Time saving tips!!

[daffy726]

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Hey Guys!

I've never posted here before, but I've been reading all ur posts, and I think this site and all your suggestions are great!! 🙂
I know the MCAT is only a week away, and I'm getting 23s which is a little scary!! When I take practice tests with out any time pressure I get in the 30s though... Most of the questions that I have time for, I get right on the practice AAMCs, but no matter what I do I'm always left with 20-30 questions when time runs out! I just write b's straight down...
I was wondering if any of you are in the same situation as me, and if any of you have found a solution to this...
I'm trying to stop reading the passages in physics and bio, but sometimes that just makes it worse, and I end up reading the passage after each question! My verbal is just plain awful! I just read so slow... Any time saving tips that you can offer would be much appreciated!!

Thanks so much and good luck to you all!!

Daffy

 

[UTH2003]

These are pretty common sense and you probably already know all of this, but I saw that noone had responded to you yet, so here are some tips:

Every question is worth the same amount. Do the easy ones first, and if you run out of time, you will be guessing on the hardest ones anyways.

Don't bubble in until the very end. You save time by just circling on the test, and bubbling in the last two minutes (Don't get caught though!)

Don't underline on the test. Just make a little mark on the side if you feel you have to.

Don't look at your watch every three minutes. I found myself doing that, and getting even more stressed out about time.

Relax. It is obvious that you know what you are doing, and can make 30s without time pressuring you. Just go in confident and do what you have been killing yourself for the past three months!!

 

[coredump]

Just to add to UTH's comments...

1) I wouldn't just skip over the passages entirely - unless it's a last ditch effort during the end of a section. Instead, skim the passages to prime your brain for the type of questions that will probably be coming next. Pay attention (just like Verbal) to buzzwords like "Thus", "However", etc. Don't get bogged down in the details of each passage - just get the jist of the experiment/argument/etc. Then refer back for the details.

2) Learn to let questions go. If you find yourself being bogged down by a question, mark it and move on. This way you might be able to cut down your leftover questions.

There may be plenty of "techniques" that will help you save a few minutes here-and-there. But, the more practice you do and the more comfortable you get with the material - the faster you will be able to answer the questions.

Good luck this Saturday. I'll be sweating it out with you. 🙂

 

[Street Philosopher]

step 1 in going faster: CALM DOWN. the more nervous you are, the less you will retain, the more you will be confused, and the more you will panic.

step 2: read the bio and physics passages! they often have valuable, time saving information, as well as clues to answering the questions.

step 3: go in order and practice timing BEFORE the test so you don't have to constantly check your watch. skip the ones you can't answer after a while, and go back ONLY once you've completed the test and have extra time. otherwise, guess.

My advice only applies when you're planning your strategy a few weeks/months in advance, since they require you to practice working in this manner. I do NOT suggest you change to this strategy and hope it works overnight. But maybe this will help the august testers. Besides, if you have to guess on 30 questions per section, you are not ready to take the test.

 

[futuredo32]

I agree with some of the advice you've already been given. Skip the hard questions that you can do, but that require more than a minute or two to figure out.
Personally, I would suggest filling out the scantron at the end of each passage, because if you wait until the end and you misbubble, the results could be terrible.
On the verbal reasoning section, I would suggest spending 2-3 minutes, reading the passage to get the main idea of the passage and to know where to look for the answer when you are answering the questions.
Finally, after you've read the question, try to predict the answer before looking at the choices whenever possible.
I hope this helped.
GOOD LUCK!!!

 

[BushBaby]

Originally posted by UTH2003

Don't bubble in until the very end. You save time by just circling on the test, and bubbling in the last two minutes (Don't get caught though!)

Be careful with this one here...I had a nightmare about this bubbling thing.
Since you are already behind on time, you don't want to be stuck at the end, when time is almost up, trying to rush and bubble in answers(which might lead to misbubbling).

Trust me, you don't want to mess with bubbling.

 

[BushBaby]

Also I agree with the above poster (before me)....bubble at the end of each passage...that might be helpful.

 

[Lara]

One of my deep-dark secrets 😉 is that I had to void my first official MCAT (back in April 99) because I ran out of time to finish bubbling in verbal.

In the end it didn't make a difference since I was applying in Canada where the schools are non-rolling, and I did fine in August. But at the time it wasn't pretty and I felt like a total idiot, especially since I was already used to scantron exams. So be sure to give yourself time to spare - at least five minutes, or bubble after each section. If you do it at the end, DO NOT skip any bubbles - just take a guess and don't even think about it. That should prevent any "frameshift mutations".

Best of luck everyone! Hopefully you'll never have to face that beast again. 🙂