madeMD 3-month MCAT Study Schedule

[polyatomic]

Hey everyone! I decided to post the schedule that I followed for my MCAT. It is derived from SN2ed's 3-month study schedule, which I altered by cutting out material I didn't find very helpful and adding books that helped me significantly. Others who have used the guide commented that the schedule is also a bit more relaxed than the SN2ed schedule, which can be a positive or negative, depending on your needs.

For me, it was important that I took time to relax. I definitely have problem with nerves when it comes to large exams and can feel easily overwhelmed, so I needed to approach the MCAT in a way to avoid that. I found a lot of success and was very happy with this schedule. Though it was challenging, it fairly stress free and extremely efficient & effective. I think what's best about the schedule is that it has a major focus on targeting weak areas and constant review.

I tried to find a way to personalize a study guide for anyone. I've found the biggest problem with strict MCAT study guides is that they don't give you enough time to focus on weak areas. These are crucial, and often understated. Many test-takers assume that the topic is so small that it's unlikely to show up on the actual exam. Don't EVER make this mistake.

With my guide, I've established time at the end of the schedule where you can go over topics you have trouble with so that when it comes to the test, ideally you no longer have weaknesses.

Key words
Content Phase is when you study the biological and physical sciences chapter by chapter without pause.
Review Phase is after you have completed the chapters of each book and will focus mainly on weak areas. You will also begin taking AAMC practice tests
Break days are taken every 6 days. You are to do NOTHING related to the MCAT on these days. Read, take a walk, catch up on errands. This is your time to unwind. Don't try to get ahead by eliminating break days. You'll be more likely to burn out.
Verbal: Complete 2-3 passages every day (excluding break days). Do not complete the verbal passages from the AAMC self-assessment, those are used later on.
Optional: (Day 55 to Test day) complete a verbal full length (7 passages) every other day except on AAMC self-assessment days
Biological and Physical Sciences: You will rotate between Physics, Organic, Biology and Chemistry each day, completing one chapter each day during Content Phase.

DAILY BREAKDOWN (Instructions below)

Books/Materials
These books may be found on Amazon, from the company themselves or in the For Sale section on SDN.

• Berkeley Review
  • Physics I & II
  • Organic Chemistry I & II
  • Chemistry I & II
  • Biology I & II optional - for additional reading
• Examkrackers
  • Biology (content book, NOT Biology 1001)
  • Verbal 101
• The Princeton Review
  • Hyperlearning Verbal Workbook
  • Hyperlearning Science Workbook
• AAMC Self Assessment package (Biology, Organic, Physics, Chemistry, Verbal)
• AAMC Practice Tests
• Extra verbal practice
  • Kaplan Verbal Reasoning
  • Berkeley Verbal Reasoning

Instructions: Content Phase

• You'll the Berkeley (BK) books for reading and questions for physics, organic and chemistry. For biology you'll use Examkrackers (EK) for content and TPRH Science workbook for questions. Extra questions can also be completed for the other subjects using TPRH.
  • Example: Day 2 you will read the first chapter of organic in Berkeley, as notated by the number 1 under "Content". You will also complete a set of ~25 questions in Berkeley for chapter 1 organic, as notated under "Problem." In addition, you will review the questions you completed on Day 1 in physics as notated by R.
    • How to review MCAT problems: Reread and answer the questions you did the day before. Do not look at what you answered previously. Once you've completed the question, review what you answered yesterday and the correct answer.
    • For Biology, you will read the chapter in Examkrackers Biology, and complete ~25 questions in TPRH science workbook for biology. I have made a list of questions and topics that matches EK chapters to TPRH below:
    • Note: My suggestion of 25 questions may vary for different MCAT prep material or study habits. If you find 25 is too many or too few questions, feel free to adjust. Just remember to not overload yourself.

EK Chapter related to question/passages in TPRH Science workbook.

1. (question 1-20) (passage 1-12)
2. (question 40-55) (passage 30-36)
3. (question 21-30) (passage 13-22)
4. (question 56-64) (passage 37-46)
5. (question 65-77) (passage 47-55)
6. (question 89-102) (passage 65-69)
7. (question 77-88) (passage 56-64)
8. question (103-131) (passage 70-80)
9. (question 132-146) (passage 81-87)

• On Day 5, the instructions are only to review the questions from the previous day and to review a chemistry/physics equations. I suggest you write down equations as you go along. Also, the guide instructs you to write down a list of weaknesses from the last week. Write down questions you got wrong and try to figure out how you can improve or what you can learn to avoid making that mistake again. Write down what concepts you had trouble grasping, or don't totally feel prepared for yet. You'll use these notes later.

