Is spending 6 months solely on MCAT prep frowned upon?

[LongApple]

Do medical schools frown upon this? Would they rather you either work part-time or be taking at least one formal class during this period?

I imagine something like this
"So what did you do during this 6 month period?"

"I did nothing but study for the MCAT"

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[Python Forever]

I think it'll be "frowned upon" (i.e. just looks bad on your app) if you spend all that time on the MCAT and receive a meh score. I think some expectation of excellence follows such a dedication to one task over a relatively long period of time (for 1 task).

Otherwise, I don't see how it could hurt you. But you shouldn't need every waking moment of the 6 months for the MCAT. I would split my time between volunteering and studying for both your own mental health and motivation.

 

[MDhopeful74]

You could also volunteer during the time you're studying. I don't see how it could be a problem if you did that too. Take the time that you need and get a good score. Honestly if you get a good score, nothing else will matter. I took 6 months of doing nothing else but studying for the mcat & volunteering after graduating, hasn't been a problem on any of my interviews.

Edit: Please keep in mind that everyone is different, and takes the MCAT with a different knowledge base. Some people take a diagnostic, score 505 and only need two months of studying from there. Some people take a diagnostic, score 490 and need 4+ months of studying.

 

[Tenk]

6 months is too long to study for any test if you’re not doing any course work. You will burn out way before you get to even three months and if you don’t you aren’t studying hard enough and will forget everything anyways. Two months is probably the maximum I would recommend for any test if all you’re doing is studying 8-10 hours a day. The last 7-10 days should be studying for about 14 hours a day to take yourself to a higher level.

 

[DrFortiusNatando]

YES! Unless there is a special circumstance, like graduated college 10 years ago, taking 6 months for primarily MCAT would be extremely frowned upon and considered the antithesis of what doctors should be able to do (be relatively selfless, multi-task). When it is time to study for Step exams, which are much more content-driven and much more content, you will get much less dedicated studying time, if any, at most medical schools. Plus, the new mcat is much less content and much more an aptitude-type test.

Others are correct in the ADCOMS might not be able to figure out that you spent 6 months studying for MCAT. But you would certainly never want to lie or mislead any who asked. There are certainly plenty of things that you could do during the 6 months, including significant volunteering, shadowing, working in a job to earn some money, etc that would teach you important life lessons, bring you joy, etc

 

[puahate]

I studied for the MCAT for 9 months. No one will know how long you studied unless you tell them. Take the MCAT when ready and get a good score no matter what. Please do not rush.

During that time volunteer on the weekend

 

[deleted804295]

No one will know as @puahate indicated.

I'm curious. What were you studying these entire 6 months?

I started 'studying' in the summer before I took a break last semester. I also forgot everything so it turns out studying that far in advance was useless. Most of MCAT studying progress happens 3-4 months prior to the exam due to memory retention.

 

[LizzyM]

If it takes 6 months of full-time study to prepare for the MCAT, how much time will you need to prep for Step 1? Having a 6 month gap in your resume could hurt if you should need to apply for a job at some point in the future.

 

[chemdoctor]

I studied for the MCAT for 9 months. No one will know how long you studied unless you tell them. Take the MCAT when ready and get a good score no matter what. Please do not rush.

During that time volunteer on the weekend

Care to share your tips!? I don’t mind PMing you.

 

[puahate]

Care to share your tips!? I don’t mind PMing you.

Sure send me a PM i will write something up about my experience

 

[Goro]

Do medical schools frown upon this? Would they rather you either work part-time or be taking at least one formal class during this period?

I imagine something like this
"So what did you do during this 6 month period?"

"I did nothing but study for the MCAT"

we expect you to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time

 

[Gurby]

LOL and how many of those get the score they want/need for medical school applications? You're asking the wrong question. Just cause people do it doesn't mean it's right.

If you have average intelligence, and you do what the average person does, you shouldn't be surprised when you end up with average results...

 

[Lawpy]

Do medical schools frown upon this? Would they rather you either work part-time or be taking at least one formal class during this period?

I imagine something like this
"So what did you do during this 6 month period?"

"I did nothing but study for the MCAT"

It seems excessive to spend that much time studying only for the MCAT. You should be doing other things like volunteering in the meantime.

 

[wb100]

I studied for 6 months but I was working full time (like 50 hours per week) so it wasn't very consistent. About 3 weeks at the end I could study full time but I'm still happy with my score (a little over 90th percentile). I think 4.5 months full time (like you're not working or doing much else) is the sweet spot otherwise you start to forget things from the beginning and start to burn out.

 

[Shammyguy3]

I studied for 6 months but I was working full time (like 50 hours per week) so it wasn't very consistent. About 3 weeks at the end I could study full time but I'm still happy with my score (a little over 90th percentile). I think 4.5 months full time (like you're not working or doing much else) is the sweet spot otherwise you start to forget things from the beginning and start to burn out.

