MCAT Physical Sciences Section

This is one of the main sections of the exam which seeks to test how sound a candidate’s scientific knowledge base is. The MCAT Physical Sciences section is a multiple-choice question test.

Structure

  • The section consists of 52 multiple-choice questions that have to be completed in 70 minutes.
  • Out of these 52 questions, only 13 are independent questions and the remaining are passage-based questions.
  • There are around 7 passages in each MCAT Physical Sciences section and there are 4 – 7 questions based on each of them.

ExamFocus’ Practice Support

Do ensure that you have practiced this section well before you decide to take the test. After all, a perfect score can be achieved only if you practice and prepare well. Use Exam Focus’ sample practice questions to get your skills sharpened. Click on the following links to make the best out of our practice questions:

Testing & Scoring Scheme

  • The questions in this sections test a candidate’s knowledge in the field of physics and general chemistry.
  • The topics on which questions are asked range from thermodynamics to translational motion to waves and periodic motion to the period table itself and the bonding of elements.
  • Bear in mind that this section of the exam does not test your scientific knowledge alone. It also aims to test your scientific reasoning and see how you are able to ‘both form and challenge hypothesis’.
  • This section is scored twice, just like all other sections of the test. There is no negative marking in the test. Each candidate is first assigned a raw score that is just a total of the number of correct answers given. The raw score is then assigned a number between 1 and 15 (highest) which forms the scaled score.

Question Format

  • The first category of questions deals with identifying the central theme of the passage.
  • The second category of questions will call into use your background knowledge of the subject.
  • The third category of questions tests your background knowledge of the subject more bluntly.
  • The next category is related to formulating hypothesis, conducting experiments that confirm it, explaining cause and effect relationships, etc.
  • The fifth category broadly deals with evaluating whether a particular conclusion drawn from the data is justified and to identify supporting evidence.
  • The sixth category consists of application style questions.
  • The last category deals with representation and interpretation of quantitative data.

Number of Questions

The MCAT Physical Sciences section is a multiple-choice question test. The section consists of 52 multiple-choice questions that have to be completed in 70 minutes. Out of these 52 questions, only 13 are independent questions and the remaining 39 are passage-based questions. There are around 7 passages in the section which, in-turn, have 4-7 questions each.

How to Improve Your Skills

The questions in this section test a candidate’s knowledge in the field of physics and general chemistry. Rigorous practice on your part is quite essential to score high in this section!ExamFocus brings to you hundreds of questions from all the areas of the Physical Sciences’ syllabus of MCAT to help you enhance your skills. On clicking the following five links, you shall reach the page that offers hundreds of sample questions for your practice.