help pleasee?

[bigballer27]

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first post, so thanks for listening/inputs

but my problem isnt grades, or mcat or the such.

no one in my family has everbeen a doctor, or isnt attempting to be a doctor or anything. so i have no one to turn to for help.

i was wondering if anyone on this forum would be willing to be my "mentor" type figure or someone i can turn to whenever i have a question.

but for general questions:

for registering for the mcat, i cant decide if a 1pm test or an 8am test is better. also, im having trouble deciding which date to choose april 10, 17, or 23 as im planning to take a mcat class from jan-lat march/early april

how many hours of volunteering/research is considered good and do i HAVE to have a publication if i want to go to a top tier medical school?


thanks

 

[bigballer27]

.

 

[devilpup]

your gpa is in very good range and your EC's are also good, specially since you've shown that you can handle a premed load while being employed. Your research experience will give you something unique to talk about during interviews, so don't sweat it if you can't generate a publication. As far as the mcat goes, take it when you feel prepared. I took mine in the afternoon so i could sleep in the day of exam as the night before an exam can be full of anxiety.

i see you're a bruin- there are plenty of ucla med student willing to offer advice and be mentors. There's usually free lunch talks open to most student at CHS, you should stop by when you get a chance.

 

[bigballer27]

thanks, i will definitely check that out, but sometimes you will find that other students hold back from helping too much...i guess its the competitive nature..go figure lol

 

[zetabetazeta]

Your stats are good, and your ECs are good too.

=( I'm a bruin also and you made me look bad 🙁 Anyway, I guess I should try harder =]

 

[J ROD]

but for general questions:

for registering for the mcat, i cant decide if a 1pm test or an 8am test is better. also, im having trouble deciding which date to choose april 10, 17, or 23 as im planning to take a mcat class from jan-lat march/early april

how many hours of volunteering/research is considered good and do i HAVE to have a publication if i want to go to a top tier medical school?


thanks

Take the MCAT when you think best. Some think better in the morning and some think better later on. You have to know yourself here.

Pick any of the dates that work best for you. It might be better to wait until you have your class syllabuses to see exactly when you will have tests in classes. Depends on how fast your testing centers fill up.

Average volunteer is around 150-200hr over 1-1.5yr. I recommend over 200+hrs over 1.5yr with patient contact unless you have significant clinical experience. Research probably is helpful at the top schools especially if they are research oriented. Although a pub may not be required. I think volunteering, clinical experience, and shadowing are more important..

 

[zetabetazeta]

Take the MCAT when you think best. Some think better in the morning and some think better later on. You have to know yourself here.

Pick any of the dates that work best for you. It might be better to wait until you have your class syllabuses to see exactly when you will have tests in classes. Depends on how fast your testing centers fill up.

Average volunteer is around 150-200hr over 1-1.5yr. I recommend over 200+hrs over 1.5yr with patient contact unless you have significant clinical experience. Research probably is helpful at the top schools especially if they are research oriented. Although a pub may not be required. I think volunteering, clinical experience, and shadowing are more important..

Hi, J Dub. It seems that you are really professional. Do you mind helping me with my info and profile too? I know you already gave me some advice, but..hmmm..please?

 

[J ROD]

also, if someone would be willing to share with me their email/phone number that would also be great and i would greatly appreciate it.

You can always PM me if you like.

I would like to add that 7 LORs can be a bit much for schools. They have to read through so many that many schools do not like to get that many unless they all are special and unique.

I would say no more than five and better off with four if the school requires three.

I was asked to cut my down and turned in 4. 🙂

 

[J ROD]

Hi, J Dub. It seems that you are really professional. Do you mind helping me with my info and profile too? I know you already gave me some advice, but..hmmm..please?

sure, just PM me but I am about to go to work now...🙂

 

[TheMightySmiter]

for registering for the mcat, i cant decide if a 1pm test or an 8am test is better. also, im having trouble deciding which date to choose april 10, 17, or 23 as im planning to take a mcat class from jan-lat march/early april

If I were you, I would take a practice test at 1pm and a practice test at 8am during your prep course to see which one you feel better taking. I personally tend to think better in the morning, so I plan on the 8am test, but if you would rather be able to sleep in that morning then 1pm is likely much better for you.

Your ECs and stats look great, and don't worry about not being published. Most people aren't, and while being published can help your application, the lack of one won't hurt it. Publications would be much more important if you were applying MD/PhD, but otherwise they're just icing on the cake. Keep up the volunteering and study hard for the MCATs and you will be fine.

 

[bigballer27]

Your stats are good, and your ECs are good too.

=( I'm a bruin also and you made me look bad 🙁 Anyway, I guess I should try harder =]

haha your gpa looks better than mine and ur EC r basically on the same page

did u take a class for your MCAT or did u just study on your own?

 

[zetabetazeta]

haha your gpa looks better than mine and ur EC r basically on the same page

did u take a class for your MCAT or did u just study on your own?

I was a total idiot. Well, I took kaplan in summer and only studied six weeks for MCAT. My parents were kind of pushing me. I knew I was not ready but I didn't want to let them down. =( Oops, apparently it didn't really work out. Now I'm retaking Kaplan course and hopefully I will get a better score next year (in Feb or Mar, haven't decided yet).

