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****EDIT: PLEASE IGNORE THE ATTACHED WORD DOCUMENT, I'VE SINCE UPDATED THIS LIST AS I'VE FOUND MORE MATERIALS AND I CAN'T FIGURE OUT HOW TO DELETE THE ATTACHED FILE
I was getting confused on where to find and organize all my practice exams, so I have spent the past two hours researching how I can get my hands on EVERY practice exam available, because I am studying for this test for 6 months and I'm being a little crazy (making up for a below-competitive GPA and need to smash the MCAT while I do some GPA repair). Anywho, below is a list that I created of every possible practice exam you can take, as well as all the best practice materials out there. If you need access to my online TPR or Kaplan registrations (I have both sets of books), PM me. Best of luck to everyone studying- I'm posting this here because I'm partial to osteopathy and holistic care!
Sending positive vibrations out to everyone prepping! Study hard ya'll!
EXAMS:
1.) Access 3 Full Lengths through registering your Kaplan books here: https://atom.kaptest.com/studyplan/gettingStarted
2.) One full test comes with registering your Kaplan 528 book, whenever you buy that
3.) Kaplan free practice test for general public here: https://www.kaptest.com/pages/free-events
4.) Kaplan free events (tutorials, occasional practice exam) here: https://www.kaptest.com/mcat/enroll?tab=events
5.) Three TPR practice tests from registering your PR book here: http://dashboard.princetonreview.com/practice#
6.) One TPR free online practice test open to the general public here: http://www.princetonreview.com/medical/free-mcat-practice-test?ExDt=2&ExKw=free online mcat practice test&ExMt=p&ExDv=c&ExAp=1t1&ExNw=g&ExId=96386522952&ExCt=sitelink&gclid=CL3n85qjws4CFYo8gQod21IGJg#!practice
7.) For two free full lengths: Go to www.xplatform.mhprofessional.com Enter access code: mcat4tza275.
8.) You can buy up to 10 full lengths with Next step here (one full length and one half-length diagnostic is given to you for free if you do the free bundle, but you already did the diagnostic) http://nextsteptestprep.com/mcat-practice-tests/
9.) Free Exam Krackers Practice Exam: https://docs.google.com/document/d/10_Olbm-EMQ9bYIn4G_dDeUZEkRiV9kWbTwjd7D0upSg/edit?pref=2&pli=1
10.) Gold standard has a free 1/3 length diagnostic exam here: https://www.mcat-prep.com/mcat-practice-tests/#Free-MCAT-Practice-Test (You can also buy up to 7 practice exams here, but stick to next step if you’re going to buy them)
11.) You can buy up to 4 practice exams with Berekely review here: http://www.berkeley-review.com/TBR/home-study.html
12.) Sign up for a free diagnostic through “MCAT Cracker” here: https://mcatcracker.com/ (scroll down)
13.) 1 $25 AAMC Full length on AAMC website (I think they give you access to some diagnostics after that)
14.) Free practice exam here: https://www.4tests.com/mcat
15.) Free MCAT practice tests here: http://www.varsitytutors.com/mcat-practice-tests
16.) Altius has a free practice exam https://altiustestprep.com/take_free/
PRACTICE MATERIALS:
Berkeley Review: BR has released new materials for the new exam, and they are So thorough and helpful! I just got the two biology books and already finished the physiology book. If you really sit down and work through them, you can get through a book in a couple of days. If you're like me and need as much help as you can get with biochem, you MUST order the part 2 biology book. It describes every pathway in so much detail that you'll really feel like you have an edge. I wish I had this book in my possession when I was taking biochem at my university. TPR only has one chapter on biochem, but my experience from practice exams is that biochem finds a way to trickle itself into every section of the MCAT. You must be strong in biochem to do well, but self-studying for biochem CAN be done (I have friends who taught themselves biochem and did well on the mcat but keep in mind you will need a very thorough book such as Berkeley review, plus hours of khan academy videos) Especially if you're orgo-weak.
http://www.berkeley-review.com/TBR/home-study.html
AAMC: The Official Guide has 20 passages in it and a dozen or two of discrete questions. Buy it. THIS IS A MUST HAVE.
http://www.amazon.com/Official-Guide-MCAT-Exam-MCAT2015/dp/1577541332/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412090104&sr=8-1&keywords=aamc mcat
The AAMC have also released Question Packs, which are just big packs of practice passages. There's a bunch of Bio, Chem, CARS, and Physics (sadly no biochem, psych, soc, or orgo). I've clicked into them and looked through them a little and they're just re-purposed older passages from the self-assessment packages and older tests. If you happen to have your hands on PDFs of those older passages, I'm not entirely sure it's worth the money to buy the Question Packs.
https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat/mcat2015/preparing/
One slightly cheaper alternative here if you don't want to spend $30 on the official guide: the online access to the questions is only $10, the content outline is free, and much of the OG's content is free on the AAMC's website if you're willing to click through each page and read everything.
