Who is using EK VR101?

[Amit1]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

This **** is top notch. I look forward to abusing the verbal section properlike after I am done with all 11 tests.

My early scores on EK 101 are right on par with my AAMC scores so its pretty accurate. To those who used to find verbal a challenge - you really should buy this book. Also save about 8 tests to do with one month remaining before the real MCAT comes up - this way you have the best material for last.

Also does anyone have any results to post after using this book and taking the real thing?

 

[BobbyDylanFan]

Amit,

I think you answered your own question: your scores in 101 are on par with your AAMC scores....and I think others found the same. It was really interesting to read a post from Jon Orsay on the examkrackers website one day: He took a bunch of scores that people scored in his 101 book (from people who posted to his website) and he got the EXACT mean on the most recent AAMC test😱 Now that is what I call pretty decent stuff!!

 

[BushBaby]

I took my first EK 101 verbal passage yesterday.

I got a 6 🙁
I am not worried though. I was very tired (didn't sleep until 2am, the night before) and was also nervous because I just finished a class presentation 30minutes before I sat to take the passage. In addition, I was in the school library (noise factory)...but I checked ALL my answers to see how I made the wrong choices. I hope to keep doing about 1-2 sections every week until the exam day.

I know I can improve with constant practice.

 

[BobbyDylanFan]

Yeah don't worry BushBaby,

Those verbal scores are very veriable....like you said you were tired and stuff. I was constantly doing pretty good but was always over the time by about 5 min so I started to make myself finish on time and I saw my score drop 2 points....hopefully can remedy all of this before april

 

[DoubleOSeven]

hey, did you guys all buy the book from the ek website? what is the ek website btw?

 

[DrLady]

Originally posted by DoubleOSeven
hey, did you guys all buy the book from the ek website? what is the ek website btw?

The Ek website is: www.examkrackers.com

I should add that you can buy some ek books from www.doublediscount.com
www.amazon.com
www.b&n.com

 

[Rudy1223]

I dont agree on the reliability of EK 101 although I will finish taking the tests:


On the first test I got a 6 however on AAMC 4 I got a 10

**when I check my answers on the first EK test I totally diagreed with what they said was the correct answer. Maybe just the first test is flawed, but to this day I do not agree with their answers.

 

[Amit1]

VR101 is predicting that the new 60 question verbal sections will be a little tougher since there are a few less questions on it. The VR101 should be slightly harder than the new released AAMC 3-6 tests but about on par with the april 03 MCAT verbal section.

 

[wingy]

Yea I agree that the EK verbal is similar to the real MCAT exam. I took the MCAT in August and its about the same level of difficulty, if not more challenging, then the real exam. I just took one test today and it was definitely more of a challenge than the Prince Review verbal. My results showed that I really have to concentrate more on my verbal results.

 

[BushBaby]

Can someone please keep me updated with their EK Verbal 101 scores.

With my schedule being on crunch...I am waking up daily now at 5am to study for 3hrs before I head to work (at 8am). Anyway today I did the EK verbal passage 2 and I got a 9......

Now I should be happy going from a 6-9....because number one I was really exhausted (mentally) taking verbal exam 1. I was more at peace when taking verbal exam 2.

But should I get excited because I went from a 6 to a 9 or is the exam rigged so I can "feel" like I am improving? 🙄

 

[BushBaby]

Also can someone please help me double check with their EK verbal 101 book.

Verbal Exam #2, Question 10-the answer the back said "D" but the explanation said the answer was "C"

Verbal Exam #2, Question 15- the anwser in the back said "D" but the explanation said the answer was "C"

Verbal Exam #2, Question 49- the answer in the back said "D", the explanation said the answer was "B" (I might have this backwards....the answer in the back doesn't match up to the explained answer)

Just help me check...maybe it's my book.

 

[Amit1]

Bushbaby - examkrackers has all errata listed on www.examkrackers.com

Also here are my scores (which will answer another question of yours):

Exam 1: 8

Exam 2: 7

Exam 3: 12

Exam 4: 9

AAMC 3: 10

 

[BushBaby]

Originally posted by Amit1
Bushbaby - examkrackers has all errata listed on www.examkrackers.com

Also here are my scores (which will answer another question of yours):

Exam 1: 8

Exam 2: 7

Exam 3: 12

Exam 4: 9

AAMC 3: 10

Thanks Amit1. Where did you get the AAMC 3 from? I will take EK verbal exam #3 on saturday. I will see how that goes (but then again I will be taking it in the library).

