spoudaios Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 How do you guys do it? I prefer the exam to be on paper because i like to be able to mark it and make notes... What can you do on the exam other than highlights? What do you guys do when you don't know the meaning of some words, the verb, adjective, vocabularies...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webshy Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 How do you guys do it? I prefer the exam to be on paper because i like to be able to mark it and make notes... What can you do on the exam other than highlights? What do you guys do when you don't know the meaning of some words, the verb, adjective, vocabularies...? When I first wrote the MCAT (paper-based), I used the PR method of marking up the verbal section. My first VR practice score was 9, and on the real exam I got 8. This time, when I wrote the (computer-based) MCAT, I used the EK method of reading for the main idea, without stopping to take notes, circle words, etc. After I was done reading the passage, I still made a couple of notes on the provided scrap paper (main idea, purpose, etc.). I used those notes, plus my better undertanding of the passage as a whole to answer the questions. It worked, because I got the 10 that I need. Overall, I liked the computerized exam. The inability to make marks on the exam was a minor inconvenience compared to all the positives. The writing section was much easier since it could be typed. The ability to sleep in the morning of the exam made for a much better day. As well, the length of the exam, and the lack of 2 hours of registration, made me much more wide awake throughout the day. Elaine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoudaios Posted October 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Can you just highlight during the exam? Another fact is that staring in the computer for so long strain my eyes... how does everyone deal with this with time constraint? What about verb, adjective, adverbs or vocabularies that you don't know that make you kinda wonder what the whole thing is about? When you get 10/15... this means in average you get 67% correct on every passage, correct? For me, it seems to depend on the topic of the passage. I never took any arts, literary, humanity or social sciences before. So, it's a struggle. There is a passage in AAMC #8 about philosophy that has 5 questions and i got them all wrong. There are so many ideas in the passage that confuse me. Which guy says what etc... Elaine, what do you write on scrap paper for verbal? Do you write thesis for the passage? or each topic sentence for each paragraph? Do you have enough time to do all this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alastriss Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Nope, it does not mean 67% correct, go to the mcat essentials on the official website to see how its scored Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webshy Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Can you just highlight during the exam? I believe there is a highlighting feature; though I never used it. I figured that I would spend too much time highlighting, rather than reading to understand the passages. Another fact is that staring in the computer for so long strain my eyes... how does everyone deal with this with time constraint? There really isn't any way around this issue. You need to remain focussed on the computer for the duration of the section. I did ensure I took the complete break each time one was offered. As I wrote in May, on an absolutely beautiful day, I went outside for five minutes each time we were given a break. That helped clear my eyes and refresh my brain. What about verb, adjective, adverbs or vocabularies that you don't know that make you kinda wonder what the whole thing is about? Because I was reading for the main idea, I just skipped words I didn't understand. I could still get the main idea of the passages if there was a word or two that I didn't understand. When you get 10/15... this means in average you get 67% correct on every passage, correct? The three numerical sections are marked on a percentile basis. A score of 8 is average. We never learn exactly how many questions we got right or wrong. A score to shoot for is 10/10/10. For me, it seems to depend on the topic of the passage. I never took any arts, literary, humanity or social sciences before. So, it's a struggle. There is a passage in AAMC #8 about philosophy that has 5 questions and i got them all wrong. There are so many ideas in the passage that confuse me. Which guy says what etc... Try to read the passage for the main idea. You don't need any outside information to answer any of the questions. I do agree, though, that it is often easier to read something that we are at least somewhat familiar with the topic. Nonetheless, you should get to a point where the topic doesn't make that much difference. Elaine, what do you write on scrap paper for verbal? Do you write thesis for the passage? or each topic sentence for each paragraph? Do you have enough time to do all this? I just wrote 2-3 very brief points - the main idea (2-3 words), the attitude of the author (+/-/0) and the purpose (explain/convince/etc.). I didn't write anything else. I didn't want to spend much time, but instead just focus my thoughts on what I had read. I also followed the EK tip of taking 5 seconds off between each passage, in order to clear my thoughts. Elaine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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