Last week, I took the NS 1/2 length diagnostic and scored 503 (125/128/125/125). I want to start taking FL's weekly, with 11 weeks until my MCAT test date. I've purchased the AAMC practice exams 1-2 and the sample test. If I've understood correctly, one is scored and one is unscored. Should I take the unscored exam now and the scored exam the week before the MCAT? Or should I save them all for last and do NS FL's for the time being? Thanks for your help!
As far as early FL's, I'd really suggest Altius. Altius FL's are near AAMC FL quality. They really strive to make the best practice exams out there. Save the AAMC material for your last month of prep. I'm copying and pasting the information below from another thread about practice exams:
I'd strongly suggest you purchase the altius exams. You can find them
here.
DO NOT waste your time or money on Kaplan or Princeton. Their exams are just not representative of the AAMC. The question style, overall difficulty, test format, and passage length are sporadic and not useful.
A lot of people (including me) used EK, NS, and Altius. EK is alright, but you don't get a score at the end of it which sucks. NS gives you a score and has decent exams (only exams 1 - 5 though - anything beyond is poor quality).
Altius excels cause they mirror the MCAT style perfectly. They only use scientific journal articles for all of their science passages which gets you used to the AAMC style entirely. The questions themselves are phenomenal and really hit home when talking about MCAT style. They have a nice diversity in difficulty and topic per exam as well as per test. For example, the AAMC likes to occasionally throw in some biochemistry here and there in the physics/chemistry part of the exam; Altius does it just as well. The altius exams ALSO give you a score which is great. One of the best parts of Altius is also you get the most for your money. By that, I mean the exams are unlimited attempts. EK and NS only give you 4 or 5 attempts, respectively. Altius lets you take any of their full lengths as many times as you care to. I (personally) like to do a FL per week, on Fridays. M-Th, I take another full length, divided into quarters. I can't do that using NS or EK.
Lastly, I believe one of the best parts about Altius FL exams is the detailed answer keys. Here's a popular type of MCAT Question.
The protein sequence discussed in the passage has a D residue in the catalytic core domain. When the scientists blocked the D residue, no enzymatic function was observed. If the scientists were to switch D with another Amino Acid, which one of the following would most likely retain activity in the catalytic core domain?
A) Lysine
B) Asparagine
C) Glutamate
D) Glycine
Most testtaking companies will say the following: "The answer is C, glutamate, because it is acidic."
That doesn't tell me squat. What the heck does acidity have to do with the D mentioned in the catalytic core domain?!
Altius explanations are very thorough and clear. The altius explanation would be something like "Notice how the scientists discussed D, which is the one letter abbreviation for Aspartate, one of the acidic amino acids. Remember the sidechain for aspartate is R-CH2-COOH. The passage and question are implying that this acidic residue, aspartate, is vital for protein function. This is known because the question stem states when the scientists blocked D, there was no enzymatic function at all, so this D residue is VITAL. Now, let's go back and read the question. We're being asked what amino acid substitution, in place of D (Aspartate, an acidic amino acid) will most likely retain activity. This implies you need another acidic amino acid. What is another acidic amino acid? Glutamate! Lysine is a basic amino acid, so in place of D, it most likely won't retain activity. Asparagine is polar uncharged amino acid with no acid activity, so it most likely won't retain activity either. Glycine is an achiral non-polar amino acid, so it certainly won't mimic the acidic properties of D. Thus, Glutamate, the other acidic amino acid, in place of D, should most likely retain enzymatic activity."
Notice how thorough the answer explanation is. It not only tells you what the correct answer is, it tells you why, how to get there, what key details from the passage and question stem you should have picked up on, and finally, why all the other choices are wrong.
I'm a big fan of Altius, ask me any questions you have about their exams and other companies exams and I'll be happy to elaborate.
