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deleted850921
Hey pplz,
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If I have to retake, I'll aim to have at least a surface knowledge of everything on those lists. I let the AAMC practice materials be my guide to content, and got blindsided by a test full of so-called "low yield" topics and, at least in the C/P section, very little emphasis on being able to use critical reasoning skills to pull information from the passage.is it a good study guide to go by
With respect, you need to do both. I did 90% practice problems and only 10% using the list to make sure I was covering everything, and I got seriously blindsided. The vast majority of the questions in my particular C/P section were nowhere to be seen in any of the AAMC materials (or NextStep or ExamKrackers), and vice versa. I simply didn't do enough pure content review.Doing practice problems and passages is the best way to study and know what to expect for the exam.
With respect, you need to do both. I did 90% practice problems and only 10% using the list to make sure I was covering everything, and I got seriously blindsided. The vast majority of the questions in my particular C/P section were nowhere to be seen in any of the AAMC materials (or NextStep or ExamKrackers), and vice versa. I simply didn't do enough pure content review.
Topics on the list need to be mastered, but with an understanding of how the topics will be presented on the test- which is discovered through practice problems and passages. That's just my opinion, though. Thankfully the MCAT is behind me!
yes, i completely agree. definitely not one or the other, but both. if i have to retake, i'll aim to make at least one pass through the official topic list, maybe 5-10 minutes per topic, just to make sure i could recognize it again if i saw it in the multiple choice context, rather than letting the practice materials be my sole guide to content.
how did the test turn out for you? did your actual score match your practice scores?
My test felt harder than any practice exams or material. It turned out solid- I got a balanced 516 (131/128/129/128).
All right, well done! You must be so stoked! Were you surprised by your score, or was it in range of what you were expecting?
I was in a similar ballpark on the AAMC FLs and felt really dejected after my May 18 test - it just seemed so, so much harder than AAMC2 or 1. Seems like most people think the real test is harder, though, yet still end up with scores comparable to their practice scores. Fingers crossed!
It was in the range I was expecting, but I was really happy and relieved.
The real test is scaled and hard/easy is all relative. With an easier test, the scaling is different. I didn't realize that you just took it and didn't have a score back yet. Wishing you the best that you hit your target
If I have to retake, I'll aim to have at least a surface knowledge of everything on those lists. I let the AAMC practice materials be my guide to content, and got blindsided by a test full of so-called "low yield" topics and, at least in the C/P section, very little emphasis on being able to use critical reasoning skills to pull information from the passage.
some people at SDN are going into the MCAT with a sense that it will be exactly as they envision from their practice materials