2 Months Prep?

[alexrgross]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Hey

Im a postbac and Ive covered the pre-reqs for med school already.
Im thinking of doing a Kaplan Test Prep course from 6/14 - 8/18. Then take the test on 8/20 in the PM.

Ill have about 6 hours/week cut out of the entire two months for commitments and then from 7/20 - 8/13 Ill have ~4 hours @ summer school.

Do you think I need more time to study for the Kaplan Classroom course? It meets like 4 times a week ~4 hours each time, then I'll be studying every free hours i have otherwise. (Practice tests included) Should I forget about the summer activites and just do prep work all day? Itll be my first time taking the MCAT. I took a practice test a long time ago BEFORE I took any science or chem or bio and got 18's. I knew close to nothing about any of the material at that point.

Also, is it good to finnish the prep course only two days before the actual test?
thanks
alexander

 

[DaTruMD]

Better play it safe and study all summer.

 

[alexrgross]

cross out the summer school and activites and take a september test?

 

[Insulinshock]

You can do it. If you're strong initially in sciences you really just need to brush up on everything you know and then practice x10. You probably won't reach your potential, but if you're scoring 30+ and aren't looking at an Ivy I'd say your solid.

If you're not strong in sciences, OR if you don't have a solid GPA and other stats, OR if your looking at very competitive schools, then you're gonna want more than 2 months.

 

[Insulinshock]

Oh, and I didn't take a class, but I would presume that it's going to move at a snails pace compared to the pace you need to work at given 2 months time. I would either cancel the class or reschedule the test, but definitely don't go ahead with both.

 

[alexrgross]

When I apply ill have 1 year leadership experience, 1 year clinical experience, 1 year hospital experience, and one quality research experience + some clubs and activites sprinkled in here and there. My GPA is cumulative 3.2 and Ill have two years of 3.8. in my earlier years of college I had a lower average so it weighs me down.
Would it be detrimental to apply really early and have the MCAT scores released November (taking a september MCAT)? Or do I not need 30+ so much,,,Ill apply to cali schools because its my home state, but otherwise Ill shoot for the schools w/ applicants w lower GPAs etc.

 

[DaTruMD]

When I apply ill have 1 year leadership experience, 1 year clinical experience, 1 year hospital experience, and one quality research experience + some clubs and activites sprinkled in here and there. My GPA is cumulative 3.2 and Ill have two years of 3.8. in my earlier years of college I had a lower average so it weighs me down.
Would it be detrimental to apply really early and have the MCAT scores released November (taking a september MCAT)? Or do I not need 30+ so much,,,Ill apply to cali schools because its my home state, but otherwise Ill shoot for the schools w/ applicants w lower GPAs etc.

With a 3.2, you need a 35+ MCAT IMO if you want to go to a MD school. Also, just wait until next year to apply.

 

[alexrgross]

I could apply next year, but Ill be in the same situation with MCAT prep. I may as well take three months preparing, boost my score as high as possible. That way I can use that same score next year if I dont get a seat this year. And by then ill have pulled my GPA up higher too. No?

 

[NYR56]

First of all, a lot of this comes down to how strong you are in the sciences and how driven you will be. I'm a post bacc myself and without the distractions of undergrad, I decided I would be fine studying on my own without a course. I've had the EK books for a while but I really only started studying hard in December; I'm taking the MCAT this Friday. I took a lot of time off with the holidays and even went to Vegas at the beginning of this month. To be perfectly honest, I think I timed it perfectly and if I had to study another week I'd get burnt out. As a post bacc, I was quite confident with my science ability and after reading through EK once it all came back to me. I don't know what you did in undergrad but if you weren't that great with the sciences, then you'll just have to review harder. If you really want to do well and will be dedicated, the course won't do anything for you that you can't do for yourself.

As for your GPA, I have a 3.2 undergrad but my post bacc work brought it up to a 3.4 Either way, it's not that competitive but our experience will help us out. That said, I do think it would be wise to shoot for the upper end of the 30s rather than the lower end just to prove that you are capable of doing the work. Releasing your scores in Nov will unnecessarily hurt you and I doubt it would really raise your score by all that much.

 

[NYR56]

First of all, a lot of this comes down to how strong you are in the sciences and how driven you will be. I'm a post bacc myself and without the distractions of undergrad, I decided I would be fine studying on my own without a course. I've had the EK books for a while but I really only started studying hard in December; I'm taking the MCAT this Friday. I took a lot of time off with the holidays and even went to Vegas at the beginning of this month. To be perfectly honest, I think I timed it perfectly and if I had to study another week I'd get burnt out. As a post bacc, I was quite confident with my science ability and after reading through EK once it all came back to me. I don't know what you did in undergrad but if you weren't that great with the sciences, then you'll just have to review harder. If you really want to do well and will be dedicated, the course won't do anything for you that you can't do for yourself.

As for your GPA, I have a 3.2 undergrad but my post bacc work brought it up to a 3.4 Either way, it's not that competitive but our experience will help us out. That said, I do think it would be wise to shoot for the upper end of the 30s rather than the lower end just to prove that you are capable of doing the work. Releasing your scores in Nov will unnecessarily hurt you and I doubt it would really raise your score by all that much.