MCAT Content Review Materials: Honest Opinions?

[fruitcake2511]

Alright guys, throughout the course of the last few days I have been trying to compile a list of MCAT content review materials and wanted to get some insight/opinions from people with past experience

From my research, I have established the following to be the most useful:
Official Guide to the MCAT by AAMC (more of a before I start studying to see what I'm up against read)

The Berkeley Review for Chem, Bio, Physics, Organic

The Princeton Review and 300 pg @MCATKINGS document for Psych/Soc

ExamKrackers as well as The Princeton Review for CARS

Nextstep for Verbal

As many of you know, these books are painfully expensive (especially bc I smell like broke lol) to buy new, so I'm currently working on getting used ones from people in my surrounding area. The Berkeley ones are more difficult to find so if I can't manage to get my hands on them, I was going to settle for TPR. Thoughts?

I also concluded UWorld is an incredibly useful tool and should be utilized, as well as official AAMC material (towards the end of content review).

Let me know your experience with these materials and if you consider them good recommendations! The overall appeal of the EK and Kaplan books pertain to my taste, but I was worried about them not being in-depth enough. I'll suffer without the pretty colors and pristine organization. All in all, I just want to crush this SOB.

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[fruitcake2511]

I was being a bit dramatic with my current financial situation, but I am most definitely on a budget. I should certainly qualify for the fee assitance with AAMC so that is a HUGE relief. I really appreciate all of your help! I will knock the Official AAMC guide off my list. Per your explanation, it kind of seems unnessecary. I saw a handful of people deem it helpful, but the content outline online sounds sufficient. I was originally considering Kaplan as my main study set, but saw so many mixed reviews that it kind of threw me for a loop and I started questioning that thought. I previewed their books online as well as EKs and they certainly seem less overwhelming than TPRs. Tbf, TPR did just look like a bunch of text plastered onto a page, whereas Kaplan and EZ seemed to provide helpful graphs and optimal organization.

I believe UWorld has a 15 day-1 month free trial, figured it was worth looking into at least to try if that's the case.

I will check at my local library and maybe use Kaplan to fill in the gaps? The comprehensiveness of TPR is comforting to me. That is really the only factor that's drawing me more towards that direction.

I read somewhere that EK is more for if you've got a solid foundation of a subject and will make things difficult if the book is pertaining to a subject that's completely/fairly new to you, not sure how much truth that holds. I will be fresh out of some of my prereqs when I take the exam, so maybe that'll offer an advantage.

 

[Shotapp]

I believe UWorld has a 15 day-1 month free trial, figured it was worth looking into at least to try if that's the case.

I just checked their site. They only have a 7 day access without purchase. There is no 15 - 1 month trial. If you were referring to the 90 day trial thing, it's no longer available. I agree with MCATKINGS, Uworld is more expensive than TPR.

 

[fruitcake2511]

Well damn, that is what I was referring to. Glad you informed me of that. You both seem quite wise and I will take your advice. UWorld is appearing much less desirable

 

[PlsLetMeIn21]

Alright guys, throughout the course of the last few days I have been trying to compile a list of MCAT content review materials and wanted to get some insight/opinions from people with past experience

From my research, I have established the following to be the most useful:
Official Guide to the MCAT by AAMC (more of a before I start studying to see what I'm up against read)

The Berkeley Review for Chem, Bio, Physics, Organic

The Princeton Review and 300 pg @MCATKINGS document for Psych/Soc

ExamKrackers as well as The Princeton Review for CARS

Nextstep for Verbal

As many of you know, these books are painfully expensive (especially bc I smell like broke lol) to buy new, so I'm currently working on getting used ones from people in my surrounding area. The Berkeley ones are more difficult to find so if I can't manage to get my hands on them, I was going to settle for TPR. Thoughts?

I also concluded UWorld is an incredibly useful tool and should be utilized, as well as official AAMC material (towards the end of content review).

