Week 8 Standardized Test Preparation

1. Week 8Standardized Test Preparation Kent L. BarrusPre-professional Advisor

2. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation Why Take Standardized Tests? • Grades Don’t Tell the Whole Story • The Great Equalizer of Undergraduate Education • More Important for Students Graduating from Schools not Well Known or Schools Who’s Reputation is Less than Other Schools. • Determine the Test Taking Ability of an Applicant. • Will you Do Well on Medical School Exams? • Will you Do Well on a Licensing Exam?

3. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation What are the Different Tests? • MCAT • Allopathic • Osteopathic • Podiatry • Some Veterinary and Pharmacy Schools • DAT - Dental • OAT - Optometry • PCAT – Pharmacy • VCAT – Veterinary (No Longer Offered) • GRE – Graduate Schools

4. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation MCAT Essentials • When to Take the Test • April 17th or August 14th • Deadlines: March 12th or July 9th • Where to Take the Test • Idaho – Albertsons College (Caldwell), University of Idaho (Moscow), Idaho State University (Pocatello) • Utah – Utah State University, Southern Utah University, Weber State University, Brigham Young University, University of Utah • Costs • Regular Exam Fee - $185.00 • Miscellaneous Fees ranging from $10 to $60

5. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation MCAT Essentials • How and Where to Register for the Test

6. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation MCAT Scope of the Exam • Verbal Reasoning (VR) • 65 Questions • Score 1 to 15 • 85 Minutes • Physical Sciences (PS) • 77 Questions • Score 1 to 15 • 100 Minutes

7. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation MCAT Scope of the Exam • Biological Sciences (BS) • 77 Questions • Score 1 to 15 • 100 Minutes • Writing Sample (WS) • 2 Questions • Score of J to T • 60 Minutes

8. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation MCAT Preparation • Self Study • Class Notes • Preparation Books • AAMC Website • Study Groups • Draw from the skills and knowledge of other • Support to reach the goal • May slow the pace of learning down

9. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation MCAT Preparation • Commercial Courses • Very Expensive • Helps you create a course of study • Built in financial motivation • Sense of confidence that you have done all you can do to prepare

10. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation DAT Essentials • When to Take the Test • Any time of the year • Give yourself at least 3 weeks to register • Where to Take the Test • Idaho – Boise Sylvan Learning Center • Utah – Ogden, Orem, or Salt Lake City Sylvan Learning Center • Costs • Regular Exam Fee - $160.00 • Score Sent to 5 schools, NOT AADSAS. • Additional score reports are $10 per school.

11. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation DAT Essentials • How and Where to Register for the Test • Registration is good for 12 months

12. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation DAT Scope of the Exam • Survey of Natural Sciences • 90 Minutes • Biology, General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry • Perceptual Ability • 60 Minutes • Angle discrimination, form development cubes, paper folding, etc. • Scoring of the Test • Standard scores range from 1 to 30. 17 is considered average.

13. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation DAT Scope of the Exam • Reading Comprehension • 60 Minutes • Read, organize, analyze, and remember new information • Quantitative Reasoning • 45 Minutes • Mathematics, Numerical Calculations, Conversions, Probability and Statistics, Geometry, Trigonometry, and Word Problems

14. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation DAT Preparation • Self Study • Class Notes • Preparation Books • ADA Website • Other Online • Study Groups • Commercial Courses

15. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation OAT Essentials • COMPUTERIZED IN 2004 • When to Take the Test • February 7th 2004 and October 16th 2004 • Deadlines: December 29th and September 7th • Where to Take the Test • Idaho – Idaho State University • Utah – Weber State (Ogden) or BYU (Provo) • Costs • Regular Exam Fee - $130.00 • Score Sent to 5 schools. • Additional score reports are $10 per school.

16. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation OAT Essentials • How and Where to Register for the Test

17. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation OAT Scope of the Exam • Survey of Natural Sciences • 90 Minutes • Biology, General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry • Reading Comprehension • 50 Minutes • Read, organize, analyze, and remember new information

18. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation OAT Scope of the Exam • Physics • 50 Minutes • Quantitative Reasoning • 45 Minutes • Mathematics, Algebra, Probability and Statistics, Geometry, Trigonometry, and Word Problems • Scoring of the Test • Standard scores range from 200 to 400. 300 is considered average.

19. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation OAT Preparation • Self Study • Class Notes • Preparation Books • OPTED Website • Other Online • Study Groups • Commercial Courses

20. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation PCAT Essentials • When to Take the Test • January 24th 2004, March 27th 2004, and October 25th 2004 • Deadlines: December 5th, February 13th, and September 12th • Where to Take the Test • Idaho – Idaho State University • Utah – Weber State (Ogden) or BYU (Provo) • Costs • Regular Exam Fee - $69.00 • Score Sent to 1, 2, or 3 schools. • Must arrange for PCAT score to be sent to PharmCAS if applying to PharmCAS schools.

21. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation PCAT Essentials • Register By Mail • Application Packet • Register Online • Only For March Test 2004 and later.

22. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation PCAT Scope of the Exam • 300 multiple-choice questions with 3½ hours to take it. • Verbal Ability • 50 Questions • Quantitative Ability • 65 Questions • No Trig or Calculus • Biology • 50 Questions

23. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation PCAT Scope of the Exam • Chemistry • 60 Minutes • Reading Comprehension • 45 Questions • Additional Experimental Section • You will not know which section is experimental • Scoring of the Test • Standard scores range from 100 to 300. 200 is considered average.

24. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation PCAT Preparation • Self Study • Class Notes • Preparation Books • PCATWEB Website • Study Groups • Commercial Courses

25. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation GRE Essentials • When to Take the Test • Any time of the year • Deadlines: December 5th, February 13th, and September 12th • Where to Take the Test • Idaho – Pocatello, Boise • Utah – Ogden • Costs • Regular Exam Fee - $115 • Score Sent to 4 institutions. • Additional Score Report $15 per Institution.

26. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation GRE Essentials • Register By Mail • Application Packet in CAC • Register by Phone

27. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation GRE Scope of the Exam • 300 multiple-choice questions with 3½ hours to take it. • Verbal Ability • Analyze and evaluate written material • Analyze sentence relationships • Recognize word and concept relationships • Quantitative Ability • Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and data analysis • Reason Quantitatively

28. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation GRE Scope of the Exam • Analytical Writing • Essay Portion • 45 minute “Present your perspective on an issue” • 30 minute “Analyze an Argument” • Scoring of the Test • Verbal Score 200-800 in 10-point increments • Quantitative Score 200-800 in 10-point increments • Analytical Writing Score 0-6 in half-point increments

29. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation GRE Scope of the Exam • GRE Subject Tests • Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology • Biology • Chemistry • Computer Science • Literature in English • Mathematics • Physics • Psychology

30. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation GRE Preparation • Self Study • Class Notes • Preparation Books • GRE Website • Study Groups • Commercial Course

31. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation Test Taking Skills • Pace Yourself • Don’t forgo answering easy questions because you spent to much time on harder questions. • Mark up the Test Booklet (for paper-based tests) • Underline important points • Strike through wrong answers • Make calculations or drawings • Read the Entire Question Carefully • Don’t make an assumption as to the answer with thoroughly reading the question.

32. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation Test Taking Skills • Use the ‘dot’ method • Put a small dot on the answer sheet for a question that will require significant time to answer. • Put a question mark next to this question in the test booklet. • If you run out of time on the test, you can go back quickly and fill in the answer sheet where you placed the dot. • This helps reduce the possibility of missing questions due to totally random guessing. • Helps prevent frame shifting errors.

33. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation Test Taking Skills • Answer Every Question • Unlike the SAT, there are no penalties for guessing. • Your first instinct is more likely to be correct. • Don’t change answers unless it is obvious that you misinterpreted the question. • Approximate the answer • If the possible answers differ significantly from each other it is possible to approximate for quicker calculations. • Adjust the numbers to be calculated by rounding off or move to a close number with a known trig function. • With most problems you will be able to tell which answer is a reasonable estimate.

34. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation Test Taking Skills • For Reading and Verbal Tests • Answer the question only on the basis of the information given, NOT from prior knowledge. • Sometimes reading the questions and answers first can alert you as to what you should be looking for in the passage to be read. • For the Writing Sample • Practice, Practice, Practice. • Read the Op-Ed pieces in major newspapers. • Typical Structure • Explain what the statement means • Describe some situation in which you disagree with the statement • Provide justification for your disagreement.

35. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation Test Taking Skills • For Reading and Verbal Tests • Answer the question only on the basis of the information given, NOT from prior knowledge. • Sometimes reading the questions and answers first can alert you as to what you should be looking for in the passage to be read. • For the Writing Sample • Practice, Practice, Practice. • Read the Op-Ed pieces in major newspapers. • Typical Structure • Explain what the statement means • Describe some situation in which you disagree with the statement • Provide justification for your disagreement.

36. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation Test Taking Skills • Study for the test like you would a 4 credit class. • There are no ‘tricks’ or ‘strategies’ that can substitute for knowledge of a subject. • Get a good nights sleep • Arrive in plenty of time so you are not hurried. • Eat well before the test and during. • If you are a poor standardized test taker, you can improve. • Visit the Learning Assistance Lab

37. Bio 311 - Professional School Preparation Should You Retake a Test? • Are your scores consistent with your grades? • Did you prepare adequately for the test? • Will you have the time and motivation to prepare for a second test? • Doing the same or worse a second time will hurt you.