Anyone take mcat before phy2?

[eelgg123]

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I plan on taking the MCATS sometime in January of 2014. I have a pretty full schedule, 15 credits +research. I have taken all the prereqs except for PHY2. Would it be a good idea to study for PHY2 on my own, like from both lecture videos online from my university and courseaver and the and obviously work practice problems from Exam Krackers and TPR?

 

[sunflower18]

I am taking the MCAT next week and I haven't taken physics 2. It was very very hard to self teach that material. I am not good at physics or math, which made my predicament worse. I have managed to pull off two 11s in practice tests along with a handful of 10s, so I am hoping for an 11 on the real deal. Still, not a super high score.

If you are good at physics, go for it. If not, maybe reconsider.

 

[QuiteAConundrum]

I took it the first time without physics II. Don't do it unless you have a solid math background and an aptitude for physics such that you could teach yourself material from physics II WELL.

You can find a way to get A's in classes, but to do well on the MCAT you have to really understand and grasp the concepts behind physics.

I wouldn't risk it, but good luck to you if you do!

 

[cubsrul]

NOT recommended. Many abstract ideas in physics II that are very useful on the MCAT.

 

[BerkReviewTeach]

I'm going to go agaist the grain here, because I think college physics classes don't really prepare you that well for the MCAT. If you had a good HS physics teacher and get the concepts from Physics I inutitively, then picking up Physics II from a good resource is very doable.

I've seen several students who hadn't taken Physics II (or were taking it concurrently and didn't cover all of the material by the time they took their MCAT) do quite well (12s and above). Granted, they were taking the review course and had access to lectures and office hours, but that's only eleven hours of class (for the portion covering the second half of physics) and whatever OHs they made it to.

If you approach the material the right way and do lots of practice passages, then you can do quite well. The only stipultion I'd make is that you use materials with thorough answer explanations, because you'll learn more going over answers than anywhere else. Short explanations will leave you frustrated and empty.

 

[missdr10]

I barely learned physics II when I took it. To be honest, I think if you find a good video source like Chads videos or maybe even Khan Academy, it's really not that bad to learn on your own. I would just try to learn some of it during a break like winter break or something and then come back to "review" it when you study for the MCAT.

I'll tell you this though - simply *reading* most review books will give you the needed formulas and rules and such but you won't pick up the overlying concepts easily. Along with verbal, I found the toughest part of the MCAT those crazy questions about particle accelerators and magnetic fields paired with other forces. Without a thorough understanding, those passages will be impossible to understand. I think the videos help a lot with the visualization of that.

 

[Adjet]

Yeah I'd agree that it's doable to self-study the physics 2 portion of the MCAT (assuming you're referring to the electricity/magnetism portion). Most of the physics 2 MCAT content involves simple circuits, rules, and relationships that, with practice and review, one can get the hang of. Some of the wave motion/fluid dynamics stuff I find a little harder and a course may be helpful for that but again wouldn't say it's necessary as long as you're willing to put in the effort.

 

[premedstudenttt]

I scored a 12 on my real MCAT and consistently scored 12's on practice tests. Its just like self-teaching yourself for a class you skip. Either you are good at this or you are not. If you haven't tried it, then more than likely you shouldn't attempt for an exam this important. The concepts are not difficult.