Let me know your experience with these materials and if you consider them good recommendations! The overall appeal of the EK and Kaplan books pertain to my taste, but I was worried about them not being in-depth enough. I'll suffer without the pretty colors and pristine organization. All in all, I just want to crush this SOB.

Excellent plan!

I definitely believe in starting with the AAMC book, because it shows you actual passages and actual questions. They tell you exactly how they ask their questions. Knowing the style of the exam really helps you zero in on how you should be thinking about questions. It also provides a comprehensive list of the topics covered on the MCAT.

The books you have selected are the best. I didn't use NS for CARS, but they are probably as good as anything else.

As for getting the books, I'd bite the bullet and buy the TBR books as soon as you can. Don't settle for something else to save maybe a hundred bucks in a process where applying costs 5 grand and yearly tuition costs more than a car. I looked around for used TBR books, but they were hella expensive for used ones. You can sell them for almost what you pay for them, so I decided to just get them new from their website and sell them once I got accepted.

In terms of UWorld, I didn't get the same good vibe others do. I think they are good for people who aren't using the books you have listed. I stopped using them midway because they were not the best use of my time. I had already finished TBR sciences and TPR P/S, so using them at that point was diminishing returns. Spend that money on AAMC materials.

The important thing is that once you have a plan, you dive in. Forget everything else and make studying your top priority. No more reddit or SDN until you are on to your next phase of preparing. You can do this!

 

[fruitcake2511]

Excellent plan!

I definitely believe in starting with the AAMC book, because it shows you actual passages and actual questions. They tell you exactly how they ask their questions. Knowing the style of the exam really helps you zero in on how you should be thinking about questions. It also provides a comprehensive list of the topics covered on the MCAT.

The books you have selected are the best. I didn't use NS for CARS, but they are probably as good as anything else.

As for getting the books, I'd bite the bullet and buy the TBR books as soon as you can. Don't settle for something else to save maybe a hundred bucks in a process where applying costs 5 grand and yearly tuition costs more than a car. I looked around for used TBR books, but they were hella expensive for used ones. You can sell them for almost what you pay for them, so I decided to just get them new from their website and sell them once I got accepted.

In terms of UWorld, I didn't get the same good vibe others do. I think they are good for people who aren't using the books you have listed. I stopped using them midway because they were not the best use of my time. I had already finished TBR sciences and TPR P/S, so using them at that point was diminishing returns. Spend that money on AAMC materials.

The important thing is that once you have a plan, you dive in. Forget everything else and make studying your top priority. No more reddit or SDN until you are on to your next phase of preparing. You can do this!

Thanks for the encouragement!! My "friends" think I'm insane but sometimes I wonder if they just want to deter me from this bc they think I'll feel "higher" than them in some sick way (which isn't true, makes me feel s***** and sucks) Doesn't matter what they think anyway, but it's frustrating to have virtually no one in your corner.

Glad to know I'm doing something right. I've got some books on the way to my house rn so as soon as they get here, I'm going to be ridiculously busy, especially since it's my last yr of undergrad. Really just want to knock this out of the park. If that entails gruelling months with the occasional breakdown and coming home from a long day just to engulf myself in mcat material and teaching myself concepts/studying the actual exam itself, then all I can say is hope I can get my hands on some coffee to get thru it. If anything goes right in my life, I want and need it to be this.

TPR ones and the NS Verbal Book should be here within a week. Literally got the entire set for $30 so couldn't pass that up. This is still way early into my studying so I will just bite the bullet and buy TBR books if I find them nessecary, such as needing a more in depth explanation of things. I've got some prereqs left, but they'll be done before I actually take the exam or at least mostly. How do you feel about studying an MCAT book along with simultaneously taking the course that goes along with it? Considered doing this for chemistry, have heard some found it to be incredibly helpful but insight from ppl with experience is always nice!

