just changed my MCAT date..

[ladymiresa]

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So I've registered to take the MCAT mid August. It should give me about 13 weeks to study after I graduate this May. Is 13 weeks a reasonable amount of time to study? My pre-rec classes are very recent but I haven't done any preparation for the exam, so I'll be starting from scratch.

For ~13 weeks (I might go on vacation for a week), how many hours a day am I looking at? 5 hours?

My parents are really pushing me to get a job, at least part-time, but I've read so many threads that recommend against working while also studying for the MCAT. If I have the possibility to not work and completely focus on studying (and probably volunteering a few hours a week), should this be my ideal path? My two concerns that I'd like to address are 1) I'm afraid that if I don't get a job, the first 3 months of my gap year will essentially be empty. What's the point of a gap year if I "look" like I did nothing for 3 months? I definitely have things I need to approve about my application, so I'm hesitant to waste any time. 2) If I'm interested in a job in research, probably a tech position, do these positions hire in August/September? Sorry if that's a dumb question, but I'm not sure if jobs like this at medical schools only hire during limited months.

I really appreciate your insight. I'm probably just nervous bc I just paid a lot of money for this test and am now worried that I didn't put enough consideration into it lol.

 

[freak7]

I worked 50+ hrs/wk while studying for the MCAT. I wouldn't recommend that much working while studying, but if you're only working part-time, it seems pretty doable. Plus if you really want to, you can work part time (or volunteer) somewhere that synergizes with studying for the test like a tutoring place where you can hone your math/science. Alternatively you can use a part time job as a break from studying. Do you really really believe you're going to fill up all of the wake hours of your life with studying for the MCAT? Most likely not. There's a lot of material, but theoretically you should already know a lot of it so it's not the biggest time-suck.

Excuse any errors, I'm quite hungry.

 

[ladymiresa]

I worked 50+ hrs/wk while studying for the MCAT. I wouldn't recommend that much working while studying, but if you're only working part-time, it seems pretty doable. Plus if you really want to, you can work part time (or volunteer) somewhere that synergizes with studying for the test like a tutoring place where you can hone your math/science. Alternatively you can use a part time job as a break from studying. Do you really really believe you're going to fill up all of the wake hours of your life with studying for the MCAT? Most likely not. There's a lot of material, but theoretically you should already know a lot of it so it's not the biggest time-suck.

Excuse any errors, I'm quite hungry.

Haha, well I definitely don't intend to work 50 hours a week. 40 hours, max, but I'm hoping part time. I agree that the chances of me being 100% MCAT 100% of the time is unlikely.... but is that the mindset needed to be successful?

Can I get a research tech position if I hold my application until August?

Does the 12/13 weeks seem like a normal timeline?

 

[tessellations]

I'm planning on doing something very similar to you. I'll be working part time in my lab, along with some volunteering (probably around 30 hours a week total), and will be studying for the rest of my time up until my test date in August. I've tried studying straight through and I just don't have the attention span. Plus it looks better to be able to multi task and not just spend 13 weeks studying straight without doing anything else productive.

 

[787593]

So I've registered to take the MCAT mid August. It should give me about 13 weeks to study after I graduate this May. Is 13 weeks a reasonable amount of time to study? My pre-rec classes are very recent but I haven't done any preparation for the exam, so I'll be starting from scratch.

For ~13 weeks (I might go on vacation for a week), how many hours a day am I looking at? 5 hours?

My parents are really pushing me to get a job, at least part-time, but I've read so many threads that recommend against working while also studying for the MCAT. If I have the possibility to not work and completely focus on studying (and probably volunteering a few hours a week), should this be my ideal path? My two concerns that I'd like to address are 1) I'm afraid that if I don't get a job, the first 3 months of my gap year will essentially be empty. What's the point of a gap year if I "look" like I did nothing for 3 months? I definitely have things I need to approve about my application, so I'm hesitant to waste any time. 2) If I'm interested in a job in research, probably a tech position, do these positions hire in August/September? Sorry if that's a dumb question, but I'm not sure if jobs like this at medical schools only hire during limited months.

I really appreciate your insight. I'm probably just nervous bc I just paid a lot of money for this test and am now worried that I didn't put enough consideration into it lol.

Don't work. Treat the MCAT prep like a job.

