CARS question - TOP URGENT

[IMGEGY]

Hey everyone. I am an international medical graduate and I literally just found out today that I can apply to McMaster's MD program using my medical degree GPA. I literally know NOTHING about the MCAT so I have a few questions and I would appreciate it if someone could help me out:

1. Just double checking I can still apply today to sit the September 19th exam, right ?

2. Where is the exam test center ? Is it prometric ? And is there a way to know if there is a spot at the test center in my city before I pay the application fee ? Because if I have to travel for the exam then I will just cancel the whole thing.

3. What is the CARS section of the exam composed of ? And how long does it take to complete.

4. Is it possible to prepare for the CARS section of the exam in just 8 days and get a decent score to apply for McMaster as an OOP (with a GPA of 4.0) ? Assuming that that's all what I will be doing day and night for the next 8 days. 

5. What are the preparation resources for CARS ?

I would really appreciate if someone can help me out as the clock is ticking.

[bigboydyo]

1. It's very unlikely that you will find a seat for an exam in the near future, though it would depend where you live. Just check on the AAMC for availabilities around your area

2. It was prometric last year not sure what it is this year. 

3. It's a reading comprehension exam. You read 3-4 paragraph passages. You answer 5-7 questions (Multiple Choice) about the passage.

4. It is. Though a lot of it will depend on how your natural talent in reading/comprehension.

5. CARS is probably the section the most overloaded with resources because there is no perfect way of teaching it, most people that are bad at it struggle to become better at it, which creates a big demand for CARS resources. Check out Khan academy's guide for CARS (it's like 2-3 videos) for a free overview. + they have questions you can try out

My suggestion is to first check on AAMC if you can take the test, if yes, do some Khan Academy problems --> do the AAMC Full Length Test 1 ---> review your answers, then do Test 2 and Test 3. Learn from your mistakes and hope for the best.

 

[Anon-e-mous]

7 hours ago, bigboydyo said:

It was prometric last year not sure what it is this year. 

It's Pearson testing centres this year

[rmorelan]

8 hours ago, bigboydyo said:

1. It's very unlikely that you will find a seat for an exam in the near future, though it would depend where you live. Just check on the AAMC for availabilities around your area

2. It was prometric last year not sure what it is this year. 

3. It's a reading comprehension exam. You read 3-4 paragraph passages. You answer 5-7 questions (Multiple Choice) about the passage.

4. It is. Though a lot of it will depend on how your natural talent in reading/comprehension.

5. CARS is probably the section the most overloaded with resources because there is no perfect way of teaching it, most people that are bad at it struggle to become better at it, which creates a big demand for CARS resources. Check out Khan academy's guide for CARS (it's like 2-3 videos) for a free overview. + they have questions you can try out

My suggestion is to first check on AAMC if you can take the test, if yes, do some Khan Academy problems --> do the AAMC Full Length Test 1 ---> review your answers, then do Test 2 and Test 3. Learn from your mistakes and hope for the best.

 

yeah agree - with just finding a spot the main logistical problem. It is a test for which the degree of prep highly depends on your background already. 

good luck!