Your Shortcut to 90%

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howtobecool

Full Member
7+ Year Member
Joined
Apr 12, 2016
Messages
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Preparation
1. Dr Collins self-study package (both 2015-2016, 2016-2017 are fine).
2. Kaplan PCAT 2016-2017
3. Pearson Practice Exams 5, 6, 7.



Schedule

Start 37 days before your scheduled PCAT.

Step 1. Go over Dr. Collins practice exams first. (It is not necessary to go over the Biology, Math, or Chemistry self-study guides)
- 2 Biology practice exam packets everyday for 5 days, then
- 2 Math practice exam packets everyday for 5 days, then
- 2 Chemistry practice exam packets everyday for 9 days

Days spent: 19 days

Step 2. Go over Kaplan Biology section.
- 30 pages everyday for 6 days. (the number may seem scary and unreasonably large, trust me, Kaplan freaking uses font 20, you will be able to finish 30 pages fairly quick)

Days spent: 6 days

Step 3. Pearson exams.
-Peason exam 5 Biology and Chemistry -1 day
-Pearson exam 5 Reading and Math - 1 day
-Pearson exam 6 Biology and Math - 1 day
-Pearson exam 6 Reading and Math - 1 day
-Peason exam 7 Biology and Chemistry -1 day
-Pearson exam 7 Reading and Math - 1 day

Days spent: 6 days

Step 4. Go over Dr. Collins practice exams again! not just the ones you got wrong the first time doing them.
-3 Biology packets, 3 Math packets, 3 chemistry packets for 1 day, then
-3 Biology packets, 3 Math packets, 3 chemistry packets for 1 day, then
-3 Biology packets, 3 Math packets, 3 chemistry packets for 1 day, then
-Finish the rest of the chemistry packets.

Days spent: 4 days

Step5. Go over the practice exams. 1 day.

Total days spent: 36 days.

Rest and get ready for PCAT the next day.

My preliminary score:


Biology: 96 (finished everything with 10 mins to spare)
Chemistry: 96 (finished everything with 3 mins to spare)
Reading: 20 (finished everything with 35 mins to spare. I did not read any of the passages, I guessed everything. As you can see, Reading weighs very little compare to other sections, I decided to test my luck and save some brain cells for Math - strategic planning ;) )
Math: 94 (finished everything with 5 seconds to spare. sigh...good ol math)
Composite: 90

The Chemistry section had way too much emphasis on organic chemistry, they need to revise the blue print.
The Biology section had way too much emphasis on A&P, they need to revise the blue print, again.
Could my composite be higher if I read the passages from the CR section? Sure! But having a 90% composite is good enough for me.....:happy: not to mention.....CR is unreasonably long.



Q&A

1. What version of Dr. Collins did you use?
I used the 2016-2017 version with Fall 2015, September 2015, and January 2016 updates.

2. I have the older version (older than 2015-2016) of Dr. Collins, can I use it?
I tried to use the 2014-2015 version in pdf format, and it was very disorganized. I would highly recommend the newer version.

3. Are the Real PCAT questions similar to those of Dr. Collins or Pearson Practice Exams?
Good question. Yes and No. You will find 2-3 questions that are exact duplicates, around 10 that are similar, and something you have never seen on either Collins or Pearson. Dr. Collins helps get you prepared mentally for the exam and teaches you the basic knowledge you must know for the exam. Pearson helps you with time management.

4. Are Pearson Practice Exams more difficult than real PCAT?

In my opinion, yes. I only scored around 65-80% on all of the practice exams. Remember to learn from the mistakes you have made on the practice exams.

5. Are Dr. Collins practice exams easier than real PCAT?
In my opinion, not necessarily. I made many mistakes on the Collins practice exams the first time I went through them. The practice exams teach you at least 70% of the real PCAT and you need to find the rest somewhere else.

6. Are the newest updates that reflect the changes a must-have?
No. To be honest, I did not read any of the Bio or Chem passages. You CAN answer the passage related questions without reading the passages.

7. Man oh Man, Kaplan book is too comprehensive, I have no time to go over the whole thing!
Don't worry, I only went through the Biology section. It is not necessary to go over the other sections, especially the Math section.


