these relatively dull, wordy, and complicated articles. (Note: I read articles in journals and news reports, such as The New Yorker, Scientific American, etc. to practice my reading for Verbal passages.)
Click to expand...
Not necessarily bored, but having a hard time prioritizing with my other classes and studying for PS/BS.
It sometimes feels like a waste of time...
 
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Perry6 said:
Not necessarily bored, but having a hard time prioritizing with my other classes and studying for PS/BS.
It sometimes feels like a waste of time...
Click to expand...
I give you all who are juggling mcats with class some HUGE props.
I really hope you'll be able to push through and do well to keep your GPA and MCAT scores up.
Cheering you on, Perry!! Are you keeping up with hobbies that you enjoy? For instance, I'm trying to hit the gym on a daily basis because it just feels so good to work hard on something other than studying...haha
 
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j9260 said:
Oh and anyone else also feel their legs going numb from sitting for hours at your desk? lol, my study sessions and my breaks are all at the desk. i swear i feel to move around more to get that blood flowing!
Click to expand...
I honestly look forward to practicing verbal. It is something I don't wanna miss. A lot of the passages are actually quite interesting, I just read yesterday in Ek 7 that humans evolved through Darwins theory of evolution is most likely not true. There are three types of subjects that I constantly get wrong answers: First off the passages that are about law and judges....why is there so many!!! I am really bad at those. And I always feel like they ask the same general questions about why a judge can judge but I always get those wrong. Second, I really do not like the passages that involve economics. I just can't seem to put the whole economical view in perspective. Even when it is an interesting economics passage (EK had a passage where they argued that selling babies is economically viable!) I still miss questions. Finally for some reason I struggle with the passages that involve school with some sort of problem i.e. gun violence, bullies, education. Those passages are not difficult but I always get misdirected by their questions.

Anyways, I digressed lol. To answer your question, no I do not. I do not read anything other than Game of Thrones for practice outside my verbal passages. It is something I enjoy. So perhaps you are right. Cool.
 
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j9260 said:
Oh and anyone else also feel their legs going numb from sitting for hours at your desk? lol, my study sessions and my breaks are all at the desk. i swear i feel to move around more to get that blood flowing!
Click to expand...

I set a timer to go off every 50 minutes. I take a 10 minute break. Walk around, do some pushups, get a drink of water, get some sunlight and fresh air.
 
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Janus_Kinase said:
I honestly look forward to practicing verbal. It is something I don't wanna miss. A lot of the passages are actually quite interesting, I just read yesterday in Ek 7 that humans evolved through Darwins theory of evolution is most likely not true. There are three types of subjects that I constantly get wrong answers: First off the passages that are about law and judges....why is there so many!!! I am really bad at those. And I always feel like they ask the same general questions about why a judge can judge but I always get those wrong. Second, I really do not like the passages that involve economics. I just can't seem to put the whole economical view in perspective. Even when it is an interesting economics passage (EK had a passage where they argued that selling babies is economically viable!) I still miss questions. Finally for some reason I struggle with the passages that involve school with some sort of problem i.e. gun violence, bullies, education. Those passages are not difficult but I always get misdirected by their questions.

Anyways, I digressed lol. To answer your question, no I do not. I do not read anything other than Game of Thrones for practice outside my verbal passages. It is something I enjoy. So perhaps you are right. Cool.
Click to expand...


Yeah I totally CANNOT do well on economics, law stuff, or political things. And of course any abstract art or philosophy that is literally talking about nothing. But just as a warning Ek passages are way more interesting than TPRH or aamc (only took one verbal flight)

I think our problem is deciphering information from material that we don't know or care to much about. Its hard to answer questions on a passage that you are thinking (uhmm..who cares or what's going on)
 
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imran1011 said:
Yeah I totally CANNOT do well on economics, law stuff, or political things. And of course any abstract art or philosophy that is literally talking about nothing. But just as a warning Ek passages are way more interesting than TPRH or aamc (only took one verbal flight)

I think our problem is deciphering information from material that we don't know or care to much about. Its hard to answer questions on a passage that you are thinking (uhmm..who cares or what's going on)
Click to expand...
Oh boy I have that to look forward then. I have the TPR WB, done all the practice passages but still haven't done any of the verbal tests. I was gonna do them when I am done with EK ( currently on EK #9 ). I was also thinking about getting the aamc SA for verbal. What do you think?
 
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Is anyone else good with PS, but terrible with pathways, mitosis, and random other intro biochem and bio stuff, but good with physiology? I feel like I always kind of blew off the first test that covered fundamentals in my bio classes and then just kind of played catch-up.
 
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After missing so many days. I'm going to have to devise a ridiculous modification to the SN2ed schedule. Still have a lot of chapters to go. At this point I'm going to focus on my weak subtopics first then think about my strengths later.
 
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How's everyone doing with their studies? I will admit, I am getting nerves lately seeing these August threads. It seems that no matter how well you study, or how well you do on the Practice exams, how you approach the test on test day is the most significant aspect in regards to doing well.

Doing passages after passages today timed within TBR and TPRHSW, plus verbal. Hoping to really master the PS.
 
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Carbon090 said:
How's everyone doing with their studies? I will admit, I am getting nerves lately seeing these August threads. It seems that no matter how well you study, or how well you do on the Practice exams, how you approach the test on test day is the most significant aspect in regards to doing well.

Doing passages after passages today timed within TBR and TPRHSW, plus verbal. Hoping to really master the PS.
Click to expand...
Yeah seriously. Some threads you read many people get their average or better, but in others it seems many score below their average. I guess it ultimately comes down to test day and what the MCAT gods give us lol.

