VR = free points?

[Sicilian]

Exactly why is this section so hard? If there are no prerequisites, other than a nodding familiarity with the English language, why isn't everyone scoring 13 or above? Is it the curve? Or there is something more? Maybe there's a "hidden secret" to this section that'll guarantee you double digits every time? One "discovery" I've made (sorry if it sounds obvious) is that the natural sciences passage is always the easiest one (based on AMCAS practice exams) . Feel free to offer tips on the other subsections. I am moving more and more towards the view that a partitioning-like approach is the best way to crack this monster.

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[Anastasis]

I think it's definitely the curve. Say you take a test in the class, and everyone makes above a 90, but the professor curves (really curving, not what most people think curving is)... so even if you got a 90, an A, it's the lowest grade in the class. Suddenly you're failing. Is it because you didn't understand the material? no, it's because you didn't understand it as well as the rest of the class.

On top of that I think alot of people can't read critically. They're used to reading for information that they can't read between the lines and make inferences.

but that's just my .02

 

[MarzMD]

Exactly why is this section so hard? If there are no prerequisites, other than a nodding familiarity with the English language, why isn't everyone scoring 13 or above? Is it the curve? Or there is something more? Maybe there's a "hidden secret" to this section that'll guarantee you double digits every time? One "discovery" I've made (sorry if it sounds obvious) is that the natural sciences passage is always the easiest one (based on AMCAS practice exams) . Feel free to offer tips on the other subsections. I am moving more and more towards the view that a partitioning-like approach is the best way to crack this monster.

1. It is reading comprehension. Meaning, you have to interpret the very dense article in a limited amount of time. Try reading a scientific journal, or any scholarly article on a subject you have no interest in whatsoever.
2. The questions are very ambiguous at times. You have to chose the "best" answer using the authors tone and other characteristics of the writing that are not overtly obvious. Most of the time there will be two answers that seem right and since the curve is so strict, you cant afford to miss any.

 

[Senor Fish]

I think it is the time pressure that makes it hard for most people.

I personally ignored all the advice of taking notes, summarizing the main idea, blah blah blah.

I just read the passages CAREFULLY once through, did them in order, returned back to passage occassionally if the question demanded it, and I finished every time.

Good luck.

 

[HunterGatherer]

On top of that I think alot of people can't read critically. They're used to reading for information that they can't read between the lines and make inferences.

but that's just my .02

This was my problem. I had to learn how to do this. In high school I complained to my teacher many times "how do we really know the author thinks that".I really did not put any effort into it at the time because I thought it was a concept that was unteachable and a lot of BS. I got over the attitude though.

Also Verbal is not the toughest section because all sections are curved and should be equally as tough. It should depend on the indivual. I think you see a lot of people complaining about it though because there is nothing to memorize and apply like in BS or PS. Also a lot of us are science majors and want to read material that supplies only information and not opinions.

The dearth of information to improve verbal is probably also a problem. What do people consider the best verbal prep? doing a ton of vebal exams and reading critically. kaplan has about 5 pages of info on verbal and EK has about the same. That's all that is really needed and a lot of time reading critically and learning to understand the question format.

It's easy to get sucked into hunting for the answers of ONE question for 3 minutes. Time management is also an issue. I'm a slow reader and limited myself to spending about 45 seconds/ question and was usually finishing with 2 minutes to spare.

 

[McGillGrad]

The reason that most people hover around the 6-10 mark is because the last 4-6 questions become very heavily weighed.

For example, if you get all but 5 right, then you have a 12. If you get 1-2 more right, then you have a 13. Then for 14 you need all but 1-2 to be correct. And if you want a 15, you have to get all of the questions correct.

It varies from test to test but this is the general pattern.

 

[Saluki]

I think part of it is the curve, but part is natural aptitude. I always score near the top on verbal reasoning or reading comprehension, but never reach anywhere near the same point with physical sciences or math standardized tests. Also, it's one of the hardest things to improve. You can study and memorize stuff to help you with PS and BS, but if you're not already a fast reader, it may be hard to improve. That being said I went up a couple points after the first couple Kaplan tests because I got used to the type of questions they asked...

 

[Law2Doc]

Exactly why is this section so hard? If there are no prerequisites, other than a nodding familiarity with the English language, why isn't everyone scoring 13 or above? Is it the curve? Or there is something more? Maybe there's a "hidden secret" to this section that'll guarantee you double digits every time? One "discovery" I've made (sorry if it sounds obvious) is that the natural sciences passage is always the easiest one (based on AMCAS practice exams) . Feel free to offer tips on the other subsections. I am moving more and more towards the view that a partitioning-like approach is the best way to crack this monster.

It's an issue of practice -- the section somewhat tests reading comprehension, but mostly tests applying what you ahve read to absurdly worded and designed questions where you often have to pick a not always exactly accurate best answer. As with every other section of the test, it is something you need to learn by practice -- if you practice these convoluted kinds of questions long enough, you will get better at them. Thus while there is no academic prerequisite for this section, there is the prerequisite of spending enough time practicing. An awful lot of very smart, avid reading types tend not to do amazing on this section because they consistantly narrow the answers down to two choices and pick the wrong one too often. As for the "easiest" section, it will likely depend on the paragraphs that cover subject matter you are most interested in, hence making it the least painful to read.

 

[Will Ferrell]

Exactly why is this section so hard? If there are no prerequisites, other than a nodding familiarity with the English language, why isn't everyone scoring 13 or above? Is it the curve? Or there is something more? Maybe there's a "hidden secret" to this section that'll guarantee you double digits every time? One "discovery" I've made (sorry if it sounds obvious) is that the natural sciences passage is always the easiest one (based on AMCAS practice exams) . Feel free to offer tips on the other subsections. I am moving more and more towards the view that a partitioning-like approach is the best way to crack this monster.

the VR section is bonkers. It's extremely hard if you don't have a strong reading background. I honestly believe getting 3/4 of those questions correct is an accomplishment and that gives you 8-10. When I took the real exam, it felt like I had little to no confidence in most my answers. There's so much grey area in that section. It's tough.

 

[sweetstuff25]

there is a weird curve for this section, when you look at the graph on aamc with the vr scores, there is a sharp peek at 6, and then it dips on 7 and rises up at 8 (not a typical bell curve). i'm curious what it takes to jump from the 6 to 8. very strange. i totally think it's type of the logical thinking process that people lack when they are getting 6's. once they acquire it, they can 'jump' to an 8. arrrghhh. enuf speculating.