what to study when taking the pcat in two weeks and didnt start

[member111]

i have the 2008-2009 kaplan book when i took the diagnostic test i did decently in all sections besides bio i only got 8 out of 24 right.

What sections of Bio should i focus on with 2 weeks left before i take the test?

I took gen bio two summers ago and havent taken A and P yet.

I took gen chem ths past summer and thats what i spent my summer studying but i havent taken any organic chem yet. i'm taking it this semester

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[member111]

I took the pcat today and i want to laugh in all your faces (only those that didnt think I could get a great score)

VA 461 99
BIO 434 90
RC 419 75
QA 402 45 really didnt have enough time to finish left about 10
Chem 430 85

Composite: 429 90th percentile

 

[xtsukiyox]

I took the pcat today and i want to laugh in all your faces (only those that didnt think I could get a great score)

VA 461 99
BIO 434 90
RC 419 75
QA 402 45 really didnt have enough time to finish left about 10
Chem 430 85

Composite: 429 90th percentile

Nice job.

I don't think anyone said they thought you couldn't get a great score? I think we were more debating what could or couldn't be crammed in 2 weeks. Academics for ya.

 

[Kansas Pharmer]

I took the pcat today and i want to laugh in all your faces (only those that didnt think I could get a great score)

VA 461 99
BIO 434 90
RC 419 75
QA 402 45 really didnt have enough time to finish left about 10
Chem 430 85

Composite: 429 90th percentile

Impressive. There is something to be said about cramming. I know that my synapses are nowhere numberous enough to do that though

 

[R2pharmD2]

Impressive. There is something to be said about cramming. I know that my synapses are nowhere numberous enough to do that though

Don't be fooled. Someone with a 3.97 GPA did well on the PCAT, and I doubt it was because they spent the last 2 weeks cramming

 

[member111]

Don't be fooled. Someone with a 3.97 GPA did well on the PCAT, and I doubt it was because they spent the last 2 weeks cramming

thanks for your confidence in me!!!

 

[chemguy79]

Don't be fooled. Someone with a 3.97 GPA did well on the PCAT, and I doubt it was because they spent the last 2 weeks cramming

Exactly. The student did well because of his strong GPA, not because of what he did in the last 2 weeks to prepare for the exam.

As xtsukiyox stated, NO ONE said that the OP wouldn't do well. We questioned the merits of cramming new material at this time.

Therefore, OP, what did YOU do in the last 2 weeks? Did you try to memorize new material or did you focus on what you already knew (as some of us on SDN stated)?

 

[xtsukiyox]

I agree, I think the answer to chemguy79's question will make this thread complete. Hopefully, someone will find it useful if they find themselves in the same situation. Nothing like advice from someone who's done it.

 

[member111]

Exactly. The student did well because of his strong GPA, not because of what he did in the last 2 weeks to prepare for the exam.

As xtsukiyox stated, NO ONE said that the OP wouldn't do well. We questioned the merits of cramming new material at this time.

Therefore, OP, what did YOU do in the last 2 weeks? Did you try to memorize new material or did you focus on what you already knew (as some of us on SDN stated)?

I mainly focused on bio. Read Kaplan and a little bit of Cliff notes. Reviewed chemistry the day before (I had taken gen chem and studied for it all through the summer). Did a quick overview of calc hoping to absorb something (obviously I didnt). And did a quick overview of organic chem nomenclature. Also took to pearson practice tests.

 

[futurpharmacis]

Exactly. The student did well because of his strong GPA, not because of what he did in the last 2 weeks to prepare for the exam.

As xtsukiyox stated, NO ONE said that the OP wouldn't do well. We questioned the merits of cramming new material at this time.

Therefore, OP, what did YOU do in the last 2 weeks? Did you try to memorize new material or did you focus on what you already knew (as some of us on SDN stated)?

Not everyone with strong GPAs can do well on the PCAT. Some people with 3.8+ scored below 30 on their PCAT, while some with 2.8 scored a 90 on the PCAT. A few people with high GPAs on this forum begged for help recently because of their low PCAT scores. I don't think GPA correlates with PCAT score. Some people may need more polishing up to do than others, regardless of their GPA.

 

[chemguy79]

Not everyone with strong GPAs can do well on the PCAT. Some people with 3.8+ scored below 30 on their PCAT, while some with 2.8 scored a 90 on the PCAT. A few people with high GPAs on this forum begged for help recently because of their low PCAT scores. I don't think GPA correlates with PCAT score. Some people may need more polishing up to do than others, regardless of their GPA.

I think that you've missed the boat with your reply to my post.

