polarbear89 Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Does anyone have verbal advice for me? I started off at an 11 on FLs and keep on hitting getting 11 consistently. I know that's a good verbal score but my sciences are pretty weak so I want to compensate for that in anyway possible. I don't run out of time in verbal at all, so that's not an issue. I keep on making kind of obvious mistakes that I only recognize when I'm reviewing the passage. Any tips on reducing these mistakes? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeb88 Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 My sciences bounce around.. a lot. 11 was not so good for me. 3 (did it in parts random evenings.. hardly actual conditions): 13/11/11 8: 15/11/13 9: 13/14/13 7: 15/13/13 11: 11/11/12 <-- note the panickiness. I made a lot of really stupid mistakes on both science ones (calculation errors, reading the heading of an important table wrong), but still.. but still. No clue about 5 . I didn't do it because I don't have all that much time, and I was doing fairly well on the earlier ones anyways. I would say if you have the time, why not? =] Practice makes perfect! (Sorta.) Wow, looks like you're set! I'm very impressed with and jealous of your VR scores. Would you mind sharing how you approach passages? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savac Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 My sciences bounce around.. a lot. 11 was not so good for me. 3 (did it in parts random evenings.. hardly actual conditions): 13/11/11 8: 15/11/13 9: 13/14/13 7: 15/13/13 11: 11/11/12 <-- note the panickiness. I made a lot of really stupid mistakes on both science ones (calculation errors, reading the heading of an important table wrong), but still.. but still. No clue about 5 . I didn't do it because I don't have all that much time, and I was doing fairly well on the earlier ones anyways. I would say if you have the time, why not? =] Practice makes perfect! (Sorta.) I don't think you have anything to be worried about. You could drop numerous points from your AAMC average and still be competitive. I'm very impressed that you have never scored lower than an 11 in a section, and extremely impressed that you've broken 40! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savac Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 By the way, here's an interesting post from SDN. http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=936176 It's too late for me to switch strategies, but it seems very promising. If anybody tries it out, I'd be curious to know how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeb88 Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 By the way, here's an interesting post from SDN. http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=936176 It's too late for me to switch strategies, but it seems very promising. If anybody tries it out, I'd be curious to know how it goes. I read this a few weeks ago! It seems like another version of reading slowly/thoroughly, focusing on the main idea. It works for a lot of the people on SDN. I guess it's all a matter of figuring out what works for you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savac Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 I read this a few weeks ago! It seems like another version of reading slowly/thoroughly, focusing on the main idea. It works for a lot of the people on SDN. I guess it's all a matter of figuring out what works for you! I just wish I had time to try this out. I'm going to try and incorporate this into my strategy for AAMC #11 tomorrow and see how it goes. If I get 10, which is usually rare for me, or higher then I will probably attempt it on at least some of the passages on Friday. I'm a bit cautious about switching gears so close to the test, but if I see some serious results then I just may risk it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lost&Found Posted August 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Damn FrenchToast! You're gonna throw off the curve! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Let'sGo1990 Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Did some passages this mornign and got destroyed. So ****ing frustrated with EK verbal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeb88 Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Did some passages this mornign and got destroyed. So ****ing frustrated with EK verbal. Keep plugging away! You'll get the hang of it! I went through all of the AAMC VR questions I've gotten wrong, and nearly every single one are Inference or Extension type questions. They account for ~80% of my mistakes. Needless to say, I need a strategy to tackle these questions. Does anyone have any tips? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Let'sGo1990 Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Keep plugging away! You'll get the hang of it! I went through all of the AAMC VR questions I've gotten wrong, and nearly every single one are Inference or Extension type questions. They account for ~80% of my mistakes. Needless to say, I need a strategy to tackle these questions. Does anyone have any tips? Haha, unfortunately not, those questions are hit and miss for me depending on how well I was able to comprehend the passage. I'm halfway done the EK book and have barely improved. I'm considering switching strategies but don't wanna waste the passages I have left. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savac Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Keep plugging away! You'll get the hang of it! I went through all of the AAMC VR questions I've gotten wrong, and nearly every single one are Inference or Extension type questions. They account for ~80% of my mistakes. Needless to say, I need a strategy to tackle these questions. Does anyone have any tips? One thing I'll say, is that there is no such thing as 'too specific' for an inference question. If it's directly supported by the passage, then it is probably the correct answer. Unfortunately, inference questions have the potential to be brutal. Sometimes the credited response can only be justified by piecing together numerous parts of the passage. In these instances, it is better to eliminate the other choices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeb88 Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 One thing I'll say, is that there is no such thing as 'too specific' for an inference question. If it's directly supported by the passage, then it is probably the correct answer. Unfortunately, inference questions have the potential to be brutal. Sometimes the credited response can only be justified by piecing together numerous parts of the passage. In these instances, it is better to eliminate the other choices. I find that I can narrow it down to two possible choices by eliminating the obviously incorrect choices. I just always pick the wrong one. This is getting REALLY frustrating...I was getting consistent 10's today. Just wrote a practice test and got an 8. I don't know what's changed from a couple weeks ago when I was consistently getting 11's... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lost&Found Posted August 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Maybe you're overstudying? Just take a break? