r/MCAT2

Testing in 4 days and honestly just trying to stabilize my CARS score at this point.

Across my full lengths, I am pretty happy with my other sections and they've been pretty consistent, but CARS has been all over the place:

FL1: 124

FL2: 122

FL3: 124

FL4: 125

FL5: 120

FL6: 123

The drop on FL5 kinda freaked me out this close to test day. My main issue is I feel like I’m not fully understanding passages, and taking a lot of time reading the passage and I end up rushing because of time.

I’ve already finished all the AAMC CARS material (Diagnostic, QPack 1 & 2, FLs), so now I’m not sure what the best move is:

Should I redo AAMC CARS passages (and if so, how to make it actually useful and not just memorization)?

Or should I switch to UWorld / Jack Westin just to keep practicing fresh passages?

Or is it better to just review old FL passages really deeply?

Also, if anyone has last few days strategy for CARS specifically (timing, approach, how to actually understand passages better), I’d really appreciate it.

At this point I’m not trying to improve a ton, just want to stop the swings and stay around ~125.

Any advice would help 🙏

i am trying to apply this upcoming cycle. i got a 503(125/122/128/128) on my MCAT 3/20. my FL avg was a 502. my sGPA is a 3.97 and my cGPA is a 3.98. i have over 2000 hours of clinical experience, around 200-300 volunteering hours ( i need to recount), not much research experience, 100 shadowing hours, and a relatively strong LOR. should i retake or take a shot? the school i am interested in has automatic interveiw if you get at least a 502 and the other school i want have 500 as there minimum but i am not close at all to the average applicant. should i take a chance and retake on may 30th, i would preferably want a 508+. also i am mainly applying in the midwest.

Some ppl saying that 2026 psych soc is different so would doing the Aiden psych soc deck be helpful or am I overthinking it , and instead if I just do pankow and focus on reading comprehension I can get 130+?

Their diagrams and content are really digestible, and I've always struggled with the cardiovascular system but I'm learning a lot from it and feel like I have a better basis then before.

PS: I am not referencing their tutoring program, just their FREE content. If anyone can take a quick glance and tell me I would appreciate it so much. I would also appreciate if anyone has any free tools that can serve as a replacement for UWorld :)

https://preview.redd.it/16f9dqx3newg1.png?width=1117&format=png&auto=webp&s=f6a14f423e2883e72e87501d7b42b02c5f0a5497

https://preview.redd.it/np4j8cx4newg1.png?width=1128&format=png&auto=webp&s=eee43843e4fe26679dc1f62cadff91842dbb8575

I took FL5 last week on Wednesday and got a 502. I was crushed. My scores were hovering around 507-509 and my goal score is a 510+, so when I saw that score, I didn't know how to feel. Despite wanting to move my test so badly and losing all confidence, I decided to keep my test on 4/25, with the plan to take FL6 today.

Fast forward 4 days to today: I ended up scoring a 512 on FL6, my highest score yet, 1 week before my test. This is a sign to trust your studying. Be confident in the work that you've put in. Maintain a positive mindset throughout the test and don't lose focus. I completely psyched myself out during FL5, and it was all downhill from there. Stay positive and trust all of the work and time you have put into this test. Everything will work out; we've got this!

Hey everyone, this is an follow up on a previous post, but I just took AAMC FL 5 and scored a 505 (127, 127, 125, 126), my goal is at least a 512. My test date is this Friday, April 24th, and I have completed almost all of AAMC material and completed all of their FLs. I am of course in my head, but also feeling a little defeated because I have been studying seriously for a few months (since about January) but still seem to be plateauing. My individual sections for C/P and B/B have flucuated over the last few weeks, but the highest I have gotten is 127 on both. (AAMC FL2-506 AAMC FL1-504 BP Free FL-505, AAMC FL 3- 504, AAMC FL 4- 507, AAMC FL 6- 505, AAMC FL 5-505). I am trying to apply this cycle, so I would probably sign up to take it at the end of May or early June, just trying to decide if its better to take this one on Friday and score it, and retake in May/June or no show/void. I also think I will get a tutor to try to get over this plataeu. Any and all advice would be appreciated!!

Their diagrams and content are really digestible, and I've always struggled with the cardiovascular system but I'm learning a lot from it and feel like I have a better basis then before.

PS: I am not referencing their tutoring program, just their FREE content. If anyone can take a quick glance and tell me I would appreciate it so much. I would also appreciate if anyone has any free tools that can serve as a replacement for UWorld :)

52 days left on my account and moving on to aamc material

My school offers a pretty good discount on TPR'S MCAT ultimate and selfpaced courses (50%). Is TPR helpful/worth it? Or should I stick w/ self-study?

I’ve been reviewing my practice exams and I’m noticing most of my mistakes aren’t content—they’re approach/strategy errors (misreading question stems, not mapping data, jumping to answers, etc.).

I’ve been writing these takeaways down after each review, but now I have a huge list and tried putting them into Anki… and it’s just not working. They don’t stick or translate when I’m actually taking the test.

For people who improved their score significantly:

How did you actually apply non-content review takeaways during practice/tests?

I feel like I understand my mistakes when reviewing, but I’m not fixing them in real time.

Any advice on how to bridge that gap would be really appreciated.

Wow so I dropped 7 points and went under 500. This has crushed my soul and spirits and now I am so fucking scared. Idk how to go about this. I test in 5 days.

I still didn’t take the mcat yet.

I am a senior right now and I am doing biomedical engineering I have a gpa of 3.7 still not the final gpa but so far it is that.

I worked as MA for like 4 years.( 3 years I was full time take early morning classes and then work all day). Right now Iam a biomed tech in a hospital for more than a year now. I didn’t do any research but I still took advanced quantitative physiology and lab (only one semester).

I am in debate between md and pa. I have always wanted to become a physician and my biggest fear is regretting applying for PA. I dont want to take more gap years ( I only took em for financial and immigration reasons but now I am good) than i already have . Also if iam applying this years it makes me have a free year to work as a biomed eng which I am not sure if it will strengthen my chances when applying.

I have been studying for around 8 months now, originally planned to take it in January but pushed back due to scoring around a 500 on the unscored test.

I had felt decent about content review and ended with ~70% correct on UWorld at 80% complete. Recently finished SB 1 at 72%, SB 2 at 75%. CARS has always been my downfall (61% QP1, 64% QP2) Full length scores are just not adding up though. Hit a 509 on FL 1 and then has been down since then. Recently taken FL5 and FL6 because exam day is in 5 days. I plan to take the exam, but am not horrified of another gap year. I would have to wait until Sept/Oct to begin studying again as the summers are too busy to study consistently on the weekends. I feel a super big lack of consistency and also struggle with test anxiety, any input?

FL 1: 509 (127, 126, 128, 128)

FL 2: 504 (128, 123, 127, 126)

FL 3: 505 (127, 125, 127, 126)

FL 4: 504 (127, 123, 129, 125)

FL 5: 502 (126, 122, 126, 128)

Fl 6: 502 (125, 123, 127, 127)