So, here's a little background on how and when I took my practice tests and a few tips/insights into practice tests in general.
The first time I took the exam, I took 19 practice tests. The second time, I only took 11. This is mainly a function of me taking the new MCAT exam in May and there being a limited number of commercial tests available (compared to the old MCAT, where you could take 20+ different MCATs from different companies). The main point is this: take as many tests as you can take, within physical reason. Don't take them just to take them if you're not going to treat it like the real thing on test day. And don't take them every day either. It's okay to do back to back days every once in a while, or every other day, but be realistic and don't kill yourself. Think of it this way: on your actual test day, what did you do the day before? You hopefully did nothing MCAT-related and just vegged out as much as possible. You certainly didn't take a full-length practice test the day before. So think of that when taking practice tests. Try to do as many as you can, but within reason. You're a pre-med student, be smart about it.
In line with this thinking, my best advice is to take not only as many tests as you can, but from as many sources as you can. My first time, I did Berkeley Review tests (my prep course), old AAMC tests, and Gold Standard Tests. I highly recommend these last two. AAMC is the best resource you'll have, because this is the company making the real MCAT, so do as many of these tests that are available. I would suggest the last test you take to be the most recently-released AAMC test, because this will give you the most realistic score going into the exam of where you finally stand. Gold Standard is the other company. They are known for being notoriously hard exams, sometimes with material I had never even seen before (this was after a course and 15+ exams!). But I highly recommend doing these, if not in full then in the sections you are weaker on, because it will expose you to "worst case scenario" passages and help get the "oh crap how the heck do I do this passage?!?!" worries out of your system. Having taken the test two times, I can tell you this: without question, you will see something on exam day that you have never, ever seen before. It's there to test your problem solving skills of course, but also to test your composure and how you do under pressure in less-than-ideal circumstances. So, by doing insanely hard Gold Standard tests, you can give yourself the confidence boost to know that when it comes to those WTF moments on the test, you'll have the calm, cool and collected upper hand.
In terms of actually taking the test, I tried to mix up where I took my practice tests as much as possible. I took them in four different libraries on campus, a study lounge, a coffee house on campus, in my apartment, and even at Starbucks. The point in mixing it up was this: you never know what kind of environment you'll be in on test day. You don't know what kind of distractions you're going to have, whether it's loud proctors, loud test-takers, doors slamming, freezing cold, blazing heat, people walking behind you and bumping your chair, your headphones not fitting properly, etc. So, prepare! Test in different places as much as possible. Mix up what you wear when you test, like wearing a sweatshirt or a tanktop, and see if you get really hot or cold when you test or if that even bothers you. The point is, there are going to be intangibles on test day that you didn't even know to think of. Any psychological upper hand you can give yourself will serve you well.
Furthermore, when you take your practice tests, take it like you're doing an actual test. While I did notes and read and did practice problems listening to music, I always took my tests the same way: with big Bose noise-canceling headphones and ear plugs, because that's how test day is. I also stuck to the strict breaks and didn't give myself any leeway, sometimes even going straight through without breaks to see where my limits were. There's no point in taking practice tests if you're not going to do it like the real thing. Don't take long food/TV breaks in between, don't go outside and walk around, don't take a 20m bathroom break, don't listen to music or play on your phone, etc. You're only hurting yourself by getting in a routine that won't be available on test day.
Finally, the actual tests. I didn't start taking them until towards the very end of my course, and spent the majority of the time in between the course ending and the actual test day just taking tests. Many companies tell you to start taking tests early to gauge where you're at, but I personally disagree. Here's why: these practice tests are as close as you're going to get to the real thing. Why waste them by taking them early on in the course when you haven't learned all the material yet? These aren't going to be an accurate reflection of your mastery of the material, and may even psychologically psyche you out (which is the last thing you want for a beast like this). This is even more so for the new MCAT, where there are less tests available to "waste." For the old MCAT where there were dozens of tests floating around for people to take. Now (ie as of early June-July 2015), there are the ones that come with your course, the one or two provided by AAMC, and the few provided by Gold Standard and other companies that are still just releasing materials for the new exam. But in the end, do what you are comfortable with. If you want to take one early on or halfway through the course, go ahead, it's not going to kill you. But be smart with your resources and don't waste practice tests.
Here's a screen shot of my tests, you can see my progress and the ups and downs that are going to come when taking practice tests.
*Note: these scores were good but not great indicators for my progress because at the time I was preparing (Feb-Apr 2016) AAMC had not released score charts and percentiles yet.
When I took my tests, like I said, I did it in real conditions, ie no music, ear plugs/headphones, and strict breaks. After each test, I would go home, chill out on the couch, turn on the TV or some music, and go over the test I just took. I would open up a Word document and write out any problems I missed or areas I wanted to focus on, eventually seeing patterns in my weak areas and strong areas that I could then focus on during my off days or cheat days. Similarly, I had an Excel document where I broke down the subsections (ie for CARS questions could be about inference, main idea, tone/attitude, structure, analogy, strengthen/weaken an argument, etc...each company defines questions differently but all use the same methodology) and how I did for each one (ie for a practice test i was 10/10 on main idea questions but 1/5 on inference questions) to really pinpoint my weak areas and pay more attention to those topics that consistently gave me trouble.
That's that for practice tests! If there are any questions, hit me up by email or in the comments!
~If Plan A didn't work, there are 25 more letters in the alphabet. Stay cool~
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