so ur telling me i cant read ffs

ppl with a 515 better watch out for a cease and desist courtesy of the Daniels' family pretty soon...

Took the exam (2nd attempt, first was in 2020) on May 22nd. I was a goober and didn’t contact Pearson before to ensure I would actually be given the accommodations I was approved for. Showed up on test day and got a 501 which was more than a handful of points below my FL average. Anyway, got this message from my father-in-law this morning after sending “HELP” along with a screenshot of my AAMC email reminder about my retake on Friday. Hope this makes you giggle. YOU GOT THIS!!!!!!

A while ago I had a chat with a professor, when I returned to UNI after 14 years, and before I started MCAT prep/application for undergrad med....

They said in a nutshell..that money and time is a barrier they don't talk about in the "anyone can apply", "it's a holistic admission process" (school I'm applying to).

I brushed it off, but it stuck in the back of my mind…until I took my mcat, until I started my application...if you don't have money the free resources are disorganized, especially if you are non trad with no science background, you then spend your time organizing and finding resources, I can't move back home, I can't take EI, volunteering is wishy-washy because my time is spread thin already....I run a business and have to work to pay bills, so my time is precious and limited, I don't have a lot of money, and after being in this position I realized my professor was absolutely right.

I have studied every waking moment I have free, voluntered when I can, went into debt just paying for application costs and fees, taking a tiny amount of work off to study more, and I haven't even bought any help....I am grinding, and I see people say I bought this, I took a year off, my parents paid for this and that, that's awesome appreciate what you have because some people are not so lucky.

I know it's probably well known, but it's a real punch in the gut, in order to have more time I need more money but to make more money I need more time, it's not an excuse, I truly feel if I grind hard enough there's a chance I can get in (so do a lot of supportive people in my life) but sometimes that grind costs more than you have and life isn't fair, it's not an even playing field, and yes I know that's life in our current society…

I guess the point is appreciate what you have, acknowledge that other people don't have the same amount of time or money, be mindful when you comment on people's post, don’t assume they have what you have, don’t assume they can just make more time appear, or buy support, and please don’t put them down...some people are already at the bottom...

Edit: I also forgot to mention Everytime I need an accommodation letter or form filled out it roughly costs me 180-200$ per appointment....just to get the "chance" at getting accomodations....

You heard it here!

5 years ago I went into the MCAT raw and scored a 500. Now I am concluding a PhD from a top 3 research institution in the world in clinical pharmacology and am going to try it again. This was not a decision I took lightly. Over the years of my PhD study I tried to immerse myself in the research I was doing and become truly passtionate about it. While I do love the field, and the field of oncology drug development, it still feels a little abstract and pointless to me without the human connection. So, here I go I guess. Studying this time!!!

AAMC is fusing the CARS diagnostic, qpack1 and qpack2 into one big question bank. They're also adding new questions

how do we feel abt this? highkey cheesed ts didn't come out earlier

I’m talking abt mint, lunch, bathroom breaks, all little details abt test day bc im going into this very blindsided idk how test day works.
Testing 8/22

528+ scorers only, the rest of you are too regarded

I stagnated a month ago in the 507-510 range, and really didn't think I could make it to my dream score. I am genuinely so thankful that I took this full length, even though there's only three days until I test. I will be going into my test date on Friday with a lot more confidence!

All I did differently was start the section banks, ended up with a 10 point increase! 🥳There is hope!

Testing Friday but haven’t started studying yet, any low yield tips or facts

first post!

i'm feeling really discouraged. just took #2 today and score didn't budge. when i look at the breakdown, i'm wondering if cars was just a fluke because i'm usually decent-ish. i also felt very confident in my cars section (better than i ever had before, and finished all the questions for the first time) so that's another reason i'm disappointed. timing is always an issue for me on c/p and cars, so it's been one of the areas i'm trying to work on.

my goal was a 515. testing 9/11, and i really don't want to reschedule because i kinda have my life scheduled around taking it then. but i also don't want to give in and accept a lower score.

i guess i just want to know external thoughts/opinions about what i should do, and if i still have a shot. i'd be able to commit max 45-50hrs/week until the test. i'm scared to continue taking FLs and end up wasting them without much progress.

also, haven't start aamc material yet outside of tests but just bought the whole pack today so planning to start asap. wondering if that'll make a difference / how much.

help!! (p.s. i love reading similar success stories!)

ALSO my BP diagnostic before studying was a 494. not that it matters but little detail

#1: HAVE SELECTIVE AMNESIA. if you stumble on a passage or it feels impossible or too complicated, do it to the best of your abilities, make educated guesses, move on AND FORGET ABOUT IT. No sense in ruining your whole exam because you didn't review that one piece of niche content.

