606 Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Hi Guys, I am having some trouble with the writing sample, specifically thinking of (real) examples which fit the writing sample prompt. Does anyone know of any good resourse that could help ... perhaps a good book or a website ? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FireDragoonX Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 removed... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
degoo_ Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Just read the entire newspaper everyday for a few weeks. There are tons of examples everywhere. The example doesn't have to be very detailed, nor does it have to be so important that everyone knows about it. I spent quite a bit of time finding examples for the WS, and it ends up that I was so stressed during the actual essay, I made partially made one up, and ended up with an S. Form is much more important imho than the examples themselves. I'm not aware of any book for WS other than those that come with the prep courses, but they are focused primarily on form. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WabbaJ Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 way to go on that S degoo. some people recommend reading the Economist. its not half bad. "but you dont have to take my word for it", 606. (level up for Reading Rainbow reference). give it a read, if it helps, it helps best of luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
606 Posted January 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Thanks guys, I appreciate the quick responses. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avenir001 Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Hey, There was a list of possible examples (courtesy of Complacent Tragedy) people were sharing prior to the august 2006 mcat. Let me know if you want a copy. You can always find your own examples from the news but the list is a nice example of the kinds of examples you should be looking for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WabbaJ Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Thanks guys, I appreciate the quick responses. Cheers ya, you got lucky boss! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
degoo_ Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Yea, the S was probably my biggest surprise. Regarding reading the economist: Not only will that strengthen your essay, but it will definetly strengthen your VR. Why not kill two birds with one stone. Reading newspapers and magazines like TIME and THE ECONOMIST will certainly improve your reading speed and comprehension. Definetly the way to go imho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
human instinct Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 Thanks all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FireDragoonX Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 removed... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WabbaJ Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 when you guys say "examples" do you mean prompts? cuz if you want prompts, the AAMC has em. if you want other peoples work as a walkthrough/guide/gamefaq maybe you could please just clear it up as "can i have your writing samples so i can have a template to work with" or something like that. no shame in that for sure friends. it'll help people help you. heres what are known as prompts.... they might have been called "example lists" before.... http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/about/wsitems.htm HOWEVER!!! i might be misunderstanding stuff... if there was a list of examples to use in WS that concern current events that have a lesson that can be used in prompts to support an argument, like lets say.... "Canada should not giving aid to underserviced countries like Tanzania cuz they dont have an infrastructure to use this aid anyway and it will prolly go to drug-lords" blah blah blah.... then i never heard of this list and i am totally one hundred percent batting a thousand useless cuz i never had it. would be neat to have though. good luck all the same! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
human instinct Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 Hey Wabba, I certainly did mean the examples:) .I know it is sort of an intuitive process while writing an essay that you automatically come up with examples to support your discussion but as avenir001 mentions that prior to Aug06 there was a list of such examples circulating. That is the list I was asking for so that I can have a more directed approach towards reading news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgzca Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 myfdrs@hotmail.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avenir001 Posted January 11, 2007 Report Share Posted January 11, 2007 I emailed the list to those who have requested it. Yes people there are 3 kinds of WS-related things: 1. There are the WS prompts available through the aamc website. 2. There are WS examples (ie news stories you can use to support your arguments in your essay)...this is the list people have been sharing. 3. Actual complete essays written by others which help you see how concepts are defined, arguments developed, contradictions resolved, conclusions reached, etc. Check out http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/studentmanual/writingsample/scoring.pdf to read some essays and learn more about how they're scored. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shiranai Posted January 22, 2007 Report Share Posted January 22, 2007 I would be interested in that example list too for the writing samples. After all, it might come into handy sometimes. My e-mail is shiranai01[at]yahoo.com. Thanks--I totally appreciate it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMD Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 can I also have the list e-mailed to me? tubbychubby99@yahoo.com Thanks in advance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madeline07 Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 lol tubbychubby ..nice email Could someone send it to me too please? I had it before.. but it was deleted in my email account overtime. Thanks I'd appreciate it! heya2345@hotmail.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madeline07 Posted January 30, 2007 Report Share Posted January 30, 2007 would some kind soul please send it to me? I'd appreciate it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avenir001 Posted January 31, 2007 Report Share Posted January 31, 2007 oops sorry I totally forgot...I'll do it right away.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HandSolo Posted January 31, 2007 Report Share Posted January 31, 2007 I'm fairly certain that they don't care about the quality of the example at all...rather they are concerned with how you organize your thoughts. I got an S on my writing sample, and my examples were childish. I used the TV show Three's Company, and a fat guy getting thin and making fun of fat people as two of my examples (in separate essays of course). Some of the other examples i used were more "serious" hypotheticals. Putting effort in improving the mechanics of your essay irrespective of content will probably pay off more than memorizing a list of examples or quotes by famous people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madeline07 Posted February 1, 2007 Report Share Posted February 1, 2007 thanks avenir! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffp Posted February 9, 2007 Report Share Posted February 9, 2007 LOL, HandSolo, I thought I was the only one! I wrote the MCAT so long ago (1997) that I totally forget what my prompts were, but for the first essay, all I could think to write about was the X-Files! I scored an 'S' too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwi Posted March 30, 2007 Report Share Posted March 30, 2007 I would be interested in taking a look at that list of examples. Would someone be kind enough to send it to me? My email address is k.iwii@hotmail.com. Thanks a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kuantum Posted March 30, 2007 Report Share Posted March 30, 2007 I read TIME magazine and just historical events I picked up from sociology class. The first time I got an S, the 2nd time, I glanced through a TIME magazine the night before, ended up using an example about Dell computers and scored a T the second time. It is definitely more about form than actual example. I made up an example the first time around. You have to describe your specific examples in detail and don't be too decisive with your for or against arguements because if one of them is "too strong" then it essentially negates the other. The last paragraph where you describe how you determine when to go for or against should be your absolute strongest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blah! Posted March 30, 2007 Report Share Posted March 30, 2007 Hey guys could someone send it to me too... if you dont mind! I know this must be getting annoying Thank you!! email pritz888@hotmail.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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