How did you get a 30+ score?

[stever99]

exam krackers?

did anyone use exam krackers only and do well?

my plan was to get a 30 via using the EK and then taking all AMMC practice tests.

and doing EK practice questions....

I need thoughts/strategies? or is there a thread like that?

thanks

[akmg13]

There is this thread on SDN

 

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=503250

 

I primarily used EK, including 101 and 1001 series, and I did well (>30). And I did all the AAMC tests after content review. I hadn't done chem or phys since first year in 99/00, but I'm a grad student in a bio-related field.

 

My weakness was definitely PS, so when EK wasn't enough for a particular topic, I would search for clarification online. I did about 2/3 of the physics 1001 questions, which are mostly review of the content and not in the mcat format. And I did half of the Gen. Chem. and Orgo 1001 questions.

 

If you want more detail about what I did, pm me.

 

Good luck!

[supafield]

haha talk about irony...

 

 

several posts up is a person with a 41Q at a med school that doesn't count the MCAT.

[trymeover]

haha talk about irony...

 

 

several posts up is a person with a 41Q at a med school that doesn't count the MCAT.

 

I've heard this with Mcmaster. Like some people who've posted their stats have had an amazing MCAT, but they were being accepted solely on their GPA, haha (and interview of course).

[O'Neill]

haha talk about irony...

 

 

several posts up is a person with a 41Q at a med school that doesn't count the MCAT.

 

I can't add.

[trymeover]

I believe that he listed a 43. I don't think there's been a 43 in years.

 

Wow, we replied to supafield at the exact same minute. I also became a senior member that exact moment on reaching 100 posts. I guess my work here is done.

[Madz25]

I believe that he listed a 43. I don't think there's been a 43 in years.

 

if you're talking about sanserie's post as i'm guessing supafield was referring to....he/she got 13/15/13Q which is 41Q, not 43.

[Tara21]

if you're talking about sanserie's post as i'm guessing supafield was referring to....he/she got 13/15/13Q which is 41Q, not 43.

 

Indeed!

 

A first step in MCAT success includes comprehension of the final scoring results.

 

Then, you may graduate to studying VR!

[The Ace of Spades]

Hopefully this data will help someone else out.

 

1. How long did you study for? During school, with a job or completely full time?

 

Studied for about 3 months, in the summer after 2nd year while working full time.

 

2. What was your score breakdown? (BS/PS/VR, WS)

 

14/12/11 O

 

3. How did you study for each section?

 

For the multiple choice sections, I just read through the EK books and did the practice questions therein. After I got through all of those, I did the free practice MCAT on the AAMC site, and teamed up with a buddy so we each bought two more practice tests and traded passwords. That way I got 4 practice tests for the price of two! I found my scores for the 5 practice tests to be relatively consistent and correlated well with my actual scores.

 

4. Do you feel you over or under studied?

 

Studied just enough for the multiple choice stuff. Definitely understudied for the WS.

 

5. What were you honestly expecting your score to be?

 

PS: 11-13

BS: 12-14

VR:9-11

WS: P

 

6. Any tips for those of us studying for the test right now?

 

Do a full practice test before you even start reviewing anything. This will help you identify your strengths and weaknesses and allow you to adjust your studying accordingly.

Don't forget about the WS! I wish I had practiced more essays and read some tips about writing them. But with a score of 37O, I can't complain.

[O'Neill]

if you're talking about sanserie's post as i'm guessing supafield was referring to....he/she got 13/15/13Q which is 41Q, not 43.

 

Oh damn, ooops.

 

*goes back to edit out stupidity*

[Madz25]

Oh damn' date=' ooops.

 

*goes back to edit out stupidity*[/quote']

 

LOL it happens

[MedIn2010]

Figured I could toss in my $0.02...

 

1. How long did you study for? During school, with a job or completely full time?

 

I studied during the summer in a city I was new to while working a full time as a summer student. I signed up in May to write in August and didn't really focus the first 2 months. I was also doing 2 correspondence courses which I wrote exams for about 2 weeks before my test date (probably a poor choice). I pretty much sacrificed my social life that summer, but made sure to make time to work out and spend time with my family.

 

2. What was your score breakdown? (BS/PS/VR, WS)

 

13/13/12 for a 38S. I was pretty excited when my scores finally came out about a week late.

 

3. How did you study for each section?

 

I bought the Kaplan book new and read through it once. A friend gave me a CD with tons and tons of practice exams. I then did practice exams over and over and over. Then, I went over every answer, focusing on ones I got wrong. I think this is the key. I never went back to study the Kaplan book, just used it as a reference when I got questions wrong.

