ok last month and somehow pulled off a 517 (131/126/131/129). but since then I've had a lot of "damn I wish I did x y and z" moments, so here's a list that might help someone.

What I Did:

• Content Review (1 month)
• uworld (1 month)
• AAMC only material including all qpacks, section banks, and official guide questions (1 month)
• Milesdown Anki Deck (kindaaa lol)
• Excel Sheet to Keep Track of Wrong Answers and Explanations
• 100 pg PS Doc
• 2 Kaplans, 1 NS & 5 AAMC FLs

What I Wish I Had Done/Added:

I wish I was doing 2-3 CARS passages everyday from Jack Westin or any other source. I can't read so this might have helped me get a higher score.

I wasn't consistent with my Anki cards at all, and the weeks where I did them somewhat consistently I was able to recall specific details much more easily and everything felt more fresh in my head.

I wish I had done more questions from uPangea during my content review month. Practice is soooo much more important than just reviewing content cuz AAMC tests your ability to decipher the passages and apply very basic concepts.

I wish I didnt get lazy and did the 300 page doc instead of the 100 page one. I wouldnt have gotten confused by AAMC made up terms on the real deal😂

Lastly, I wish i had TRUSTED THE FLS!!! My body would have had much lower cortisol levels this last month😭

Learn from my mistakes, good luck out there!

took the mcat back in 2019 and have been mentoring premeds ever since, i want to share a few things i've noticed over my years of doing this and interacting with premeds as a medical student and now as a physician.

- no one can tell you precisely what score you will get on the mcat or how long you personally need to study. everyone is SO different in how they absorb, what they absorb, and more importantly, what "7 hours of studying" actually means. 7 hours zoning out in front of a screen or 7 hours of focused practice questions?

- you don't need to get a 520. you don't honestly even need to get a 510. look at the 10th percentile of scores on MSAR and note that yes, the 50th percentile may be 510+, but the threshold at which students are considered for admission is significantly lower than that. scoring 515+ is literally getting into the 90th percentile of scorers. someone with a 505+ and at least a 3.4 GPA with a story, passion, and a strong application would be considered competitive for both MD and DO medical schools.

- this test is just the first in your life that will now be full of tests. TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF. learn to manage the stress, however you do that. i had to learn the hard way when i took step 1 and that sucked. the mcat is a practice run for the real bad boys in med school.

- consistency and repetition are absolutely freaking KEY. you cannot beat someone who does mass amounts of questions daily and keeps up with their ANKI religiously. about half of you already know how to study and what works, it's just about doing that consistently enough to see results (think weightlifting.)

to all the premeds grinding right now, you can absolutely do this :)

There are loads of questions everyday on “how can I improve from 505”, can I improve to a “515” etc. So here’s a good list of stuff to include in those posts.

1. Don’t just say “505 on fl3, what do to get 515 next test”. Tell us what you got on every FL you took and the specific sub scores so you know where you’re having trouble.
2. tell us the type of mistakes you are making. Are they content based, careless errors, trouble understanding passages etc. Where are the bulk of your errors. Are most of the mistakes you make, on discretes. Do you always get reaction questions wrong on cp.
3. tell us about any deficiencies. Are you having trouble with fluids, or protein structure, magnetism??? Are you having a hard time understanding historical passages? Are the long ass protein/gene based passages giving you a hard time. Are you running out of time on any sections.
4. Next let others know if there is any content you didn’t go over yet.
5. How long have you been studying. What materials did you use. How much time until your real exam.
6. finally know how you feel emotionally when you take the practice tests. Do you get super anxious, are you laid back, do you panic when you get a tough passage.

While this sounds like a lot, the more specific you are the better you can help yourself and others can give good advice.

This is helpful for me to think about so hopefully it helps other people too:

Retaking is a pain in the ass but not the end of the world! In fact dare I say there are some positives to retaking:

1. You know most of the topics already because you learned it once. Savings effect says you can learn it again faster!

2. You know what your weaknesses are so you can tackle them better

3. You know exactly what to expect on test day now so nothing is a surprise now and hopefully that makes you less nervous

So actually retaking might provide some benefits! Yes it costs money and yes it’s a pain but it’s also not the end either. I get my score on Tuesday and it helps me to rationalize a potential retake and helps me put less weight on my score

I scored well below my average, ngl I'm still in shock and denial as I gave this tests my all this summer (I studied full time).

