post your preliminary scores

[ramizlol]

VA 382 18
bio 435 92
Rc 395 41
QA 430 91
CHEM 438 93

Composite 416 79

Screw verbal!!!!

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[sunshao]

well for the other sections it was not as obvious

 

[Cardinal10]

http://www.kaptest.com/pcat/pcat-test/pcat-is-changing

HA! Kaplan states it right here. I want to say I wish I knew that, but then again, even if I saw that I would have answered everything in fear of missing out on points.

 

[Amaserwah]

What should I do? This is my second time taking it

Verbal 387 25
Biology 430 89
Reading 385 25
Quantitative 371 (4)______(Dont know how)
Chemistry 449 97
Composite 404 54

 

[Cardinal10]

What should I do? This is my second time taking it

Verbal 387 25
Biology 430 89
Reading 385 25
Quantitative 371 4
Chemistry 449 97
Composite 404 54

retake

 

[Amaserwah]

retake

Thank you!!! What should I do for Math portion.

 

[Cardinal10]

Thank you!!! What should I do for Math portion.

Have you been studying/preparing for the test? Sounds like you may want to get some new study material.

 

[Amaserwah]

Have you been studying/preparing for the test? Sounds like you may want to get some new study material.

Yes been using Dr. Collins which helped tramedously on chem and bio but Math portion to be honest I zoomed out. I also didn't spent much time as I did on chem and Bio because I didn't know I will score a 4. I am so depressed now.

 

[dhas22]

VA 423/82
BIO 466/99
RC 460/99
QA 420/82
CHEM 484/99

Composite 451/99

Weeeeeeee So happy! I basically ran out of time in quantitative and just chose an answer for the last 25% of the questions.

 

[Minokim2512]

VA: 38
RC: 20
QA: 67
Chem & bio: 95
Comp: 76

I'm really bumped right now and wondering if I should retake or not because of my high science score. To be honest, I haven't taken any bio yet so I was shocked with my bio score. For maths, I usually scored high but somehow ruined on the real thing. VA and RC, well, it's VA and RC. My gpa is 3.7 and I just got my sophomore of undergrad done but planning to apply for this cycle. I got some volunteer done in the past and planning to do more this upcoming year along with chemistry research. What do you think of my chances? I want to get in some top tiers such as UMN, UIC and UW Madison and 1 back up third tier school, NDSU. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[Cardinal10]

VA: 38
RC: 20
QA: 67
Chem & bio: 95
Comp: 76

I'm really bumped right now and wondering if I should retake or not because of my high science score. To be honest, I haven't taken any bio yet so I was shocked with my bio score. For maths, I usually scored high but somehow ruined on the real thing. VA and RC, well, it's VA and RC. My gpa is 3.7 and I just got my sophomore of undergrad done but planning to apply for this cycle. I got some volunteer done in the past and planning to do more this upcoming year along with chemistry research. What do you think of my chances? I want to get in some top tiers such as UMN, UIC and UW Madison and 1 back up third tier school, NDSU. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

Sciences are great, comp decent. If I were in this situation, I guess I'd check and see if the schools I'm applying to have a minimum subset test score requirement. If not, maybe it'll be fine. Good luck to ya

 

[sunshao]

Yes been using Dr. Collins which helped tramedously on chem and bio but Math portion to be honest I zoomed out. I also didn't spent much time as I did on chem and Bio because I didn't know I will score a 4. I am so depressed now.

What was ur toughest part for quantitative the trig, precal or calc?

 

[Amaserwah]

What was ur toughest part for quantitative the trig, precal or calc?

Don't know I zoomed out plus didn't study well enough on Math at all. i haven't taken Math since 2011.

 

[yenle1304]

1. For common elements like C N O, some others? But for the others, they give you the mass.
2.


Don't schools start averaging after 3 tries?

It depends on school... if they want the most recent score, average, or choose the highest composite. But I have never heard that they average after 3 tries.

 

[sunshao]

Don't know I zoomed out plus didn't study well enough on Math at all. i haven't taken Math since 2011.

I haven't taken math in a long time too before the exam. I had to rewatch vids of how to do concepts, but I have always been good at arithmatic

 

[fockeyfreak21]

feels like more people got 99 composite than anything else haha

 

[Amaserwah]

I haven't taken math in a long time too before the exam. I had to rewatch vids of how to do concepts, but I have always been good at arithmatic

Thank you!!! This will be my third time. I feel so sad. But Thank you.

 

[mocheeka]

Long time lurker, first time poster..

