How do you know when to start focusing on MCAT Review?

[Lamegane]

I don't know which cycle I should apply because right now I am focusing on my classes. But I don't wanna finish my bachelor and then lose a year for trying to get ready for med school. What do I do then? Please I need some advices. Thanks

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[ac62994]

If you're not planning on taking a gap year, you would have to apply the end of your Junior year.
So you would have to take the MCAT in the Spring/Summer of your Junior year, then go through the application processes during that Summer, interviews during the Fall/Spring of your Senior year, then finally matriculate the following Fall.

If I've learned anything from lurking through SDN, don't rush it; gap years are not uncommon!

 

[BerkReviewTeach]

Spot on ac62994! That sums it up perfectly.

 

[ElectricNoogie]

I don't know which cycle I should apply because right now I am focusing on my classes. But I don't wanna finish my bachelor and then lose a year for trying to get ready for med school. What do I do then? Please I need some advices. Thanks

Generally the more prepared for the MCAT you are, the better off you are applying. You don't need t o have all med school pre-reqs done to apply, but you should has as many MCAT pre-reqs done as you can. This typically occurs right around Junior year. A Spring of junior year MCAT allows you to take the exam and apply in the summer, resulting in no gap year. A spring date also allows some time should you need to re-take.

If you are ready by the end of your junior year (bio 1-2, biochem, physics 1, orgo 1, chem 1 & 2, pysch 1 at least) then go for it. If not, you don't lose much by taking an extra year. I had a gap year b/w undergrad and going to med school. I never got off the wait-list on my first try and it was due to my MCAT. I tired to take the MCAT w/o having completed Orgo 1 and 2 (this was when Orgo was ~ 25% of the exam) and so my BS score suffered. If I had planned it better, I could have graduated medical school a year early. In the long run though, it's not a big deal. The moral of the story is, better to do the MCAT once and do it right than to rush due to some pressure you feel to start ASAP.

Good luck!

 

[StudyLater]

I don't know which cycle I should apply because right now I am focusing on my classes. But I don't wanna finish my bachelor and then lose a year for trying to get ready for med school. What do I do then? Please I need some advices . Thanks

No idea where you are in your studies, so there's kind of minimal information here. You're always going to be focusing on classes. If you don't want to be focusing on classes and going through the app process at the same time, then you're going to have to take at minimum 1 gap year. You would apply once you graduated from UG, and use the following year to continue ECs/get more clinical experience/maybe involve yourself in more research if it's needed (MD).

However, if you don't have a problem doing secondaries/interviews in the middle of your semesters (this is the common route, and therefore tons of people do it, indicating it is not extremely difficult), then apply in the summer between junior and senior year.