 

[Eye see you]

Hello. I'm still in the middle of content review using Kaplan but this is my opinion so far. Kaplan does a good job organizing the material and presenting in an understandable way. However, it does have its faults. As you mentioned, it's not very in-depth. I'm quite happy with their B/B, Orgo, and Gen chem books. This is because I'm already pretty comfortable with these subjects and I've been supplementing them with KA and different YouTube videos for clarification on certain topics (AK lectures and Leah4Sci are GREAT).

Physics is my worst subject and so far I am not doing well learning from the Kaplan book since it lacks depth. I'm considering purchasing TBR for physics.

If you're very comfortable with the content you'll be reviewing, Kaplan is a great choice and is very cost-effective. If not, I would recommend another book set. In any case, be sure to use ALL free resources you can access (KA and YouTube videos)

I also applied for fee assistance from AAMC and got approved and let me tell you, you will save SO MUCH and get access to the MOST IMPORTANT materials that will help you with your studies. They also cover application costs and even some secondary applications.

Best of luck

 

[WrenchesToMD]

As far as resources, just pick a set and roll with it. I used Kaplan and found it to be just enough in terms of content. In today's modern age, Khan Academy, AK Lectures, and other YouTubers are more than enough to expand on rusty topics. The only other content resource I used is ExamKrackers reasoning skills and Khan Academy Psyc/Soc 300p doc.

Practice resources I used are everything AAMC, Jack Westin CARS, Next Step CARS and Psych/Soc workbooks. I heard UWorld is great, but I was too close to my MCAT date to add more materials.

With regards to 3rd party CARS resources, use them ONLY to get practice reading dense passages and timing. I tried improving CARS by reading news articles daily as some suggest, but they held my attention about as much as a CARS passage did lol. So I figured if I must read things that are not the greatest of interest me, I might as well make it a CARS passage haha.

 

[fruitcake2511]

Hello. I'm still in the middle of content review using Kaplan but this is my opinion so far. Kaplan does a good job organizing the material and presenting in an understandable way. However, it does have its faults. As you mentioned, it's not very in-depth. I'm quite happy with their B/B, Orgo, and Gen chem books. This is because I'm already pretty comfortable with these subjects and I've been supplementing them with KA and different YouTube videos for clarification on certain topics (AK lectures and Leah4Sci are GREAT).

Physics is my worst subject and so far I am not doing well learning from the Kaplan book since it lacks depth. I'm considering purchasing TBR for physics.

If you're very comfortable with the content you'll be reviewing, Kaplan is a great choice and is very cost-effective. If not, I would recommend another book set. In any case, be sure to use ALL free resources you can access (KA and YouTube videos)

I also applied for fee assistance from AAMC and got approved and let me tell you, you will save SO MUCH and get access to the MOST IMPORTANT materials that will help you with your studies. They also cover application costs and even some secondary applications.

Best of luck

The fee assistance thing will be a lifesaver for sure! Actually didn't know that they also cover some application costs so that's even better news. Maybe things aren't always as bad or difficult as they appear to be, easy to get caught up in your own head though. I have heard something similar about Kaplan! So glad it is working for you & good luck on your exam, better get back to studying

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

I obviously can't answer this question without being biased, but I would like to offer you to try our free MCAT practice bundle to see if our materials fit your study style! The link is in my signature and it includes our diagnostic exam, a full-length exam with explanations, content review videos, and the first two hour lesson in our MCAT course!

Whatever material you do end up choosing, the biggest advice I can give you is to make sure you thoroughly review every question you do. People will boast about doing every practice exam and question bank and then getting a score below their expectations. I think this stems from not thoroughly reviewing and learning from the questions. It's important to do the questions, but I would argue it's even more important to review them and figure out what mistakes you're making. Good luck with everything and please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions!

 

[PlsLetMeIn21]

Thanks for the encouragement!! My "friends" think I'm insane but sometimes I wonder if they just want to deter me from this bc they think I'll feel "higher" than them in some sick way (which isn't true, makes me feel s***** and sucks) Doesn't matter what they think anyway, but it's frustrating to have virtually no one in your corner.