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savac Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Don't even go there, your scores are better than mine! I only have AAMC 11 left, but here are my AAMC scores in the order that I did them: 10: 12/9/13 7: 13/10/13 4: 12/8/14 5: 14/9/13 8: 14/8/14 9: 14/9/12 3: 13/10/10 (not sure what happened on this bio section ) As promised, here is my score from AAMC #11. I'm very surprised, since this is my best score by a wide margin! I'm especially surprised because these were the hardest science passages I've seen on an AAMC test. AAMC#11: 14/10/15 It seems the VR curve was a bit generous on this test, since I only got 29 correct. I don't care though, I'm happy to go into my test with a positive note! Edit: I used the SDN strategy on the first 3 passages, but it was taking more time than I'm used to. My accuracy seemed to be roughly the same, perhaps ever so slightly better. The one thing I'll say is that I had much more confidence in my answers for those passages than I usually do. The strategy is worth giving a chance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ecobeco Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Nice score damn 39 is impressive! Good job! I just did AAMC 7 and got 10/10/10. Although I managed to bring up verbal by quite a bit (only 1 away from an 11), BS was a bit lacking (39/52). I tried the SDN strategy on some of the Verbal passages but I don't know if it worked, since about halfway through I just lost all focus. I was 2 questions away from getting a 32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrenchToast Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 Damn FrenchToast! You're gonna throw off the curve! Lol noooo because my 11 was not so lovely for me. Thanks though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrenchToast Posted August 7, 2012 Report Share Posted August 7, 2012 As promised, here is my score from AAMC #11. I'm very surprised, since this is my best score by a wide margin! I'm especially surprised because these were the hardest science passages I've seen on an AAMC test. AAMC#11: 14/10/15 It seems the VR curve was a bit generous on this test, since I only got 29 correct. I don't care though, I'm happy to go into my test with a positive note! Edit: I used the SDN strategy on the first 3 passages, but it was taking more time than I'm used to. My accuracy seemed to be roughly the same, perhaps ever so slightly better. The one thing I'll say is that I had much more confidence in my answers for those passages than I usually do. The strategy is worth giving a chance. That's great! Good job! Woooo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lost&Found Posted August 8, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2012 Lol noooo because my 11 was not so lovely for me. Thanks though I'll take your 11 if you don't want it!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeb88 Posted August 8, 2012 Report Share Posted August 8, 2012 As promised, here is my score from AAMC #11. I'm very surprised, since this is my best score by a wide margin! I'm especially surprised because these were the hardest science passages I've seen on an AAMC test. AAMC#11: 14/10/15 It seems the VR curve was a bit generous on this test, since I only got 29 correct. I don't care though, I'm happy to go into my test with a positive note! Edit: I used the SDN strategy on the first 3 passages, but it was taking more time than I'm used to. My accuracy seemed to be roughly the same, perhaps ever so slightly better. The one thing I'll say is that I had much more confidence in my answers for those passages than I usually do. The strategy is worth giving a chance. Nicely done! I've been working on my VR all day. Just wrote the VR from AAMC #5, but I've yet to grade it. I'm writing my final FL, AAMC #10 tomorrow. Hopefully I finish my prep on a positive note like you did Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savac Posted August 8, 2012 Report Share Posted August 8, 2012 Nicely done! I've been working on my VR all day. Just wrote the VR from AAMC #5, but I've yet to grade it. I'm writing my final FL, AAMC #10 tomorrow. Hopefully I finish my prep on a positive note like you did Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazzle Posted August 8, 2012 Report Share Posted August 8, 2012 I did my third EK101 test and got a 12 (progression: 7, 8, 12). One of the things I try to do is to soak in the passage nicely before trying to answer questions. Also, I stopped trying to guess/be scared of what the test writers meant to say when proposing answer choices; I just goddamn answer the question! I have looked at my mistakes in the booklet and must say I am puzzled at some of them. Here are some examples: Q (#19): For which of the following conclusions does the passage offer the least support. ---I get this wrong because the conclusion I chose is not a passage conclusion. But the question never states that the conclusion need be a passage one. Q (#22): About board making and wood choosing. ---I chose B but the correct answer is C. The reasons for rejecting B are nebulous at best imo: "The cabinetmaker does not so much repair furniture, as build furniture." The question also asks "the author would argue...." I think this should give me the freedom to speculate, so I don't know why my answer choice is wrong. Q (#35): Another question in the form: "the author would probably disagree with which of the following statements" Q (#54): uurh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savac Posted August 8, 2012 Report Share Posted August 8, 2012 Nice improvement, I'm jealous! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeb88 Posted August 8, 2012 Report Share Posted August 8, 2012 AAMC #7: 13/12/13 AAMC #8: 12/10/13 AAMC #11: 13/10/13 AAMC #9: 14/9/14 My last FL before the real deal: AAMC #10: 12/11/12 Sooo happy my VR is back up to where it used to be! My sciences were pretty low, but I found a couple of the passages really hard (the tube anode detector in PS, and some of the orgo in BS). I'll probably figure out what science concepts I'm weakest in and review them a bit tonight/tomorrow. Other than that, I plan on relaxing until test time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savac Posted August 8, 2012 Report Share Posted August 8, 2012 My last FL before the real deal: AAMC #10: 12/11/12 Sooo happy my VR is back up to where it used to be! My sciences were pretty low, but I found a couple of the passages really hard (the tube anode detector in PS, and some of the orgo in BS). I'll probably figure out what science concepts I'm weakest in and review them a bit tonight/tomorrow. Other than that, I plan on relaxing until test time Awesome! I am also going to take it easy until the test (although I'm still going over AAMC 11) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeb88 Posted August 8, 2012 Report Share Posted August 8, 2012 Awesome! I am also going to take it easy until the test (although I'm still going over AAMC 11) I just went looking for my answers to AAMC 7, 8, 9, and 11 so I could go through all of my FLs and look for weaknesses. Turns out my mom decided to clean up last night...and it's garbage day today... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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