Just looking for some advice. My composite was an 89 today but my chem score is real low....like 'why are you pursuing a chemistry-heavy major and career field with these scores' type of low. Mostly cause I ran out of time...so should I retake? I just know they will have questions for me on that chem score.

Do you have a good answer to why your chem was so slow? If your gen. chem + ochem grades are high/average, maybe try justifying your chem abilities with them. If you have little to show you know chemistry consider retaking it.

 

[j_marti]

VA-451-98
Bio-466-99
RC-448-99
QA-426-88
Chem-449-98

Comp-449-99

 

[ashleylh]

VA-451-98
Bio-466-99
RC-448-99
QA-426-88
Chem-449-98

Comp-449-99

Congrats! What did you use to study?

 

[j_marti]

Congrats! What did you use to study?

I read through all of the Kaplan book for everything except for the math...Kaplan math is really not up to par. Master the Pcat (Peterson's) has a decent math section. Then doing some practice tests...two come with the Kaplan book, but honestly don't bother...go for the pearson's practice tests and do all three. Take them in order and go over what you missed (and what you didn't) in each one...restudy what you struggled with and take the next test. Familiarity with the test format and types of questions was really the key on this one. Can't be wasting time on remembering how to think through a problem. The more familiar the better. Also, I would say as you get closer to test time take it easy..some very light review the day prior and just rest. My motto is you know what you don't know, so skip the really hard questions and rack up the easy points...then go back (get used to this mentality while taking the practice tests-esp in quant and chem). Finally, the closer you get to test time the more you should prioritize. Ex. there will likely be 1 question on amino acids...if it comes down to memorizing all 20 vs making sure you are thoroughly reviewed in micro (a few questions) then review the micro...be logical. Finally, trust what you've learned. If you've worked hard in class your studying is a review...treat it as such and don't waste time relearning what you already know. Review it quickly and move on to something harder.
I also did some review problems in barron's (pretty easy), but helpful for familiarity of problems in math and chem.

 

[mocheeka]

VA: 419, 78
Bio: 430, 89
RC: 430, 94
QA: 447, 97
Chem: 426, 85

Comp: 94

Reflection:
I was surprised by my RC and QA. On RC, a lot of questions had two reasonable answers. On QA, I didn't have enough time to check over everything after putting down a reasonable number of guesses. Chem was disappointing, since I did best in chem on pearson practice tests. I felt like I saw more unfamiliar OChem material, which brought me down. VA was good considering my lack of studying for it outside of practice exams. Bio was ok.

My Prep:
I studied 2 weeks before the exam (It is worth noting that I tend to study best under pressure, hence why I studied for such a short time. It was intense, around-the-clock studying). I did 2 of the 5 Cliffs Tests early in my studying just to warm-up to understand what I was getting into. The 3 pearson tests were my main resource. I had a Kaplan 13-14 book, but I felt like it was only good as a supplement for additional practice. Too much irrelevant info. I used Dr. Collins (old version???) to study OChem and refresh on bio. I also had my dad teach me some Ochem (PhD in Ochem, lol). I watched a lot of Bozeman's videos on Youtube for A&P review. I watched a lot of KhanAcademy videos for the math (calc refreshers). No prep for the essay. The day of the test, I reviewed over my notes. My notes were basically answers to problems I missed on the pearson practice problems and other info that I saw on the practice tests.

My Course Background: Just to put my suggestions and scores into perspective.
Highschool courses
Biology AP
Chem AP
Calc BC AP
Anatomy & Physiology (It was a blow-off class, however.)
First-year courses
General Chem I and II
Biology Honors (AKA Intro to Genetics at my school)
Genetics Honors (AKA Population Genetics at my school)
Multivariable Calculus (helped me remember 3 dimension vectors for one QA problem)
Statistics

Suggestions for future testers:
On the RC, there will often be two answers that might both be reasonable enough to be the answer, but always pick the choice with more text evidence/support.

For all the sections, don't spend more time than you usually would on a single problem. Make an educated guess, flag it, review it after you have gone through the rest of the problems.

For chem and bio, mark an arbitrary answer for all 8 of the questions in each section that are passage-based. They are unscored.

Also, avoid trying to change your study habits now. If you study for tests in general in a certain way that works for you, don't try to change it for the PCAT as it may not be as efficient. By now, you should have already developed a study method that works best for you. Just apply how you study for normal exams in a modified way for the PCAT.

