Feel like my MCAT studying is going slow/inefficient.

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arc5005

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So, I just finished the Biology I (The berkeley review book) and I did not use Anki throughout the entire book, and now I discovered Anki a week ago and feel like it is a tool I should have utilized. I'm a bit stressed out and overwhelmed because I feel like Anki would be a useful tool; however, I'm not sure I have enough time to actually master it and use it as an effective study tool or not.

I work full-time, and it has been 2-6 years since I've taken most of my pre-reqs, so I have come to realize that I actually need to do a lot more review than I initially thought. I started doing the Physics I book last night and realized I don't actually remember much from Physics, because it wasn't a course I actually understood/excelled at, so now I'm doing more Khanacademy physics review to help remember the math, equations, and concepts in Physics.

What I'm currently doing:
1) Watch the Khan academy review videos in the MCAT section & take detailed notes
2) Read the review content in The Berkeley Review books
3) Do the questions & passages.
4) Should I then make Anki cards at the end of each section?

I'm not sure if I'm trying to fit in too much review & study materials. I wanted to take my exam in April, but now I feel like I may need to push it off until May or June, because I just feel like I'm moving through my material too slowly.

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So, I just finished the Biology I (The berkeley review book) and I did not use Anki throughout the entire book, and now I discovered Anki a week ago and feel like it is a tool I should have utilized. I'm a bit stressed out and overwhelmed because I feel like Anki would be a useful tool; however, I'm not sure I have enough time to actually master it and use it as an effective study tool or not.

I work full-time, and it has been 2-6 years since I've taken most of my pre-reqs, so I have come to realize that I actually need to do a lot more review than I initially thought. I started doing the Physics I book last night and realized I don't actually remember much from Physics, because it wasn't a course I actually understood/excelled at, so now I'm doing more Khanacademy physics review to help remember the math, equations, and concepts in Physics.

What I'm currently doing:
1) Watch the Khan academy review videos in the MCAT section & take detailed notes
2) Read the review content in The Berkeley Review books
3) Do the questions & passages.
4) Should I then make Anki cards at the end of each section?

I'm not sure if I'm trying to fit in too much review & study materials. I wanted to take my exam in April, but now I feel like I may need to push it off until May or June, because I just feel like I'm moving through my material too slowly.


I think the approach you're taking for content review might be overkill. You are combining two extremely detailed sources of content, both of which will have a lot of information that is unnecessary. While you can never be "over prepared" I fear you are doing this at the expense of understanding the big picture, creating links between content and applications, and understanding how the MCAT will expect you to demonstrate this sort of knowledge. As I'm sure you are aware, the MCAT relies as much on critical thinking as it does on knowledge, if not more. While it is certainly easier to learn material, it is still possible to learn how to think, which is what practicing will help you do.

My recommendations are: 1) Drop one of the sources you are using. Find out which one helps you learn better and drop the other one. 2) Make flashcards while you study/learn and continuously review them throughout the process.

Feel free to message me if you have follow-up questions.
 
I think the approach you're taking for content review might be overkill. You are combining two extremely detailed sources of content, both of which will have a lot of information that is unnecessary. While you can never be "over prepared" I fear you are doing this at the expense of understanding the big picture, creating links between content and applications, and understanding how the MCAT will expect you to demonstrate this sort of knowledge. As I'm sure you are aware, the MCAT relies as much on critical thinking as it does on knowledge, if not more. While it is certainly easier to learn material, it is still possible to learn how to think, which is what practicing will help you do.

My recommendations are: 1) Drop one of the sources you are using. Find out which one helps you learn better and drop the other one. 2) Make flashcards while you study/learn and continuously review them throughout the process.

Feel free to message me if you have follow-up questions.

Thank you. I should mention that I started out by getting mostly 50% on the passages in the TBR review books, and towards the end for the most part i'm getting 75% + correct, minus a few exceptions. I feel like I might be overkilling it, but I feel more comfortable with the material, particularly Biology which I feel may be the most important of all the subjects to know most clearly?
 
Thank you. I should mention that I started out by getting mostly 50% on the passages in the TBR review books, and towards the end for the most part i'm getting 75% + correct, minus a few exceptions. I feel like I might be overkilling it, but I feel more comfortable with the material, particularly Biology which I feel may be the most important of all the subjects to know most clearly?

If you feel like you can do it, by all means go ahead - especially if it makes you confident. A lot of people told me that my plan was also overkill and it didn't stop me.

I would just advise that you don't neglect practice (specifically the official AAMC stuff) and creating/memorizing your flashcards.
 
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