SATs

[Evrae]

When do you take the STEP paper? Because you need the knowledge from the Further Maths course, yet also need it to apply to uni.

 

Luckily I didn't need to do it for the course I applied for (Physics at Oxford), but had I wanted to do maths i probably would have needed to, and been unable.

[trapical]

The STEP sounds pretty interesting, what a great concept. I would love to be watching over the shoulder of a John Nash or Steven Hawking taking that test.

 

 

 

As for why physics is on the MCAT? Well I am glad it is. There are two types of smart people in the world. Those that study everything but can't think for themselves, and those that study a little bit but are able to think on the fly and logically find the right answers. The latter is your typical "smart but lazy" persona, and the former is typical girl that is getting a 4.0 but never leaves the library and freaks out when something is written slightly different from the way she learned it.

 

 

 

Neither of these people would make good doctors. You need both qualities. Hence, the MCAT tests Biology/Organic (brute memorization) and Chemistry/Physics (memorize just a few formulas, but be able to derive new ones on the fly and adapt what you know to solve various situations). The test's method of testing both of these fields, (along with English since many foreigners want to get into the American Med Schools) is quite genius really. Unlike with GPAs or SATs where many people complain "oh, he just took easy classes" or "no fair, SAT just tests IQ", but with the MCAT if someone says they got a 31, you're just impressed, that person is smart and dedicated

[r2d2]

Could someone please explain what the american SAT is?

 

 

 

Because in Britain, SATS are a national test taken at ages 8, 11 and 14. Not too difficult, not important and they take up way too much teaching time.

 

 

 

It sounds as if the American SAT is some sort of entrance exam for university (college?). Am I right?

 

There is the scholastic assessment test for college, and the stanford achievement test in grade school. the latter doesn't influence your grade, it is extra. I think it helps the teachers see how well they teach, but it is also used to find the *smartest* students in the tri-state areas.( :D )

[mad4u689]

The STEP sounds really cool. :shock: I'd love to take it... as long as I could do so for fun and without it actually affecting my future life prospects :D

 

 

 

It reminds me of the Putnam Exam, a 12-question test for university students. It's not for placement or anything, but for fun, and if you do well, for glory :P. You can earn up to 10 points on each question, for a total of 120 points. The median score among test-takers (really smart math students!) used to be 0 but has now increased to 1. :P

 

 

 

The MCATs are so ridiculous. My friends who are going into their junior year of college are already studying for them all the time. I took some practice questions from one of their books recently before realizing I didn't know Organic Chemistry in the slightest :D

[assassin_696]

The STEP sounds pretty interesting, what a great concept. I would love to be watching over the shoulder of a John Nash or Steven Hawking taking that test.

 

 

 

As for why physics is on the MCAT? Well I am glad it is. There are two types of smart people in the world. Those that study everything but can't think for themselves, and those that study a little bit but are able to think on the fly and logically find the right answers. The latter is your typical "smart but lazy" persona, and the former is typical girl that is getting a 4.0 but never leaves the library and freaks out when something is written slightly different from the way she learned it.

 

 

 

Neither of these people would make good doctors. You need both qualities. Hence, the MCAT tests Biology/Organic (brute memorization) and Chemistry/Physics (memorize just a few formulas, but be able to derive new ones on the fly and adapt what you know to solve various situations). The test's method of testing both of these fields, (along with English since many foreigners want to get into the American Med Schools) is quite genius really. Unlike with GPAs or SATs where many people complain "oh, he just took easy classes" or "no fair, SAT just tests IQ", but with the MCAT if someone says they got a 31, you're just impressed, that person is smart and dedicated

 

 

 

Ah I see, yeah I thought it might be something like that, obviously you probably won't need half the physics being a doctor (although some could come in handy), instead it tests someone's ability to think logically and to think round a particular problem. Yeah I could see that.

 

 

 

If either you or mad are somewhat curious about STEP, here's the link to the page on the Cambridge website, which has links to a few sites with worked examples and tips, to give you a feel, i'd recommend Stephen Siklos' booklet which gives a great overview as well as some worked questions, if you're anyway curious.

 

 

 

In a weird kind of way i'm kind of looking forward to the challenge (if I do it), it's just a lot rests on the results of it :P

[Evrae]

Ah, so you take them alongside A-levels. That makes more sense. But they are still bloody hard. Our maths teacher showed me one once, and I could only see how to go about attempting a couple of questions, let alone actually do them. But go for it! And good luck to you.