Long term study plan?

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browneyes124

Full Member
7+ Year Member
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So just wanted to get your thoughts on this. A while ago ( few years) a friend of mine knew this girl and she was like a perfectionist to the extreme. Everytime she'd finish a pre med class, she'd look at the official guide that has the content breakdown and fill in the section she just complete because it was fresh in her brain. So for example: if she had finished bio 1 last semester and bio 2 this semester, after this semester she'd write down notes and stuff on topics in the bio section of the guide that she learned in her class. I think she did this for like 1.5-2 years or so.
When she was finished with all her pre med classes, she studied " the tradition way" with like a review book and the notes she had taken down. I heard she made a really really high score like good enough for Ivy League.

I have shared this with a few people to see what they thought and it's always mixed reactions like oh that's stupid or that kind of smart. What do you guys think?
Like on one hand I see where she's coming from because I much prefer my notes that I take as oppose to anyone else and I feel like when I actually see my writing it like takes me back to that exact moment and it's like I'm actually in class hearing and seeing everything that happened that day. On the other hand, I feel like it might get kind of stressful it being so long term.
Oh and to clarify, she didn't start like actually studying for 1.5-2 years in advance, she just filled out the content and made helpful notes to jog her memory and actually like hardcore studied for like 3 months then took the test. I just wanted to say that because how I was explaining it I could see how it would sound like she had been intensely studying for 2 years.
 
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Definitely can't hurt if you have the discipline for it, although I think it's unnecessary. Myself and others I know scored 95th+ percentile with 2-4 months of hardcore studying. I never used the content guide either.
 
Seems reasonable, and it seems like it worked out for her. I definitely had the mcat always in the back of my mind while taking those classes, and kept up review of my flashcards even after finishing classes for that reason.
 
Definitely can't hurt if you have the discipline for it, although I think it's unnecessary. Myself and others I know scored 95th+ percentile with 2-4 months of hardcore studying. I never used the content guide either.
+1. It's not necessarily the content it's the analytical skills you gain along the way that makes the difference .
 
Definitely can't hurt if you have the discipline for it, although I think it's unnecessary. Myself and others I know scored 95th+ percentile with 2-4 months of hardcore studying. I never used the content guide either.
Well that's pretty impressive. Do you mind sharing what method you used to study? Like prep books, private tutoring, etc... also if books what company?
 
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The second problem with this method is I cant remember what I had for breakfast yesterday let alone orgo from years ago even with the help of flash cards and notes.
 
Everyone is going to have different study methods. If it worked for her, that's awesome.

FWIW, I got a 97th percentile on the MCAT after being out of undergrad for 10 years. Studied for 4 months while working full-time. So not everyone needs to study non-stop for years to do well.


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Everyone is going to have different study methods. If it worked for her, that's awesome.

FWIW, I got a 97th percentile on the MCAT after being out of undergrad for 10 years. Studied for 4 months while working full-time. So not everyone needs to study for non-stop for years to do well.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile
SAME!
 
Well that's pretty impressive. Do you mind sharing what method you used to study? Like prep books, private tutoring, etc... also if books what company?
18 full length practice exams taken over about 7 weeks. Reviewed each one in depth, meaning if I didn't know the content or reasoning of a question I learned it. I used tests from every major company, my textbooks, khan academy, and Wikipedia.
 
Everyone is going to have different study methods. If it worked for her, that's awesome.

FWIW, I got a 97th percentile on the MCAT after being out of undergrad for 10 years. Studied for 4 months while working full-time. So not everyone needs to study non-stop for years to do well.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile
Was it hard for you since it had been so long since you had been exposed to the material or do you think the prep books and stuff were as good as being in an actual class?
 
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Was it hard for you since it had been so long since you had been exposed to the material or do you think the prep books and stuff were as good as being in an actual class?

I think the prep books were a pretty good review and helped jog my memory from the stuff I'd learned years ago.

That being said, I took the MCAT without having taken Bio or Pysch/Sociology. The books themselves aren't a replacement for the class, but I supplemented with various videos on topics that I was iffy about. I guess it comes down to how able you are to self-teach.


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