Additionally, the 3 pearson practice tests ARE A MUST BUY. They help you gauge where you are and how you will do on the test. They are just like the real exam! Space them out to use them as diagnostic tools while you study. Dr. Collins the best resource after the pearson tests. Then Kaplan. Kaplan is just too much, so don't rely on it as your sole source of review material. Anything outside of the pearson tests and Dr. Collins is only good for supplementing the information from those two resources.

Consider BozemanScience videos on Youtube for Anatomy&Physiology review. Consider KhanAcademy videos on Youtube for Calculus review.

 

[dangkhoa123]

hey guys i need advice now
here is my score
verbal:22
reading:16
quant:99
chem:99
bio: 51
COMP: 85

my composite score is not bad, but verbal and reading sections are very low. my GPA is above 3.95 with 60 credits. however it's more difficult for me to get in as i'm an international student. Should i retake or just focus on doing volunteer pharmacy-related activities?

 

[Marfie]

Does anybody know how many people usually take the test in a given month such as these July tests? I swear in this thread there are 10 people with 99 comps and many more with 80+ comps. I am new to this site, but is this similar to the college confidential board with mostly elite students?

 

[mocheeka]

hey guys i need advice now
here is my score
verbal:22
reading:16
quant:99
chem:99
bio: 51
COMP: 85

my composite score is not bad, but verbal and reading sections are very low. my GPA is above 3.95 with 60 credits. however it's more difficult for me to get in as i'm an international student. Should i retake or just focus on doing volunteer pharmacy-related activities?

I feel like you being an international student would make interviewers sympathetic. Your chem and quant are so amazing. If it were not for that low bio score, I would have told you to focus on doing volunteer pharmacy-related activities. But, I don't know if bio can be explained by you being an international student. :/

Does anybody know how many people usually take the test in a given month such as these July tests? I swear in this thread there are 10 people with 99 comps and many more with 80+ comps. I am new to this site, but is this similar to the college confidential board with mostly elite students?

I would say this place is like college confidential. I think people that tend to seek out additional resources like SDN tend to be higher-achievers than the average applicant. Can't answer your other question, though.

 

[ElphabaWeasley]

I just took the test this morning (or I guess yesterday morning now) but here are my scores (with commentary)
VA: 437 94 (yeah!)
Bio: 435 92 (yeah!)
RC: 412 73 (eh)
QA: 402 51 (sheesh)
Chm: 396 41 (laughs nervously)
COMP: 79 (well that's not too bad)

My Chem was so low because I haven't taken Organic yet and I got a B and a C in Gen Chem. QA there was a lot of calculus (i haven't finished the course yet) and I don't know, it's just like one minute I had 35 minutes and 30 problems and the next I had 6 minutes and 20 problems. It was weird. It was my first time taking the test too, but I don't think I did that bad. I mean I know it's not 99 but it's not terrible right?

 

[vevenaneathna]

VA 87
Bio 91
RC 79
QA 93
Chem 99
Composite 98

took the test with double time. only ran out of time on the last 8 QA questions. feel like my scores are over inflated coz I didnt study....
do scores tend to drop when the real ones come back?
4th yr uni student

 

[cgriff20]

Damn...! I shouldn't have taken my PCAT back in January, well... its too late now They did not only make it easier with the passage questions, but also made it easier to get a 90+? I have seen people with 420-429 scores get a 90+ composite. I though you needed a 430 to get a 90+ percentile. You guys got really lucky!

We did not get lucky, percentiles are all related to how everyone else did. A lower scaled score for a 90th percentile just means our test was harder

 

[Pin1]

Here's my question: I didn't just skip the experimental questions and I put effort into them to get them right (even though I knew which ones they were)... are these experimental questions accounted for on your preliminary scores or are they subtracted out at a later date? The reason I ask is because I'm certain I did well on the experimental questions and am hoping that the loss of those won't seriously hurt my actual vs. preliminary scores.

 

[SpazzyJessie]

VA. 432. 91
Bio. 387. 20
RC. 424. 89
QA. 410. 67
Ch. 415. 72
Comp. 414. 76

I am okay with a 76% composite, but should I retake because of the bio score? I have 10 years pharmacy experience and a solid GPA

 

[blueheron]

Some have expressed concern over the number of high scores and I thought this little excerpt from the pcatweb.info FAQ document might put some worries to rest.

"21. Are my scores derived by comparing them to the other students who took the exam
on the same date as me?

Your percentile rank scores are based on the performance of examinees in the current norm
group. The current norm group is defined as all first-time examinees who took the test
between June 2007 and January 2011. Your scaled scores are based on the number of live
items that you answered correctly for each subtest. Each multiple-choice subtest is
calculated separately."