The odd thing is that when I took exam #1, Ihad 5mins left. This morning when I took exam #2, I have 13mins left...I was like WTF? I even thought I skipped a passage or something. Guess I was reading too fast...

 

[mimi1]

Have you guys experienced a "verbal plateau"? I have taken EK101 1-6 and am getting all 9's and 10's. I am missing abou 14-17 questions and would really like to get it down to only 10 questions wrong at most. Do you guys have any ideas for overcoming a "plateau" in verbal???

 

[BushBaby]

Originally posted by mimi1
Have you guys experienced a "verbal plateau"? I have taken EK101 1-6 and am getting all 9's and 10's. I am missing abou 14-17 questions and would really like to get it down to only 10 questions wrong at most. Do you guys have any ideas for overcoming a "plateau" in verbal???

To Mimi and others...what setting do you take the exams in? Are you at home or in the library? Is it noisy or quiet?

Also do you just do the EK 101 and check your score or are you doing them in combo with another science material and doing a FULL exam (like a mock exam setup)?

 

[mimi1]

I'm taking the exams at home where it is relatively quiet (except for the hum of the refridgerator). I usually take an exam from EK timed and then score it. I then go over the questions that I got wrong and the ones that I wasn't sure about. I also try to identify WHY I got a problem wrong and to see if there are any patterns in the questions that I'm missing. But I still can't get over this "plateau" in scoring.

 

[Amit1]

How about everybody post their scores so we can see if there are any trends. As you can see my verbal scores are inconsistant as hell - ranging from 7 to 12 in EK material. I wish i could find a plateau.

Bushbaby, try AAMC's website - the AAMC 3 is free.

 

[Ramoray]

hey, not that i dont totally understand you wanting to keep improving but if you are consisently gettings 10s, and can keep doing that through all of EK, than on the real deal you will have condidence and probably perform similaly and many on the real thing will get nervous etc as they are not as practiced and consistent as you and also youll be that much more focused and that coud equate to you getting a couple more right, with in combination with others missing a couple more, that can get u a solid 11. And even if you get a 10. that is still really great! so id be happy and just keep working, im sure itll come!

 

[DoubleOSeven]

has one tried berkeley review's verbal workbook?

 

[Amit1]

EK 1: 8

EK 2: 7

EK 3: 12

EK 4: 9 (low)

AAMC 3: 10

EK 5: 9 (high)


Its kinda discouraging to make a 9 on EK 5. I still need to review EK 4 to see why I missed the questions I did. I want to be in the 11's or above when im finished with the book.

 

[BobbyDylanFan]

Amit,

Just for some extra reassurance, I think your scores are very good for EK 101 (esspecially that 12!). I think if you keep up the hard work you will score well come april. Make sure not to burn through all of that EK material that you like so much, so soon. IMO verbal scores are veriable with a lot of things...even the mood you are in when you take the test. Just keep doing what you are doing and you will be good.

The biggest problem I'm having is with the pacing of how fast to read/answer the questions in the time allotted. Anyways, keep up the good work.

Originally posted by Amit1
EK 1: 8

EK 2: 7

EK 3: 12

EK 4: 9 (low)

AAMC 3: 10

EK 5: 9 (high)


Its kinda discouraging to make a 9 on EK 5. I still need to review EK 4 to see why I missed the questions I did. I want to be in the 11's or above when im finished with the book.

 

[Amit1]

Thanks for the reassurance but I am really uncertain of my abilities. I think that the 12 was a once in a lifetime good score that I may never achieve again.

 

[BushBaby]

Here are my scores current scores:

Exam 1: 6

Exam 2: 9

Exam 3: 9

Exam 4: ?.......15? 😀 We'll see on Monday.


Are you guys going back over the wrong answers like the EK suggested in lecture of the lecture book?
Also, do you do that "main idea" stuff? I find it hard to come up with a main idea without taking too much time to think over what I just read...and I also scared of coming up with the wrong "main idea" and having that mess up my answer choices.

 

[ashkan33]

i just got the EK vr book this week. should i be doing them in blocks(full tests) or should i be doing a few(3-5) passages at a time and save a few full length tests for the end. i feel like i should be doing verbal everyday since i suck so bad at it. i've been doing TPR verbal up to now but i'm running out of those with no score improvement. what the f$#k am i doing wrong?

