<p>I just wanted some advice. Do you just do the exams or something else? Are there any tricks?</p>
<p>Read. Read everything you can get your hands on -- especially newspapers and such -- WSJ, NYT, Foreign Affairs, etc. Practice outlining the things you read as you go. Practice for content AND -- just as importantly -- for speed.</p>
<p>For other standardized tests (where the standards for content understanding were not very high) I eventually got to the point where I could read a passage instantaneously. You can imagine I ended up with lots of time to go back and puzzle over harder questions in more detail.</p>
<p>This won't work for the MCAT, which is much more difficult than other tests, but the basic idea applies: speed, outlining, and comprehension.</p>
<p>Kaplan has several tips for students in their courses which work very well.</p>
<p>Practice, practice, practice exams. These will be worth a couple of points, but you will hit a natural ceiling very soon if you're simply not a very good/fast/detailed reader.</p>
<p>Bluedevilmike, would you also recommend reading Discover, Scientific American, or Popular Science? Are these magazines challenging enough to increase one's critical reasoning skills?</p>
<p>^ yeah, they are.</p>
<p>BDM, is there any objective way of measuring comprehension? Besides understanding the main point and the stance of the author, what other things should be kept in mind?</p>
<p>I would really opt for Nature. I find the articles more interesting and having more literary quality that SciAm or Discover.</p>
<p>You MUST read more than just scientific literature. You need to expose yourself to myriad styles and subjects. Read the front page of the NY Times and work your way through quality novels or short stories (there are plenty of good ones out there). Read critically, trying to understand what the author is attempting to do/prove with each chapter.</p>
<p>Break down each sentence and see if you can explain what purpose it serves.</p>
<p>PS: Bay Area: Amen!</p>
<p>When you start to actually study for the MCAT you must practice verbal passages. I started out with around a 6 and ended up with a 10 on verbal. In my opinion, it is the hardest section to improve on. There are numerous people that can't even get double digits while very few can score 13, 14, and 15 unlike in the PS and BS sections.</p>
<p>practicing will serve little to no purpose if your reading skills aren't already developed to the max.</p>