Glad to know I'm doing something right. I've got some books on the way to my house rn so as soon as they get here, I'm going to be ridiculously busy, especially since it's my last yr of undergrad. Really just want to knock this out of the park. If that entails gruelling months with the occasional breakdown and coming home from a long day just to engulf myself in mcat material and teaching myself concepts/studying the actual exam itself, then all I can say is hope I can get my hands on some coffee to get thru it. If anything goes right in my life, I want and need it to be this.

TPR ones and the NS Verbal Book should be here within a week. Literally got the entire set for $30 so couldn't pass that up. This is still way early into my studying so I will just bite the bullet and buy TBR books if I find them nessecary, such as needing a more in depth explanation of things. I've got some prereqs left, but they'll be done before I actually take the exam or at least mostly. How do you feel about studying an MCAT book along with simultaneously taking the course that goes along with it? Considered doing this for chemistry, have heard some found it to be incredibly helpful but insight from ppl with experience is always nice!

Please don't take this the wrong way, but bringing up how you feel about friends and what they think in a thread about materials is misplaced. You CANNOT study for this test if you let the drama of life affect you like that. Your head has to be in the right place if you are going to do well. Until you can let that go, you should not be studying for the MCAT.

Do whatever you do for studying, because you seem focused on spending as little money as possible rather than getting the best. If I want to win a race, I'll buy the closest car I can afford to a Ferrari. I'll work extra hours to afford the best because I want to win. I won't buy a Kia for racing because it was super cheap. That was my mentality when getting MCAT materials. I wanted to highest possible score on the MCAT I could get, because my GPA is not the greatest. I chose to buy about $1000 worth of materials. If you are choosing to use the cheapest used materials you find to save $300, that's short term gratification. To put it into perspective, that's equal to TWO schools on your application in terms of primary and secondary costs.

Good luck in your studies. If you choose to listen to anything I say, PLEASE get AAMC MCAT guide and do not skimp on AAMC materials.

As for using MCAT books side by side when taking classes, I did that my sophomore year. I wrote about that in another thread, but basically I borrowed three different MCAT review books from my big sib and her friends and looked at the chapters that matched what I was doing that quarter in physics and organic chemistry. I tried questions from all three companies and read their explanations of the concepts and one book stood out WAY, WAY, WAY above the rest. I ended up ordering those books new and used them in conjunction with my classes for my last two quarters. I got As in both classes both quarters and ultimately got a 132 on that section of the MCAT, so if you're asking me if I think it worked the answer YES! It was a great idea for me. You should definitely do that.

 

[fruitcake2511]

Please don't take this the wrong way, but bringing up how you feel about friends and what they think in a thread about materials is misplaced. You CANNOT study for this test if you let the drama of life affect you like that. Your head has to be in the right place if you are going to do well. Until you can let that go, you should not be studying for the MCAT.

Do whatever you do for studying, because you seem focused on spending as little money as possible rather than getting the best. If I want to win a race, I'll buy the closest car I can afford to a Ferrari. I'll work extra hours to afford the best because I want to win. I won't buy a Kia for racing because it was super cheap. That was my mentality when getting MCAT materials. I wanted to highest possible score on the MCAT I could get, because my GPA is not the greatest. I chose to buy about $1000 worth of materials. If you are choosing to use the cheapest used materials you find to save $300, that's short term gratification. To put it into perspective, that's equal to TWO schools on your application in terms of primary and secondary costs.

Good luck in your studies. If you choose to listen to anything I say, PLEASE get AAMC MCAT guide and do not skimp on AAMC materials.