Same, i studied just under 6 months but was working full time and planning my wedding, and much of the studying occurred over the holidays

 

[puahate]

OP just remember that your MCAT is with you forever no matter what you decide to do

 

[AllBleedingStops]

I just don't get why you would think you could be focused (I mean actually focused, like 8+ hours a day MCAT prep) for 6 months. It seems that so many premeds think that this test covers the entire amount of material encompassed within all of science and medicine and they need to study for years to be successful. This simply isn't true or possible. I do think you should take a couple weeks at least for dedicated study time, maybe even a month, but no one should just drop everything in life for 6 months in order to "study". There will be so much wasted time and screwing around if you do that.

 

[Blanky]

how many applicants take a full junior spring course load, study and take the MCAT, get their AMCAS in all during the same term?

I did this and would advise heavily against it! You get spread thin and end up with mediocre results.

 

[deleted804295]

I just don't get why you would think you could be focused (I mean actually focused, like 8+ hours a day MCAT prep) for 6 months. It seems that so many premeds think that this test covers the entire amount of material encompassed within all of science and medicine and they need to study for years to be successful. This simply isn't true or possible. I do think you should take a couple weeks at least for dedicated study time, maybe even a month, but no one should just drop everything in life for 6 months in order to "study". There will be so much wasted time and screwing around if you do that.

Who studies 8+h a day for MCAT? Maybe weekends but where else would you find time?

 

[chemdoctor]

My comment was for how adcoms might see someone who did nothing but MCAT for 6 months

I don’t think he meant “nothing” nothing. But maybe a little less volunteering and research?

You’re the one that always says “applicants should assume the MCAT is like a six credit science course”

 

[chemdoctor]

Yes I do, but the question from OP was how would adcom view this particular sole focus on MCAT. My genrral advice for MCAT is take summer after junior year to prep for it and take before senior year, or at least have it done by January of application year

That would make the applicant nontrad tho wouldn’t it?

 

[Goro]

That would make the applicant nontrad tho wouldn’t it?

So?

 

[teenyfish]

To be honest I wouldn't just solely study for 6 months. You run the risk of forgetting content and also having a large gap in your resume. Get a part time job or volunteer! It would definitely be beneficial to have something to break up the studying. I worked full time while studying and some days being at work was more relaxing than being at home and reviewing content. Just my .02 though.

 

[chemdoctor]

So?

I meant... how would a traditional applicant do it

 

[puahate]

When I studied for 9 months I was volunteering, doing research and taking one easy grad class.

 

[deleted804295]

Yes I do, but the question from OP was how would adcom view this particular sole focus on MCAT. My genrral advice for MCAT is take summer after junior year to prep for it and take before senior year, or at least have it done by January of application year

That late???? Applications open up June 1st. Students should be studying spring semester junior year lest they want their application to be looked at last.

 

[LongApple]

If it takes 6 months of full-time study to prepare for the MCAT, how much time will you need to prep for Step 1? Having a 6 month gap in your resume could hurt if you should need to apply for a job at some point in the future.

Admittedly I don't have a good sense of how long it takes to study for either.
I haven't taken biology 1 and 2 yet.

I googled USMLE time and some say about 600 hours. Maybe MCAT is similar?

Plan Study Hours, Not Days – When you're planning your USMLE study schedule, start thinking in terms of hours instead of days, weeks and months. On average, students taking the USMLE Step 1 exam will need at least 500-600 hours of study, which works out to 10 hours daily over 6-8 weeks.

 

[LongApple]

That late???? Applications open up June 1st. Students should be studying spring semester junior year lest they want their application to be looked at last.

June 1st! I am glad to have read your post. Then it seems like at earliest applications open June 1st and then interviews I've heard might come up as late as March of the next year. Is this about right?

 

[LongApple]

When I studied for 9 months I was volunteering, doing research and taking one easy grad class.

So it sounds like 6-9 months with some light activities on the side might be a common path

By the way, what was the grad class? Did it help you in medical school?

 

[jarednogeek]

I think you will see that studying over 3-4 months full time your score will peak then decline as motivation subsided and you begin to forget what you studied at the beginning. The more I studied after a certain point the worse I did. Was at top 4th percentile ended at top 10th. 6 months full time seems like too much. Better than the girl I know who wanted to study for it for 2 years though.

 

[ciestar]

Admittedly I don't have a good sense of how long it takes to study for either.
I haven't taken biology 1 and 2 yet.

I googled USMLE time and some say about 600 hours. Maybe MCAT is similar?

