When to begin taking practice mcat exams?

[TerryLo]

How many months prior to taking the real mcat did you guys start taking practice mcat exams? I wanted to start taking these exams immediately after i finished all my examkrackers stuff, but it's taking quite a bit of time to finish. It looks like i'll be through with all the books in a couple weeks which leaves me with a little over a month before the august 20 exam. Is it best to just start taking practice tests now even though i haven't finished going through all the prep material or to wait until i've finished all the books?

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[RoadRunner17]

If you're talking about full length exams, then it really depends on how familiar you are with the general concepts behind all four sciences. Verbal you can work on at any time of course, but if you're really weak in certain sections, then it can not only be a waste of time but also demoralizing for that particular section. Personally, I think its a good idea to do the review first, so you're familiar with all the MCAT concepts.. and then attack practice tests with gusto to identify what you need to work on, and also your test-taking skills. I think a month is plenty of time to practice; if you space them out to once every 3-4 days, with time in between to review the test and work on specific weaknesses, you can get in 7-8 practice tests easily. Just don't overdo it, especially the week before the exam though.