The AAMC also has section banks that you can purchase- get those!
Next Step: They have a Strategy and Practice books (buy direct here for discount off the Amazon price) for each of the four timed sections on the test. These are not content books - just books with full, timed practice sections.
Khan Academy: The Khan Academy includes over 200 free passages online. The quality ranges from pretty weak to good, but they're adequate given that they're free. The main issue here is that they don't have explanations, just "hints" that don't really help if you're struggling. They also don't have any verbal. There's no discussion of test strategy or how best to attack the question. The interface doesn't look anything like the real test, yadda yadda. Overall I would only recommend them if you're prepping on a budget or if you just need lots of additional practice that you can't find elsewhere.
Kaplan: The Kaplan books don't have any practice passages in them, but if you register the books online you get access to an online syllabus that will have practice passages. For the past three months I've been recommending these books, based on the notion that Kaplan would fill up the online syllabus with practice passages.
Princeton Review: The Princeton Review books have a practice passage or two at the end of each chapter in their books, which is nice since you can practice immediately upon finishing the chapter. However if you register the books online you don't get any additional quizzes or practice sets - just the tests mentioned above.
Sterling Test Prep: They have a book out called "MCAT Practice Tests: 4 Biological & Biochemical, 4 Chemical & Physical Foundations". Avoid at all costs. I'm not even going to link to it. I won't bother going into a full review, suffice to say they didn't even follow the new MCAT format - the "sections" only have 7 passages, not the 9-10 on the new exam, they just padded it up to 59 questions by adding too many discretes, etc.
ExamKrackers: ExamKrackers 9th edition is out on Amazon now. EK continues true to form. The books are super-focused, very concise, with high quality, test-like passages and lots of big colorful images.
As such, I think the advice for EK books is much the same as it was for their 7th/8th edition: they're a good resource for kids with a strong science background who only need a concise review. They're also a good second resource for students already taking KTP/TPR classes or Next Step tutoring.
Unlike the 7th/8th editions, the 9th edition boxed set does not come with a practice MCAT inside, and I don't see anything about an online activation for a test, so that is one strike against this set. They do include a 3-passage quiz for each chapter which are really high quality work. Overall, these are good books but have slightly less practice than KTP/TPR.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=examkrackers 9th edition&rh=i:aps,k:examkrackers 9th edition
The EK 1001's, 16 mini-mcats, 101VR, etc are all still out there but unless you get them free from a friend, I'd suggest avoiding those secondary resources for the old test.
I was getting confused on where to find and organize all my practice exams, so I have spent the past two hours researching how I can get my hands on EVERY practice exam available, because I am studying for this test for 6 months and I'm being a little crazy (making up for a below-competitive GPA and need to smash the MCAT while I do some GPA repair). Anywho, below is a list that I created of every possible practice exam you can take, as well as all the best practice materials out there. If you need access to my online TPR or Kaplan registrations (I have both sets of books), PM me. Best of luck to everyone studying- I'm posting this here because I'm partial to osteopathy and holistic care!
Sending positive vibrations out to everyone prepping! Study hard ya'll!EXAMS:
1.) Access 3 Full Lengths through registering your Kaplan books here: https://atom.kaptest.com/studyplan/gettingStarted
2.) One full test comes with registering your Kaplan 528 book, whenever you buy that
3.) Kaplan free practice test for general public here: https://www.kaptest.com/pages/free-events
4.) Kaplan free events (tutorials, occasional practice exam) here: https://www.kaptest.com/mcat/enroll?tab=events
5.) Three TPR practice tests from registering your PR book here: http://dashboard.princetonreview.com/practice#
6.) One TPR free online practice test open to the general public here: http://www.princetonreview.com/medical/free-mcat-practice-test?ExDt=2&ExKw=free online mcat practice test&ExMt=p&ExDv=c&ExAp=1t1&ExNw=g&ExId=96386522952&ExCt=sitelink&gclid=CL3n85qjws4CFYo8gQod21IGJg#!practice
7.) For two free full lengths: Go to www.xplatform.mhprofessional.com Enter access code: mcat4tza275.
