MCAT 2015 Prep Course: useful/necessary?

[The One Who Knocks]

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Hello all,

I am planning to take the new 2015 MCAT this time next year (spring 2016), but I have question about the Kaplan MCAT Prep Course (or any other possible prep course for that matter). I have looked on their website and it seems that they only have dates for prep courses at the end of the spring/through the summer, which seems kind of useless for students who are taking their MCAT in their JUNIOR year (like me), as by the time you complete the course, your application is way late!

Does anyone know of any MCAT prep courses that run through a WINTER semester, so that I can take the MCAT when it ends in late spring? Where could I find information on that?

Also, in general, are these courses worth all the money? Or is it better to just buy the books? My only problem would be setting up a great MCAT study schedule, which I hear is what the course gives you.

Please let me know if you can help clarify! All the best!

 

[kevinsword91]

The Kaplan classes are great if you need the structure and set schedule of what you should be studying. I do think that if you are motivated enough and have a good deal of self-accountability you can study on your own with similar results. I know Khan academy is publishing a lot of MCAT 2015 videos in association with the AAMC which may be helpful.

Hard to judge if the courses are worth the money(I got my Kaplan course for $260 through a door prize). Really depends on what the course price is to you.

 

[mbeus]

I would definitely say they are worth the money. I did not take one the first time I took the MCAT. I never go to classes, and I learn better teaching myself from the books. I ended up with a 27. So I signed up for the MCAT again and took a Kaplan prep course. Got a 35. It's not that the teaching of subject matter is helpful - anyone can just learn that on their own. They do, however, provide very valuable strategies that ended up being super helpful for me. There is a reason people keep coming to these prep courses....