 

[jesie]

Keep your job, honestly. (Caution: this is an opinion) People on here are very dramatic about what it takes to properly prepare for the MCAT. I had a part-time job while a full-time student working in a research lab and writing a thesis my MCAT semester. I spent two months in prep (a few hours an evening, practice tests every saturday [those were most certainly the most important part]) and ended up with a 524. I obviously don't know you, but unless you have major catchup on content to do, 13 weeks is plenty. Keep your job.

EDIT: also, this path has you finishing your AMCAS in mid-september. Not lethal, but reconsider this timing.

 

[Afp0731]

Keep your job, honestly. (Caution: this is an opinion) People on here are very dramatic about what it takes to properly prepare for the MCAT. I had a part-time job while a full-time student working in a research lab and writing a thesis my MCAT semester. I spent two months in prep (a few hours an evening, practice tests every saturday [those were most certainly the most important part]) and ended up with a 524. I obviously don't know you, but unless you have major catchup on content to do, 13 weeks is plenty. Keep your job

I have to disagree with you about SDN people taking the MCAT too seriously. I had to take the MCAT very seriously to score well as did some of my peers. SDN illustrated an effective approach for me. Congrats on the score though!

 

[Nucleophile1]

Don't work. Treat the MCAT prep like a job.

Fully agree. I studied for about 9 weeks at ~55 hours per week and did well the first time I took it.

 

[Afp0731]

OP, 13 weeks is enough time but use that time wisely. If you have to work, you have to work, but try to prioritize the MCAT as much as possible. Taking the exam twice is a huge waste money and time.
I took roughly the same amount of time to study and treated the MCAT like a job. It's a good investment.

 

[Lucca]

YYou have more than enough time to study for it in and do well in 13 weeks. I did about 6 hardcore weeks of studying and did well.

Whether or not you work is a personal decision. In my opinion, if you don't *have* to work, then do not and treat the mcat like a full time responsibility. There is always time to do things like research or scribing for your app, but getting a high mcat score on your first try will make your life a lot easier in the long run

 

[tarheelpenner]

Depends on your study habits. I personally only needed about 90 hours of total study time to prepare for the exam. This was because I had recently taken almost all of the pre-reqs so they were fresh in my mind, and I generally tend to remember things pretty quickly. I had other friends who studied 300+ hours total. Totally dependent on you quickly you learn, how well you stick to schedules, etc. But in general, 13 weeks should be enough (budget your time! make a schedule!)

 

[787593]

Depends on your study habits. I personally only needed about 90 hours of total study time to prepare for the exam. This was because I had recently taken almost all of the pre-reqs so they were fresh in my mind, and I generally tend to remember things pretty quickly. I had other friends who studied 300+ hours total. Totally dependent on you quickly you learn, how well you stick to schedules, etc. But in general, 13 weeks should be enough (budget your time! make a schedule!)

Wtf...

 

[ladymiresa]

Thanks for your responses! I feel much more comfortable about the timeline now, even if I take on a part-time job. I think I will be disciplined enough to prioritize the exam, and I've done well in all the pre-reqs, so hopefully that means something. And even if I don't manage to find a part-time job in research (I realize I'm kind of behind the game here haha), I'm probably being neurotic that it will "look bad" to not have a job right out of graduation/be doing something very visible!

EDIT: also, this path has you finishing your AMCAS in mid-september. Not lethal, but reconsider this timing.

Excellent point! But I plan to apply summer 2018.

 

[tarheelpenner]

Wtf...

It's really not that impressive. I had a SUPER intensive biochemistry class (literally had to memorize all of the pathways, all of the amino acids, everything and then draw them from scratch). Plus i took Psych and Soci as classes, and had just finished Orgo and Cell Bio. So it was basically just reviewing stuff I had already learned for finals.

 

[787593]

It's really not that impressive. I had a SUPER intensive biochemistry class (literally had to memorize all of the pathways, all of the amino acids, everything and then draw them from scratch). Plus i took Psych and Soci as classes, and had just finished Orgo and Cell Bio. So it was basically just reviewing stuff I had already learned for finals.

Ahh that makes more sense. 90 hours cold would be awful haha

 

[watermelon master]

It's really not that impressive. I had a SUPER intensive biochemistry class (literally had to memorize all of the pathways, all of the amino acids, everything and then draw them from scratch). Plus i took Psych and Soci as classes, and had just finished Orgo and Cell Bio. So it was basically just reviewing stuff I had already learned for finals.

