Advice, if you have any

[TBD]

I have never posted on this site, but have browsed it before. I have recently graduated with a premed degree and decided to take some time off from the science/mediacl field to see if that is really what i want to do.
My overall GPA is a 3.27. i am scheduled to take the MCAT for the first time in April. I am kind of rusty on the material I learned in college. Since I have forgotten some of the material I learned in undergrad, I am willing to take a prep course but I don't know which one would be best for me (TPB, KAP, EK?). I have some EC's that I did in my sophmore/junior year but I don't think that they will help me if I did put those down on my apps. I am going to apply to as many schools as I can afford. Would post-bacc. be an avenue to explore? If someone has any adivse to what direction would be beneficial to me that would be awesome. Thanks and good luck to all.

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[Apparition]

Take the MCAT in Apr. You might want to use Kaplan or TPR if you've forgotten most of the material since EK seems to summarize more (MCAT forum has lots of info on this). If you get over 30 on the MCAT, I would just apply. If you get lower, I would consider doing some post-bac work to bring up the GPA or master's. Meanwhile, use the time that you have now to volunteer in a hospital if your clinical experience is lacking. SDN is a great resource you found. Good luck

 

[odrade1]

ECs should be evident throughout your resume/transcript. Your volunteering and shadowing/medical exploration ECs are especially important; you should have a demonstrable history of both up to and through the time of your interviews.
A 3.27 gpa is not very competitive. Taking post-bacc classes would be a way for you to improve your gpa. This, however, is only true on one condition: do you tend to make A's now, or do you perform at the 3.3 gpa level? Also, if you are like me, and have LOTS of credit hours on your transcript, another 4-5 A's won't nudge your grade up very much. One final consideration: if your latter coursework is significantly better than your earlier coursework, taking another year of courses can add further evidence to your application that you are now a good student. It also puts distance between the you that got mediocre grades and the you that now makes good grades.
As far as the prep courses go, I tend to think everyone's situation is different. I didn't use the courses, and got a good MCAT score. However, I tend to remember things from my classess & I test well. When you studied for your science courses, did you study for each test, then forget the material once the test was over, or did you study for each test with the fact that you will have to take the MCAT & do well in medical school firmly in your mind? If you studied deeply & well for your science classes, you should be able to do well on your own. If you studied like most students (for the test, not for the learning), then you might benefit from the review courses. Also, some good students benefit from the structure & organization of the courses. I prepared by tutoring people in Biology & Chemistry the year before my MCAT. Then I studied a total of about 30 hours for the orgo & physics stuff.

Good luck