AAMC PREview® Exam Instructions

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Examinee Instructions

You are about to begin the AAMC PREview® professional readiness exam, formerly the AAMC Situational Judgment Test. This exam contains scenarios that measure competencies that are important to be a successful medical student and doctor.

You will be presented with 30 scenario sets, which include 186 items. A scenario set includes a scenario and items. Each scenario is a short paragraph describing a situation that medical students may encounter during medical school. The items (or responses) represent a range of possible actions someone could take in response to the situation.

For each scenario, you should assume the role of a medical student. You will be asked to rate the effectiveness of each response on a four-point scale.

Very Ineffective Ineffective Effective Very Effective
The response will cause additional problems or make the situation worse. The response will not improve the situation or may cause a problem. The response could help but will not significantly improve the situation. The response will significantly improve the situation.

Read each scenario and response carefully before rating the effectiveness of the response.

As you evaluate the responses, please follow the instructions and guidance below:

  • Consider each response as an immediate next step in the scenario, unless otherwise noted.
  • Everything you need to know to evaluate each response is included in the scenario and the response itself. Do not assume anything beyond what is written in the scenario or response.   
  • Evaluate and rate each response independently. Do not compare the responses to each other or rank order the responses.
  • Within a scenario set, each effectiveness rating can be used more than once or not at all. Not all scenario sets will include responses that reflect each effectiveness rating.
  • As in real life, there may be multiple ways to respond to a situation. The response you think may be most or least effective may not be present. Each scenario set includes a sample of possible responses to the situation.

To revisit these instructions during your exam, click on the blue info button at the top of the screen.

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