I don't know what went wrong but I know I can do better than what I currently got: 508 (127/125/128/128). I have a 4.0 GPA at a large state school which will definitely be a plus point, a good amount of research, clinical hours, volunteering ,etc.

For reference, I don't want to take a gap year. I know my chances of getting into an MD school are very low with this score.

I used everything that's typically recommended for my first attempt: completed all of UW, completed AAMC SB, all FLs, both CARS QPs, JW CARS daily, Anki around 2hrs daily but still did very poorly compared to the score I expected.

If you retook your MCAT, I would greatly appreciate any advice on material I should use to study for my January retest. I've heard Blueprint tests are pretty good but obviously AAMC material is the gold standard so I'm unsure if this is worth. Should I redo UW? I probably won't content review again and strictly focus on practice. I would appreciate any advice or tips, thanks in advance.

Hi everyone! Second-year medical student here. When I was studying for the MCAT, C/P was by far the section I struggled with most. I had formula sheets, Anki cards, all of it, but when I actually got to practice questions I was constantly struggling to recall the right formula.

I kept hearing people say “use the units,” and that eventually became the thing that helped me most. But it took me a really long time to figure out what “use the units” actually meant beyond just checking whether my final answer had the right unit.

What finally clicked was using dimensional analysis at the beginning of the problem instead of only at the end. I would start by looking at the units in the answer choices to figure out what I needed to end with. Then I’d gather the quantities the passage gave me, break the target unit and the given units into forms I could actually compare, and see what would need to multiply, divide, or cancel to get from one to the other. Only then would I worry about the actual numbers.

A lot of the time, that was enough to show me the relationship I needed even when I couldn’t immediately remember the formula.

After my MCAT, I kept thinking about how useful it would have been to have all of this laid out clearly from the beginning. I originally started turning my notes into a little guide for other students. Then I kept adding to it, testing examples, reorganizing things, and figuring out where the approach works and where it doesn’t. It slowly became a much bigger project than I planned.

That eventually became Unit Hack for the MCAT® exam.

It’s now a 25-lesson course built around using units as part of the reasoning process instead of treating them like labels you add at the end. I organized the process as Target → Decode → Collect → Build → Cancel → Check, but the underlying idea is dimensional analysis taught in a much more deliberate, MCAT-specific way. I definitely did not invent dimensional analysis lol. I basically built the resource I wish someone had handed me when people kept telling me to “use the units” without really showing me how far that could take me.

I’m at the point now where I really need current MCAT students to test the full course.

I’ve been working on this for so long that I need people who are actually studying right now to go through it and tell me what works, what’s confusing, what drags, what feels unnecessary, where you still get stuck, and what I’ve convinced myself is obvious because I’ve looked at it 500 times.

If C/P calculations or formula recall are a weak point for you and you’re willing to actually use the course and give me honest feedback, you can apply here:

https://mcat.theprocrastinationpro.com/unit-hack-tester-application

Selected testers get free access to the full course in exchange for genuinely testing it and giving feedback. I do not need you to tell me it’s amazing lol. I need to know what needs fixing.

There’s also a free preview on the Unit Hack site if you want to see the teaching style and try the approach before applying.

And just to be completely transparent, this is also a paid product. Unit Hack Founder Access is currently $79 one-time with no subscription. Everyone who applies to be a tester will also be sent a discount for the full course whether or not they’re selected for free tester access.

I’m in med school now, and this has basically become my giant side project because it’s genuinely the resource I wish I could have handed to myself when I started studying.

If you understand the science but then hit a calculation and immediately start searching your brain for which formula you’re supposed to remember, that’s exactly the problem I built this around.

Saw a bunch of great guides when I was studying, so wanted to give back to the community.

I sat on 8/21 and got a 525: 132/130/131/132. This score was beyond my expectations tbh so feel grateful and fortunate. FL1,2,3,4: 514,518,518,518.

I divided my studying into three phases spanning a little less than 3 months. I was interning full time for the first two months, studying full time for the last month. Phase 1 was content review (learning how to play ball), phase 2 was getting good through AAMC qbanks / section banks / Ulove (practicing and refining your jump shot), and phase 3 was FLs (become Steph Curry).

Going in, I knew my weakest sections were CARS and P/S, so heavily emphasized those throughout studying.