Pretty sure mostly every biochemistry class is like that?

 

[sullen-burger]

Pretty sure mostly every biochemistry class is like that?

Yea but you see, hers was SUPER intensive.

 

[tessellations]

Pretty sure mostly every biochemistry class is like that?

Nah, my class was much more focused on big picture stuff (e.g. major regulatory points, general properties of amino acids, what's coming in and out of cycles, major complexes, etc). I never had to draw out amino acids (I did need to be able to recognize them and their 3 letter codes) and pathways. Looking back I actually got a lot more out of it because I was focusing on what was important, although it was a tedious class because my professor wasn't always clear about what we needed to know. But not every biochem class focuses as much on brute memorization.

 

[JJRousseau]

A full time job seems like a bit much. Part time will add structure to your weeks which might help. I was doing my phd, but that's a different beast, complete control of my own time so I could use some afternoons in the two months leading up to it and my supervisors were reasonably understanding of an intensive two weeks of study where only marginal progress happened on the phd prior to the exam.


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[5words]

Why is he rushing for August? Op, would you mind taking the test in September or October? If you;re think on taking the test in August to apply the same , i'd advise againt it. Very risky!!

 

[ladymiresa]

Why is he rushing for August? Op, would you mind taking the test in September or October? If you;re think on taking the test in August to apply the same , i'd advise againt it. Very risky!!

I won't be applying this cycle, so the rush isn't there for that reason. I felt like I needed to just get it over with, I guess. I figured it more reasonable to concentrate my studies over the summer, and then get a job starting in September. Dragging it out seemed like it might be harmful. Also, I didn't even see a test date in October?

Not to mention, I already changed my test date from April to August (it was April before I decided to graduate early!) and paid that fee, :9 I'm not really looking to pay another fee haha.

 

[tarheelpenner]

Yea but you see, hers was SUPER intensive.

The other biochem professor at my school simply did recognition, multiple choice questions. My biochem professor literally wrote as one of the exam questions: Write out the 10 steps of glycolysis. Then every single tiny detail you got wrong (including arrows pointing in the wrong direction, using equilibrium vs. 1-directional arrows) was -1 point (the whole thing was worth 10). For me/my school, it was super intensive. But thank you for your attitude 🙄.

 

[watermelon master]

The other biochem professor at my school simply did recognition, multiple choice questions. My biochem professor literally wrote as one of the exam questions: Write out the 10 steps of glycolysis. Then every single tiny detail you got wrong (including arrows pointing in the wrong direction, using equilibrium vs. 1-directional arrows) was -1 point (the whole thing was worth 10). For me/my school, it was super intensive. But thank you for your attitude 🙄.

Wow, that's MUCHO intense.

 

[tarheelpenner]

Wow, that's MUCHO intense.

Can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not, but it made me laugh.

 

[sullen-burger]

The other biochem professor at my school simply did recognition, multiple choice questions. My biochem professor literally wrote as one of the exam questions: Write out the 10 steps of glycolysis. Then every single tiny detail you got wrong (including arrows pointing in the wrong direction, using equilibrium vs. 1-directional arrows) was -1 point (the whole thing was worth 10). For me/my school, it was super intensive.

We're all super impressed.


Edit SUPER 😉

 

[tarheelpenner]

We're all super impressed.


Edit SUPER 😉

Everyone calm down. No one should be impressed. Its a class and I did it. Just explaining why I didn't spend as much time studying for the MCAT.

Geez. SUPER touchy forum. 😛

 

[787593]

Everyone calm down. No one should be impressed. Its a class and I did it. Just explaining why I didn't spend as much time studying for the MCAT.

Geez. SUPER touchy forum. 😛

 

[tarheelpenner]

View attachment 217013

especially appropriate considering your prof pic. Excellent work.

 

[GCS-15]

I think it just depends how well you can balance things. Are you decent at standardized tests? Did you do well in classes while juggling all the other activities? If so, you can probably work and study. For me, it wasn't possible. The whole summer was dedicated to mcat and that's what worked for me. 7am-12pm, 1 hr break, then 1pm-6/7pm, then gym. I had to practice a lot and for me, it takes a little longer to grasp the material so it really was 100% MCAT most of the day, besides eating/occasionally going to the gym.