Best FREE study source for the New MCAT? I can't seem to find sources for the new material...

[Tennis Guy]

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Hey everyone,

So, I'm wondering what the best FREE study source for the New MCAT is? I always used www.MCATreview.com, in order to study for the old MCAT but does that website have the new material added to the prior material? It doesn't have the material for the behavioral section for sure. I have used Khan Academy recently but is it good for the MCAT? How much NEW material is on the MCAT besides the behavioral section? If anyone could recommend their free sources for their MCAT studying, then I would truly appreciate it! Thank you everyone for all your insight and advice, it is truly appreciated!!!!! 🙂

 

[Spector1]

Just torren...err "legally download" a few 2015 kaplan MCAT books and see how different the practice tests look.

 

[Pusheen]

Khan academy

 

[Buzzlightyear33]

Applying to med school is one of those things where you have to open your wallet. No matter what you will be spending thousands of $$ on apps, study material, travel expenses, etc. I'm not saying go buy a 3000$ Kaplan review course but surely you can afford $250 for a complete 2015 MCAT study set.

Dont be stingy because it can cost you your dreams (or delay them for another year).

 

[mcatjelly]

There's a section for free resources and practice exams in the FAQ in my signature.

 

[Tennis Guy]

Khan academy

I can't tell, if you're being serious or sarcastic? Lol... 😕

 

[Tennis Guy]

There's a section for free resources and practice exams in the FAQ in my signature.

I understand and have looked, but I am confused as to which ones are the most effective under the free sources?

 

[Doug Underhill]

I'll give you some free advice: there is no good free MCAT prep material. The most useful material is the AAMC practice exams, and they are not free.

 

[mcatjelly]

I can't tell, if you're being serious or sarcastic? Lol... 😕

They're being serious! KA has free videos and passages.

 

[Doug Underhill]

Here's the thing: the MCAT is either the most important or second most important test of your life (after Step 1, perhaps). You are competing against (well, not strictly against, since the scaled scoring is done before the exam is administered) 100,000 of your peers: the median score for matriculants is going to be around the 89th percentile. All of those people have completed the weeder courses and think their GPAs and extracurriculars are hot enough to have a shot at the big dream of med school. All of them are buying test prep material from big companies that eat, sleep, and breathe MCAT all day every day, companies who employ large divisions of 99th percentile scorers who know how to take and teach a MCAT.

While you are watching Netflix at home, your peers are training for the MCAT. When you are sitting in the hospital waiting for an attending to give you something to do during your volunteer shift, your peers are training. When you are looking at your Western blot in lab with the uneven loading and wondering how you can get the error bars smaller so it could eventually be published some day, your peers are training. Do you think you can beat 88 out of 100 of those guys equipped with stuff some random people threw up on the Internet? Shell out the cash or apply for the fee assistance program.

 

[DesitnationMD]

Here's the thing: the MCAT is either the most important or second most important test of your life (after Step 1, perhaps). You are competing against (well, not strictly against, since the scaled scoring is done before the exam is administered) 100,000 of your peers: the median score for matriculants is going to be around the 89th percentile....

While $ =/= good. I would have to support @Doug Underhill that yeah, you are going to have to shell out. Look at Olympic atheletes, they are not training in their backyards. At a certain point, the difference in resources is probably negligible, but people with $ to make usually put in more effort than those out for supposedly altruistic reasons. There are also cases or way too overpriced stuff (tutoring, boot-camps IMO) but yeah, generally you get what you pay for. Khan is good, especially for the price. But it doesn't hold a candle to the AAMC stuff (which they charge for). As for the companies shop around, try out a few diff companies as right now this mcat is still too new to know who/what is best.

No one can know what is "best" for you except you. I would however follow the general consensus on FL exams. No matter how you learn or how colorful you like your books, a practice tests should be the same thing for everyone. A good representation of the real thing. To be safe I used a bunch of diff companies for my 6/19 date but EK seems to be getting widespread + reviews, at least for the sciences. TPR has the 1Q at a time format which is good and their CARS is a bit tougher than the real thing to help prepare you.

Buy the AAMC stuff, use the Khan, and then find some books/tests/classes/tutoring that you think would help you. If $ really is tight, you can always find some online materials that fell off the internet truck.

 

[GrapesofRath]

There is no real MCAT prep that can be done without spending the $$$

 

[Oncie]

Just torren...err "legally download" a few 2015 kaplan MCAT books and see how different the practice tests look.

This.

Start here https://getstrike.net/ 😉

 

[Pusheen]

I can't tell, if you're being serious or sarcastic? Lol... 😕

haha, I'm serious. They have videos on most of the concepts and tons of practice passages. Probably not as good as the AAMC passages, but hey, you wanted free, right?

 

[Pusheen]

While you are watching Netflix at home, your peers are training for the MCAT. When you are sitting in the hospital waiting for an attending to give you something to do during your volunteer shift, your peers are training. When you are looking at your Western blot in lab with the uneven loading and wondering how you can get the error bars smaller so it could eventually be published some day, your peers are training.

*heart rate increases*

 

[Lucca]

haha, I'm serious. They have videos on most of the concepts and tons of practice passages. Probably not as good as the AAMC passages, but hey, you wanted free, right?

Khan Academy passages are AAMC passages to an extent considering they collaborated to make it. I've been using TPR + Khan + TBR for Bio and I think KA is just as good if not better than both.

 

[GrapesofRath]

Khan Academy passages are AAMC passages to an extent considering they collaborated to make it. I've been using TPR + Khan + TBR for Bio and I think KA is just as good if not better than both.

It amazes me how mediocre some of the Khan passages are given the fact they supposedly have all kinds of inside info no one else does and worked with the AAMC of all groups.

 

[differentiating]

Keep in mind that you can probably sell off any prep books after you use them, if you're resourceful, so if you do find that those are helpful that's a way to get them for 'free'. But Khan Academy is probably your best bet for truly free resources.

 

[supremus]

You can search in ebay and pick up some brand new sets around 80-100.