I am done with Dr. Collins materials and ready to sell them to the next owner. if you are interested, pm me at [email protected]

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I'm glad I wasn't the only one who noticed that there was a lot of orgo and A&P!

Today was kind of a practice run for me, and I'm retaking in November. I literally just sat down to try to come up with a good study schedule, so thanks for posting!
 
I'm glad I wasn't the only one who noticed that there was a lot of orgo and A&P!

Today was kind of a practice run for me, and I'm retaking in November. I literally just sat down to try to come up with a good study schedule, so thanks for posting!
you are welcome. i am glad you got enough money. this test is not cheap
 
don't waste your money on collins. kaplan > Collin's (except for math, where both of them are equally ****ty). The only good thing about Collin's are those practice question and so many of them are taken from pearson practice test.
 
I'm glad I wasn't the only one who noticed that there was a lot of orgo and A&P!

Today was kind of a practice run for me, and I'm retaking in November. I literally just sat down to try to come up with a good study schedule, so thanks for posting!

Same! And it was mainly a lot of A and 0
don't waste your money on collins. kaplan > Collin's (except for math, where both of them are equally ****ty). The only good thing about Collin's are those practice question and so many of them are taken from pearson practice test.
well what do you suggest I do? And what materials to study? I have been using Kaplan but I feel that is isn't enough
 
Same! And it was mainly a lot of A and 0

well what do you suggest I do? And what materials to study? I have been using Kaplan but I feel that is isn't enough

Buy the pearson practice tests too! Also you should review the quick study sheets from the Kaplan book every night, however some all the stuff is not on there. Things such as aromatic compounds, respiratory system, circulatory system, nervous system.
 
Buy the pearson practice tests too! Also you should review the quick study sheets from the Kaplan book every night, however some all the stuff is not on there. Things such as aromatic compounds, respiratory system, circulatory system, nervous system.
I mainly need to get my math score up and Kaplan didn't help for the math I just feel clueless when it came to the math. I haven't took math since like 3 years ago
 
I mainly need to get my math score up and Kaplan didn't help for the math I just feel clueless when it came to the math. I haven't took math since like 3 years ago
I haven't taken math since freshman year in college which is like 10 years ago, but I was able to score a 60 on quantitative. Not bad for studying 5 days before the exam if you asked me. I used dr. Collins and 1 Pearson test. I didn't have time to try the 2nd Pearson test that I've bought.
 
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I feel like everyone who studied with Collins had a great score bc I just looked at some Collins material and it's literally the same **** that was on the actual test and idk if I'm okay with that:/
 
How many hours a day were you spending on this? I like how you broke it done but are we talking like 5 hours a day?
 
So overall, would you just suggest taking the Pearson test and practinf with those?

I did study of Collins and Kaplan but I didn't really like them. So along with the practice test what I did was I looked at the official guideline where it lists all the topics that are covered and I studied them 1 by 1 on youtube. And, if your Algebra and calc is strong, your good.
 
I did study of Collins and Kaplan but I didn't really like them. So along with the practice test what I did was I looked at the official guideline where it lists all the topics that are covered and I studied them 1 by 1 on youtube. And, if your Algebra and calc is strong, your good.
Well my math is ****ty right now! And honestly the math did not look too damn bad at all! I just needed more practice
 
Well my math is ****ty right now! And honestly the math did not look too damn bad at all! I just needed more practice
I think what got me was the algebra mostly bc I never took algebra , I skipped right over to calc. But I think if I had those algebra basics then I would be okay. I am just going to have to khan academy my ass off when it comes to math
 
I believe I have the collins 2013-2014 packet (nothing newer than that). If I request "updates" from him, is that all I need to be up to speed with the current materials? I didn't feel like collins helped too much with this past time I took it 09/08/16 but it did help in 01/16 of this year. So maybe I just need the updates?
 
I believe I have the collins 2013-2014 packet (nothing newer than that). If I request "updates" from him, is that all I need to be up to speed with the current materials? I didn't feel like collins helped too much with this past time I took it 09/08/16 but it did help in 01/16 of this year. So maybe I just need the updates?
I have the updates! Email me
 
Preparation
1. Dr Collins self-study package (both 2015-2016, 2016-2017 are fine).
2. Kaplan PCAT 2016-2017
3. Pearson Practice Exams 5, 6, 7.