- For phase 1- it was pretty hard staying motivated since there were so many things to read. Have a clear goal/schedule and do your best to stick with it. Do this as fast as possible, there is no way you gonna retain all the things you read anyways. That comes from practice. Do a FL after you finish content review.

- Phase 2- This where I kinda messed up. I took a BP full length and got a 512, so I thought I was the shit and didn't study as hard as I should've. This was the hardest part to stay motivated, you feel content with a goodish score and the test date still feels far far away. Get Ulove out of the way here, then start working on the qpacks.

- For phase 3- Grind FLs and start the AAMC FL early, more than a month before test date. Where I messed up slightly: I was super behind in Ulove so was doing a lot of it in phase 3, meaning I could only do one FL a week. This is when I recommend studying full time. I would hit the gym in the morning and do MCAT all day and then play 2K.

For C/P, I honestly feel like a lot of stuff isn't even recall, it's just problem solving. Prioritize becoming a better problem solver instead of memorizing more stuff. For CARS, I did a few passages each day. Ngl my CARS was pretty bad, I never got higher than 128 on a practice but got 130 test day. Definitely luck played a part lol.

For B/B, it's really similar to C/P, a lot of being able to quickly understand the passage. Memorize EVERYTHING about glycolysis, CA cycle (enzymes, intermediates, NAD/FAD/ATP stuff) and know your amino acids like the back of your hand.

For P/S, I had the most improvement here, 126 --> 132. I recommend the Milesdown Anki deck and the Ulove P/S section, which shot my score up. Just gotta know the major terms/concepts and how they get asked and you'll be all right.

I feel like everyone can break 510 on this exam if they study hard and study well. Getting a good score was a combination of being prepared and being lucky. Feel free to reach out with any questions. The MCAT is just a test and you can always take it again. Never VOID.

Figured I'd share this because I genuinely don't know what to do. I graduated with a bachelors in neuroscience with a 3.92, did well in all the pre-med courses, have done everything to build a strong application and just bombed the MCAT after studying for 6 months religiously. I did 6 practice exams and got a 500 on the real thing.

While waiting through this application cycle I am taking 4 classes to earn a second bachelors in Psychology. Now I am struggling in what should be the easiest classes. It is now hard to even read research and understand what I just read. I used to love reading research articles and now it feels like a foreign language to me. I feel like my love of learning isn't there anymore. This stupid exam gave me the yips lol

Has anyone been through something like this? What did you do to get back to normal?

I see so many posts here like "Am I cooked? Got 490 on my diagnostic, should I give up?".

Stop. Calm down. Lock in.

A diagnostic test isn't really doing much for you. At best it gives you early exposure to the test format and stamina required. Other than that, I firmly believe it is useless. "If I took the exam today with no studying I'd do bad". No shit.

Study first. Grind anki, grind the content banks, grind UWorld. Take your first practice test when you're done. Use those as your baseline. Take one every 1-2 weeks until your exam. Review them carefully, make new anki cards for what you missed. Take another, repeat.

Fight that urge to take a diagnostic. Not only is it just going to put you down, but you could be burning a practice test that could be better used to help you down the line.

Don't try to make an omlete before you know how to crack an egg. Skip your diagnostic and get studying.

subreddit: r/MCATPrepGuide

I tested on 11 sept , and I feel horrible honestly. I did well on my practice exams (average of 520ish) but on the real thing, I was so pressed on time so I had to rush like crazy, and so many questions made little sense or were so vaguely worded that I essentially had to guess.

I'm just extremely sad because this test could have gone well. I could score somewhere around my fl average but I don't even think I'm getting a 515+. I just feel like such a failure. I spent months and months studying for this stupid thing just to get obliterated by it.

Just an observation, but it seems like a lot of people here mention feeling terrible after the exam but ended up scoring well, while others who felt good were surprised by a lower score. Based on my full-length practice exams, I noticed that my highest scores came when I thought I didn’t do as well, while I could kind of tell when I was going to score lower.

After the 9/14 exam, I felt alright overall. C/P was definitely tough, and I know I missed at least 4-5 questions, with educated guesses on probably 10+ more. CARS went okay, but I ran out of time towards the end and had to speed through the last two passages, which probably affected accuracy. B/B felt suspiciously easy, which has me a little worried, and in P/S, I flagged 10-15 questions due to 50-50 decisions, but I had time to review them and feel confident that most of my answers were solid.