Instructions: Review Phase
By example:

• On Day 55 you will take all the notes of your weaknesses from previous weeks, reread them and condense them into a large list. From now on, you'll use this every week to turn your weaknesses into strengths!
• Day 62 you will take your an AAMC test. I specified AAMC 7, however you can use any practice exam you want. I didn't include AAMC 3 and AAMC 4 because they're not as relevant as the newer exams, and also because I don't believe overloading on tests is essential.
• Day 63 you will review the physical science and verbal section of the exam you took on Day 56. Also, review your list of physical and chemistry equations.
• Day 64 you will review the biological science section of the exam you took on Day 56.
• Day 65 you will go over your weaknesses. Do this by using the resources I listed at the bottom of the page to research questions or topics. Watch videos, read and answer people's questions. All of these things together will make you an expert! Also complete extra questions on your weaknesses from Berkeley or the TPRH Science workbook.
• Day 66 you will complete the assigned questions from the AAMC self-assessment. I have staggered the verbal passage assignments because the passages are ordered from easiest to hardest. By staggering, you get a mix of easy, medium and hard passages.
• Btw, I left Day 60 blank, you can use this as an extra break day or to continue reviewing weaknesses.

When to begin the MCAT Study Schedule
Look through the entire schedule I've posted and make sure you plan it out so you're doing the AAMC tests on days you have off. For example, I did every one of my tests on a Saturday because I had no classes or work obligations then. Also notice that the AAMC practice exams and your official test are all spaced out by exactly a week. Take advantage of this and try to do your practice exams at the same time as your actual exam, to simulate similar test conditions.

When you do start...
1. Write down your study schedule (or copy the above schedule) in Excel or on paper
2. STICK to the schedule! Do not fall behind! It'll make everything much harder. I've been there
3. Give yourself an extra week or two in the schedule for emergencies, birthday parties, etc.
4. Get excited! If you can't motivate yourself, I don't know who will!

If you want an extended version of the madeMD MCAT Study Guide….
I've written up a 4-month study schedule useful for anyone looking for a more intense review phase. I've posted the extended portions of the schedule in the post below, or you can read about it here: http://www.mademd.com/2013/12/mademd-mcat-study-guideschedule.html
Note also that the downloadable schedule includes all extended versions: http://goo.gl/InElnz

Download your own copy of the Guide: http://goo.gl/InElnz
For those of you who want to personalize the Guide by shortening it, lengthening it, or just by adding your own notes, you can download the excel spreadsheet I use here. If you change it in a way that works for you, let me know about it! I'd love to hear about your own adventures in creating a study guide.

Hope everyone enjoys this! This schedule gave me a lot of success for my MCAT and has put me in a very happy place for application season. Comment or leave a message for questions or to let me know what you think of the schedule! I'm also happy to help anyone in adapting this schedule to their personal needs.

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[polyatomic]

All the information here on the extended version and more can be found on my blog here: http://www.mademd.com/2013/12/mademd-mcat-study-guideschedule.html
What is the extension:
In addition to the 'Content' and 'Review' phase of the original guide, I've provided a 'Teach' phase that should be used at the beginning of the schedule. In the 'Teach' phase, you will use the time to teach yourself the material by thoroughly reading through the chapters of physics, organic chemistry, chemistry and biology.

To apply your knowledge, you'll use the example problems in the text, and possibly extra problems from the back of the book. The goal of the 'Teach' phase is to break up the original 'Content' phase into two phases: 'Teach' and 'Content'. This makes the schedule overall much more relaxed, and may enhance your learning.

Who will find the extension useful:
This is recommended for those of you who --
1. Haven't recently taken the pre-requisite courses (chemistry, physics, biology, organic chemistry): In your case, the extension will act as a refresher. This way you're not cramming relearning with problem solving all at once.
2. Struggled in certain areas of your coursework: If you've struggled in certain topics, you can take advantage of this extension to relearn specific subjects. This way, you can turn your previous struggles into strengths by simply targeting extra time into those areas.

How to use the extension:
1. Read to understand. 'Teach' phase will consist of a thorough, in-depth reading of each chapter assigned (these are the same books assigned in the original schedule). You can also choose to use your own books.
2. Practice, practice, practice. You will also work every example problem with detail and your full attention in the chapter. And you will not look at the solutions until you're finished! If you find you need more practice, you can use some problems from the back of the book.
3. No example problems in chapter? Some topics may not have example problems, especially biology. You may do a few problems from the back of the book for this, but remember, the key to biology is knowing the basic terms, and being able to apply them.
4. Quality, not quantity. Any problems complete, make sure you complete them in detail and understand why you got the answer right or wrong. Try not to complete too many outside the example problems in the chapter. The aim is to get a full grasp of the material, but in a relaxed manner. You should not repeat these in the 'Content' phase, though feel free to review them.
5. Reduce your 'Content' phase workload. Following the 'Teach' phase, you'll enter the 'Content' phase. Here, since you've already read the chapters completely, instead you'll skim through the bulk of material. Anything you still have trouble with, you'll focus more time into. You can also review troublesome topics more thoroughly in the 'Review' phase. In the 'Content' phase, you should complete the problems as they were originally assigned.

