Verbal Dilemma

[JWP07]

Hey Everyone,

So I've been studying for the MCAT for the second time now and I am in the same position as last time. Idk if I should take the test in the end of May or June. I'm scoring fine in the science sections (9-12) but I can't do well in verbal! I took the advice of doing EK 101 and still see no improvement. My scores are between 5-7 on AAMC and TBR exams (usually on the low end for AAMC).

What do I do at this point? Should I take the test in a month and hope for the best? OR just work on verbal for months and take the test sometime next year. If I take it next year, what do I do in the meantime? I've exhausted BR and EK verbal books.

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[GeorgiadisMD]

Lol I had a friend who rushed the verbal and scored a 4. I wouldn't rush it.

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[JWP07]

Yeah I don't believe in rushing it either. How can I improve at this point?

 

[RSum]

I'd say reschedule your exam, to a later time such as June or July. There's really no magical formula for VR to spike up. It takes a gradual progression. If you need more time and take the test in July or August, perhaps you can still try to apply early by sending your primaries without the MCAT score.

 

[torshi]

Yeah I don't believe in rushing it either. How can I improve at this point?

I went from 3,4,6,8 and i take a EK verbal every other day, hopefully I can keep it up.

I followed the advice given on SDN, and answered the questions that pertain ONLY to the passages, their are a lot of legitimate answers, but the one pertaining to the passage is correct.

Read the passage slowly, underline if needed, most of the answers are in the passage if you go back and look. Read slow the first time so when you do have to go back you know exactly where to look.

 

[Jack Westin]

Verbal is all about strategy. It doesn't matter if you take it in one month or in a year, if you don't have a strategy, don't expect to improve by much. So my advice to you is find a strategy that you like and STICK to it.

Reading a lot for a year can help you with reading comprehension but the exam is much more than just understanding what each sentence says. In fact, the MCAT is designed to have sentences that no one taking the exam under timed conditions should understand. They want to see how you think in times of panic (the MCAT testing environment).

People who freak out about these sentences will read them over and over again, losing valuable time that could have been used on other passages/questions.

 

[btown8908]

Verbal is all about strategy. It doesn't matter if you take it in one month or in a year, if you don't have a strategy, don't expect to improve by much. So my advice to you is find a strategy that you like and STICK to it.

Reading a lot for a year can help you with reading comprehension but the exam is much more than just understanding what each sentence says. In fact, the MCAT is designed to have sentences that no one taking the exam under timed conditions should understand. They want to see how you think in times of panic (the MCAT testing environment).

People who freak out about these sentences will read them over and over again, losing valuable time that could have been used on other passages/questions.

This. People think your verbal score magically increases without having a strategy that you unrelentingly practice--honestly, I used Kaplan's strategy, as crappy as it was, but it worked. Why? Cuz I worked my tail off to make it work for me.

 

[JWP07]

This. People think your verbal score magically increases without having a strategy that you unrelentingly practice--honestly, I used Kaplan's strategy, as crappy as it was, but it worked. Why? Cuz I worked my tail off to make it work for me.

What if I have been using the same strategy for months and haven't seen improvement?

 

[qwerty2012]

VB needs a lot of time to improve. And I have the same problem as you do since I don't read a lot and all the passages from EK/TPR aren't helping that much.
Usually people do worst in VB comparatively since they are under stress. You don't want to gamble.

 

[PreMedOrDead]

Verbal, psh, it's as easy as crushing an ant
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I actually read question stems before I read the passage. That way you can tell if the questions are going to be author-opinion-based, detail oriented or if the passage will be difficult. I just scanned the questions first then read, and that seemed to help a lot for me.

 

[ur2l8]

VB needs a lot of time to improve. And I have the same problem as you do since I don't read a lot and all the passages from EK/TPR aren't helping that much.
Usually people do worst in VB comparatively since they are under stress. You don't want to gamble.

What he says is true.
I actually find what they say above about it all being about strategy untrue. There is an element about strategy, but to me it's all reading comprehension. I scored a 15 on verbal on nearly all my AAMC FLs (ended up with 13 on test, go figure) and I think reading is a large part of it. I've read all my life and read the news daily. I only really "practiced" verbal using the my friends old Kaplan stuff for a couple weeks. I found it came very naturally to me-but I attribute this entirely to reading as a youth. There is an element of speed, but I feel that adequate time is given. Basically, the way I saw it, if I had to read over a passage more than twice (or even once), I didn't understand well enough on the first go. Make sure you don't waste time and have complete focus. Complete focus is critical. I suggest whispering the passage to yourself as you read and picturing the events. Speed reading is stupid. Read as normally-so as long as not too slow. Usually it took me 3-4 minutes per passage. Good luck! And also, read things unrelated to medicine. It helps.


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[btown8908]

What if I have been using the same strategy for months and haven't seen improvement?

Then switch to a new strategy? I sure hope you're not using Kaplan's...it's not something to get anxiety over though. You may just have to adopt the tried and true method of scanning the passage and just answering the questions directly. Or, you could just look at the questions and go back to the passage to answer them. Best of luck.