Schedule

Start 37 days before your scheduled PCAT.

Step 1. Go over Dr. Collins practice exams first. (It is not necessary to go over the Biology, Math, or Chemistry self-study guides)
- 2 Biology practice exam packets everyday for 5 days, then
- 2 Math practice exam packets everyday for 5 days, then
- 2 Chemistry practice exam packets everyday for 9 days

Days spent: 19 days

Step 2. Go over Pearson Biology section.
- 30 pages everyday for 6 days. (the number may seem scary and unreasonably large, trust me, Kaplan freaking uses font 20, you will be able to finish 30 pages fairly quick)

Days spent: 6 days

Step 3. Pearson exams.
-Peason exam 5 Biology and Chemistry -1 day
-Pearson exam 5 Reading and Math - 1 day
-Pearson exam 6 Biology and Math - 1 day
-Pearson exam 6 Reading and Math - 1 day
-Peason exam 7 Biology and Chemistry -1 day
-Pearson exam 7 Reading and Math - 1 day

Days spent: 6 days

Step 4. Go over Dr. Collins practice exams again! not just the ones you got wrong the first time doing them.
-3 Biology packets, 3 Math packets, 3 chemistry packets for 1 day, then
-3 Biology packets, 3 Math packets, 3 chemistry packets for 1 day, then
-3 Biology packets, 3 Math packets, 3 chemistry packets for 1 day, then
-Finish the rest of the chemistry packets.

Days spent: 4 days

Step5. Go over the practice exams. 1 day.

Total days spent: 36 days.

Rest and get ready for PCAT the next day.

My preliminary score:


Biology: 96 (finished everything with 10 mins to spare)
Chemistry: 96 (finished everything with 3 mins to spare)
Reading: 20 (finished everything with 35 mins to spare. I did not read any of the passages, I guessed everything. As you can see, Reading weighs very little compare to other sections, I decided to test my luck and save some brain cells for Math - strategic planning ;) )
Math: 94 (finished everything with 5 seconds to spare. sigh...good ol math)
Composite: 90

The Chemistry section had way too much emphasis on organic chemistry, they need to revise the blue print.
The Biology section had way too much emphasis on A&P, they need to revise the blue print, again.
Could my composite be higher if I read the passages from the CR section? Sure! But having a 90% composite is good enough for me.....:happy: not to mention.....CR is unreasonably long.



Q&A

1. What version of Dr. Collins did you use?
I used the 2016-2017 version with Fall 2015, September 2015, and January 2016 updates.

2. I have the older version (older than 2015-2016) of Dr. Collins, can I use it?
I tried to use the 2014-2015 version in pdf format, and it was very disorganized. I would highly recommend the newer version.

3. Are the Real PCAT questions similar to those of Dr. Collins or Pearson Practice Exams?
Good question. Yes and No. You will find 2-3 questions that are exact duplicates, around 10 that are similar, and something you have never seen on either Collins or Pearson. Dr. Collins helps get you prepared mentally for the exam and teaches you the basic knowledge you must know for the exam. Pearson helps you with time management.

4. Are Pearson Practice Exams more difficult than real PCAT?

In my opinion, yes. I only scored around 65-80% on all of the practice exams. Remember to learn from the mistakes you have made on the practice exams.

5. Are Dr. Collins practice exams easier than real PCAT?
In my opinion, not necessarily. I made many mistakes on the Collins practice exams the first time I went through them. The practice exams teach you at least 70% of the real PCAT and you need to find the rest somewhere else.

6. Are the newest updates that reflect the changes a must-have?
No. To be honest, I did not read any of the Bio or Chem passages. You CAN answer the passage related questions without reading the passages.

7. Man oh Man, Kaplan book is too comprehensive, I have no time to go over the whole thing!
Don't worry, I only went through the Biology section. It is not necessary to go over the other sections, especially the Math section.


I am done with Dr. Collins materials and ready to sell them to the next owner. if you are interested, pm me at [email protected]


Hi, I just have a quick question. What do you mean by "Go over Pearson Biology section." and where do I get it?
 
why didn't you go over the self study material for chem and bio? Is it because you remember all the stuff?
 
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