As for using MCAT books side by side when taking classes, I did that my sophomore year. I wrote about that in another thread, but basically I borrowed three different MCAT review books from my big sib and her friends and looked at the chapters that matched what I was doing that quarter in physics and organic chemistry. I tried questions from all three companies and read their explanations of the concepts and one book stood out WAY, WAY, WAY above the rest. I ended up ordering those books new and used them in conjunction with my classes for my last two quarters. I got As in both classes both quarters and ultimately got a 132 on that section of the MCAT, so if you're asking me if I think it worked the answer YES! It was a great idea for me. You should definitely do that.

Yeah it is just frustrating when no one agrees with your decision and isn't there to support your choices, but that's life. Didn't take it the wrong way at all, appreciate what you have to say greatly and will most definitely not be skipping out on AAMC materials. It is early for me to actually begin content review rn anyway (as I certainly don't want to me stuck in the position where I started too early, things start running together, and I end up forgetting a lot of things that I started with) finally getting back into the rhythm of things, has just taken me a while. It's not that I will not pay for the best materials bc I will, as this exam is of great importance considering it basically determines your future, was just looking into alternative options first. Good to know using the book with the class helped you, I will do that as well. My main concern is honestly biochem. My school has a weird organic chem/bio chem hybrid class that's always offered and a normal biochem class that is sometimes offered. I desperately want the regular biochem class before I take the mcat. Are you the one I saw that took it without the class? I couldn't remember for sure!

 

[scoopdaboop]

kaplan + khan 96 page for psych + any khan videos on stuff u have troubles with is enough content. its important to take good notes, and i recommend doing flashcards for some materials, and writing it out for others.

 

[PlsLetMeIn21]

Yeah it is just frustrating when no one agrees with your decision and isn't there to support your choices, but that's life. Didn't take it the wrong way at all, appreciate what you have to say greatly and will most definitely not be skipping out on AAMC materials. It is early for me to actually begin content review rn anyway (as I certainly don't want to me stuck in the position where I started too early, things start running together, and I end up forgetting a lot of things that I started with) finally getting back into the rhythm of things, has just taken me a while. It's not that I will not pay for the best materials bc I will, as this exam is of great importance considering it basically determines your future, was just looking into alternative options first. Good to know using the book with the class helped you, I will do that as well. My main concern is honestly biochem. My school has a weird organic chem/bio chem hybrid class that's always offered and a normal biochem class that is sometimes offered. I desperately want the regular biochem class before I take the mcat. Are you the one I saw that took it without the class? I couldn't remember for sure!

Yes, I took the MCAT without having taken biochem. I do not recommend doing that, but I was fortunate that the biochem I had on my MCAT was all material I saw in the TBR books, The reason I recommend that everyone get TBR Organic book 2 is how it presents biochemistry.

 

[fruitcake2511]

Yes, I took the MCAT without having taken biochem. I do not recommend doing that, but I was fortunate that the biochem I had on my MCAT was all material I saw in the TBR books, The reason I recommend that everyone get TBR Organic book 2 is how it presents biochemistry.

My registration for spring classes (my final semester) starts in like two weeks, so I have been trying to figure out what to do about biochem. They are not offering a normal biochem class, which I feared would happen. The class they do have is titled "General, Organic, and Biological Chemistry" and only three credit hours. The course description says: The basic principles of general, organic, and biochemistry will be discussed. This will include measurement, nomenclature, chemical reactions, stoichiometry, gases, acids-bases, solutions, radioactivity, proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and metabolism. Includes lab. I cannot take that course since I will be in a regular organic chem class as well, so do you have any recommendations? The TBR Organic book 2 sounds like something worth investing in if it really presents biochem well! I was quite worried about that section if I am being honest.

 

[SleepingPillow]

I also wanna plug UWorld, I credit it for helping me push to 520+ on both FL2 and FL3. I don't have much money but it's really worth it, even though it's pretty pricey. I would not have improved so much if I relied on AAMC alone. Honestly it's only a matter of time before everyone uses it by default haha, since it's already the default for med school exams

Haven't taken the actual thing yet, but so far I would rank study materials UWorld=Anki=AAMC> KA> Kaplan books >>>> Kaplan FLs