How did you manage to study and work?

[StupidAF]

New research position job calls for availability 7AM-7PM. Obviously, most days won't be that long, but I still want to apply June 2018.

Just wanted to hear some advice for people who have gone through a similar situation.

Thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Lisztomania287]

I have 8 AM - 5 PM research job, where the start and end times are pretty flexible. For MCAT study, I wake up at 5 AM, cook breakfast, lunch, and dinner and to get the library next to the lab by 6 AM. Get some study done for the two hours.

During 1 hour lunch break, I finish my meal in 10 min, and study for 50 min. After work, I eat the prepped dinner and study until 9 PM until the library closes.

Theoretically, I get 6 hours or so of studying, but I would say I realistically only get around 4-5 hours of solid studying. After work, however, I found myself losing focus, especially because I put in a lot of energy/attention during work.

 

[Zenabi90]

As shown by Lisztomania287, you're going to have to have high levels of dedication and flexibility when it comes to your situation.

Lots of people succeed at balancing studying for the MCAT with their other obligations in life (classes, work, family, etc). The key is to be ready.

While you might not be able to set out a daily set schedule like those proposed by BoomBoom, SN2ed, and MCATjelly, you can still generate your own schedule of your order of topics (definitely recommend subject rotation), when to fit in passage work and discrete work, when to take FLs, deep review of work, etc.

Then you should always have some materials with you. Having an MCAT subject book with you at all times means you're ready whenever solid study time (>0.5hr) presents itself. Anki cards with Psych/Soc terms and stages are great for shorter breaks.

You can definitely do it!

 

[deleted600623]

I'm in the same situation however, I took the last couple of months off to strictly do content review so now I'm in my practice phase of prep which requires less time IMO. I agree with the above advice though. It requires a great deal of dedication but realize it's only for a short period of time and this test can open up many doors if you do well, so it's worth the investment. How long do you plan on studying?