Am I Missing Out On Something?

[JustMeditate]

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So...

One more stupid question, then I swear to leave the forum alone for a while, lol.

Anyways, as I look though old posts, I keep seeing dozens of people suggest a solid three months of doing nothing but studying for the MCATs. Really? NOTHING, but studying for MCATs? I would assume that this is an exaggeration, except that I keep seeing it get repeated over and over again ad nauseaum. I understand that the MCATs are intense, but as an undergrad, I can't just randomly walk away from school for three months to study.

My original plan was to casually study for the next 8 months, take 12 credits next fall semester (One upper level bio, one math, and two super easy humanities courses) so that I could start studying hard core about 4 months before I take my first exam. Then, I was going to take my first MCAT at the end of January, so I would have at least one month of "nothing but the MCATs," excluding, maybe, 5-10 hours of volunteering a week. But that'd be it. No classes, no work, and no friends (JK, lol). Does that sound like a solid plan? I understand some people really do do nothing but the MCATs for three months, simply by studying all summer and taking the MCATs in August, but isn't it a bad idea to submit primaries that late? Am I missing some "how to skip out on life for three months" secret? Thanks!

 

[TwoPaddles]

So...

One more stupid question, then I swear to leave the forum alone for a while, lol.

Anyways, as I look though old posts, I keep seeing dozens of people suggest a solid three months of doing nothing but studying for the MCATs. Really? NOTHING, but studying for MCATs? I would assume that this is an exaggeration, except that I keep seeing it get repeated over and over again ad nauseaum. I understand that the MCATs are intense, but as an undergrad, I can't just randomly walk away from school for three months to study.

My original plan was to casually study for the next 8 months, take 12 credits next fall semester (One upper level bio, one math, and two super easy humanities courses) so that I could start studying hard core about 4 months before I take my first exam. Then, I was going to take my first MCAT at the end of January, so I would have at least one month of "nothing but the MCATs," excluding, maybe, 5-10 hours of volunteering a week. But that'd be it. No classes, no work, and no friends (JK, lol). Does that sound like a solid plan? I understand some people really do do nothing but the MCATs for three months, simply by studying all summer and taking the MCATs in August, but isn't it a bad idea to submit primaries that late? Am I missing some "how to skip out on life for three months" secret? Thanks!

well no, this is just the opinion of the majority of SDN community and realize that there are thousands of other students out there who aren't even getting on SDN.. people have things to do (jobs, school, volunteering, etc) and it's very unlikely that they will spend just plain 3 months on mcat without doing anything else. study as much as you want and as long as you want and take the mcat only whenever you are ready. it also depends on your background. if you've taken classes like genetics, molecular bio, biochemistry, physiology..then you're pretty much set for the bio section.
actually, if you do a little bit of search in the forum, you will realize that those who got a solid score studied anywhere between 4-6 months. that being said, if you are going to study for more than 3 months, keep ur practice passages in the last 3-month range

 

[RogueUnicorn]

So...

One more stupid question, then I swear to leave the forum alone for a while, lol.

Anyways, as I look though old posts, I keep seeing dozens of people suggest a solid three months of doing nothing but studying for the MCATs. Really? NOTHING, but studying for MCATs? I would assume that this is an exaggeration, except that I keep seeing it get repeated over and over again ad nauseaum. I understand that the MCATs are intense, but as an undergrad, I can't just randomly walk away from school for three months to study.

My original plan was to casually study for the next 8 months, take 12 credits next fall semester (One upper level bio, one math, and two super easy humanities courses) so that I could start studying hard core about 4 months before I take my first exam. Then, I was going to take my first MCAT at the end of January, so I would have at least one month of "nothing but the MCATs," excluding, maybe, 5-10 hours of volunteering a week. But that'd be it. No classes, no work, and no friends (JK, lol). Does that sound like a solid plan? I understand some people really do do nothing but the MCATs for three months, simply by studying all summer and taking the MCATs in August, but isn't it a bad idea to submit primaries that late? Am I missing some "how to skip out on life for three months" secret? Thanks!

pointless.

also, re: your original question, everyone's different and one hard and fast rule will never be adequate for the full spectrum of premeds. that being said, i reached my goal score (and a point off from my actual score) on practice tests within about a month and a half of studying full-on for the mcat

 

[BerkReviewTeach]

well no, this is just the opinion of the majority of SDN community and realize that there are thousands of other students out there who aren't even getting on SDN.. people have things to do (jobs, school, volunteering, etc) and it's very unlikely that they will spend just plain 3 months on mcat without doing anything else. study as much as you want and as long as you want and take the mcat only whenever you are ready. it also depends on your background. if you've taken classes like genetics, molecular bio, biochemistry, physiology..then you're pretty much set for the bio section.
actually, if you do a little bit of search in the forum, you will realize that those who got a solid score studied anywhere between 4-6 months. that being said, if you are going to study for more than 3 months, keep ur practice passages in the last 3-month range

Well said Two Paddles! This reply is just so eloquent and on the mark that I wanted to prop it up.

 

[JustMeditate]

Thanks for the advice guys, I really do appreciate it!

I certainly feel a lot better about the MCATs, as well!

Adios!

 

[eagles22]

8 months is too long to be in MCAT prep mode. You'll burn out and even more importantly, you'll forget what you studied during that long of a period. My advice, take a review course that ends 2 weeks before your MCAT date so you'll be on pace and up to speed on everything you need to know.