So, pretty much...our norm group is not made up of us...it is a past group. I am thinking our scores won't change any more than the normal/rare 1-2%.

This means your score is compared to people who DID NOT know which were experimental and therefore had to put effort into each question. The new test gives you MORE time to only answer the 40 graded questions that you KNOW count. This is going to cause score inflation. Watch and see if the average pcat for schools goes up next year.

 

[NejixRockS]

We did not get lucky, percentiles are all related to how everyone else did. A lower scaled score for a 90th percentile just means our test was harder

How can it be harder when you knew what the 8 experimental questions were (in Chem/Bio)??? You can ignore these questions cause you know they don't count, which gives you more times than the people you are being compared to (the ones that took the test from 2007-2011)

 

[blueheron]

How can it be harder when you knew what the 8 experimental questions were (in Chem/Bio)??? You can ignore these questions cause you know they don't count, which gives you more times than the people you are being compared to (the ones that took the test from 2007-2011)

Obviously they don't understand how this system works...

 

[sunshao]

idk why pearson even tried to put in passage questions. if they are trying to copy the mcat, then they are approaching it wrong. Also, this could have been avoided if they followed what the mcat did for the new stuff they plan on adding. Make it a extra section that people can take for a reward like a gift card to see how it works. Of course people will still bs it cause it don't count, but at least they aren't changing the format of the exam itself till they know what they are doing can be implemented.

 

[Marfie]

idk why pearson even tried to put in passage questions. if they are trying to copy the mcat, then they are approaching it wrong. Also, this could have been avoided if they followed what the mcat did for the new stuff they plan on adding. Make it a extra section that people can take for a reward like a gift card to see how it works. Of course people will still bs it cause it don't count, but at least they aren't changing the format of the exam itself till they know what they are doing can be implemented.

I agree. I kind of felt guilty knowing that the passages were probably experimental. I did come back and answer them like they were legit, and I'm pretty sure I got all of them right.

On another point. I wonder why Pearson doesn't use the old norms as a ways to give us our projected/ prelim scores, but then standardize the test among the people who took the test that month. I always saw standardized tests as a competition against the people taking the tests at that time.

 

[cgriff20]

How can it be harder when you knew what the 8 experimental questions were (in Chem/Bio)??? You can ignore these questions cause you know they don't count, which gives you more times than the people you are being compared to (the ones that took the test from 2007-2011)

Yea you're right maybe you should email Pearson and tell them to raise your score they must be wrong

 

[Cardinal10]

This means your score is compared to people who DID NOT know which were experimental and therefore had to put effort into each question. The new test gives you MORE time to only answer the 40 graded questions that you KNOW count. This is going to cause score inflation. Watch and see if the average pcat for schools goes up next year.

This is disappointing to hear, speaking as someone that just took the test yesterday and DIDN'T know about this. I feel I earned my grade, and gave each question equal attention. It may be slightly inflated, but there has to be a LOT more students that were unaware of this than aware.

 

[TJPAL]

VA 82
Bio 57
RC 90
QA 39- didn't have enough time
Chem 72

Composite 74
GPA 3.4-5

Do these scores seem good enough to get accepted at my school of choice?

 

[csax64]

Just a thought to those who think the scores are higher this year - yes it's most likely because of the experimental passages in bio & chem.
However, from a statistical perspective, the people that come on this forum and are actively searching for ways to study and get better scores on the PCAT, are probably going to do better! So the scores posted here aren't really representative of the whole PCAT-taking body.
So just remember that there's many more people that probably don't post here, or don't post their scores, which may account for why this year's scores seem inflated!

 

[sunshao]

Just a thought to those who think the scores are higher this year - yes it's most likely because of the experimental passages in bio & chem.
However, from a statistical perspective, the people that come on this forum and are actively searching for ways to study and get better scores on the PCAT, are probably going to do better! So the scores posted here aren't really representative of the whole PCAT-taking body.
So just remember that there's many more people that probably don't post here, or don't post their scores, which may account for why this year's scores seem inflated!

Very true. U can't count on the handful of people who scored well here as the average of everyone across the nation. Alot of ppl that took the exam didn't score that well at the end when we all received the prelim report at my test center

 

[Cauris]

WOOOOH AMAZING SCORE! GREAT JOB! I am calling pearson tomorrow and asking about my scores because our scores are almost teh same but I got 79 composite. Any ways GREAT JOB!!

