What is the best book for verbal ability?

[UNC PharmD]

I bought Kaplan 2012-2013 book it is great for everything except verbal ability.
Anyone can suggest a book for me?

Thank you

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[megandupe]

I bought Kaplan 2012-2013 book it is great for everything except verbal ability.
Anyone can suggest a book for me?

Thank you

I'd say its ok for everything, except reading comp. its best for bio. verbal ability isnt that hard of a section, some of the tricks they have are dumb, but some are useful.

 

[DH1987]

I also wondered about this. I was looking at some sample tests of the verbal section of the PCAT, and there is a lot of crazy vocabulary! Words like "Lilliputian", "Miscreant", "Hedonistic", "Inundate", "Paucity", "Arboreal", "Malefactor", "Comestible"...words I've never heard of. How would I study for this? Should I just study a dictionary? lol

I feel pretty confident about Biology, Chemistry, writing, and reading comprehension, but the verbal section scares me to death...

 

[enabler]

If you are just looking for terms to study, Kaplan's GRE 500 words flash cards might be useful to you.

 

[harmonidrum]

Haha 5 of those words you mentioned are already in my flashcard list which is only around 500 words so far. I am using "Kaplan Word Power", Kaplan GRE in a box(NOT that great, cards are super flimsy and seems like I already knew over 60% of them), Merriam Webster Vocabulary Builder, and these 1500 GRE words I printed offline (google it). Also you may want to study the GRE "hotlist" (google it). The last two resources are free. What I am doing is going through Vocab Builder and Kaplan WP, highlighting new words and then transferring them to cut up note cards to quickly go through. If you have to buy one item I would recommend Word Power, 2nd best is the Builder. GRE box was disappointing.

 

[UNC PharmD]

thank you
you really helped me

 

[rxlea]

OK, those words up there are pretty common (except lilliputian). You guys need to read more! Seriously, that is the best way to learn new words. Read the newspaper, magazines, anything "scholarly". Memorizing the words for the test may get you a decent score but if you want to totally rock that section, you need to understand the NUANCES of the words...words can have multiple meanings and with analogies, I can promise you that there will be some questions where they don't want the most common definition/meaning of the word.

The GRE books are far superior to the PCAT study book verbal section, IMHO.

Or, use this: http://www.testprepreview.com/vocabulary.htm

 

[harmonidrum]

I would have to agree with rxlea's sentiment wholeheartedly, and I would like to add a little to it. I currently get 2 magazine subscriptions, National Geographic and New Scientist. By reading journals/magazines, you can kill two birds with one stone, learning/ integrating new vocabulary and the added bonus of better performance on the reading comprehension section (one would only hope!). I highly recommend reading some science magazines or journals if you aren't in the habit already.

 

[chemguy79]

One key thing to remember is that there isn't one guaranteed way of studying that works for everyone.

There are some people who thank Dr. Collins' study guide on a daily basis. There are others who have used it who say that it didn't help them at all. Your mileage will vary.

Bottom line, you (being the student) should know what you need to study prior to taking an exam. If you're weak on vocabulary, focus on that. If your reading comprehension skills are poor, focus on that. However, if you don't know what you need to do to improve a skill aside from knowing that you're deficient in that area, you're not going to get the bang for your buck regardless of the amount of time and effort that you put into the area.

I think that rxlea's suggestions are great. However, you should know or attempt to figure out where your weaknesses are and focus on that.

 

[DH1987]

So how many hours total do you guys think I should spend on reading scholarly journals and magazines? I would like to be able to take the PCAT by September 28, but I'm not sure if that is feasible, considering that I also want to take Organic Chemistry II and a Pharmacy Technician course this summer, as well as work. Both will be done by September 1, so I would then have about 27 days to study for the PCAT. How many hours per day would you suggest reading scholarly material from today to September 27?

 

[harmonidrum]

as many as possible!

 

[chemguy79]

So how many hours total do you guys think I should spend on reading scholarly journals and magazines? I would like to be able to take the PCAT by September 28, but I'm not sure if that is feasible, considering that I also want to take Organic Chemistry II and a Pharmacy Technician course this summer, as well as work. Both will be done by September 1, so I would then have about 27 days to study for the PCAT. How many hours per day would you suggest reading scholarly material from today to September 27?

Question: What are your expectations from reading scholarly articles and magazines?

 

[DH1987]

Question: What are your expectations from reading scholarly articles and magazines?

Mainly to gain the vocabulary necessary to do well on the verbal part of the PCAT, and to better reading comprehension as well, though I don't think I need as much help in that department. I'm pretty confident with analogies and the "fill-in-the-blank" questions, but it seems to me that in order to do the analogies I must first know the definitions of the words, because many of these words seem to lack connotations that might hint toward their meaning.

I thought vocabulary wouldn't be a problem for me, but those words up there pretty much stumped me. And someone in this thread said those are pretty common words, which tells me I'm going to need much work on my vocabulary...

 

[KaplanPatrick]

Hey guys!

Just wanted to let you know you can reach out to me if you have any questions on the Kaplan PCAT books. Please don't hesitate to PM me!

Happy Studies!

Pat

 

[chemguy79]

Mainly to gain the vocabulary necessary to do well on the verbal part of the PCAT, and to better reading comprehension as well, though I don't think I need as much help in that department. I'm pretty confident with analogies and the "fill-in-the-blank" questions, but it seems to me that in order to do the analogies I must first know the definitions of the words, because many of these words seem to lack connotations that might hint toward their meaning.

I thought vocabulary wouldn't be a problem for me, but those words up there pretty much stumped me. And someone in this thread said those are pretty common words, which tells me I'm going to need much work on my vocabulary...

If that's what you're looking for, I would recommend spending some time memorizing the 300 most common words for the GRE and items to that effect.

I think that it's important to get acclimated to reading 5-6 paragraph scientific passages, however, if you're worried about definitions, I would use websites to improve your vocabulary as well. I downloaded some of the free GRE applications to my iPhone and used them religiously before taking the PCAT.

Granted, I had to read mentally exhausting journal articles while writing my MS thesis, but the passages on the PCAT aren't THAT difficult. If anything, it's difficult answering the questions that describe an author's tone, intent, which sentence best justifies the author's thesis statement, etc. While reading passages isn't necessarily a bad idea, I don't think that it is the most efficient use of your time given the concerns that you have regarding the section on the exam.

Good luck!

 

[DH1987]

Cool, thanks for your input, chemguy79. I'll have to check those GRE applications out.

 

[pharm357]

Hey guys!

Just wanted to let you know you can reach out to me if you have any questions on the Kaplan PCAT books. Please don't hesitate to PM me!

Happy Studies!

Pat

Hello,
i am new to this forum and want to study for pcat. Is kaplan pcat enough by itself?