 

[solid snake]

Originally posted by ashkan33
i just got the EK vr book this week. should i be doing them in blocks(full tests) or should i be doing a few(3-5) passages at a time and save a few full length tests for the end. i feel like i should be doing verbal everyday since i suck so bad at it. i've been doing TPR verbal up to now but i'm running out of those with no score improvement. what the f$#k am i doing wrong?

I've been doing about 2-3 passages every other day and save some full length when time gets closer to test day. Yeah, I also suck at verbal and need to work on it every day, but if I do full length's each day, I would run out of passages. I've been getting straight 7's 😡 and scored an 8 on TPR Diag 483. Still need some work. I still don't know what my problem is. 😕

 

[DrLady]

Originally posted by solid snake
I've been doing about 2-3 passages every other day and save some full length when time gets closer to test day. Yeah, I also suck at verbal and need to work on it every day, but if I do full length's each day, I would run out of passages. I've been getting straight 7's 😡 and scored an 8 on TPR Diag 483. Still need some work. I still don't know what my problem is. 😕

Hi SS,
TPR diagnostics, all of them, are supposed to be difficult, so please don't feel bad if you got an 8 in it!!! Most people, when they take the diagnostic, they score less than 8 in it. I was one of them. But with practice, it shoots up! Getting an 8 in it is awesome! 🙂 I think that I may have to start going to B&N or Borders to start using their books for extra practice, if I may run out of practice passages.

I have a question. How does Kaplan comprehensive Review book of the latest edition, compare to the real thing? MY friend gave it to me for extra practice and I was just wondering.


thanks!

good luck everyone!

 

[solid snake]

Originally posted by DrLady
Hi SS,
TPR diagnostics, all of them, are supposed to be difficult, so please don't feel bad if you got an 8 in it!!! Most people, when they take the diagnostic, they score less than 8 in it. I was one of them. But with practice, it shoots up! Getting an 8 in it is awesome! 🙂 I think that I may have to start going to B&N or Borders to start using their books for extra practice, if I may run out of practice passages.

I have a question. How does Kaplan comprehensive Review book of the latest edition, compare to the real thing? MY friend gave it to me for extra practice and I was just wondering.


thanks!

good luck everyone!

DrLady,
The latest edition of Kaplan Comprehensive review book is basically the same as last editions. A couple of people are saying that the BS and PS sections of the exams are comparable but the verbal is comparibly easy than the real exam.

Thanks for the comments. I will continue to work on my verbal.

SS

 

[BobbyDylanFan]

If the exams in the Kaplan compresensive are the same as they were last year, then I tend to disagree with Solid, except with the verbal....Kaplan verbal is always a lil easier. I have a buddy who scored in the high 30s who said that the physics section out of the Kaplan red book was one of the toughest physics section he ever saw...bio was a bit easier he also said.

 

[BushBaby]

Updates

Exam 1: 6

Exam 2: 9

Exam 3: 9

Exam 4: 8
🙁

 

[Amit1]

Bushbaby, look at my scores - i almost got an 8 on test 4 too.

 

[BushBaby]

Originally posted by Amit1
Bushbaby, look at my scores - i almost got an 8 on test 4 too.

Yes that's true. I just wish I can break thru to a 10. At least you got a 12 on one of them...

I will try not to get depressed about this.🙄

 

[khalil]

hey guys

so i've been using the ek vr101 for the past month or so, and it's a solid book. a must buy and use for the people who want to rock verbal... it's really good, consistent practice.

anyways tho, as i work through it, i've noticed that sometimes i do well, other times... um, no. it completely depends on my mood, energy levels, how well i'm focused etc.

but sometimes it's really discouraging when you psyche yourself up, read the passage on western imperialism and its consequences on the chinese dynasty, think you understand it, and then read the first question. not a clue whatsoever... so you read the Q a couple more times, and then what? go with your gut, or search for the answer in the passage? it depends.

sometimes i wonder if the mcat will have such dense passages with intense question stems... like the ones in vr101... but of course they will. unless someone wants to tell me otherwise 😀 ?

so i've come up with a strategy. well it's not really a strategy but something that needs to be done. on mcat vr, you must get 100% on all sciences and social science passages. most of us are fairly strong in this area so this is where we can shine. this gives us some "breathing room" when we tackle the harder humanities passages... and when doing science passages, really make sure of your answer and reason it out. don't fall for the traps! working quickly and scoring high in this area is the key to getting a good score.

rock on.