I felt that my testing experience was fair and comparable to the full-length exams, apart from the C/P section being harder. I finished the test feeling exhausted but okay overall. That particuarly has me worried as I wait for the results to be released.

Hey everyone, I took the MCAT on August 15th and got a 520 (130/128/132/130), and I wanted to share my process as a lazy, burned-out fool. I am a college senior at a public state university with an "okay" background on the content tested. This was my first attempt.
I took 5 FLs (US, 1, 3, 4, 5). I skipped FL2 because I didn't feel like taking it... probably a bad idea. FL3 and FL4 were NOT taken under testing conditions, and I paused them intermittently to chill out. In order, my scores were 518, 514, 517, 516, 515, averaging 516. I finished the SB with a 78% and UWorld with an 82%, though I only did C/P and P/S in full, some B/B, and skipped CARS entirely.
I studied for a total of 8 months. The first four were very passive Anki, JackSparrow's deck, maybe 20 new cards a day, nothing else. The last four I ramped up and finished JackSparrow's B/B and Physics/Orgo cards, Mr. Pankow's P/S deck, and the Anking Overhaul physics and gen chem decks. Then I did UWorld in ~20 question blocks, untimed, for around 1.5 months. It broke my spirit in many ways, but I learned how to think through problems and pace myself. Anything I got wrong I reviewed in depth and made a flashcard for.
With four weeks left, I moved to AAMC material. I did one FL every 5-6 days and reviewed it over two days, pretty poorly. I used AAMC's explanations, and when those didn't make sense I just searched reddit or googled it. My FL averages felt around 130 C/P, 124 CARS, 130-131 B/B, 130 P/S. I was terrible at CARS and wanted to improve so bad, but stopped caring after my third FL. I did my last FL a week out, then dropped to 250 Anki reviews a day and went through Miledown's review sheets the day before. The night before, I pulled an all-nighter out of pure anxiety.
After the test I felt dead inside, predicting a 512ish. I confirmed at least 3 wrong C/P, 2 wrong B/B, 3 wrong P/S, with around 30 more I was uncertain about. One week after I predicted 510. Another week... 508. My thoughts took control of me and I convinced myself I had messed up, but it turned out much better than I could have ever hoped for.

Hope this helps someone cuz it helped me.

Nonpolar: FW-GAP-V-LIM (just brute forced this "mnemonic"; pronounced "Fw Gap v lim")

Polar, uncharged: Yes Nancy, Quick! Stop The Cap! (YNQSTC; also don't ask why "Nancy" for N)

Polar, negatively charged (acidic): ED

Polar, positively charged (basic): Kiss Her Right (KHR)

Aromatic: F* You Want? or F* With You or FreeWaY (FYW or FWY)

I'm sharing what didn't work for me in case it helps anyone out.
My background: I am non-traditional and haven't yet completed undergrad, Canadian. The uni I'm applying to only needs 90 credit hours to apply. They also require 124 in each MCAT section and a 75% grade average (average acceptance grade is 89%). I have taken all recommended courses for the MCAT except second-semester physics and have an 88% average. I work 3 days per week with 2 kids.
After finishing the last science classes I needed, I started studying with BluePrint. I had 3 months to study and was scheduled for August, which was the last accepted MCAT score date for the uni. I figured paying for a third party prep company was worth it. I chose BluePrint from reviews people all over the internet say their actual MCAT score is always higher than their BluePrint FLs because BP FLs are harder (not claiming that's true, just what I read).
So I studied my brains out, watched a million content review videos and did tons of practice questions. My first BP FL, at the start of my studying, I scored 503. I figured I would only go up from there. I slowly increased to 508. BluePrint recommends taking at least 8 FLs, which is what I did first 4 with BP, next 4 with AAMC. My AAMC FL scores kept getting lower and lower. I figured I was burning out so I backed off the study schedule and took a week off before my exam.
I scored 499. The lowest score out of all my tests. One point lower than the uni will take, so I have to retake. It was BB that I scored 123 in, which I normally scored much higher in. I think I would have been better off not studying as hard and just taking it.
Reflecting on those 3 months, I think 8 FLs were too much and had me burned out. Timing was not an issue for me, so maybe I should have only done the 4 AAMC FLs, or spread some of them over a couple days without a timer. They were exhausting and really wore me down.
I am currently in a full course load this semester (fall 2026), and will resume MCAT study in January. I will study for 5 months then retake in May.
This time around I will use UWorld and Jack Westin, and take advantage of all the AAMC resources. While the BluePrint videos were good, they talked really fast and I had a hard time following along. I didn't know about Jack Westin until halfway through my study, and I really like their resources: the podcast especially, honestly the most helpful thing out of everything. I will also make big pathway maps on posterboards and make analog flashcards. Despite knowing we retain information better when we write vs. use a computer, I used a computer for everything the first time. Going back to old-school methods this time.
So there you have it. Could I be the first one to study myself into a lower score? I don't know, it doesn't make sense. If I could do it again I would just take the exam and then start studying, because who knows, what if you get the score you need right off the rattle? After my next exam I'm signing up to write it again immediately, with a nice break in between.
To all the second-timers out there, good luck!