I took MCAT in the afternoon, and I almost fell asleep 🙁 I guess I will register for the morning one next time. I would recommend the morning one, but if you are not a morning person, don't do it!

 

[zetabetazeta]

I'm taking biochem 153A. Unfortunately I bombed my first midterm (it's not curved and I probably got a C or D). I have no idea what my GPA will be at the end of this quarter. But I'm trying a different study habit and see if it works =] Wish me luck!

 

[bigballer27]

I'm taking biochem 153A. Unfortunately I bombed my first midterm (it's not curved and I probably got a C or D). I have no idea what my GPA will be at the end of this quarter. But I'm trying a different study habit and see if it works =] Wish me luck!

crazzy small world....im taking biochem153A too! i did ok on the midterm but im studying harder now....r u taking it with weiss or nakamoto?

im debating either a princeton class or berkeley review...i cant decide which is better and im getting mixed reviews all over the place. PR seems to have more tools and online help, etc... whiel BR seems to have a better class environment, and maybe better books....i dunno but i wanna hurry up and figure it out so i can take the test in april

 

[zetabetazeta]

crazzy small world....im taking biochem153A too! i did ok on the midterm but im studying harder now....r u taking it with weiss or nakamoto?

im debating either a princeton class or berkeley review...i cant decide which is better and im getting mixed reviews all over the place. PR seems to have more tools and online help, etc... whiel BR seems to have a better class environment, and maybe better books....i dunno but i wanna hurry up and figure it out so i can take the test in april

I'm taking it with Nakamoto. Well, she is ok but her class is not going to be curved, which kind of bothers me =( I haven't got my test back so I actually don't know how bad it would be (but I'm pretty sure it won't be higher than a C+). I agree. I'm studying super hard too.

Haha, good luck with your MCATTTTT! Hey, if you really cannot decide, post a thread on "MCAT Discussion". Maybe some people there can help you out =]

 

[bigballer27]

I'm taking it with Nakamoto. Well, she is ok but her class is not going to be curved, which kind of bothers me =( I haven't got my test back so I actually don't know how bad it would be (but I'm pretty sure it won't be higher than a C+). I agree. I'm studying super hard too.

Haha, good luck with your MCATTTTT! Hey, if you really cannot decide, post a thread on "MCAT Discussion". Maybe some people there can help you out =]

haha yeah i will...goodluck to u too! yeah i heard that no matter what, all the teachers end up curving the class anyways cuz the class avg is so low so dont worry it will be curved by the final.

 

[Sammich117]

You can PM me if you have any questions, too 🙂

 

[zetabetazeta]

haha yeah i will...goodluck to u too! yeah i heard that no matter what, all the teachers end up curving the class anyways cuz the class avg is so low so dont worry it will be curved by the final.

Thanks! Hey, make sure to register for MCAT early. Some testing sites will be filled up really quick (I believe there are only 20-30 seats available for each site). I just registered for March 27th (1pm). Yayyyy =( They only have afternoon one in March though (which sucks because I wanted the morning one). 😡

 

[bigballer27]

Thanks! Hey, make sure to register for MCAT early. Some testing sites will be filled up really quick (I believe there are only 20-30 seats available for each site). I just registered for March 27th (1pm). Yayyyy =( They only have afternoon one in March though (which sucks because I wanted the morning one). 😡

yeah i will probably sign up for april 10th or 17th depending on if i want an 8am or 1pm....there are 2 sites so imma sign up hopefully by the end of the week or 2.
but first i wanan find a class...princeton or berkeley lol i havent/cant decide yet

 

[Malayna]

first post, so thanks for listening/inputs

but my problem isnt grades, or mcat or the such.

no one in my family has everbeen a doctor, or isnt attempting to be a doctor or anything. so i have no one to turn to for help.

i was wondering if anyone on this forum would be willing to be my "mentor" type figure or someone i can turn to whenever i have a question.

but for general questions:

for registering for the mcat, i cant decide if a 1pm test or an 8am test is better. also, im having trouble deciding which date to choose april 10, 17, or 23 as im planning to take a mcat class from jan-lat march/early april

how many hours of volunteering/research is considered good and do i HAVE to have a publication if i want to go to a top tier medical school?


thanks

At Cafe Synapse last Spring, there was a group that got together every Thursday at 10 for coffee and application talk. I sat in a couple times and it really helped me choose which schools I wanted to apply to and what to put in my personal statement. I'm not sure if they meet year round, but definitely look in March or April, when application stress starts up. I also went workshops on the primary and personal statement with my prep course which were helpful too. There's help at UCLA if you look hard enough.

crazzy small world....im taking biochem153A too! i did ok on the midterm but im studying harder now....r u taking it with weiss or nakamoto?

im debating either a princeton class or berkeley review...i cant decide which is better and im getting mixed reviews all over the place. PR seems to have more tools and online help, etc... whiel BR seems to have a better class environment, and maybe better books....i dunno but i wanna hurry up and figure it out so i can take the test in april

I'm so glad to be done with 153A! 🙂

It's funny to read your comments, because I was in the exact same place as you last year, trying to decide between those same two courses with the exact same dilemma of mixed reviews you have. SDN really helped me, because someone (I think it was SN2) suggested I sit in on each course and see first hand. That was the best advice I got, and it made my decision easy. You should do that if you have time.

