ucsdca said:
Yeah, but i was wondering if the big EK one was really good because i heard the Kaplan Book has too much extra stuff. So is the EK big one a good buy, and is the "Hyperlearning" one the Princeton review from the course?
Hyperlearning used to be a different company then TPR and was later bought out by TPR. So now their material is part of TPR material. That's the way I understand it. That said, the 7+ books they provide is that of which you get with the course. This includes the Physical Sci review book, Bio sci. review book, Science workbook, Verbal and writing review book, verbal workbook, in class compendium, and science review questions booklet that is like a flashcards sort of thing. The only thing I should mention is that these course books have many many details compared to EK. They are good for the person that needs to be walked every step of the way and who doesn't really remember a lot of what they learned in prereqs due to taking them too many years before or things of that nature.
If you learn better with less details and more strategy, EK is the way to go. If you need the details, TPR is the way to go.
Kaplan falls somewhere in between the two companies. They also have different course books from the big books they have over the counter.
TPR's course books are good if you utilize the in class compendium and workbooks because those are where you get all your practice from. They are where the real strengtening of MCAT skills come into play because they provide you with so many questions and passages to get your speed up and your accuracy up. It also allows for better understanding of MCAT style of testing.
Some test centers also provide you with the A-D test book, with four full lengths. The problem, however, is that only some course centers do this. These tests are extremely difficult and only scale up to 12 rather then 15. However, if you can do them, then you can beat the MCAT.
TPR course materials are definitely comprehensive. however, I've not heard that their over the counter books are equal in strength. If you cannot get a hold of TPR course books, EK books are probably the next best thing.
I also recommend the EK 101 Verbal passages books which comprises of 2 warm up passages and 11 full length verbal tests.
EK books are not that expensive compared to TPR and Kaplan courses, so I would fork up the money to buy it online at Amazon or Examkrackers.com