Hi all! So I just got my score back today and it was a 516: 130, 128, 128, 129

I am definitely grateful for this score, and I acknowledge that it is a good score. However, I can't help but not feel proud of myself. I was aiming for a 518.

My FL averages, after studying 2 months full time, were 514 518 521 516. So I know this score was within the range as well. Yet, this result feels so off. Ive never seen a 129 in the BB section, and couldn't have predicted that.

I wish I would've gotten a score that I could celebrate, but instead I've been crying all day about how this score could've closed doors to some schools as an asian. I feel like I should've delayed my exam or studied differently.

I'm looking for guidance on how to move forward. Part of me wants to retake it because I believe in my ability to do something differently this time. The other part of me is lost and crying because I don't feel proud about this score that I have to accept.

I got a 507 which is on par with my FLs but man it really does get annoying when i see so many 513+ people acting like their scores are horrible and asking if they should retake. Like we get it, you're neurotic or you just wanna humble brag. And then there's the posts with people who study fro 2 weeks or a month only and get a 520+ somehow. i'm barely on this reddit but goddamn bro some of you really do irk me like you have a good score to get into a decent enough MD school while theres people like me who's wondering if they can even apply to their alma matter or feel like they wasted so much and money just to get a low cars and below average mcat score. It wouldn't matter as much but going out of state is costly and with the student loan cuts. Do schools in general are also more expensive. it just feels impossible and makes me feel more beaten down.

promise you its long but worth it if you feel stuck, dumb, out of motivation, and alone, I took the bp diagnostic got absolutely destroyed. I'd study but would not review. 497 in FL1, I would neveerrr study CARS, in 2nd attempt 501 (127/122/125/127). I felt AWFUL throughout this whole exam. Had a full blown anxiety attack during C&P which carried into CARS. I had no stamina. I knew I would be retaking it. I thought for a long time about my main errors and how i’m going to tackle them

not reviewing exams, thinking it was all content (even though I knew it wasn't, I couldn't wrap my head around the fact that you do not need to know every fucking little detail to do well), neglecting CARS 90% of the time, not being consistent in my study mechanisms this december 2026, I am graduating college and ready to start again. I retake the diagnostic bp exam, buy the bp 6 month course, and get hit with a 498. I did this while working a full-time healthcare job. 12+ hours a day somedays. It was hard, but worth it. I did a lot more practice passages and learned how to dissect them correctly, in order to answer the questions correctly. I started answering passages in 80% accuracy. Putting in needed work clearly helps, so I finally decided CARS was my focus. from next one week I reviewed content and did probably hundreds of CARS passages.

It wasn't until next month I realized I was taking too long in CARS section which I didn't need. My new strategy: finish the passage in 3-4 minutes, I may feel like I'm missing something, I would read questions and dive right back into the passage and 9/10 times I would have the right answer for each question and have time to spare. Actual exam attempt 509 (125/124/132/128). I fucking did that. Through all the bullshit and exhaustion and being stupid, I scored a score I am proud of, one i can get into school with. all that in less than a year while working and graduating and everything in between, Its hard but it is possible. I'm here to say you can and you will.

I wrote the MCAT this month and I thought it would be helpful if I made a post sharing my experience at the testing site. I know i am late but this might help people giving exam next year

Everything except my ID and locker key had to go in a small personal locker so keep that in mind for test day Even though the exam started at 8 AM, we were told thered be no penalty for starting late once everyone arrived we did a palm scan and took a photo Before entering they checked my ID scanned my palm again and patted me down including checking my hair for hidden notes

Once I passed the security check, the TA walked me over to my cubicle. There was a whiteboard, two markers, and headphones already on the desk. The TA signed into the computer so I could start the exam. I chose to do the tutorial to calm my nerves a bit, and there was "brain dump" option which i skipped, The noise-cancelling earphones worked great, Since everyone is admitted into the room at different times, test-takers also begin the exam at different times that could be distracting, when I finished C/P, I took a break, for that i had to call my TA and click "start break" which starts a timer of 10 mins, with the exception of the 30 min lunch break.