 

[BushBaby]

I am also doing the verbal sections in the princeton Exam A-D book. They are supposedly made to be way harder than the real thing. So I guess that's also good practice for me.

 

[meanderson]

i've done the first two verbal EK exams and exam #1 is easily the better of the two.

exam #1: 10(47 right)
exam #2: 12(55 right)

Passages #3-7 on exam #2 are way too easy. Did all 5 of these passages in 31 minutes. The passages on first impressions and cinematic qualities were written on a 10th grade level. There were also far too many easily verifiable questions throughout this test.

Maybe the mcat this april/august will have passages as easy as those found in EK #2, but if it does then 45/60 won't merit a 10. Maybe 50/60 would get a 10.

Verbal is my weakest area, and there isn't any way I'm touching a 12-13 unless I make some *serious* improvements. I'm clearly not at that level now as exam #2 indicates. Michael

 

[SillyRabbit]

where is the score conversion table to EK 101 Verbal?

 

[BobbyDylanFan]

Anderson,

Keep working in the book...it is the best out there besides AAMC practice exams. Just don't freak on test day and you will do fine!

Originally posted by meanderson
i've done the first two verbal EK exams and exam #1 is easily the better of the two.

exam #1: 10(47 right)
exam #2: 12(55 right)

Passages #3-7 on exam #2 are way too easy. Did all 5 of these passages in 31 minutes. The passages on first impressions and cinematic qualities were written on a 10th grade level. There were also far too many easily verifiable questions throughout this test.

Maybe the mcat this april/august will have passages as easy as those found in EK #2, but if it does then 45/60 won't merit a 10. Maybe 50/60 would get a 10.

Verbal is my weakest area, and there isn't any way I'm touching a 12-13 unless I make some *serious* improvements. I'm clearly not at that level now as exam #2 indicates. Michael

 

[Amit1]

EK 1: 8

EK 2: 7

EK 3: 12

EK 4: 9 (low)

AAMC 3: 10

EK 5: 9 (high)

EK 6: 9 (high)

How is everyone else doing? Hopefully I can start creeping in to consistant double digits soon.

 

[BushBaby]

Amit,
Keep us updated with your scores. What do you mean by high or low?


Updates

Exam 1: 6

Exam 2: 9

Exam 3: 9

Exam 4: 8

Exam 5: 9

Exam 6: 8

Exam 7: 8

I seem to be stuck in the 8-9 range...I am dying to break a 10.

AAMC (I think this is AAMC exam #6, administered by EK course)........................ 7🙄

 

[stillpremed]

bush baby and amit, and all others,
how do you guys feel the EK stacks up to the AAMC?
man, on my third test i got a 9... but went over on time. ill hash that up as a 7
i can't wait to take test 4

 

[BushBaby]

Originally posted by stillpremed
bush baby and amit, and all others,
how do you guys feel the EK stacks up to the AAMC?
man, on my third test i got a 9... but went over on time. ill hash that up as a 7
i can't wait to take test 4

I haven't done the AAMC exam 3R yet so I don't know how my EK verbal score will rank up. But I took this exam (I think it was AAM #6 or something) administered by EK...and I got a 7 on the verbal.

When taking the EK 101verbal, I find that i have about
10-13 mins left over after finishing the passages. I tried to slow down once but then I was going to slow and I had to rush at the end.

Being that I am getting 8's and 9's, I thought maybe I was reading/answering too fast maybe that's why I was not getting more answers right. I tried the "slow down and read" plan but then I was going too slow.

I have to find a balance of reading critically but fast enough to get my answers right.

 

[Amit1]

Bushbaby, a high 9 means that I almost got a 10. A low nine means I almost got an 8. Its a little more accurate than just posting the number itself.

I find myself rushing or getting bored during these tests sometimes. I don't pay full attention because I know its not the real thing. I need to change that and I think I will see my scores increase.

 

[BushBaby]

Originally posted by Amit1

I find myself rushing or getting bored during these tests sometimes. I don't pay full attention because I know its not the real thing. I need to change that and I think I will see my scores increase.