There are people who have high GPA's who perform poorly on the PCAT and vice versa. However, those are more frequently exceptions rather than the rule.

Furthermore, the circumstances with which you earn the GPA is the larger issue. I had a 3.5 GPA as a Biology and Chemistry double major if you were to exclude a year of 0.7 GPA. Said year of academic bliss made my cumulative GPA much lower than it would have been otherwise.

Therefore, GPA isn't always a direct correlation to performance on the PCAT. On that same token, one's cumulative GPA isn't always a correlation to academic success. By virtue of the manner with which the OP communicated on the thread, I surmised that he performed well in his classes and retained the material. There are people who ace exams, but dump their material accordingly. He said that he retained the material well, therefore, he performed well on the exam.

 

[owlegrad]

Not everyone with strong GPAs can do well on the PCAT. Some people with 3.8+ scored below 30 on their PCAT, while some with 2.8 scored a 90 on the PCAT. A few people with high GPAs on this forum begged for help recently because of their low PCAT scores. I don't think GPA correlates with PCAT score. Some people may need more polishing up to do than others, regardless of their GPA.

I don't think you understand correlation. Mind you I have no special access to any database, but I suspect that the majority of people who have a high GPA also have a high PCAT and vice versa. Correlation does not mean that 100% of the time the relationship holds true. In fact you cannot use correlation to predict any individual's actions or performance, it only shows trends. I would suspect that the trend is for the PCAT to reflect GPA.

It is one of the reasons I think the PCAT is pointless - in most cases it doesn't tell you anything you didn't already know and when it does conflict with GPA, GPA is almost certainly the better indicator of how the student will do in PSchool.

 

[DH1987]

Well, from what I've read about the PCAT, it was designed not only to test your concrete knowledge on the subjects, but also tests your ability to apply it. That being said, if you have a high GPA, you probably already know a thing or two about how to apply what you've learned, as most colleges already stress that aspect of education, I'm sure.

I can't help but think of the PCAT as a sort of a "last chance" offer for capable students who screwed around in their early years of college and need a chance to redeem themselves. I would fit into that category.

 

[chemguy79]

I can't help but think of the PCAT as a sort of a "last chance" offer for capable students who screwed around in their early years of college and need a chance to redeem themselves. I would fit into that category.

Ding, Ding, Ding.

That was exactly my approach to the PCAT. I viewed it as my chance to show that I know my stuff and one bad year of school was an anomaly relatively to my Bachelor's and graduate degree in Chemistry. Regardless of what I do in the future, a year of 0.7 GPA from 13 years ago is going to be on my transcript, therefore, I wanted a 99th percentile on the PCAT to balance that out.

 

[futurpharmacis]

I think that you've missed the boat with your reply to my post.

There are people who have high GPA's who perform poorly on the PCAT and vice versa. However, those are more frequently exceptions rather than the rule.

Furthermore, the circumstances with which you earn the GPA is the larger issue. I had a 3.5 GPA as a Biology and Chemistry double major if you were to exclude a year of 0.7 GPA. Said year of academic bliss made my cumulative GPA much lower than it would have been otherwise.

Therefore, GPA isn't always a direct correlation to performance on the PCAT. On that same token, one's cumulative GPA isn't always a correlation to academic success. By virtue of the manner with which the OP communicated on the thread, I surmised that he performed well in his classes and retained the material. There are people who ace exams, but dump their material accordingly. He said that he retained the material well, therefore, he performed well on the exam.

I see what you mean. Your earlier post was not as clear as it could be, so there was a misunderstanding.

 

[xtsukiyox]

Well, from what I've read about the PCAT, it was designed not only to test your concrete knowledge on the subjects, but also tests your ability to apply it. That being said, if you have a high GPA, you probably already know a thing or two about how to apply what you've learned, as most colleges already stress that aspect of education, I'm sure.

There's a good chance that if you have a high GPA, you've already mastered multiple choice / standardized testing and figured out test day anxiety. There are some who haven't had the experience or haven't gotten over the jitters, and I suspect they are a good number of the outliers with high GPA / low PCAT.

Really neither here nor there.

 

[owlegrad]

Ding, Ding, Ding.

That was exactly my approach to the PCAT. I viewed it as my chance to show that I know my stuff and one bad year of school was an anomaly relatively to my Bachelor's and graduate degree in Chemistry. Regardless of what I do in the future, a year of 0.7 GPA from 13 years ago is going to be on my transcript, therefore, I wanted a 99th percentile on the PCAT to balance that out.

Let's be candid here. Which is more impressive, a high PCAT or a graduate degree in Chemistry?