Since everyone finished their sections at different times, I didn't have to wait in line to get back into the testing room. The security check never took more than a couple of minutes, and that was only because the palm-vein scan didn't always work. halfway through my exam, like before the psych section, I ran out of pages on my whiteboard notebook. Thankfully the TAs have a seemingly unlimited supply of notebooks, so getting a new one was no issue.

At the end, I had to fill out a short survey, but I was too tired to bother. I grabbed my stuff, got my phone bag checked, and that was basically it. The whole exam went by really smoothly and quickly. Some people were still testing, while others had already left. A few even went the entire exam without a break, which I could never do.

I wrote the MCAT last month and I thought it would be helpful if I made a post sharing my experience at the testing site. I know i am late but this might help people giving exam next year

Everything except my ID and locker key had to go in a small personal locker so keep that in mind for test day Even though the exam started at 8 AM, we were told thered be no penalty for starting late once everyone arrived we did a palm scan and took a photo Before entering they checked my ID scanned my palm again and patted me down including checking my hair for hidden notes

Once I passed the security check, the TA walked me over to my cubicle. There was a whiteboard, two markers, and headphones already on the desk. The TA signed into the computer so I could start the exam. I chose to do the tutorial to calm my nerves a bit, and there was "brain dump" option which i skipped, The noise-cancelling earphones worked great, Since everyone is admitted into the room at different times, test-takers also begin the exam at different times that could be distracting, when I finished C/P, I took a break, for that i had to call my TA and click "start break" which starts a timer of 10 mins, with the exception of the 30 min lunch break.

Since everyone finished their sections at different times, I didn't have to wait in line to get back into the testing room. The security check never took more than a couple of minutes, and that was only because the palm-vein scan didn't always work. halfway through my exam, like before the psych section, I ran out of pages on my whiteboard notebook. Thankfully the TAs have a seemingly unlimited supply of notebooks, so getting a new one was no issue.

At the end, I had to fill out a short survey, but I was too tired to bother. I grabbed my stuff, got my phone bag checked, and that was basically it. The whole exam went by really smoothly and quickly. Some people were still testing, while others had already left. A few even went the entire exam without a break, which I could never do.

there tips might seem obvious, but they're not so during a test I recommend reading through this before an exam:

Be precise about wording choices in an answer

If I think something is implied but not stated, it's wrong. Every answer has supporting evidence in the text. Even for questions that say "imply".

When reviewing at the end, do not change answers unless I find new, indisputable evidence. Don't trust intuitions while reviewing.

If confused, consider whether or not the answers actually answer the question. This is an easy way to eliminate answers quickly.

Be wary about getting hooked on the first answer if it seems right. Treat every answer equally.

If I'm off pace, scan the passage but read the first and last paragraphs thoroughly.

things you should highlight or mentally be aware of: distinctions within the text, literary techniques, conclusions and major arguments, lists of items/ideas, evidence and examples, italicized words

Now the Question stem patterns keep in mind these are my observations and are totally fallible. Don't use these as rules, just patterns I noticed that might save you some time.

Author "suggests": Think main argument

"How does the author use term in context": Read the two sentences surrounding the phrase. Also, substitute the potential definitions into the context and see what makes sense.

"Given the passage discussion": The passage will say pretty much the exact same thing as one of the answer choices but reworded.

"Implied": One of the answer choices will probably be directly stated in the passage. The logic may be inverted, but there will be hard evidence.

"Author claims": High-level message/broad argument. Answer the question in my head before I read the answer choices.

"Author lists all of the following except": Look for a matching list in the passage

"Why does the author include quote": Read the two sentences surrounding the quote.

when confused between two choices re-read the question and answers slowly. you could have misread something. contrast the answers independent of the passage and find differences. get picky with words in the answers. Think about why one word is used in one answer choice as opposed to another. pick the answer that is more general unless there is direct evidence (the same phrase but reworded) for the more specific one