June 30th MCAT Cram?

[Tenzing2017]

Hey everyone,

Thanks for reading, I'd just like some advice real quick on the MCAT and what it's worth.
I am a good student, I've worked hard from an upward trend, transferred university and am currently the top Junior Biochemistry major at a top 50 college (I came a long way ). Because of my intense schedule this semester I was not able to study for the MCAT as much as I had liked.

I am very strong in Organic chemistry, Biochemistry, and biology. Should have strong LOR's.
2 years research experience in ORGO, hopefully a publishing this summer.

Question is: Gun it for the June 30th MCAT and apply, hopefully to succeed OR take it in august and do a gap year (I am a 4th year Junior as well). I work well under pressure, but what do ya'll think? Is 7 weeks of MCAT prep enough?


Thanks for the input!

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[Tenzing2017]

Thanks for your input gonnif!

Anyone else have any experience with this?

 

[Gryffindor20]

Take it in August. Take it once and do well.

 

[Neuro25_]

Take it in August. Take it once and do well.

Agreed. The word MCAT and cram do not even belong in the same sentence. You are a strong student, do not come all this way and have a weak showing in the MCAT, an incredibly important part of your application. Take it when ready with plenty of study time.

 

[Tenzing2017]

Thanks Gryffindor and Neuro25_. That's what I am leaning towards I believe. Thanks for your input

 

[differentiating]

Take a practice MCAT as a baseline (something like a free Kaplan test), and see where you're scoring. If you're in range of what you want already, 7 weeks is plenty of time. If not, don't rush it.

I studied for the MCAT for ~5 weeks, mostly because I was trying to fit it in between other plans, but I used this approach to make sure I wasn't shooting myself in the foot. It's not impossible to prep in that amount of time - just a question of whether it's wise (and whether you want to).

 

[markelle]

Get off lineand start studying!

It is possible, the time you put in these two months can make it work. Leave 6 weeks of doing practice exams, and practice questions. Content review shouldn't take that long since you're good in Organic chemistry, Biochemistry, and biology. Hurry and review gen chem, physics, and psychology.

 

[Tenzing2017]

Do you think the July 22nd MCAT would be too late?

 

[Welshman]

I took my MCAT this august and I'm applying this cycle. I couldn't recommend it more, I think it should really be the standard time to take it if you have all of your pre-reqs done. The summer really gives you a huge advantage by allowing you to concentrate solely on the MCAT academically

 

[Tenzing2017]

I took my MCAT this august and I'm applying this cycle. I couldn't recommend it more, I think it should really be the standard time to take it if you have all of your pre-reqs done. The summer really gives you a huge advantage by allowing you to concentrate solely on the MCAT academically

Hey do you mean you took it last august?

 

[BPCM]

Take it in August. Do it once, do it right. No need to rush.
There is a lot more to MCAT besides organic and biochem.
Besides content review, taking practice exams and learning from them is crucial.
That will take some time...so be kind to yourself by taking the requisite time.

 

[Welshman]

Hey do you mean you took it last august?

Yes, it was an odd way for me to say I took it the august of this academic year

 

[efle]

7-8 weeks is plenty if you have nothing else going on / can study full time

many many people prep over ~8 weeks of summer, while doing something else part-time. Idk why these people above are all saying that's too early.

 

[alex.jl1994]

I think 7 weeks is plenty of time, if you are fully devoting all of your time to studying and if you have a good foundation from pre-reqs. I graduated mid-May last year and only had one month to study for my test in mid-June (after which I scrambled to complete AMCAS/secondaries...).

It's stressful and you'll wonder at times why you're doing this/whether you should postpone your test and app, but doable if necessary.

 

[jcorpsmanMD]

Two months is a good time frame if you were to start studying TODAY. You have to do this as a full-time job though. 40-50 hours a week at least. Content review + practice sections / questions + practice tests starting this week. If you feel good after two weeks, scoring fairly decently, go for it.

 

[ServiceFirst]

2 months is a decent timeframe I would say! As long as you remain disciplined and committed to studying a lot for the MCAT (content review + practice exams), it could very well be realistic to take the June 30th administration.

But with this in mind, also know that factors like what your other commitments are and your existing knowledge going in is variable among all students, so gauge this decision SPECIFICALLY to only yourself.

 

[Tenzing2017]

How do we feel about the July 22nd MCAT? Does this make it too late to apply?

 

[efle]

How do we feel about the July 22nd MCAT? Does this make it too late to apply?

If your MCAT is the last thing schools are waiting on, receiving your scores August 22 isn't too late. You'd need to have all your secondaries pre-written though, so that you can send them back in just a day or two after receiving them, and still be marked complete by schools in the first week of Sept.