MCAT in May. Take GRE?

[Faze2]

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Hey everyone, I am going to be applying to SMP programs this winter and spring. I have spoken to a few of the SMP's in my area. Both of them have a deadline of mid July for the apps, but have emphasized that it is rolling admission. I am not taking the MCAT until May 23rd, mostly because my finals end the second week of May. (I'll be finished with my pre reqs) And one, I didn't want to take the test before I completed everything, and two, I wanted a week or two off to really get a final review in.

The one women I've been speaking with, who is very heplful and I have been in contact with for while, suggested that I move up my MCAT so I can get the scores in early June instead of mid to late June. While I agree with her, I think it COULD affect my performance on the test. The next earliest is May 10th, which is smack dab in the middle of my finals. She agreed that my first priority should be doing well on the test. She made a suggestion that I should think about taking the GRE and use that score, since I could get it in earlier and at least have my application complete much sooner, and then supplement it with MCAT scores if needed. This would be great but;

Here's the question finally: (sorry)

How much time do you have to devote to/how hard are the GRE's? I am extremely busy this semester, with very, very little time to spare. I would like to take them if it would help my chances, but how much time do you have to devote to the GRE's to do well? Any advice would be much appreciated. I think I would have a good chance at a lot of SMPs, so long as my MCAT and/or GRE is good. I don't want time to be the factor that keeps me out.

 

[CoolSpot7Up]

I can only give anecdotal evidence since I have not actually taken the GRE. But from what I hear from people who did take both: they spent 3-4 months studying for the MCAT, and about 1-2 weeks studying for the GRE.

 

[toothsome]

The GRE is not as easy as you think, point proven because you have not taken it. The GRE reviews basic math concepts that you might have forgotten and have to re-learn. My biggest problem with the GRE was the Verbal section and the possible 30,000 word banks they use. Most the words I have never seen. The GRE would be a great review.

 

[snoofle]

I spent about a month studying for the GRE at 2-3 hours every other day (but I suck at math)..The vocab is by far the most annoying part of the GRE..i memorized about 400 words in a month and spent every week going through it. As for the math, if you can crack the strategies and figure out the short cuts (I used a princeton review book for this), you'll be fine..also take an ETS GRE practice test off their website, they have a link so you can download a program called Powerprep and it has actual GRE computer tests so you can check out how much studying you might really need

 

[thenewgre]

I found a great site to help people prepare for the GRE and score high
it's called www.graduatetestprep.com . they have great exercises and tools to help you do well and it's quite affordable check it out!

 

[dsfan]

do the GRE just so you have something to use and maybe later update with a mcat score. with this in mind, spend as little time as possible preping for the GREs b/c you still have the, much more important, mcats.
yes I know its easier said than done, you want to do well on the gre with as little effort as possible while studying for the mcat and school....

PS: to quote a friend, the gre's are a walk in the park compared to the mcats. do take that with a grain of salt.