Plan Study Hours, Not Days – When you're planning your USMLE study schedule, start thinking in terms of hours instead of days, weeks and months. On average, students taking the USMLE Step 1 exam will need at least 500-600 hours of study, which works out to 10 hours daily over 6-8 weeks.

Not even close. MCAT and Step 1 weren’t even in the same ballpark.

 

[ciestar]

I studied for three months for the MCAT while working full time. You definitely don’t need six months for this.

 

[Gurby]

I studied for three months for the MCAT while working full time. You definitely don’t need six months for this.

What was your score on it?

 

[ThrowawayShmoaway]

I studied for three months for the MCAT while working full time. You definitely don’t need six months for this.

Same. 6 months is way too long.

 

[bananafish94]

Six months is excessive. You will hit the point of diminishing returns hard and will risk burnout and getting into your own head. At six months you also run the risk of simply forgetting things. I've seen many people make these ridiculous study plans for the MCAT and Step 1 and they always fizzle out and end up doing more harm than good. If you have been diligently studying for your coursework then you will have a good background foundation for the MCAT and hopefully you will have seen most of the material at least once before when you start studying hard.

Also: a word of advice. This extends beyond the MCAT but also to academic work/pre-med/medical school in general. Oftentimes a lot of this stuff is about peaking at the correct time. A lot of people (myself included) sometimes make the mistake of going 100% on everything 100% of the time, but I've found that it generally causes more harm than good.

 

[OchemOficionado]

That late???? Applications open up June 1st. Students should be studying spring semester junior year lest they want their application to be looked at last.

They don’t look at apps in the exact order they are received. Schools have their own filter system. June/July MCAT are fine, although yes, earlier is great.

 

[ciestar]

What was your score on it?

31.

 

[Pagan FutureDoc]

It’s quite possible to over study, burn yourself out or get to a point of diminishing returns on studying. 6 months of MCAT studying seems excessive. Six months of only MCAT studying seems insane

 

[futureDocDD]

Agreed with what others said, 6 month full-time MCAT study is overkill, most likely you'll burn out towards the end. 2-3 month full-time studying in summer right after you finish Biochem is the optimal timing and take the MCAT at end of summer while all the prep work still fresh in your brain and your practice scores are in desired range (ie, don't wait for Jan to take the test). Some light volunteering at the same time would help balancing out. 1-2 weeks before the exam you should slow yourself down, relax and chill...very important

 

[dundermifflinthisispam]

As others are saying, I’d focus on the quality of your studying rather than the quantity as what is going to make a difference in your result. I studied for 3 months while taking a light course load, working part time, and volunteering. It worked well for me! 6 months of just MCAT prep will drive you insane

 

[Medic741]

3-4 months is plenty, the key is studying well. What I wouldn’t give to go back in time to take the MCAT having learned how to study like a Med student.

Some advice
-do q banks. Do as many practice questions that you possibly can and obsess over the mental process *every time* you get something wrong. Fix the mental process and move on with the commitment that you will not make that mistake again.

-spend a certain amount of time every day on covering material. Only move on when you’ve mastered it. Keep taking practices q’s to check your knowledges.

-use Anki for things you can’t remember. Weird fact or reagent? Make an Anki card. Do your Anki deck *every day*

-use uworld. It’s the gold standard for step so I can bet it’s good for MCAT.

Key is... you don’t need more than 3-4 months as long as you study smart.

 

[stayathomemom]

I'm spending a really long time studying, but I'm a special case; I took the prerequisites 15+ years ago and I'm starting from scratch.

OP, do what you need to do. Don't have a huge gap in your activities, but take as long as you'd like and don't worry about what others think.

 

[Gurby]

I spent ~6 months studying and scored a 519. Would do it the same way again. I Anki'd religiously throughout and never experienced the "you'll forget what you learned!" phenomenon everyone talks about here.

I was working 2 days/week, volunteering and taking one relatively easy class, so it wasn't 100% MCAT all day every day... but it was mostly MCAT.

 

[deleted938090]

I'd say it's not really how many days has passed that you were studying more so than the number of productive hours you put in.
Personally, I spent the time from conclusion of winter semester in Junior year to the day of the test preparing: ~Dec 15 - Jan 20; around 1 month, 17-18 hours a day including weekdays and holidays; took my first AAMC full length ~Jan 9/10. If you convert that time into ~6 hours a day, it could be equivalent to 3 months of studying. It's really easy to burn yourself out this way, but I think what motivated me was realizing I needed to take the exam right now, and there wasn't more time I could wait. (And then afterwards, binged watched shows for 2 days and played games for 2 days before returning to classes)
EDIT: This is an important test but to answer your question, a high MCAT will only help you get to the "door"; you still need other things for your application. Whether this is worth it depends on what the rest of your application looks like.