MCAT Prep

[blazinfury]

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Out of those of you who have already persevered against the MCAT, any advice on how long you studied for it before actually taking the exam? Do you recommend prep courses (like Kaplan) or did you self-study? Can you recommend some good prep books? Thanks so much.

 

[Neuronix]

You should probably ask in the MCAT forum.

My study regimen was:
TPR course
I liked TPR over Kaplan cause they offered more actual instruction time
I did 3 hours of study or one course each day for 3 months
I did a full practice exam every weekend starting 2 months before the exam. Final 2 weeks before the exam got up every morning to be at the library by 8AM drilling verbal passages (they still first?).
In that time I went through just about everything TPR had given me

 

[Mazelia]

I was working full-time during my MCAT prep time, which was terrific.

I didn't take a course. I started prepping about two months prior to the test and went roughly in this order:

- Self-assessment by taking a full-length practice test.

- Reviewed material in an MCAT prep book (I think I used Barron's; it was okay.) Probably a couple of hours, a couple of nights a week.

- Took at least one full-length practice test every weekend. The tests on e-mcat.com are worth every penny! I also used old hard-copy practice tests from a friend who had taken a prep course, as well as the back-of-the-book tests in prep books. Library card FTW.

So that was the first time I took the test. I re-took it three months later (long story; I don't think it was because I prepared poorly) and had more relaxed prep for the re-take. I reviewed only the material where I was really lacking, and took a practice test or two during the 3-4 weeks prior to the test. I also used Kaplan's MCAT 45 prep book-- not because I was aiming for a 45, but because it was concise. It was very helpful in terms of strategy (and thus in confidence-building). Did lots better the second time. I recommend not taking a course if you have the motivation to study on your own. And I recommend not flipping out about it like I did the first time.

Good luck!

 

[solumanculver]

To be honest, I think that the only worthwhile resource is the collection of old MCATs on the e-mcat.com website.

I did one section a day for the month leading up to the MCAT and one test a day for the week before.

I also bought some test prep books, but I thought they were pretty much worthless...

 

[linuxizer]

I was working full-time during my MCAT prep time, which was terrific.

I didn't take a course. I started prepping about two months prior to the test and went roughly in this order.

Mine was similar. Was also working full-time. Studied 1-3 hours per night for 11 weeks. Used the ExamKrackers books, which are cheesy but fantastic in that they only tell you what you absolutely need to know. They have a two-month prep schedule that seemed to work well. Definitely pony up for the actual practice tests from the MCAT people. They're worth the (ridiculous amount of) money they charge.

Ari

 

[LunderKind]

Mine was similar. Was also working full-time. Studied 1-3 hours per night for 11 weeks. Used the ExamKrackers books, which are cheesy but fantastic in that they only tell you what you absolutely need to know. They have a two-month prep schedule that seemed to work well. Definitely pony up for the actual practice tests from the MCAT people. They're worth the (ridiculous amount of) money they charge.

Ari

I used the ExamKrackers books too and thought they were far more useful than the materials from Kaplan. ExamKrackers does offer courses too, but they aren't available everywhere. I can't vouch for their courses though, since I haven't taken one.

I really liked studying on my own as opposed to taking a prep class...I was actually in the unfortunate situation where I had to retake the MCAT to apply since my first score had expired. The first time around, I took a Kaplan class, and hated every minute of it. I was convinced my instructor didn't know basic bio. The second time, I decided to study on my own; however, this was possibly was made easier by already having taken it once.

I'd say, if you can keep yourself on track, you'd be better off studying on your own.

 

[JustAdocInBox]

I think the most useful thing about prep courses is that they put you on a schedule and give you an outline for prep. You have to be able to use the material to your advantage and be able to recognize when something is not working for you. For example, I realized a few weeks before my test that Kaplan verbal wasn't preparing me properly so I purchased an exam crackers book and worked passages out of that. Also, whenever I felt uncomfortable about a subject, I would go back to the original text book I used for my classes and reread the necessary chapter.

So, I think taking the class is a good idea because it helps you organize your time. However, you have to be proactive about learning the skills you determine to be necessary to do well on the exam.

 

[blazinfury]

In your opinions, what was the most difficult section of the actual exam and/or one that you spent the most time preparing for (English)?

Also, I was thinking of purchasing the Examkrackers series. Any advice where I can get the whole pack for a cheap price?

 

[Kraazy]

I think the most useful thing about prep courses is that they put you on a schedule and give you an outline for prep. You have to be able to use the material to your advantage and be able to recognize when something is not working for you.

Agreed. You have to be careful about choosing whatever works for your learning style. I was working full-time (and then some) and taking classes while studying for the MCAT, so I absolutely needed a structured schedule to keep me on track and a one-stop-shop for all the material. It had also been ~3 years since I had taken the intro classes that teach MCAT material, so I was willing to spring the $$ for a course to re-learn the material. I wanted to be able to do things on my own time and am not much of a classroom/lecture learner so I went for the Kaplan online course, which I completed in ~2 months, and then used the ExamKrackers MCAT package for ~3 weeks, which was awesome for boiling things down to just what I needed to know. I started doing prax exams (Kaplan and eMCAT--both came free with the course) about 1 month before my test date, I think. All seems so distant now...

 

[RxnMan]

You can find my experiences (along with another SDNer's) in the Re-App forum FAQ (2nd link in my signature).

I took the Kaplan course, and it was good up to a point. Taking one of their proctored practice exams (which you can do for free) is a great place to start.

 

[Fay]

I suggest buying a lot of cheap old editions of MCAT prep books (old edition and new edition are similar) and practice a lot. I like to cram at the last minute, but it's just me. I suggest learning about "what MCAT is about" early, so you can have a plan for yourself early (but you don't have to start the plan early if you don't need to).