8.) You can buy up to 10 full lengths with Next step here (one full length and one half-length diagnostic is given to you for free if you do the free bundle, but you already did the diagnostic) http://nextsteptestprep.com/mcat-practice-tests/
9.) Free Exam Krackers Practice Exam: https://docs.google.com/document/d/10_Olbm-EMQ9bYIn4G_dDeUZEkRiV9kWbTwjd7D0upSg/edit?pref=2&pli=1
10.) Gold standard has a free 1/3 length diagnostic exam here: https://www.mcat-prep.com/mcat-practice-tests/#Free-MCAT-Practice-Test (You can also buy up to 7 practice exams here, but stick to next step if you’re going to buy them)
11.) You can buy up to 4 practice exams with Berekely review here: http://www.berkeley-review.com/TBR/home-study.html
12.) Sign up for a free diagnostic through “MCAT Cracker” here: https://mcatcracker.com/ (scroll down)
13.) 1 $25 AAMC Full length on AAMC website (I think they give you access to some diagnostics after that)
14.) Free practice exam here: https://www.4tests.com/mcat
15.) Free MCAT practice tests here: http://www.varsitytutors.com/mcat-practice-tests
16.) Altius has a free practice exam https://altiustestprep.com/take_free/
PRACTICE MATERIALS:
Berkeley Review: BR has released new materials for the new exam, and they are So thorough and helpful! I just got the two biology books and already finished the physiology book. If you really sit down and work through them, you can get through a book in a couple of days. If you're like me and need as much help as you can get with biochem, you MUST order the part 2 biology book. It describes every pathway in so much detail that you'll really feel like you have an edge. I wish I had this book in my possession when I was taking biochem at my university. TPR only has one chapter on biochem, but my experience from practice exams is that biochem finds a way to trickle itself into every section of the MCAT. You must be strong in biochem to do well, but self-studying for biochem CAN be done (I have friends who taught themselves biochem and did well on the mcat but keep in mind you will need a very thorough book such as Berkeley review, plus hours of khan academy videos)
Especially if you're orgo-weak.http://www.berkeley-review.com/TBR/home-study.html
AAMC: The Official Guide has 20 passages in it and a dozen or two of discrete questions. Buy it. THIS IS A MUST HAVE.
http://www.amazon.com/Official-Guide-MCAT-Exam-MCAT2015/dp/1577541332/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412090104&sr=8-1&keywords=aamc mcat
The AAMC have also released Question Packs, which are just big packs of practice passages. There's a bunch of Bio, Chem, CARS, and Physics (sadly no biochem, psych, soc, or orgo). I've clicked into them and looked through them a little and they're just re-purposed older passages from the self-assessment packages and older tests. If you happen to have your hands on PDFs of those older passages, I'm not entirely sure it's worth the money to buy the Question Packs.
https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat/mcat2015/preparing/
One slightly cheaper alternative here if you don't want to spend $30 on the official guide: the online access to the questions is only $10, the content outline is free, and much of the OG's content is free on the AAMC's website if you're willing to click through each page and read everything.
The AAMC also has section banks that you can purchase- get those!
Next Step: They have a Strategy and Practice books (buy direct here for discount off the Amazon price) for each of the four timed sections on the test. These are not content books - just books with full, timed practice sections.
Khan Academy: The Khan Academy includes over 200 free passages online. The quality ranges from pretty weak to good, but they're adequate given that they're free. The main issue here is that they don't have explanations, just "hints" that don't really help if you're struggling. They also don't have any verbal. There's no discussion of test strategy or how best to attack the question. The interface doesn't look anything like the real test, yadda yadda. Overall I would only recommend them if you're prepping on a budget or if you just need lots of additional practice that you can't find elsewhere.
Kaplan: The Kaplan books don't have any practice passages in them, but if you register the books online you get access to an online syllabus that will have practice passages. For the past three months I've been recommending these books, based on the notion that Kaplan would fill up the online syllabus with practice passages.
Princeton Review: The Princeton Review books have a practice passage or two at the end of each chapter in their books, which is nice since you can practice immediately upon finishing the chapter. However if you register the books online you don't get any additional quizzes or practice sets - just the tests mentioned above.
Sterling Test Prep: They have a book out called "MCAT Practice Tests: 4 Biological & Biochemical, 4 Chemical & Physical Foundations". Avoid at all costs. I'm not even going to link to it. I won't bother going into a full review, suffice to say they didn't even follow the new MCAT format - the "sections" only have 7 passages, not the 9-10 on the new exam, they just padded it up to 59 questions by adding too many discretes, etc.
ExamKrackers: ExamKrackers 9th edition is out on Amazon now. EK continues true to form. The books are super-focused, very concise, with high quality, test-like passages and lots of big colorful images.
As such, I think the advice for EK books is much the same as it was for their 7th/8th edition: they're a good resource for kids with a strong science background who only need a concise review. They're also a good second resource for students already taking KTP/TPR classes or Next Step tutoring.
Unlike the 7th/8th editions, the 9th edition boxed set does not come with a practice MCAT inside, and I don't see anything about an online activation for a test, so that is one strike against this set. They do include a 3-passage quiz for each chapter which are really high quality work. Overall, these are good books but have slightly less practice than KTP/TPR.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=examkrackers 9th edition&rh=i:aps,k:examkrackers 9th edition
The EK 1001's, 16 mini-mcats, 101VR, etc are all still out there but unless you get them free from a friend, I'd suggest avoiding those secondary resources for the old test.
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