 

[chemguy79]

Let's be candid here. Which is more impressive, a high PCAT or a graduate degree in Chemistry?

Honestly owlegrad, I'm not really sure what an ad com would do with my academic resume. I've contacted the 5 schools that I'm interested in attending and I've heard varying opinions. One school flat out told me that they were concerned about a poor year of academic schooling 13 years ago. I actually laughed because I thought that it was extremely myopic (or long-sighted ... *chortles*) to focus on something like that.

 

[Kansas Pharmer]

Honestly owlegrad, I'm not really sure what an ad com would do with my academic resume. I've contacted the 5 schools that I'm interested in attending and I've heard varying opinions. One school flat out told me that they were concerned about a poor year of academic schooling 13 years ago. I actually laughed because I thought that it was extremely myopic (or long-sighted ... *chortles*) to focus on something like that.

Really? Dont think that is a school I would want to attend...

 

[owlegrad]

Honestly owlegrad, I'm not really sure what an ad com would do with my academic resume. I've contacted the 5 schools that I'm interested in attending and I've heard varying opinions. One school flat out told me that they were concerned about a poor year of academic schooling 13 years ago. I actually laughed because I thought that it was extremely myopic (or long-sighted ... *chortles*) to focus on something like that.

I guess it is true you just never know what to expect.

 

[DH1987]

13 years ago? Wow... I wonder what they would say to me, since my first 2 years of college were pretty weak. My first day in college was only 5 years ago.

 

[chemguy79]

The thing that irked me the most was that I was very interested in the school since it is a 3-year program in a part of the country that I would move to in a heartbeat. Since they don't require the PCAT, I sent them the transcripts, yada yada yada, etc. I'm glad that they were honest, but I wanted to call shenanigans.

However, in the application process, I feel like Oliver Twist asking for more gruel.

 

[Kansas Pharmer]

The thing that irked me the most was that I was very interested in the school since it is a 3-year program in a part of the country that I would move to in a heartbeat. Since they don't require the PCAT, I sent them the transcripts, yada yada yada, etc. I'm glad that they were honest, but I wanted to call shenanigans.

However, in the application process, I feel like Oliver Twist asking for more gruel.

Nice analogy I had to dig back a few years into the ol' brain matter to understand that one...

 

[chemtopharm]

Honestly owlegrad, I'm not really sure what an ad com would do with my academic resume. I've contacted the 5 schools that I'm interested in attending and I've heard varying opinions. One school flat out told me that they were concerned about a poor year of academic schooling 13 years ago. I actually laughed because I thought that it was extremely myopic (or long-sighted ... *chortles*) to focus on something like that.

Chemguy, did you earn a MS or Ph.D.? I'm curious because I'll be finishing my MS in chemistry this semester and have encountered the same attitudes from the schools I've contacted. One in particular told me that they hold graduate and undergraduate coursework to be equal, and simply lump your GPAs from each program together. Seems unfair (and a bit stupid) considering how much harder my grad classes were.

 

[futurpharmacis]

Honestly owlegrad, I'm not really sure what an ad com would do with my academic resume. I've contacted the 5 schools that I'm interested in attending and I've heard varying opinions. One school flat out told me that they were concerned about a poor year of academic schooling 13 years ago. I actually laughed because I thought that it was extremely myopic (or long-sighted ... *chortles*) to focus on something like that.

Out of curiosity, why did you choose pharmacy over chem? Wouldn't it be great to continue the path of chemistry?

 

[chemguy79]

chemtopharm, I'll send you an e-mail with the specifics on the schools that I contacted.

While I enjoy pharma research, the field is dying a rather rapid death. Tons of jobs are heading to China and India because the workforce is much cheaper. However, the FDA is insanely strict and there will always be some sort of a career for research chemists. Having said that ... Biotechnology, bioinformatics and the like are taking over the drug R&D field. I toyed with going back to school for that, but I prefer patient care to dealing with PCR and gene therapy. It's a personal preference, really.

 

[chemtopharm]

chemtopharm, I'll send you an e-mail with the specifics on the schools that I contacted.

cool, thanks a lot!

 

[831Daniel]

I've got another suggestion. How about take the practice tests and then study the material which you get wrong on the practice test. Study it well enough so that you could answer a variety of different questions about the same topic. Use the pearson practice tests, as they are the most accurate. In this way, you know that each topic you study will be pertinent and useful, and you can just work through as much material as you can in a two week period.

Also, definitely take the test and if you want you can use the "don't grade it" option at the end of the test and escape defeat at that point.