I have about two chapters left from each of Part II books from TBR. Do timed verbal exams each day. Hopefully by October I'll be ready to start taking FLs
 
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@Janus_Kinase

The passages from TBR- are you doing these timed or untimed?
Also, I restarted VR practice today after taking a 4-day VR break. I took a break because I was stuck scoring 63/65% on Kaplan VR Section Tests (1-3) and EK 101 same % score.
Took Kaplan VR Section Test 4 and scored 63% again 🙁 Really disappointed.... I desperately want to be in the 70-75% range on these exams so I would start to feel a bit more secure about VR performance.

I took AAMC 3 verbal section and managed to get 12 on it (35/40) but the predictive value of it is somewhat lost because I have already done AAMCs last year 🙁

How is everyone's verbal coming along?
 
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texan2414 said:
@Janus_Kinase

The passages from TBR- are you doing these timed or untimed?
Also, I restarted VR practice today after taking a 4-day VR break. I took a break because I was stuck scoring 63/65% on Kaplan VR Section Tests (1-3) and EK 101 same % score.
Took Kaplan VR Section Test 4 and scored 63% again 🙁 Really disappointed.... I desperately want to be in the 70-75% range on these exams so I would start to feel a bit more secure about VR performance.

I took AAMC 3 verbal section and managed to get 12 on it (35/40) but the predictive value of it is somewhat lost because I have already done AAMCs last year 🙁

How is everyone's verbal coming along?
Click to expand...
I am doing the TBR passages timed. Taken a few of the verbal tests but they are way harder than EK or TPRH!! So far I have done EK101 tests 1-9, TBR tests 1-6, and only done the practice passages for TPRH. I am really aiming for a 10 or better on verbal 😱 Haven't taken any aamc verbal so I can't forsure say where I am at.

Yeah I see what you mean. Well at least you still got other aamc tests and even SA if you haven't done it.
 
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texan2414 said:
@Janus_Kinase

The passages from TBR- are you doing these timed or untimed?
Also, I restarted VR practice today after taking a 4-day VR break. I took a break because I was stuck scoring 63/65% on Kaplan VR Section Tests (1-3) and EK 101 same % score.
Took Kaplan VR Section Test 4 and scored 63% again 🙁 Really disappointed.... I desperately want to be in the 70-75% range on these exams so I would start to feel a bit more secure about VR performance.

I took AAMC 3 verbal section and managed to get 12 on it (35/40) but the predictive value of it is somewhat lost because I have already done AAMCs last year 🙁

How is everyone's verbal coming along?
Click to expand...

My verbal (TBR) is Meh. 60% is average. How crappy! The humanities ...passages are destroying me ...no matter how hard I read them. I love humanities... But GOD MY PASSAGES do not reflect that. Science passages and everything else is cake walk. Meh. I plan on finishing TBR and then EKVERBAL/TPRH..... 🙁
 
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nystin said:
My verbal (TBR) is Meh. 60% is average. How crappy! The humanities ...passages are destroying me ...no matter how hard I read them. I love humanities... But GOD MY PASSAGES do not reflect that. Science passages and everything else is cake walk. Meh. I plan on finishing TBR and then EKVERBAL/TPRH..... 🙁
Click to expand...
Will you have enough time to complete all of that?
Only reason I didn't purchase TBR VR is because of bad reviews that exist.
 
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texan2414 said:
Will you have enough time to complete all of that?
Only reason I didn't purchase TBR VR is because of bad reviews that exist.
Click to expand...

Gonna try.... Also I have also read bad reviews about verbal but I wanna practice anyway. I am sure it's not hurting.... I hope.
 
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texan2414 said:
@Janus_Kinase

The passages from TBR- are you doing these timed or untimed?
Also, I restarted VR practice today after taking a 4-day VR break. I took a break because I was stuck scoring 63/65% on Kaplan VR Section Tests (1-3) and EK 101 same % score.
Took Kaplan VR Section Test 4 and scored 63% again 🙁 Really disappointed.... I desperately want to be in the 70-75% range on these exams so I would start to feel a bit more secure about VR performance.

I took AAMC 3 verbal section and managed to get 12 on it (35/40) but the predictive value of it is somewhat lost because I have already done AAMCs last year 🙁

How is everyone's verbal coming along?
Click to expand...

Randomly butting in but I've heard that the AAMCs are usually forgotten over 3-4 months and still have value.
 
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I am noticing a difference just by doing practice questions...
I skipped content review and have been doing questions from EK Bio and my practice passage scores have gone from 2-3 to 7. Sometimes I feel like this whole thing is about taking the test, not necessarily knowing the material.
Keep up the good work everyone! We got this! :claps:
 
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texan2414 said:
@Janus_Kinase

The passages from TBR- are you doing these timed or untimed?
Also, I restarted VR practice today after taking a 4-day VR break. I took a break because I was stuck scoring 63/65% on Kaplan VR Section Tests (1-3) and EK 101 same % score.
Took Kaplan VR Section Test 4 and scored 63% again 🙁 Really disappointed.... I desperately want to be in the 70-75% range on these exams so I would start to feel a bit more secure about VR performance.

I took AAMC 3 verbal section and managed to get 12 on it (35/40) but the predictive value of it is somewhat lost because I have already done AAMCs last year 🙁

How is everyone's verbal coming along?
Click to expand...
I have a tip that might help you! I have been completely ignoring the silly explanations that EK and TPRH give, and I write down the correct answer, refer back to the passage and figure out WHY for myself. It has helped me tremendously.
Keep us updated!!
 
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