How hard is Premed Physics vs. MCAT physics?

[bigman43]

I think physics is perhaps the most bull**** nonmedical related subject ever, and it doesnt help that its KILLING me in school.

So I was just wondering if MCAT physics is comparable in difficulty to the premed physics classes.

👎 physics.

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[MeCord3]

Its been my experience that physics at most undergrad schools is quite a bit more difficult/involved than the physics you'll see on the MCAT. The difficulty of the MCAT comes from being able to apply certain physics concepts to novel situations. The concepts in question though tend to be fairly fundamental.

 

[SupergreenMnM]

Well, for me at least college physics was easier than the mcat physics. Mostly because in the college physics you didn't have to do it all at such a fast clip like you are forced to on the mcat.

 

[JackofAllTrades]

The undergrad is a lot more dense. Much more calculations. While the MCAT has plenty of theory it is pretty light. Especially if you are the engineering physics. I think taking the Calculus version helped tremendously.

 

[etf]

The undergrad is a lot more dense. Much more calculations. While the MCAT has plenty of theory it is pretty light. Especially if you are the engineering physics. I think taking the Calculus version helped tremendously.

mcat physics was actually pretty hard - i remember skipping A LOT of the physics problems and randomly guessing at the end. but i ended up doing pretty well, so i guess it's curved better than other sections.

 

[ggman]

MCAT physics doesn't require that much calculation and the problems are pretty straightforward for the most part, but you need to know the concepts really well. Otherwise, you are gonna get screwed on trick questions.

And one more thing... if you were to realize how much physics there is in medicine, your jaws would drop down to the floor in a heartbeat. However, it's true that most doctors will never get any benefit from knowing physics, so I can see your frustration...

 

[ggman]

I forgot to mention. Personally, I think the hardest part about MCAT physics is the fact that you are SO friggin rushed to get through a trillion problems in a very short amount of time, so you are prone to make VERY stupid mistakes. In college physics usually you have a lot of time, but it's hard to do the problems because you don't know where to go with them.

 

[NonTradMed]

MCAT physics is pretty difficult in terms of the way they address the question, which is in some unique, bizarre version which may leave you scratching your head (or panicking). Physics in college is more straightforward in terms of what you'd expect but also more indepth, more math-intense. Of course, I chickened out at my school's physics class and took at the local university where I lived which was not exactly known to have a tough science program so I got the chicken little version of the program LOL.

 

[jochi1543]

2 totally different things. It was the Calc I/II stuff that slaughtered me through my physics classes, and you will never encounter those types of calculations on the MCAT. You just need to train yourself to notice certain "flags" that will help you out significantly - e.g. always keep your eye out for statements such as "moving at constant velocity" (automatically, a=0, Fnet=0) and other little tidbits that will make answering a good chunk of the questions a breeze.

 

[Hurricane95]

Yeah, I agree, physics is complete and utter bull**** and completely nonmedical. After all, who uses physics to understand how the heart functions as a mechanical-electrical pump to keep you alive? You'll never use physics, especially not in cardiovascular and pulmonary physiology and understanding how radiology works. The science that forms the cornerstone and basis for all other science disciplines is complete nonsense 🙄

Anyway, to answer your question, physics on the mcat is simpler than that taught in your courses, especially if you happen to be taking calc-based physics. Well, the problems are simpler, but you get less time to solve them so maybe it balances out. Calculations are shorter though, so if you find yourself doing some crazy long mad division or something multistep on the test you are probably doing the problem wrong. Most problems can be solved quickly (if you know how) and with minimal arithmetic, mostly logic and a little bit of guestimation (ex. 9 div by sq rt of 8 is about 3, etc).

 

[Doctormo24]

When Fall comes around I will be taking Organic 2 an Physics 1. Then in Spring I will be taking Physics 2. Can I still take the Princeton Review courses while taking physics 2 or will I be lost?

 

[SupergreenMnM]

No, you'll be fine. the pr classes are simplified high yield style so don't worry if you don't have phys 2 yet.

 

[Hurricane95]

I taught physics for PR in previous years. You can do it and not be lost. If anything it will complement your course.

Just make sure you can distinguish the two when studying for tests. In other words, when you study for a test in your class, make sure you review all the appropriate material. When it comes time to study strictly for the mcat, only review what's taught in PR. They do an excellent job of covering just what is relevant for the mcat (and the review books are excellent too) so don't bother studying anything you learned in your school class that isn't really stressed in PR course. Your course will probably go into more depth than is needed for the mcat.