I'm an English major who repeatedly bombs the verbal section of the MCAT...

[balster]

...I also have a humanities minor and a background in the classics.

 

I don't know what's wrong with me. Does anyone have advice on how I could improve my score? I'm scoring 10+ on PS and solid 12s on BS, but only between 7-10 on verbal.

 

This seems pretty unusual to me since I'm so used to heavy readings for these classes.

[bpatient]

LOL sounds like you would have done well if you did science major too

[sprinkles]

LOL Im sorry. thats unfortunate. Maybe its because you are thinking 'too deeply' about it? Like the details? Take a step back and try to get the big picture of it all.

 

Are you doing well in your degree courses?

 

 

Dont feel too bad it can take some practice sometime. Im a social sciences major and I am freaking out about how I did on the Verbal :/

[Legion]

Verbal is not normal English So don't feel too bad. Practicing definitely makes better.

[broom]

This is completely normal. I started off being an English major in university, and have always done well in English courses. But Verbal Reasoning on the MCAT is different insofar as it's timed and multiple choice.

 

I am used to having to read for English courses, but being able to do it at my leisure and not being timed makes it so that I can re-read parts that were confusing, look up pertinent background information if need be, etc. Also, I have never taken an English course where I had to read articles and answer multiple choice questions about the author's position. Typically, in English, after reading a certain piece of work you synthesize it in your own writing. In this case you have more freedom in the direction you take. You don't have to answer multiple choice, and essays provide more leniency because it depends on your argument (which you often get the choice to formulate, so you can focus on areas that you understand better rather than understanding the entire work.)

 

I don't think being an English major gives one an edge in Verbal Reasoning (but of course, I have no data to support this and could very well be wrong. I really wish I was.) Fortunately, being an English major should make the Writing Sample portion of the MCAT much easier, even though it is probably the least important section.

[apache]

i think broad humanities and social sciences plus some english classes prob gives you a better advantage for the vr since the subject matter is spread all over the place... you should ace the ws though

[balster]

I got A's in every English and humanities class I took in college (save for one A-).

 

I just got another 10 on AAMC3 (VR) today, so things are looking up. I'm still bombing the Kaplan VR tests miserably, though, which is quite embarrassing given how many I've done already.

 

Also, I do have a science (physiology) major. Yep, double major and a minor. Wanted to take some extra time to boost that GPA.