Which book is best per subject for MCAT?

[gangasruthi]

Hi,

I wanted to know to prepare for the MCAT, using all the resources I have, which book (Kaplan,Princeton, Berkely, or EK, etc.) is best for Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Organic Chemistry. I wanted to focus on one to two main books for each subject when taking notes, and then reading over the other books to add information to what I have already read. Thanks.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[clairephillips]

Gangas,
There are lots of posts on here going years back that argue for different things, but the truth is, the best books are the ones that work for YOU. What kind of learner are you? How long ago did you have your prereqs? Then, maybe I can advise a little better.

 

[gangasruthi]

Hi,
I have just finished all the prereqs. I just finished Sophomore year and plan to take the MCAT this year. I am better with visual and hands on learning. I think I study better when I take my own notes. I hope that helps?

 

[clairephillips]

Okay, I think your best bets, then are either:
1) Examkrackers: Benefits: Short, to the point, quick to review if you don't have a lot of time. In-class exams in the back are sometimes ridiculously hard and may not even be on the material covered in the chapter. For a visual learner, it may be really great because the pics are full color and glossy. If things came easily to you, this is a great review, but you absolutely need more practice problems after content review.

2) Berkeley Review: Benefits: Lots of detail, sometimes a ridiculous amount if you get overwhelmed. You have to really work to pick out the important details from the ones you don't need as much. They have great exams that are killer-tough, with lots of practice problems, although you might still want some others. People LOVE them on SDN.

I would steer clear of Kaplan & TPRH unless you need a hand-holding review of a tough subject. That being said, I'm using TPRH because I took most of my courses multiple years ago and hand-holding is EXACTLY what I need. I have been recommending Chad's Videos at coursesaver.com to lots of people as well because they really help me, as a visual/kinesthetic learner. It's like being in class!

 

[gangasruthi]

Thank you so much! This really helps! What I have noticed is that all 4 books have extra information here and there, which is sometimes problematic, because it's a bit hard to pick out what is really important.

 

[zinthafan]

I found Kaplan Physics very helpful personally, I used that with EK Physics. I liked TPRH Cracking the MCAT book but didn't use any of the other TPRH books. I got a 13 on the Bio section of my MCAT using only EK- granted, I'm a bio major too, but I didn't think my major was much help for the MCAT considering what little I felt I took out of it. Maybe genetics was helpful.