r/MCATPrepGuide

ok last month and somehow pulled off a 517 (131/126/131/129). but since then I've had a lot of "damn I wish I did x y and z" moments, so here's a list that might help someone.

What I Did:

• Content Review (1 month)
• uworld (1 month)
• AAMC only material including all qpacks, section banks, and official guide questions (1 month)
• Milesdown Anki Deck (kindaaa lol)
• Excel Sheet to Keep Track of Wrong Answers and Explanations
• 100 pg PS Doc
• 2 Kaplans, 1 NS & 5 AAMC FLs

What I Wish I Had Done/Added:

I wish I was doing 2-3 CARS passages everyday from Jack Westin or any other source. I can't read so this might have helped me get a higher score.

I wasn't consistent with my Anki cards at all, and the weeks where I did them somewhat consistently I was able to recall specific details much more easily and everything felt more fresh in my head.

I wish I had done more questions from uPangea during my content review month. Practice is soooo much more important than just reviewing content cuz AAMC tests your ability to decipher the passages and apply very basic concepts.

I wish I didnt get lazy and did the 300 page doc instead of the 100 page one. I wouldnt have gotten confused by AAMC made up terms on the real deal😂

Lastly, I wish i had TRUSTED THE FLS!!! My body would have had much lower cortisol levels this last month😭

Learn from my mistakes, good luck out there!

I scored well below my average, ngl I'm still in shock and denial as I gave this tests my all this summer (I studied full time).

I don't know what went wrong but I know I can do better than what I currently got: 508 (127/125/128/128). I have a 4.0 GPA at a large state school which will definitely be a plus point, a good amount of research, clinical hours, volunteering ,etc.

For reference, I don't want to take a gap year. I know my chances of getting into an MD school are very low with this score.

I used everything that's typically recommended for my first attempt: completed all of UW, completed AAMC SB, all FLs, both CARS QPs, JW CARS daily, Anki around 2hrs daily but still did very poorly compared to the score I expected.

If you retook your MCAT, I would greatly appreciate any advice on material I should use to study for my January retest. I've heard Blueprint tests are pretty good but obviously AAMC material is the gold standard so I'm unsure if this is worth. Should I redo UW? I probably won't content review again and strictly focus on practice. I would appreciate any advice or tips, thanks in advance.

There are loads of questions everyday on “how can I improve from 505”, can I improve to a “515” etc. So here’s a good list of stuff to include in those posts.

1. Don’t just say “505 on fl3, what do to get 515 next test”. Tell us what you got on every FL you took and the specific sub scores so you know where you’re having trouble.
2. tell us the type of mistakes you are making. Are they content based, careless errors, trouble understanding passages etc. Where are the bulk of your errors. Are most of the mistakes you make, on discretes. Do you always get reaction questions wrong on cp.
3. tell us about any deficiencies. Are you having trouble with fluids, or protein structure, magnetism??? Are you having a hard time understanding historical passages? Are the long ass protein/gene based passages giving you a hard time. Are you running out of time on any sections.
4. Next let others know if there is any content you didn’t go over yet.
5. How long have you been studying. What materials did you use. How much time until your real exam.
6. finally know how you feel emotionally when you take the practice tests. Do you get super anxious, are you laid back, do you panic when you get a tough passage.

While this sounds like a lot, the more specific you are the better you can help yourself and others can give good advice.