Just a thought to those who think the scores are higher this year - yes it's most likely because of the experimental passages in bio & chem.
However, from a statistical perspective, the people that come on this forum and are actively searching for ways to study and get better scores on the PCAT, are probably going to do better! So the scores posted here aren't really representative of the whole PCAT-taking body.
So just remember that there's many more people that probably don't post here, or don't post their scores, which may account for why this year's scores seem inflated!

This is SDN, the majority of the scores will be high..

just keep in mind that for every 99, there is a 1.

 

[antiaromatic]

VA. 432. 91
Bio. 387. 20
RC. 424. 89
QA. 410. 67
Ch. 415. 72
Comp. 414. 76

I am okay with a 76% composite, but should I retake because of the bio score? I have 10 years pharmacy experience and a solid GPA

I'm in the same boat as you! Well less experience in pharmacy, but I recently took the pcat and had similar results (low bio score). My advisor recently told me that retaking it would be helpful as admissions committees often look at science sections specifically. I've also heard that some schools address the highest scores of each section. Hopefully this is information is helpful. I'm planning on retaking in September.

 

[Pharm-1288]

Call them!! Mine does too but they said they are not really requiring it 0.0 anyways i know how yiu feel!

Hey, thanks for the advice.
Did they really say that? I think I'm gonna try the early decision. Are you applying?

 

[blueheron]

This is SDN, the majority of the scores will be high..

just keep in mind that for every 99, there is a 1.

This is wrong. Clearly you don't understand how it is scored. It is compared to a previous group, so everyone can get a 99 if they did better than the group. Your statement only works if the comparison is isolated to the group that takes the same test with you.

I didn't say this sample was representative. The truth is the average is going to be higher due to the chem and bio scores.

 

[dhas22]

I had no idea that the bio/chem passages were experimental until I read the link above, so I treated those as any other questions. I'm wondering if a lot of people knew and maybe that's why the scores are higher but I'm thinking that most people didn't know and the people who scored lower are just too afraid to post in this forum after all of the high scores.

Taking from that PCAT changes link how there were more word problems in quantitative ability, maybe that was the reason it seems like a lot of people ran out of time in that section. I really ran out of time and had to guess on a lot, but I had taken three practice tests and multiple QA subtests that were all timed and never had such a problem with the clock.

 

[ramizlol]

Hey, thanks for the advice.
Did they really say that? I think I'm gonna try the early decision. Are you applying?

I am applying but not as an early decision. How does it work anyways?

 

[Cauris]

This is wrong. Clearly you don't understand how it is scored. It is compared to a previous group, so everyone can get a 99 if they did better than the group. Your statement only works if the comparison is isolated to the group that takes the same test with you.

I didn't say this sample was representative. The truth is the average is going to be higher due to the chem and bio scores.

Not everyone is going to do better than the group, there are people who will do significantly worse.

 

[sunshao]

To add on to this I looked around and saw a trend for this test: reading comprehension<verbal<quantitative<biology<chemistry. This trend hasn't deviated from the past exams since many people tend to do well on the sciences such as chemistry and biology (prolly because it is just basic understanding of the English language and the barrier is easier to overcome compared to the sections such as verbal and reading)
Speaking compositely, the people who scored really high tended to do well in alot of sections and not just one. Only some outliers where the only thing keeping the composite high was just the chem/bio section, but even then it was only in the high 70's/low 80's. imho the averages in terms of composite should be around the 70's still. So if u scored well in most of the areas u should not see a huge change in the official score compared to perliminary

 

[Thestrugglez]

^ Yeh honestly, there were probably fewer people that knew the passages were part of the trial section than the people who didn't. The people who did know probably prowl on SDN regularly, which is why it may seem like most people did know.

And even if they did know, the extra 5 minutes probably didn't help that much for the bio section. Might've helped a bit for the chem section, but most likely not enough to affect the composite score by more than 1 point.

If people didn't know that these passages were part of a trial section, they might've spent even more time on that part, which would likely lower their bio & chem sections.

 

[TJPAL]

^ Yeh honestly, there were probably fewer people that knew the passages were part of the trial section than the people who didn't. The people who did know probably prowl on SDN regularly, which is why it may seem like most people did know.

And even if they did know, the extra 5 minutes probably didn't help that much for the bio section. Might've helped a bit for the chem section, but most likely not enough to affect the composite score by more than 1 point.

If people didn't know that these passages were part of a trial section, they might've spent even more time on that part, which would likely lower their bio & chem sections.

 

[TJPAL]

Had no idea those awful passages weren't going to count!