For the love of God please snap out of the "it's not the real thing" mode...it's a recipe for disaster. ..trust me. I use to score 8's and 9's on the princeton stuff and I took them nonchalantly.

When test day came and the proctor said "go"...I literally froze. My heart was racing, I could think at ALL. Needless to say that I got my score back and I got "5"...yes learn from MY mistake.

Get your mind right NOW.

 

[envelope]

I posted these question in examkrackers, but they were NO help. they just deleted my questions so forget them, can you guys helps me?



Page 57 #47
I got B. You start with 250,000 people in Atilla's army (line 21) but then 50,000 die (not 100,000) since in line 29, you say "fully (totally) 100,000 dead, roughly equal losses on each side" - so the Atilla side had 50,000 dead and the Roman/Gaul side had 50,000 dead since each had equal losses on both sides and there are a TOTAL of 100,000 dead.
250,000-50,000=200,000.

Page 50 #28
I understand B due to line 11 "usually never considered" (i in fact picked B first), but then I picked A instead because I though about the whole California thing and how the popular vote doesn't reflect electoral college.

Page 53 #35
Answer is C but I would argue that author agrees with this because royalty payments DO make up bulk of author?s pay. See line 7-8?also royalty payments are a percentage of future SALES. So the answer key in the back makes no sense.

 

[BushBaby]

Yeah envelope I remember seeing that question posted on EK. I am at work but when I get home I will take a look at the questions to see what I chose and why.

 

[Flack Pinku]

I'm taking Princeton Review course now, and felt I needed additional practice for verbal. So I bought the 101 vr book.

I list the following in chronological order:

First diag. -- 3
Second -- 4

Verbal Workbook test 1:
Test 1 -- 6

Third diag -- 8
(Didn't get to fourth diag yet)


The following tests, I've taken day after day (in the same week):

101 Passages:
Test 1 -- 6
Test 2 -- 10 (45/60)
Test 3 -- 10 (45/60)

Verbal workbook test 2:
Test 2 -- 8 (39/60)

They're all over the place. I feel that PR tests and 101 Passages tests are very different. PR tests are generally very constant--not too hard, not too easy, they're the way standardized tests would be. 101 vr tests are sometimes very hard, sometimes very easy (2 was easy I thought).

I think this is all meaningless (as long as you practice and do it right you'll improve), but I list it here because I'm sure it'll help someone...

 

[buggy]

Do you think the EK VR is more brain twisting than the real thing? If we always think there're some tricks in the questions, will that mindset hurt us on the real MCAT VR?

 

[BobbyDylanFan]

Originally posted by buggy
Do you think the EK VR is more brain twisting than the real thing? If we always think there're some tricks in the questions, will that mindset hurt us on the real MCAT VR?

Yeah, I tend to agree with you buggy that the EK questions can be more brain twisting...but don't let that get to you. Another subtle difference I have noticed is that AAMC verbal passages seem to be a bit dry, whereas a lot of EK passages are pretty darn intersting in my opinion...also I think the AAMC passages are on a slightly higher reading level...not by much but somewhat in my opinion. Comments?

 

[beastmaster]

#47, the correct answer should be 200,000. The book must be in error.

BDF, I don't think the "interest" factor is a significant one. That the EK passages are more interesting only encourages you to do more of them, and actually take something useful away from them. Formulating main ideas and answering questions correctly is not a funtion of passage "interest," only your understanding and skill, so in a sense you are being given an ideal arena for practice and the development of skills can then be transferred to the playing field (ie., boring passages). Just my opinion.

 

[stillpremed]

i just can't wait till i get to move out of the "mcat discussions" forum
GL to ALL!

 

[BobbyDylanFan]

Good point, I totally agree with you. The only thing is, I tend to think concentration is a bit more difficult.. not by much though. Its somewhat like reading a magazine vs reading a journal. Again, I don't think these differences are major but they could be something to consider.

P.S. Beastmaster, where the hell did you get that name?

Originally posted by beastmaster
#47, the correct answer should be 200,000. The book must be in error.

BDF, I don't think the "interest" factor is a significant one. That the EK passages are more interesting only encourages you to do more of them, and actually take something useful away from them. Formulating main ideas and answering questions correctly is not a funtion of passage "interest," only your understanding and skill, so in a sense you are being given an ideal arena for practice and the development of skills can then be transferred to the playing field (ie., boring passages). Just my opinion.