MCAT prep as a learning tool

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ADSigMel

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I met with the pre-health advisor at the school where I'm doing my DIY post-bac, who said that it is not too early for me to start MCAT prep (for June 2017). I have not taken any courses yet in organic or biochem, and I still need two semesters of biology. So, I'm kind of concerned that (1) I won't understand those topics properly if I try to "learn" them in the course of MCAT prep, and (2) I will be so overwhelmed at the volume of stuff I don't know that I will psych myself out about the MCAT in general. My instinct says that it would make more sense to save the MCAT prep on those subjects for after I've had the classes. Anyone have any guidance?

I have already started prepping for CARS and psych/soc, to the extent that my nine years of practicing law haven't already adequately prepared me, so I'm not worried about these particular issues with regard to those sections of the exam. Just the bio/biochem and chem/physics sections. I've already taken physics, by the way. I feel comfortable using MCAT prep to review what I already know about that.

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The NEW MCAT is just as much critical thinking/analysis as it is "content review." Most agree that there's less content recall, but more of using fundamental concepts in an esoteric way. The best way to prepare this early for your MCAT is to reallyyyyyyy be familiar with graph interpretation and research skills.

https://www.aamc.org/students/download/374016/data/mcat2015-sirs.pdf

Look at the bolded text from AAMC about the new MCAT and you'll notice only the first bolded part has the word knowledge in it. They cram reasoning reasoning reasoning. I'm not advocating to skip content review when it's time for your MCAT, but there are other ways to improve your score.

You can definitely prep for CARS by reviewing scientific journals, but I'd advised against any other type of review so early. If you do well in your classes, your knowledge base will surely be enough to answer MCAT questions. DON'T exhaust your practice tests now, as redoing them nearer to test date will inflate your score. However, casually reading MCAT content review books shouldn't be a problem if time permits. They're often summarized in such a broad and casual manner (especially EK), that I don't think it'll hurt. If time permits of course!

If I were you, I'd take a free 1/2 length diagnostic test from Next Step to get a taste of what you're up against. After reviewing it, you'll realize you've probably missed a lot from just silly mistakes rather than full-blown content ignorance.
 
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Pre-health advisers get paid about the same as Verizon customer service reps and are about as good at their jobs.
 
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I would not study for the mcat a year in advance - first, you haven't learned all the material yet. Second, you'll burn out. I studied for almost 3 months (for the old mcat) and I was so bored of studying that last week.

If you want to do something constructive that will help your MCAT, I suggest skimming through your textbooks after each semester. It'll keep the content fresh so that your content review for the mcat won't take as long. Plus, you can go in depth for any topics your professor skipped/went through quickly, since you'll have the time for that now, rather than when you're trying to take practice MCATs, etc.
 
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I would not study for the mcat a year in advance - first, you haven't learned all the material yet. Second, you'll burn out. I studied for almost 3 months (for the old mcat) and I was so bored of studying that last week.

If you want to do something constructive that will help your MCAT, I suggest skimming through your textbooks after each semester. It'll keep the content fresh so that your content review for the mcat won't take as long. Plus, you can go in depth for any topics your professor skipped/went through quickly, since you'll have the time for that now, rather than when you're trying to take practice MCATs, etc.

That sounds right. I was planning to spend the next two months reviewing the physics/bio/chem that I took way back when, before I jump back into classes this summer. Then I'll go to school for a full year, Summer/Fall/Spring (taking Stats, Gen Bio I and II, Orgo I and II, and Biochem I and II), finish pre-reqs next April and take the MCAT next June. So I was only planning to start studying specifically for the MCAT next March or so, when I'm halfway through my last semester of pre-reqs. But my advisor had me worried that wouldn't be enough to adequately prepare for the MCAT, which honestly had me thinking, then why the heck am I paying your employer to teach me all these classes?
 
Content review is in general not nearly so vast or important as it seems; most of the important "details" are in the passage.

The test will often briefly explain, for example, PV=nRT and give theoretical frameworks. Content review does help - you can move much more quickly through a passage if you have the gist generally - but you're going to succeed or fail based on whether you can stay in a sharp, limber, critically-minded state for 6.5 hours.

But my advisor had me worried that wouldn't be enough to adequately prepare for the MCAT, which honestly had me thinking, then why the heck am I paying your employer to teach me all these classes?

Content on the MCAT is a step down from what its been at the low-decile institution I've done my postbac at. The content isn't overly difficult, its breadth and duration and limberness that kills most.
 
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