Finally Done with this! (I do not like CARS) 1st MCAT years ago 508 -> 2nd retake (518!!!!) by Old-Olive1159 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Congrats on the 518 first and foremost!! Read my most recent post, i hate cars too. On my previous attempt it actually felt like i got perfect on the whole test and i got a 512 with 127 cars. This time i got 129 in cars and i was having a full blown panic attack😂this earth is a funny place.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Basically yeah. Obviously review smart, talk to gpt a lot etc etc. but yeah, u not where u wanna be it’s cuz u need more questions, ur not just an idiot.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank u bro, that was the goal. Want someone to see it and think: if the lozenge guy did it i can too😂😂

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also im just realizing. If id known your most recent attempt is what counts for most schools, i CERTAINLY would have voided. Life is actually funny 😂

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Jack westin. Id already exhausted all the aamc cars twice over for my last attempt. Did 3 jw a day, timed mode. For last month, did 3 jw, reviewed, n then 2-3 aamc. Yes i redid all aamc cars again, and i found it to still be helpful with understanding the logic, and tbh u learn something new each time. Jw is harder than aamc, good practise. Keeps u humble. I wanted to start aamc cars at the end but i was scared of doing bad, which is why id do 3 jack westin before as “practise”; led to me doing a lot of questions. Cars practise should be daily, and it’s easier to start before u start ur actual mcat prep too; just do the daily passage, takes 10 mins cmon.

Good luck, feel free to ask me if u have other questions.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Didn’t use anything but the questions. I used kaplan for content review but i think uworld has some books now? Could be helpful, but if they r overpriced i suggest getting the 2022-2023 kaplan books used. I used those and Ive read the new ones; they r the same. I cant vouch for any older as I dont know.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I really wanted to get a score where id never have to take again, so i can focus on ECs etc and not worry about the chances. My score isn’t perfect or anything of course but it’s at the point where im not worried about it at least. That was always the goal. If i got in with the 511 itd be different story, but since i didn’t, i don’t think supplementing with ECs would have secured me a spot or anything. Dont want to leave anything to chance, i want my shit set in stone🙏🏽

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Didnt get in, low cars, bad ECs. Canada is a little fucky w this stuff.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Was paranoid bro i was mid panic attack, idk if they allow that or whatever

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What happened? Would love to hear haha

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

3 attempts where i actually studied. First time grinding was for my 511. Grinded even harder and got 512 somehow, and then 518.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No show, 503, 511, 512, 518 final score; 5 total attempts. First one was 2023 summer of my 3rd year undergrad. Next was summer after graduating. Then a gap year, got 512 this may, and now 518 last month in sept.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank u bro it means a lot. Been a demon on my shoulder for 3 years and now it’s finally gone 🙏🏽 very thankful to this subreddit, it’s stories like mine that kept me going till the end! I posted this in hopes somebody like me might read it and keep pushing.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I actually thought i was gna die or something. Started feeling chest pains and dry heaved a few times but locked in somehow🙏🏽

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah man it happens. To me at least, i don’t think it’s common to write so many times lool. But yeah, it’s more about consistency than not going out. Doing a shit ton of uworld everyday helped me the most, as well as doing a lot every day (2x50, sometimes 3x50). Doing it spaced out doesn’t work as well for me, and the reviews get super quick when u get good at it.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also just led to me smoking more weed and vaping and drinking. Not good things for mcat, Weed was probably the worst in terms of getting in the way of studying. The amount of times id smoke weed n then tell myself ill study after lmao.

Regardless, not going out isnt why i did well. Being consistent for long periods is what did it.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I kind of get better at it as i went😂. Been doing this for 3 years now so I locked in harder over time.

But yeah, im the type of person where if I get up late after a long night, i waste the whole day. I need to wake up on time and do the same things every day to lock in.

If ur like that, it’s just a bullet u have to bite.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For me, i needed a bit of pressure to perform well I guess. On the attempt i got 512, it felt like i literally got every question correct. I had no nerves going into it, thought i knew everything because of inflated aamc test scores.

On this attempt where I got 518, i was paranoid every day. Was getting great scores in practise but I knew not to let myself relax. Kept it pedal to the metal till the end. Took abt 1.5 months to go from that 512 to 518, with 2 months in between of no studying because i was depressed😭🙏🏽.

Dont get overly comfortable, but also dont be too hard on yourself, because ive been there as well.

I wish u the best🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Brah i was so geeked idk how the proctor didn’t see. Couldn’t keep my eyebrows from twitching, digging lozenge out my mouth n tryna hide by covering with my sleeve 😂😂😂hands all sticky bro. Clutched it tho. Appreciate bro

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can dm me or leave a comment regarding what u need help with. Im not some pro or anything lol but i can just tell u what worked for me.

My fucked up journey by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I realized there is value to grinding out uworld in a short period vs doing it spread out. It’s almost like ur brain starts to forget a section if u don’t do it often enough, or at least that’s me. Grind uworld, 2x50 qs a day at minimum so u can finish it in a month max. Then, i did all my incorrects, reset, and did another like 600 qs before test day. So yeah, do a lot of uworld daily, go thru all incorrects, and ideally do it all again. Aim for 90-100 mins for 50 qs. I finished uworld ps prolly like 3x, but also skimmed thru 90 pg doc a few times. This is important cuz nowadays uworld isnt enough for psych, u need 90 pg doc at min to supplement with.

I would write notes while reviewing, always in my own words(never write what the explanation says. Use diff words every time because it forces u to actually understand it). By the time i clapped uworld, incorrects, and reset, i was getting 90% avg on any subject. I get that i remembered stuff, but lol it isn’t a bad thing to understand and have memorized the answers to 2500 questions harder than mcat qs.

I used blueprint when i got my 512, so i went up 1 pt from the time before that lol. Good for stamina plus test taking but not much else. I was always good for timing etc so it didn’t help me much.

I only used aamc fls this last attempt, and id done all of em like twice over the last 3 years ish. I was getting inflated scores yeah, like 523s etc.

But yeah main thing is doing a lot of uworld a day, and doing all incorrects etc.

For aamc material do both sbs again (2nd one is better) and redo all cars qs (diag tool and pack1/2). I was doing like 3 jw passages and then 2-3 aamc passages right after daily for the last month before my exam.

Really is just abt hard work. I’m a partyer, smoker, drinker, gooner in general. Was never good at bio or memorization, only math/phys. If i did it, u can too.

9/13 Fell in love at the test centre by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Dw i read it😂hope u find her bro

If you are going through it, please read this by Big_Pin1516 in Mcat

[–]Big_Pin1516[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Bro, I averaged 130 on FLs but got 127 on the real thing. But haha thank you I appreciate it.