 

[FloatOn]

yeah i will probably sign up for april 10th or 17th depending on if i want an 8am or 1pm....there are 2 sites so imma sign up hopefully by the end of the week or 2.
but first i wanan find a class...princeton or berkeley lol i havent/cant decide yet

Definitely make sure to check out the MCAT forum. I didn't do Princeton or BR, but PM if you want to know about Kaplan. Also, once you sign up for your MCAT date, follow along the official x/xx/xx thread and vent your studying frustrations. It definitely helped me relieve some stress!

 

[Malayna]

but first i wanan find a class...princeton or berkeley lol i havent/cant decide yet

Deja vu big time! Here's my first post ever on SDN from a year ago about the same thing. I wonder if there are people like us every year.

BR or PR at UCLA?

 

[bannie22]

i dunt have a family member whos a physician too 🙁

 

[zetabetazeta]

I'm so glad to be done with 153A! 🙂

Ah, that's so cool! How did you study though? I think I studied really hard but still got bad grades.

Here is how I studied:

I officially started studying about two weeks before the midterm. I read the compendium (which is pretty much like powerpoint slides) three times. And then I read the textbook (only those assigned readings). After I finished all my readings, I started doing practice problems from the problem book (It's called CLAP). If there were problems that I didn't know how to do, I went to the TAs' office hours and asked them. I think I tried the best that I could. What went wrong?

Now I'm trying a different study habit. I study a little bit (about 30min to one hour) after the lecture everyday and do one problem everyday instead of massively doing the whole thing.

What do you think?

Thank you for your help 🙂

 

[bigballer27]

Ah, that's so cool! How did you study though? I think I studied really hard but still got bad grades.

Here is how I studied:

I officially started studying about two weeks before the midterm. I read the compendium (which is pretty much like powerpoint slides) three times. And then I read the textbook (only those assigned readings). After I finished all my readings, I started doing practice problems from the problem book (It's called CLAP). If there were problems that I didn't know how to do, I went to the TAs' office hours and asked them. I think I tried the best that I could. What went wrong?

Now I'm trying a different study habit. I study a little bit (about 30min to one hour) after the lecture everyday and do one problem everyday instead of massively doing the whole thing.

What do you think?

Thank you for your help 🙂

thats a good study habbit, sometimes works but then u might forget all the old stuff u did at the begining. i do a mixture of both. i dont cram, spread it out over a 1 week span and thats been working out for me

good luck

 

[bigballer27]

but also, for Berkeley review, do they give u all the AAMC tests, because i think princeton review does?

 

[RogueUnicorn]

your parents aren't doctors?! damn that must be a hard unique path then.

 

[zetabetazeta]

but also, for Berkeley review, do they give u all the AAMC tests, because i think princeton review does?

I think all prep courses offer 10 AAMC full length practice tests.

 

[Malayna]

Ah, that's so cool! How did you study though? I think I studied really hard but still got bad grades.

Here is how I studied:

I officially started studying about two weeks before the midterm. I read the compendium (which is pretty much like powerpoint slides) three times. And then I read the textbook (only those assigned readings). After I finished all my readings, I started doing practice problems from the problem book (It's called CLAP). If there were problems that I didn't know how to do, I went to the TAs' office hours and asked them. I think I tried the best that I could. What went wrong?

Now I'm trying a different study habit. I study a little bit (about 30min to one hour) after the lecture everyday and do one problem everyday instead of massively doing the whole thing.

What do you think?

Thank you for your help 🙂

Do you have Nakamoto?

If you do, get the Bates reader. It wasn't mandatory for the class, but the reader store was selling them last year as a supplement and everyone got one. I did every question in the reader twice and rewrote many of them and tired them again. I didn't read the book at all. I wrote two questions after every lecture and put them together to make a practice test. I used the slides to get ideas.

If there's a lecture that doesn't make sense the first time, are you free to go to the later one that day?

 

[Malayna]

but also, for Berkeley review, do they give u all the AAMC tests, because i think princeton review does?

We got so many dang exams to do that I couldn't do them all. I did 9 BR CBTs and 4 AAMC CBTs. I also did all of the BR summary sectional tests, and those were great. I think they were better than both the AAMC and BR CBTs.

I figured that any AAMC I didn't get with BR I could buy if I really wanted them, because BR was like $200 cheaper than PR. I ended up buying only one AAMC exam. The BR exams are much better than the PR exams (I did some PR my first time studying). You should be considering how many good exams you can get total rather than AAMC exams, because you can buy AAMC exams. With BR, you could do 7 really good exams (I didn't like two of their nine) and the four good AAMC exams, for 11 excellent exams total. With PR, you could do 2 or 3 good exams and the four good AAMC exams, for 6 or 7 excellent exams total.