MCAT Preparation - Really overwhelming?

[Joester]

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[inasensegone]

Hello to everyone!

I have been lurking around these threads in and out every now and then for a few months and I am scheduled to take the MCAT at the end of the summer. So far, I have read through various posts about the books and materials and manners of studying and I have to say it is very overwhelming (even though I have read through it multiple times).

Simply put, I just wanted to know if there was a general consensus on the materials to order for the specific sections since I am now at that stage. I have searched the threads here and there and as of no, it seems that:
VR: EK seems to be the one most agree with in terms of similarity to the real test
PS/BS: I have no clue...everyone is pretty much basing this on how well they know the material? and there are so many different suggestions its just mind blowing

If anyone could help me out in terms of which materials are most "recommended" by people, that would be great. If it helps, I do well in my science courses (for the most part), will probably need to buckle down for Ochem, and VR will probably be the hardest for me (considering my SAT was horrid on the CR section).

Thanks for all the help!

-J

I'm surprised that you have been reading through the forums and have come to the conclusion that EK 101 is the closest approximation to the real thing. IF I had to choose one, I would choose The Princeton Review Hyperlearning (TPRH) verbal workbook. To be honest though, I don't really care much for either because verbal reasoning is subjective and will be different from test to test.

I'm going to keep this short because this topic has been beaten like a dead horse and you should really look around these boards more if you want details. I found TBR to be great for Physics, GChem, and OChem. I had a pretty solid foundation in chemistry, despite having taken those courses a couple years ago, so I may be biased. My Physics background was so weak that I supplemented with Wikipremed and Nova's Physics (and some others as well). Bio I did Examkrackers but now I'm finishing up TPR's bio book as well because I felt EK was not sufficient.

Check out the 30+ CBT thread. Plenty more details there. Good luck!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Don't fret!

There are as many different ways to be successful on the MCAT as there are different MCAT students.

The reality when it comes to prep books is simple: which books you choose matters MUCH LESS than how well you use them. There are variations in length, quality and price, to be sure. And SDN seems to harbor an unusually large number of people who get really, really attached to certain book selections. The simple fact of the matter is that if you go buy the "complete study kit" package put out by TBR, TPR, EK, KTP, etc, you'll be fine. All of the big companies make totally serviceable books.

My usual recommendation is here:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/breaking-down-the-mcat-100-days-to-mcat-success.1043255/

 

[MedOldAge]

Don't fret!

There are as many different ways to be successful on the MCAT as there are different MCAT students.

The reality when it comes to prep books is simple: which books you choose matters MUCH LESS than how well you use them. There are variations in length, quality and price, to be sure. And SDN seems to harbor an unusually large number of people who get really, really attached to certain book selections. The simple fact of the matter is that if you go buy the "complete study kit" package put out by TBR, TPR, EK, KTP, etc, you'll be fine. All of the big companies make totally serviceable books.

My usual recommendation is here:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/breaking-down-the-mcat-100-days-to-mcat-success.1043255/

+1.