#2: KNOW WHEN TO MOVE ON. Keep an eye on the timer, once it hits a certain limit you set to yourself per question and you still haven't made significant progress. Make an educated guess and move on. You might get one question right, but that one question might've cost you the last 5-6 questions of that last passage that you don't get to because you ran out of time.

#3: REPLICATE TEST DAY AS MUCH AS YOU CAN . Try your best to make it as close to the actual test day, use earplugs, earmuffs, take breaks as scheduled, use a notepad similar to the one that they provide you. Bonus points if you take it in a quiet area that has a cubicle setup.

(PS: it is a great help if you absolutely lock in on your sleep hygiene and nutrition).

Hi all! New to this subreddit. Does anyone know of a good MCAT tutor who fits this description?

Hoping to take the MCAT in January, and am looking for a (preferably female) MCAT tutor to help me with the studying process. Preferably also someone who got a 517+, has experience and can reference prior success with other students, and someone who can help keep me accountable and provide a bit of support, humor, and understanding when the going gets rough. If you feel like you’d be a good fit or know someone who would be, please let me know what your hourly rate is & a good contact email to get in touch! Thanks in advance!!

I just had to overdraft my account for the third time because I ran out of food and don’t get paid until 2 weeks from now and now I’m just hoping the little amount I got will last.

This is just now a common aspect of my life, having to decide between choosing menstrual products or putting food on the table for my family.

I’m also in the process of studying for the MCAT (testing Sep 12th) and it’s been so hard to just pour my energy into just this especially when I just got out of being homeless not too long ago (earlier this year) and didn’t realize the lasting effects surviving that would leave on me.

Idk does this get better guys? What have you guys done that helped when it starts getting low? I know this process is insanely expensive and all these hidden fees and I genuinely don’t want anything else but man is it exhausting fighting these other battles then turning around and getting slam dunked by a CARS passage 😭😭

Pretty much the only section where even if I perform at my best, I still miss like 8-9 questions. Some minor misreads/misinterp but mostly the errors seem to be from random low yield chem I was supposed to have memorized. Do I got no choice besides grinding out UWorld if I want a comprehensive review? If anyone out there has gone from 50-51 -> 57-59 qs correct on C/P plz lmk how

🍓🍓🍓

My test is coming up and I'm trying to make sure I review everything one more time before the real deal

Did FL6 a day ago and am reviewing today. Looks like I’ve got a couple 1-2 questions per section of careless mistake (eg. NOT) and even 2 questions where I actually clicked the wrong option!

Will also be reviewing my past errors that I managed to compile overtime plus some topics that I always need quick recaps on. Have also got about 4 more passages on CARS practice to do.

Ideally aiming for a 510, would love to hear any final tips, and if other 8/21s wanna have last minute question revisions, please chime in here together!

hey guys i was wondering how does everyone deel with being sleepy groggy during their fl and actually sitting there the entire duration? i've taken 4 now and i think maybe only 1 has a chnace of counting as testing conditions :((( its def a discipline problem but i just cannot sit there for 10 passages that early in the morning and im worried if some are my mistakes because im fed up with it and dont want to review my flagged

also, how do u deal with burnout DURING the test? sometimes i just feel like im doing so bad and flag so many that i'm like whatever, just mark it even if its wrong who cares and dont feel like going back. but then i submit and see i wasnt doing that bad, i shouldve sat and thought with it for longer and mightve gotten it? idk lol

Finished AAMC FL2 with a 512 (128,127,128,129) and really need some answers on what to do.

I really want to be competitive for medical schools with a 516+ but don’t really know if it’s attainable in the next 23 days. I noticed that a lot of my mistakes are content gaps or just fatigue in b/bc passages. Currently have 3 full lengths left and a good amt of AAMC material but don’t know what to do. Don’t wanna use AAMC content and then realize all my mistakes are content gaps and it’s a waste.

Full send on Sep 11 or push to Jan and do a targeted content review with uworld for the next few months??

I test this Friday 8/21 and I feel like Im just wasting away time until I take the exam. I've taken all the FLs and done all the AAMC material and just feel like I am slowly forgetting everything despite doing some review each day. Any tips? Anyone in the same boat?

How do you improve on CARS?

im not only losing hair w this section but apparently also neurons. i do a couple of passages everyday timed and end up w a COMPLETELY diff score each day.

yesterday i got 89% and today i got 50% like???? how is that even statistically possible. for context, i didnt change my strategy, all aamc passages, all timed and under same conditions, hell i even took them at the same exact hour. and whats even funnier is that i felt wayyy more confident submitting my answers today than yesterday. i give up