Advice Needed: Late-Start Senior Taking August MCAT

[robynrich]

Hi, guys. Here's my situation:
I am a senior psychology major at my university. I decided to commit to taking pre-medical courses pretty late in the game, so I am about to graduate in May and at that time, I will be finished with Zoology, Microbiology, General Chemistry I & II (w/ labs), Organic Chemistry I w/ lab, and Physics I. When I graduate in May, I will have one month free before I begin Organic Chemistry II and Physics II in separate summer sessions. I will be taking the MCAT on August 14th (two weeks after I finish my last summer class).
First of all, I realize this situation is NOT ideal, but I am confident that I am ready to apply for the Fall 2010 cycle. Since I already know my MCAT date, what can I do to start studying now?
I plan to buy the EK Complete Study Package, all EK 1001 question books, Audio Osmosis, EK 101 VR Passages, Nova Physics, and Org. Chem. as a Second Language, and AAMC practice tests.
What should I focus on this semester (while I'm in OC I & Physics I)? Should I start trying to teach myself anything early? What should I focus on over the summer? I know my time will be somewhat limited, but I have about seven months to study and I am doing fine in my classes.
Any advice would be very much appreciated!

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[SN2ed]

Don't set some artificial date by which you must apply. This will cause you to rush and do poorly on the MCAT. If you search around, you'll probably find plenty of threads from people who rushed their application and did badly. Remember, it doesn't matter how early you apply if your MCAT score is low. You should ask students that have taken those two summer courses before. If they say the classes aren't that bad, go forward with the MCAT if you really want to take it. If they say the classes, are tough (which is likely), you are setting yourself up for a not so happy MCAT result. All of the summer O-chem classes that I know of, have been a living nightmare for students. You only want to take this test once. Do not handicap yourself.

 

[newtonsfriend]

I recommend not doing that. Those courses are difficult to begin with and condensing them into a summer course is really difficult. I personally did not take summer courses in those classes, but have friends that did and dreaded doing it. They were thankful to get B's. Plus taking the MCAT later does not matter, you are still young. Also, I bought Audio Osmosis. Not worth it like you would think.

 

[robynrich]

Thanks for the opinions, guys. I know that I will still be taking the courses over the summer because I have talked to students who have taken them over the summer at my institution and I feel that I can handle them. Since those will be the last classes of my undergraduate career, I may just take the MCAT at a later date this year, like September or October if I feel prepared (I am planning on going the D.O. route.)

 

[cure0008]

I think now you should focus on Biology,Verbal, and Writing and solve problems in that area. Ochem and Physics will be fresh in your mind when you are done with those classes. Ochem 2 and Physics 2 will not that emph. like ochem 1 and physics 1 so you can take practice tests when you are done with this semester.
However, something that you should be worried about is being too late in the cycle. People will already be in interview when you apply. Even if you are a GREAT applicant, universities might not have open spots available for you.

 

[robynrich]

I think now you should focus on Biology,Verbal, and Writing and solve problems in that area. Ochem and Physics will be fresh in your mind when you are done with those classes. Ochem 2 and Physics 2 will not that emph. like ochem 1 and physics 1 so you can take practice tests when you are done with this semester.
However, something that you should be worried about is being too late in the cycle. People will already be in interview when you apply. Even if you are a GREAT applicant, universities might not have open spots available for you.

Thank you for the advice on what to focus on! And yes, you are right about being late in the cycle, so I will try to be prepared for any problems that may cause me. However, I am only applying to one MD school and the other nine or so will be DO. Although I know it would be to my advantage to apply as early as possible, I know that I will at least have a LITTLE more time since DO schools usually don't require your application to be complete until around January or February. I am definitely going to see how the MCAT studying goes and see if I feel prepared to take it. If I am not consistently scoring in my target range, I will delay taking the test, for sure!