Now for the extended schedule:
I made 3 versions of the extension in order to suit different speeds that people wanted to go through the material.

Version 1 (Slow): Every day you will complete a single chapter. This version is good for those who want/need the most thorough reading of the chapters. However, it will take 37 days to go through the chapters without breaks

Version 2 (Medium): This version incorporates breaks every 4 days, however you'll be reading two chapters every day. This is best for those who don't need a relearning of every chapter, but rather have specific weaknesses in topics that they want to target. Break days can be used to focus on those weak areas as you come across the. This will take 23 days.

Version 3 (Speedy): You'll complete two chapters every day without breaks. This gets through the material the quickest (19 days), while making sure you've refreshed on every chapter. This is best for those who are familiar with the material, and just need to be reminded by going through the chapters.

Remember!
The 'Teach' phase is only an ADDITION to the original schedule, which was only 96 days. By adding the extension on, your schedule may be either 115 for the fastest, 119 for medium, or 133 days for the slowest version.

So if you're considering this schedule, think to yourself:
1. "Do I need a complete refresher on all the material?"
2. "Have a thoroughly struggled with a number of topics in my required coursework?"
3. "Do I need to take an extra month to really soak in the material to make sure I excel?"

If you answered yes to any of these questions, go ahead and take on the extra month. Just remember, it's always QUALITY over quantity. It's unlikely you'll see anything close to your practice questions on any real MCAT exam. Therefore you should be focusing on learning the material as thoroughly as possible and connecting different topics as you develop critical thinking skills.

Download your own copy of the Guide: http://goo.gl/InElnz
For those of you who want to personalize the Guide by shortening it, lengthening it, or just by adding your own notes, you can download the excel spreadsheet I use here. If you change it in a way that works for you, let me know about it! I'd love to hear about your own adventures in creating a study guide.

 

[chattavegas33]

Hi Polyatomic!! I'm about to start your 3 month study schedule. I see that you suggest doing 2-3 verbal passages each day and that I am to use EK Verbal and TPRH Verbal. Could you possibly give a little more guidance? Thanks!

 

[polyatomic]

Hi Polyatomic!! I'm about to start your 3 month study schedule. I see that you suggest doing 2-3 verbal passages each day and that I am to use EK Verbal and TPRH Verbal. Could you possibly give a little more guidance? Thanks!

Definitely!

EK and TPRH have noticeably different styles, as you might have read in other threads. You don't want to get used to any one style, so I would suggest switching between using EK and TPRH at least every couple of days. At the "Review Phase", you'll be using the AAMC Self-Assessment package for some of your verbal practice. This is great because it'll match the style of the actual MCAT. However, on the days when you're not using the Self-Assessment package, you should still be using TPRH or EK.

As far as how many verbal passages you should do per day - it depends on your own time limits and comfort level. Just try not to go over 3 per day, to make sure you don't run out of verbal practice by the end.

Let me know if that helped at all - and if I can clarify anything for you.

 

[edgerock24]

Will read this post later, but all I have to say is the girl [who I think] runs MadeMD (Asian chick) is an absolute smokeshow. Pure hot fire. Smoking hot.

 

[chattavegas33]

Yes that helps! Thanks for the clarification.

 

[asw98]

I want to take the MCAT in late August, hopefully the 21st, however my finals won't end until May 20, only giving me 93 days. Should I sign up for the MCAT for a week later and miss the first week of class or do you think it's ok to lose a few days.

 

[polyatomic]

I want to take the MCAT in late August, hopefully the 21st, however my finals won't end until May 20, only giving me 93 days. Should I sign up for the MCAT for a week later and miss the first week of class or do you think it's ok to lose a few days.

I don't know about you, but missing the first week of class would be stressful for me. There's a lot of flexibility built into the schedule, as you can probably see by the back-to-back days of 'take a break' and 'write down weaknesses & review.' This was done for cases like this where you might need to change the schedule or something of the unexpected occurs.

There's also a couple days in the schedule, other than the regular break days, where there's nothing planned. So you can cut those out. You can also combine some of the break days with weakness/review days. If you go and download the schedule in excel, you can edit the schedule however you need to.

Does that help?

Will read this post later, but all I have to say is the girl [who I think] runs MadeMD (Asian chick) is an absolute smokeshow. Pure hot fire. Smoking hot.

Thank you.

 

[asw98]

Yes, that helps a lot. I realized my finals end May 15, so I should be fine with August 21. Thanks! I will let you know if I have any questions