Customer Reviews

PCAT: Complete Preparation for the Pharmacy College Admission Test, 2001 Edition: The Science of Review

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I bought this book along with Barrons, this book is a very poor representation of the test I took last week. I won't lie, the information needed for the test was covered, along with every other bit of information in the fields of biology and chemistry. I could have (and did) get more out of outline general chem and bio books. The practice questions are much more difficult than the standard PCAT questions. If you have all the time in the world this book would be fine, but if you are like me and are going to have to work time to study into a busy schedule save the money and invest in Barrons.

I bought Preparation for the PCAT and took the exam last spring. I found the book extremely helpful and I scored quite high on the exam. The outlines of what to study were great. It pointed me in the right direction for my studying, especially since I had been out of school for a couple of years. It also has a full length practice exam with answers. I liked how this book focused on the exam material and did not go into much detail about how to apply to pharmacy colleges etc. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is taking or is considering taking the PCAT.

I've ordered this book from Amazon and I have to tell you that Amazon knows how to choose a good PCAT test preparation book. Despite the few errors it has, it is a great help aid in preparation for anyone who wants to take the dreaded PCAT. It has complete "quick and dirty" review of the subjects emphasized on the PCAT, it has concise and clear examples and it even gives you some test stragety. If anyone gets this book at least 6 months before taking the PCAT, there is a good chance that you will do well when you take the PCAT.

I don't know what the negative reviews are talking about, maybe they're trying to sell Barrons' book or something because I got this book from the library and compared it to other PCAT books that were available there and this one is clearly the best. After using it for a while, now I am buying it here at Amazon. If you want sample tests, this is not the best book, but if you are looking for a book that will help you prepare for the test, there is none better than this one that I have seen. What makes this book uniquely good is its in depth outline of topics that will be on the test (and by the way, the guy that said he got 99% on all parts of the exam is lying because the scores are NOT given in percentile, they're rankings, and to get the exact same ranking in 5 different categories would be statistically near impossible). All of us have taken tests before and think about what helps you STUDY the best: knowing in great detail all the possible topics that are on the test, or having an old exam from another profesor which has multiple choice questions which will NOT show up on the actual exam. You can get an idea of what the test will be like by seeing an old exam, but it will not help you know to select A B C D or E on the actual exam which has completely different questions on similar topics.

I am STUDYING now to take this test a 2nd time. The first time I took it I just wanted to get an idea of how I would score and I ended up with an overall ranking score of 73 without studying at all. If English is your first language and you normally use a dictionary when you read a novel, the analogy/vocab section will be a breeze for you (I got an 86 on that section). I am 37 years old and have not been in school for a number of years, until recently, and I absolutely did crappy on the quantitative section which is full of basic math skills that I forgot long ago (eg. percentages of two 7 digit mostly zero decimal numbers multiplied together, order of operations, numbers to a fractional or decimal power, etc.), by using the outline in this book I know I will do MUCH better this time on the quantitative section. There is a tiny, tiny bit of organic chemistry in the chemistry section but if you haven't taken organic yet don't worry about it (you can guess on those 2 questions). The main thing you need to concern yourself with on the chemistry section is the TIME. You have 35 minutes to answer 65 questions which means you have about 25 seconds to read, decide, and color in the box (go to an art supply store and get a big FAT #2 pencil OR one of those new liquid pencils, yes liquid, so you can make one quick swipe instead of wasting seconds coloring in the multiple choice bubble). I sort of blew it because the proctor announced "5 minutes left" and I had about 15 questions left and I totaly freaked and rushed to finish (which I did) and I finished early, but I shouldn't have panicked because if you are answering the questions at a pace of about 20 to 25 seconds each you should have about 5 minutes left when you have 15 questions to go, so understand your timing for the different sections and don't freak-out like I did. This book does tell you how many questions will be in each section and how much time you have to finish each section. Well this is getting way too long, I hope it helps. Good luck!

This review book had some very helpful hints and if you are good at preparing yourself in enough time before the PCAT I think it is very beneficial. The questions are harder than the actual questions that are asked on the PCAT but it allows you to go over the subject so you understand it. I think it was most helpful with all the tips like what to do the week before the test, answers that can easily be excluded etc. I'm very happy that I got the book because it made me feel very prepared even though the questions were difficult.

I had difficulties reading it; too much information I did not need on the actual PCAT exam...

THIS BOOK WAS NOT EVEN DESIGNED FOR THE PCAT. IF YOU READ THE COVER OF THE BOOK, IT READS "WRITING SAMPLE". THERE IS NO WRITING SAMPLE ON THE TEST. EVEN ON THE BACK COVER, IT READS "GREAT PREPARATION FOR THE VETS" OR SOMETHING. WHAT ARE THE VETS? I THOUGHT WE WERE TRYING TO STUDY FOR THE PCAT. THE OUTLINES ARE WAY TOO IN DEPTH. THE QUANTITATIVE ABILITY SECTION CONTAINS TRIG AND CAL, WHEN THE ACTUAL CANDIDATE BOOKLET SAYS THERE WON'T BE ANY ON THE TEST. IT IS AN OKAY BOOK IF YOU WANT TO CHALLENGE EVERY INCH OF YOUR KNOWLEDGE, BUT NOT IF YOU ARE TRYING TO STUDY FOR THE PCAT.

I wish you could give 0 stars!

I took the PCAT in October 2002 & scored 99th percentile in all categories. Do not buy this book -- it will not help you! The outline goes way too in depth. For example, it suggests that you learn the names & structures of all 20 amino acids--you don't need to know stuff like that. It goes into a lot of organic chemistry you don't need. You don't need to know the taxonomy it insists you do. Peterson's and Barron's are much more representative of the type of information on the test.

This book is a big waste of money. Get the other 2 & work some problems from a general chem text book. Take an anatomy course before the test.

I haven't taken my PCATs yet, I'll update this when I do, but as far as I can tell, this is a great book. It covers everything in depth and real well. I don't know what the other guys were crying about. You definitely want a study book that is either as hard or harder than the actual test? Otherwise, what good will it do you. I guess you could read a 3rd grade book on biology to study. But that doesn't help now does it. The writing sample on the cover means that there are sample passages in the book duh!! Excellent book. I highly recommend it.

Overall, this book is a poor representation of the PCAT. The verbal, biology, and chemistry sections are much more in-depth than the actual PCAT. However, the math and reading comprehension section were useful. Explanations for answers were provided at the end of each section but not for the sample PCAT. The answer key contained some errors. Not recommended.