 

For WS, I read the tips in the Kaplan book and then practiced a ton. I would take a day after writing the sample before reviewing it with a critical eye. I then got my mom and a few friends who did well in WS to look them over and offer pointers.

 

About 2 weeks before my test date I bought an AAMC practice test and ended up doing 3. They are amazingly useful to get a decent judge of what score to expect and help you get used to the computerized test. You should probably do all of them, I would have but I was too cheap.

 

4. Do you feel you over or under studied?

 

I think my studying was pretty appropriate. I studied 2 or 3 evenings a week for about 2 hours and then put in some time on weekends over 2 months. In the last two weeks I probably did double this.

 

5. What were you honestly expecting your score to be?

 

Based on the AAMC practice tests and my best guess for WS I was expecting a 36Q. The day of I was pretty freaked out by the PS because I was low on time and when reviewing realized I missed a question. So after writing I thought I might score lower in that section.

 

6. Any tips for those of us studying for the test right now?

 

Practice, practice, practice, and when you think you've done enough do 5 more practice tests. The benefit is 2-fold:

1. You become familiar with the material that actually appears on the test year after year.

2. You become familiar with the style in which the questions are asked. This is SO important for VR. A lot of the questions are posed in convoluted ways, but there's a series of question stems that show up over and over! If you become familiar with these stems you don't have to waste time figuring out what the question is actually asking you, which equals tons of extra time to find the answer!

 

Interesting fact. I didn't every really leave my chair during the test because I found it distracting. I went to the bathroom once. But after that I just chilled in my seat, stretched, and tried to clear my head during the 10 mins between sections.

[AndreaM]

1. How long did you study for? During school, with a job or completely full time?

 

First time (2001) I was working full-time and taking one course and studied for about a month.

 

Second time (2008) I also studied for about a month while running a family daycare full time (about 50 hours per week). I didn't have a study schedule and would guess that I studied a total of 20 hours.

 

2. What was your score breakdown? (BS/PS/VR, WS)

 

First time: 12/10/11/O

Second time: 11/10/15/O

 

3. How did you study for each section?

 

I had a set of review books (I think PR, but I'm not sure) and I used all of the previous tests that AAMC has online. I started by doing a practice test, found my weak points and primarily focussed on those. My first practice test put me at 9/8/10.

 

I didn't really study for the WS at all and it showed.

 

4. Do you feel you over or under studied?

 

I definitely understudied for the WS and I probably could have done better had I studied more for the PS and BS, but really I got a 36O, so I'm happy.

 

5. What were you honestly expecting your score to be?

 

Based on practice tests about 30 both times.

 

6. Any tips for those of us studying for the test right now?

 

Practice the actual test conditions and practice your analytical reading skills. Beyond knowing the basics, the MCAT is a comprehension test. For most questions they usually give you all in the information that you need in the passage and it is just a matter of putting it all together.

 

Also, for questions that require a math based answer, especially in chem and physics if you come up with an answer that isn't a round number (eg. you get 45.7892as your answer), then you have probably done something wrong. The math is generally done so that there is an easy way to figure it out and a nice round number at the end.

[deeman101]

1. How long did you study for? During school, with a job or completely full time?

 

In the summer, with research work going on concurrently. I studied 2 weeks ahead of time both times I wrote it.

 

2. What was your score breakdown? (BS/PS/VR, WS)

 

First time: 11/8/Q/12

Second time: 13/12/R/11

 

3. How did you study for each section?

 

I used a PR review book the first time, and a Kaplan book the second time. I just read over the whole thing. Didn't need extra prep except for writing and VR, where I did extra practice questions and essays on top of the general practice I was doing for the test as a whole.

 

4. Do you feel you over or under studied?

 

Understudied for sure. But I don't think my score 36R would honestly go any higher even if I studied the whole summer. The limit is not how much material I have in my head, but my intrinsic "smartness". It takes more than an average mind to reach into the 38+.

 

5. What were you honestly expecting your score to be?

 

First time: 33Qish.

 

Second time: Really thought I failed and was about to register for a third time.

 

6. Any tips for those of us studying for the test right now?

 

Don't bother going balls out memorizing every single minuscule detail of the digestive system or w.e. I'd say be familiar enough with the content so that anything presented on the test is something you're already comfortable with and know how to work with.

 

Only do the AMCAS practice tests. You need to get used to style in which the questions are asked, answers are presented, passages are given, the timer counts down right in front of you(!), etc. I don't care what PR, Kaplan, EK,etc. say but their questions did not simulate the real deal well enough for me. I also think I would've done better if the MCAT was still written (except in WS of course; can't write as fast as I type), but at least getting used to the computer interface and already knowing the prompts that will come up in between sections got me into game mode.